The 13 Colonies - Interactive Powerpoint & worksheet w/ answer key

This interactive PowerPoint lesson is centered on a "clickable" interactive map that allows teachers or students to select which region of the original 13 colonies the class will explore next! The 13 slide file contains three slides of information for each region, The New England, Middle and Southern colonies, with respect to their economic, political/governmental and cultural/religious origins. A graphic organizer worksheet is also provided so students can follow along and the teacher can check for understanding. (CA Standard 8.1) (13 slides total, including worksheet and answer key)

What makes this power point unique is that it is specially designed with hidden links that make it a truly interactive power point and perfect for any smart board, however only a laptop and a digital projector are required. The power point consists of one title page, one hub page (home page) which is the map of the colonies and nine content pages that detail the most important characteristics of each of the three distinct regions. Simply click on the title page to move to the hub page. Once on the hub page (home screen) the map image provides the teacher, or student, an opportunity to choose which region is explored and in what order. Once a region is clicked on you will be led to three successive slides which always go in the same order, economics then politics/government and finally culture/religion. However, if at any time you wish to go back to the hub slide of the map, simple click the “home” button on the bottom right of any slide. This gives the teacher or student total flexibility to explore the regions one at a time, or to explore each of the colonies based on one topic at a time, economics, and then politics/government and so on. The total number of bullet points on content each page is indicated by a number in the bottom left hand corner of the page.

The lesson can then be delivered as a teacher led activity, and the students can fill in the worksheet during the lesson, or the worksheet can be completed by students first, after reading the textbook, and then the power point can be used to check for understanding. You can even call students to the white board to pick the hidden link of their choice. I have also sent these PowerPoint’s out to my students on their netbooks and I’ve posted them on my website so they can interact with them at home for study.