Objective

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to apply arithmetic skills to solve problems related to Colonial America.

Materials and Prep

• Pen/pencil
• Blank paper
• Colonial America textbook or online resources

Activities

1. Activity 1: Currency Conversion

   Research the different currencies used in Colonial America and their values compared to modern US dollars. Choose a few examples and create conversion problems for yourself. Solve the problems using arithmetic operations.

2. Activity 2: Trade and Barter

   Imagine you are a colonist in the 18th century. Create a list of items you would like to trade or barter with other colonists. Assign values to each item and practice making fair trades using arithmetic calculations.

3. Activity 3: Colonial Measurements

   Learn about the different measurements used in Colonial America, such as feet, inches, pounds, and ounces. Convert between these measurements and modern metric units using arithmetic operations.

Fifth Grade Talking Points

• "In Colonial America, people used different types of currency instead of the dollars we use today. Let's learn how to convert those currencies into modern US dollars."
• "Colonists often traded and bartered goods instead of using money. We can use arithmetic to make fair trades and calculate the values of different items."
• "Colonial measurements were different from the metric system we use today. We can practice converting between these measurements using arithmetic calculations."