Women, Indigenous Groups and Enslaved Individuals in Colonial New York
Suggested Teaching Instructions
Women, Indigenous Groups and Enslaved Individuals in Colonial New York
Overview: The design of the lesson is to utilize New York Colonial documents from the “Consider the Source NY” website to illustrate gross disparities in how marginalized groups were treated.
Goal: The primary goal is to analyze the common held belief that some groups were grossly marginalized in Colonial America. Students will unpack specific sources that illuminate this truism.
Objectives: Students will garner an in-depth understanding of the specific way marginalized groups were treated in Colonial New York.
Investigative (Compelling) Question: Using the primary source selection, what are some specific examples that demonstrate how women, indigenous groups and enslaved individuals in Colonial New York were manipulated and marginalized by Colonial laws and customs?
Time Required: One 80 minute class period
Recommended Grade Range: 11-12
Subject: Social Studies
Standards: NYS Standard 1: History of the United States and New York
Next Gen Standard: Reading Standards
Credits: Greg Smith, Hastings High School, Hastings-on-Hudson NY
PREPARATION
Materials Used: Instructions and documents from Consider the Source.
Resources Used: All documents from Considerthesourceny.org. They are included in the attachment with the handout.
PROCEDURE
Description of Procedure:
-
This lesson comes into play when we are discussing American Colonial settlements and the larger events that will set the colonies up for the American Revolution. We will have already discussed how the American Colonial lifestyle was different for all, depending who you were.
-
The class will begin with discussion of marginalized groups. Opening questions will be things such as: Who are some groups you think were marginalized at this point? Were these groups treated differently depending on what colony they lived in? How do you think these groups fared in New Netherland and New York? Why? Why would these groups be marginalized? What would be some evidence the historians would look to to try and figure out how these groups were marginalized? Why?
-
Next, we will distribute the handout which asks students to analyze specific documents from Colonial New York, and draw conclusions from their study (see attached) .