1. Cities, Towns, and Farms
Chapter 6 Lesson 2

2. Benjamin Franklin
Although famous for activities later in life, Ben Franklin’s early life was extremely interesting and important.
When he arrived in Philadelphia, he found a job as a printer and is credited with, in time, founding many “firsts” for the city.
What were they?
What do these accomplishments
tell about Franklin’s values?

3. Colonial Towns What was typical colonial town like?
Vocabulary
Self-sufficient: relying on yourself for what you need.
Town Common: an open space in the center of many New England and Middle Colony towns where cattle and sheep could graze.
What was typical colonial town like?
What is its basic layout? Sketch a basic town on your whiteboard and describe it at your table.

4. Farming Families and Southern Plantations
Work was hard on small family farms. Southern plantations were large farms owned by weathy landowners. Most of the work on plantations was done by enslaved people.
What were some crops commonly grown on plantations?
What is a cash crop?

5. Lesson 3- Everyday Life in the Colonies
Most colonial children went to public school until their early teens, then went to work full time. Only a few went on to college.
What was the first college founded in the United States?
Even though colonial children spent a lot of afterschool time on chores, they still found time to play games and sports.
What activities did colonial children do for fun?

6. Religion in the Colonies
Many different religious groups lived in the colonies.
Some colonies were founded as places where people could practice their religion freely.
The Great Awakening revived many colonists’ interest in religion.

7. Reading
Reading played an important role in the colonies as a source of information, entertainment, and personal communication.
Why was reading such an important form of entertainment in the colonies?
Benjamin Franklin published "Poor Richard’s Almanac," from 1733 to 1758, using the pen name of Richard Saunders. It was an annual paper written about his fictitious character, “Poor Richard,” an unschooled but experienced philosopher.
almanac: a reference book with helpful facts and figures
The almanac was full of famous sayings such as "Haste makes waste" and "Early to bed, and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise." It also contained crop predictions, a chart of the phases of the moon, recipes, notes on fashion, and other comments on daily life.

8. Colonial Meals
Colonial meals consisted of foods made from corn, meat or fish, and vegetables. Desserts were common.
How were colonial meals similar to and different from foods we eat today?