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Overview: This lesson allows students to see what was exchanged between the eastern and western hemispheres after the explorations of Colombus. Objectives: Students will analyze the positive effects of Columbus’s journey to the Americas and the impact on their lives today of the meeting of the two hemispheres.
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Grade Level: 7-9 Subjects: American History, Geography, Latin American History Required Materials “The Columbian Exchange” U.S. News and World Report. July 8, 1991. P29-31.
Optional Technologies:
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Suggested
Procedure: 1. Have students write down what they ate for breakfast, lunch and dinner yesterday and share it with students sitting nearby (groups of 3-4). 2. Discussion: a. Which of those food items do you think is native to the United States. (You may need to discuss the meaning of “native”) b. Has anyone been to Europe? What are some of the foods people eat? c. What about animals? Which do you think are native to the Americas? What type of animals do they have in Europe? What animals are native there? d. Do you think Columbus had an impact on the foods or animals that are used today in Europe or the Americas? It may be helpful to have these answers written on the chalkboard so they are easier to reference later. 3. Hand out “The Columbian Exchange” and have students examine the pictures and content. 4. Discussion: a. Are you surprised by any of the items that came from the eastern hemisphere (old world) to the western (new world)? What about from the western to the eastern? b. Do you think any of these items have had a major impact on the culture in the eastern or western hemispheres? Lead kids to potatoes, tobacco, quinine, sugar cane, pigs and diseases. Talk about how life would be different without these items. c. Talk about the “Old World Portrait” and “New World Portrait” sections. Was there any information they found that was new or surprising to them? 5. Have
students write a paragraph response to the question: Overall, would you say the exchange of cultural items like these
was a positive or negative effect of the voyages of Columbus? Why?
Support you answer with specific details and examples from The
Columbian Exchange. Suggested Assessment: Assess student participation in the discussions. Collect paragraph responses and assess the quality of support for their opinion. |
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Credits Lindsay Gaida, Eden Prairie Central Middle School |
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