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Kelly
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| Posted: Oct 03 2005 at 11:18pm | IP Logged
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Gosh, we seem to keep going BACK in time, instead of forward. Decided to take a little historical hiccup from the American Revolution back to the founding of the colonies. Somehow my kids had missed Plymouth Rock and Squanto and all that, so we backstepped to the Colonial Era for a mini-refresher before continuing once more with the Revolution.
We're using the Brown Paper series "American Colonies" book as a spine for the younger ones, and like it, though it doesn't seem to have as many creative activities in it as the "American Revolution" book. Any great suggestions that your children have enjoyed? Especially wonderful books?
For the older children, we're using the Jackdaw packets on Jamestown, the Pilgrims and the French & Indian War, and reading, selectively, from "America is Born". I'm also having difficulty coming up with interesting activities for older children. In desperation I packed the children up and hauled them to Jamestowne, which has been great, but they're still not really "into" the era...yet. We have a whole week of Williamsburg to look forward to, so maybe that will help, but any inspiring projects you all can think of would be welcome. Of course, if Williamsburg doesn't do it, maybe nothing will 
We're planning to tackle Savannah, too, and found a great website thanks to this loop, on Teaching with National Parks. They have an interesting project on town planning that covers Savannah. I always forget the colonial era included Georgia and South Carolina! Any suggestions on living books from this era would also be welcome, especially on the settlement of Georgia and South Carolina and the establisment of colonies there. I've found next to nothing on colonial era Living Books having to do with Florida, either.Based on children's lit, you could almost forget that St. Augustine was a thriving town for nearly 25 years before Jamestowne was settled.
Kelly in FL...er...VA
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MaryM
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Kelly wrote:
| Somehow my kids had missed Plymouth Rock and Squanto and all that, so we backstepped to the Colonial Era for a mini-refresher before continuing once more with the Revolution. |
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Kelly wrote:
...though it doesn't seem to have as many creative activities in it as the "American Revolution" book. Any great suggestions that your children have enjoyed? Especially wonderful books? |
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A resource I generally like (sometimes gets too PC - depends on the topic) is Cobblestone magazine. They have some topics from past years that fit in this time frame (examples:Arts and Crafts of the Mid-Atlantic Colonies, Sammoset and Squanto). I know you can purchase back issues and often times libraries have a subscription. Anyway, they usually have some suggestions for activities, weblinks, additional books.
I really like both of these books (and the others in the two series) for hands-on activities, recipes, etc.:
Colonial Kids
Colonial Days
This colonial resource links site looks like it has lots to offer.
Kelly wrote:
Any suggestions on living books from this era would also be welcome, especially on the settlement of Georgia and South Carolina and the establisment of colonies there. I've found next to nothing on colonial era Living Books having to do with Florida, either.Based on children's lit, you could almost forget that St. Augustine was a thriving town for nearly 25 years before Jamestowne was settled.
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Afraid I can't help with living books from the colonial southeast. It's interesting because there is more literature centered around that same time period in the southwest, but not the southeast. I wonder why. Of course the obvious books I think of for general colonial time are Elizabeth George Speare or Jean Fritz.
A book that was recommended to me that might be of interest for this time period is Lydia Longley, the First American Nun by Helen A. McCarthy. It's a Vision Book but infortunately not one they have reprinted. One of the librarians here at our diocese/seminary library had pulled it to read since he was interested in that time period and showed it to me. I plan to get it when he is finished - it sounds interesting (young Protestant woman kidnapped by Indians during the wars with English settlers during late 1600s, ransomed by French-Canadian, girl converts to Catholicism and becomes a nun).
Recently ran across this title, Lorenzo's Secret Mission, but have not read it. It would cover the Spanish influence in the American Revolution which is rarely mentioned in the texts (when you get back to the Revolution  ).
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Mary M. in Denver
Our Domestic Church
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guitarnan
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| Posted: Oct 04 2005 at 7:33am | IP Logged
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Kelly,
Cobblestone magazines are available at my library, which isn't too great, so I'd bet you can find them in a big library system.
This website Market To Market has some activities and games that I think you could easily adapt. The bartering activitiy would be fun for younger kids.
Here's a website about a planned colonial community in Georgia, with some activities (mostly for older kids).
Frederica
I'll look around some more as time permits!
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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ALmom
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If you can get your hands on some American Background books, they'd be great. We have The Marylanders. Unfortunately they are mostly out of print. If anyone knows a source for them, I'd purchase more.
Perhaps Florida isn't covered much in your traditional histories because it would be embarrassing - you can probably get some background from Catholic textbooks and Ann Carrol mentions some information in her text.
Georgia was founded as a place for those serving time in debtor's prison in England to have a means of getting out and repaying their debts. I haven't found much on Georgia either. Although I do believe there was some tension between the Georgia colony (Protestant) and Florida (Catholic obviously) and that raids were launched from Georgia on the Spanish and Indians in Florida due, in part due to the Catholicism.
Janet
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JennGM
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Kelly,
This isn't a Living Book, but I stumbled across a cookbook called Food Favorites of St. Augustine by Joan Adams Wickham, written in 1973. She uses historical recipes of St. Augustine that include the Spanish, Minorcan, English and American recipes.
Have you found anything on the Minorcan? This was the first I've heard of this colony, and also I have no clue what heritage that is. From the book:
"1768: Minorcan colony establish at New Smyrna by Dr. Andrew Turnbull.
1777: Surviving Minorcans, numbering barely 600, migrated to St. Augustine, where their descendents [sic]live today."
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Jennifer G. Miller
Wife to  & ds1  '03 & ds2  '07
Family in Feast and Feria
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MaryM
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jenngm67 wrote:
| This isn't a Living Book, but I stumbled across a cookbook called Food Favorites of St. Augustine by Joan Adams Wickham, written in 1973. She uses historical recipes of St. Augustine that include the Spanish, Minorcan, English and American recipes. |
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Very cool! Recipe books based on history are fascinating.
Also a candlemaking thread was just started. Candlemaking (dipped tapers) is a very fun colonial activity.
I found this on one of the candle supply sites -
"Colonial women offered America's first contribution to candlemaking when they discovered that boiling the grayish green berries of bayberry bushes produced a sweet-smelling wax that burned clean. However, extracting the wax from the bayberries was extremely tedious. As a result, the popularity of bayberry candles soon diminished."
You could get some bottled bayberry scent and make your own bayberry candles.
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Mary M. in Denver
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JennGM
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MaryM wrote:
I found this on one of the candle supply sites -
"Colonial women offered America's first contribution to candlemaking when they discovered that boiling the grayish green berries of bayberry bushes produced a sweet-smelling wax that burned clean. However, extracting the wax from the bayberries was extremely tedious. As a result, the popularity of bayberry candles soon diminished."
You could get some bottled bayberry scent and make your own bayberry candles. |
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Aren't bayberry candles made from the wax illegal now? I thought I remembered that little tidbit.
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Jennifer G. Miller
Wife to & ds1 '03 & ds2 '07
Family in Feast and Feria
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Kelly
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Thanks for all the good suggestions. I actually have a bunch of old Cobblestones (and they sell them here in Williamsburg, too) so I'll check out that source for ideas. Also all the great book suggestions. I have "Lorenzo's Mission" and it's pretty good. The Spanish never formally declared with the Americans during the Revolution but they were quite committed to the American Revolution, despite the implications vis a vis their OWN colonies . Charles III, for all his warts, considered himself "enlightened" and liked the idea of a country founded on a principle, not on a monarchy (tho he, himself, was the latter, and his ideas came back to haunt his children). Also, of course, Spain didn't like the British, either...Anyway, "Lorenzo" is a good living history book about Spain's involvement with America. There is also a worthwhile Cobblestone issue on Spain during the American Revolution. If you are in Washington D.C., and walk the Aven. of the Americas, you will see statues honoring Spain's involvment, most notably, the statue of Galvez(as in Galveston)---alcalde of New Orleans and very supportive of the Americans. Pretty neat.
Regarding living history books pertaining to the Spanish colonial era --pre-Revolution--in the American South East, however, I'm still looking!I'll keep my eyes open for early Georgia history novels, too, when we're in Savannah. There WAS a fair bit of antipathy between GA and FL because the Georgians horned in on Spanish territory. In the 1600s, the English troops actually invaded our little town of Tallahasee,to raid the Mission there. Rather than have it fall to the British, the Spanish torched the fort and mission. In its hayday, there were over 100 missions just in the small area stretching between St. Augustine and Pensacola. There was definite tension between the Catholic Spaniards in Florida and the Protestants (and trouble making Huguenots) in Georgia.
Re: the Minorcans. There is still a largish Minorcan population in St. Augustine. Seems like I read they were lured over by the Spanish to settle, then enslaved, but I'd like to check that out a little more. I don't know anything about the Minorcan minority within Spain, and suspect there is more to this story!
Like the candlemaking idea. Sure my dds would go for that. It also occured to me that making paper (with rags) might be a fun activity---seems like I've seen kits available on that and instructions. Anyone out there ever made paper?
Don't ever let it be said that history is dull!
Kelly, sort of in Fl but not really
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MaryM
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jenngm67 wrote:
| Aren't bayberry candles made from the wax illegal now? I thought I remembered that little tidbit. |
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I have no idea - I wonder why that would be. Can't find anything on the internet (like that makes it true or not  ). It would be interesting to find out if that were the case. I was implying using parafin wax and bayberry fragrance anyway, not actually boiling the berries, which seems like it would be tons of work.
I did see at another site that bayberries are also called candleberries.
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Mary M. in Denver
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MaryM
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I found this website with a list of colonial fiction. I've read a few but most are new to me so have no idea if they are decent literature. One struck me as what you are probably looking (unless you've already seen this).
Siege! The Story of St. Augustine in 1702 by Wilma Pitchford Hayes. - "The Spanish colonists in St. Augustine withdraw to the fort as the English approach the town hoping to claim it and subsequently all Florida for England."
Funny thing about the list - it seems like every other title is about a girl or boy being kidnapped and raised by Indians. There is an over abundance of that topic - why couldn't some of those authors have focused on the neglected Southeast and Spanish influence.
Some other ideas for colonial activities:
Making quill & walnut ink
Materials for ink:
10 walnut shells
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Hammer
Old cloth/rag
Saucepan
Small jar with lid
Strainer
-Using hammer, crush the shells in the cloth
-Add the shells and water to the saucepan. Bring to a boil, simmer 45 minutes or until dark brown. (Much of the water will evaporate.)
-Remove the ink from the burner and let it cool.
-Strain it into the jar and add vinegar and salt (this preserves the ink).
Here's how to cut quill pens from feathers
Stenciling- Since paint was scarce in colonial times. Stenciling was a popular way to decorate bare walls and furniture using only a little paint.
Silhouettes- A way to preserve a likeness of someone in colonial times in a way that was more affordable than an oil painting.
To make a silhouette, sit your subject about 12-18" in front of a wall, facing parallel to it. Shine a bright light on them, so that their shadow falls on the wall. You may have to adjust the placement of the light and subject so the shadow is sharp and details show up well. Hang a black piece of paper on the wall so the shadow fits onto it. Carefully trace the outline of the shadow with a pencil. Cut out the tracing.
Dying wool using natural dyes - Here is a lesson plan someone did for natural dyes
Some ideas for the area of communications (after you have written your letter with quill and walnut ink).
"The first indication of an official postal system was in 1639 when the Massachusetts colony gave Richard Fairbanks permission to receive and dispatch mail from his home in Boston. He was paid one cent for each letter he handled. Letters and messages were carried by postriders-the first colonial mailmen. The postriders travelled a route called a post road. On the way they picked up news and letters and passed them on to the town criers. Letters were addressed by using descriptions, as there was no system of numbered addresses yet in existence. For example, a letter might be addressed to John Carpenter, house near the lumber mill. Boston, Massachusetts. The United States Postal Service was officially begun in 1753. Benjamin Franklin was the first postmaster general."
ACTIVITY
"Make up an address for your house. Remember, it cannot include numbers. It can include your street name. Think of the landmarks nearby that could help with your description, such as... Count how many houses you are from the corner."
Each day pick a different child to be the town crier. This child will be responsible for relating information of the day.
- from this website
Can't help you with making paper from rags. Michael's carries the Arnold Grummer’s papermaking kits which use recycled paper.
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Mary M. in Denver
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Kelly
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I'll check out the "Siege" book on St. Augustine. We plan to get over to St. Augustine fairly soon, so I'll look for more children's fiction while I'm there.
Re: the preponderance of Indian Captive style books, I had noticed that, too. Maybe the authors just think it has wide appeal (which it has-but give us a little more variety, pleeeease). The story of Mary Jemison certainly is very interesting, as well as the story of the girl who was kidnapped from Deerfield during the Deerfield Massacre. When she was given the chance to return, she decided to stay with her Indian husband---tho she did come back to Deerfield every summer and camp out in the back fields with her Indian family! Still, I always sense an overeagerness to paint the colonists as the Ignorant Bad Guys in these books, even if it's only implied. One thing I've always liked about Disney's "Pocohontas" movie (tho much of it drove me NUTS)was the song where both the Indians and the Colonists are singing "Savages, savages" at each other. It was definitely a collision of two alien worlds.
Back to South East colonial fiction. I can't say that I had lots of success in my search in Savannah bookstores, but I *did* find one nice children's book entitled "Oglethorpe's Children" by Suzanne M. Aviles, published by The Oglethorpe Press of Savannah. It is subtitled "Adventures in the New World" and I've been reading it to my littles. So far, so good. They're all liking it. Oglethorpe, of course, was staunchly anti-Catholic, but he was, afterall, a thoroughgoing Englishman, so no surprise, there. However, his attitude towards Catholics has not shown up in the book at all (yet, that is, tho his fear of the Spaniards has). Interesting aside, Oglethorpe's statue in Savannah faces South, the direction of his feared Spanish enemy! But back to books...I also found a children's biography on Oglethorpe entitled, "James Edward Oglethorpe" by Joyce Blackburn. That one actually discusses his founding of the colonial town of Frederica (mentioned on the Teaching History with HIstoric Sites thread), too.
Not on Georgia's settlement, but non-revolution children's fiction, I found, "Pirate Chase" by Earl Schenck Miers, about a 15 year old boy who is traveling TO England from Williamsburg when his ship gets raided by Blackbeard. Haven't read it yet, but it looks pretty good. Another one, for younger readers, was "Savannah of Williamsburg" by Jennifer Susannah Devore, subtitled, "Being the account of a young London Squirrel in Virginia, 1705". This is our next read-aloud!
On Jamestown, I also spotted a book called "Journey to Jamestown - My Side of the Story" One side of the book is about an English boy, Elias, who settles in Jamestown. After you read that, you flip it over, and there's the other side of the story, an Indian girl, Sahocan's, version of the same story. Haven't checked it out too thoroughly, suspect it's rather pc, but liked the concept, and my 12 yo dd liked the book pretty well. Another book, for the younger set, was "Anne of Jamestown" by Anne Price-Hardister. This is a picture book, with costumed characters shown in the restored Jamestown Settlement. Lots of good photos and info, and it portrays Anne and her family in a very positive manner.
That's all for now, but the search continues...
Kelly (back in FL, from VA and GA)
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4Real Forums : Across Time and Place
Topic: Colonial Era
