Ameri

Course 1 of 8 · 1607 to 1763

Colonial America

Before there was a United States, there were thirteen colonies.

6 modules · 24 lessons

  • Download on theApp StoreComing soon
  • Get it onGoogle PlayComing soon

The story in brief

The story starts with failed settlements and hard winters. Roanoke vanished, Jamestown survived on tobacco, and the Pilgrims signed an agreement aboard the Mayflower before they ever touched land.

From there the colonies grew in different directions: Puritan towns in New England, busy ports in the middle, large farms in the South. Town meetings and elected assemblies taught colonists to govern themselves, a habit that would matter later.

Three moments to know

  1. 1607

    Jamestown is founded

    The first lasting English settlement in North America, in Virginia. It survives, and later thrives, on tobacco.

  2. 1620

    The Mayflower Compact

    Passengers on the Mayflower agree to make and obey their own laws before landing at Plymouth.

  3. 1763

    The French and Indian War ends

    Britain wins Canada and the lands east of the Mississippi, and a new question follows: who will pay for the war?

What you will learn

Before there was a United States there were thirteen colonies. This course follows how they took root, from the first explorers to the eve of the Revolution.

  • Follow the explorers and settlers of Roanoke and Jamestown, and see how tobacco made Virginia grow.
  • Sail with the Pilgrims, sign the Mayflower Compact and survive the first winter at Plymouth.
  • Meet the Wampanoag and the other native nations of the 1600s, and learn the story of the first Thanksgiving.
  • See how Puritans, farmers and merchants built towns, schools, ports and trade across New England, the Middle Colonies and the South.
  • Understand how town meetings and elected assemblies taught colonists to govern themselves, and how the French and Indian War changed everything.

Inside the course

6 modules and 24 short lessons, in the order the app teaches them.

Module 1 · 4 lessonsExplorers, Roanoke and Jamestown
  1. 1Explorers Reach the New World
  2. 2The Lost Colony of Roanoke
  3. 3Jamestown: Survival, Tobacco and the First Assembly
  4. 4Let's Review
Module 2 · 4 lessonsThe Mayflower and the Pilgrims
  1. 1The Mayflower Sets Sail
  2. 2Crossing the Atlantic and the Mayflower Compact
  3. 3Plymouth and the First Winter
  4. 4Let's Review
Module 3 · 4 lessonsThe Native Peoples and the First Thanksgiving
  1. 1The Nations of Eastern North America
  2. 2Squanto and the Wampanoag
  3. 3The First Thanksgiving
  4. 4Let's Review
Module 4 · 4 lessonsThe Puritans and New England
  1. 1The Puritans and Massachusetts Bay
  2. 2Towns, Churches and Schools
  3. 3Self-Rule in New England
  4. 4Let's Review
Module 5 · 4 lessonsColonial Economy, Life and Self-Government
  1. 1The Middle Colonies: Ports and Open Markets
  2. 2The South: Farms, Tobacco and Trade
  3. 3Town Meetings, Assemblies and Self-Government
  4. 4Let's Review
Module 6 · 4 lessonsThe French and Indian War
  1. 1Britain and France Fight for the Continent
  2. 2Washington's First Campaign
  3. 3The British Victory of 1763
  4. 4Let's Review

Finish all 6 modules to earn the Colonial America certificate of completion, part of Premium.

Start Colonial America in the app.

Short lessons, questions along the way and a certificate when you finish.

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