colonial period, ca. 1600-1775

"In his famous sermon "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," Jonathan Edwards compared a person dangling a spider over a hearth to God holding a sinner over the fires of hell. Here, spiders and insects preach back. No voice drowns out all others: Leah, a young West African woman enslaved in the Edwards household; Edwards's young cousins Joseph and Elisha, whose father kills himself in fear for his soul; and Sarah, Edwards' wife, who is visited by ecstasy. Ordinary grace, human failings, and extraordinary convictions combine in unexpected ways to animate this New England tale"--.

Students learn about colonial America by connecting the people, places, and stories from the past with the stories, art, and culture of the modern world through live action, animation, and interviews.

Working on a research project for school, Greg is zapped into the Internet and plopped down at the historic site of Jamestown, where colonial interpreters teach him about the settlers' early struggles to survive, the start of the tobacco trade, and the way of life of the Powhatan Native Americans.

The father of a colonial family seeking a new and promising life in the deep wilderness of Maine in 1763 reluctantly leaves his 13-year-old son alone in the wilderness to protect their claim until he can return with the rest of the family and their belongings.

Describes the English, Spanish, French, and Dutch settlers' motivations for coming to the New World, the daily lives of each group, and their contributions to the development of American society.

Describes the origins and historical background of Thanksgiving, and looks at how the holiday is celebrated. Includes a visit to Plimoth Plantation, an Abnaki tribe myth on the origin of corn, and a craft demonstration.

Presents a reenactment of the voyage of the Mayflower in 1620 and the settlers' first year in the New World.

Examines the events that precipitated the American Revolution, describing British laws such as the Stamp Act and the Coercive Acts and the actions of such figures as Sam Adams and Patrick Henry, and discussing the reasons why the country went to war despite the majority's desire for compromise. Includes discussion questions and activities.

Describes the importance of the sugar trade to the early American economy and examines the ways slavery and indentured servitude, the development of significant new political ideals, and the Great Awakening shaped American life and values as they occurred side by side.

Reenactments, dramatic readings, and interviews with historians examine significant events in U.S history from 1585 to 1763, discussing the early European settlers and interaction with Native Americans, the Jamestown and Puritan settlements, and religious diversity.