1. Spaniards Reach the Americas
Lesson 2
Vocabulary
expedition
colony
Columbian Exchange
How did Spanish explorers bring change to the Americas?
Reading Skill
Cause and Effect
Teacher Notes
Essential Question: How did Spanish explorers bring change to the Americas?

2. Spaniards Reach the Americas
Christopher Columbus
Leader of an expedition to the Indies
Sailed west instead of east
Niña, Pinta, and Santa María
Reached present-day San Salvador
Sailed to America three times.
Greeted warmly by the Taínos
Gave them glass beads and brass bells
Teacher Notes
Columbus was looking for a sea route to Asia when he landed in the Central america. This began the Columbian Exchange of food, animals, and tools between the Americas and Europe.

3. Spaniards Reach the Americas
Christopher Columbus
Columbus called the Taíno “Indios” because he believed he had reached the Indies.
“Admiral of the Ocean Sea”
Spanish forced the Taíno to mine gold.
Many Taíno died in rebellions or from disease.
By 1500s, Taíno almost wiped out.
Teacher Notes
Opinions of Christopher Columbus have changed. At first he was “Admiral of the Ocean Sea,” hailed as a visionary sailor and heroic explorer. Recently, historians have considered his voyages from the perspective of Native Americans.

4. Spaniards Reach the Americas
Christopher Columbus
Many Europeans thought their technology and culture were superior.
Native American groups had developed governments, kinship systems, cities, and irrigation systems.
Columbus’s 1493 expedition landed on island of Hispaniola.
The Spanish set up a colony on the island.
Amerigo Vespucci was the first to believe that America was a new land.
America named for him
Teacher Notes
Taínos contributed the following English words:
keys (tropical islands)
hammock
hurricane
potato
savanna

5. Spaniards Reach the Americas
Columbian Exchange
Movement of people, animals, plants, and diseases
Teacher Notes
Europeans were introduced to new foods such as tomatoes and corn, which improved their diets.
They brought germs and disease such as smallpox and measles, which killed millions of native people.
Horses made hunting easier for Native Americans.
Cattle and pigs became new food sources for Native Americans.
Native Americans began to use wool to make clothing.