Stargazing
What is the other name for the North Star?
Polaris
What was the name of the city that became the capital of the Spanish colonies in New Mexico and still exists today?
Santa Fe
What was the name of the first permanent English colony established in North America?
Jamestown
What was the name of the ship that brought the Pilgrims from England to Plymouth in 1620?
The Mayflower
What was the name of the French colony in North America?
New France
How many regions of the sky have been identified by the International Astronomical Union (IAU)?
88
In the early 1600s, Spanish missionaries built religious settlements in places like Santa Fe. What were these settlements called?
Missions
What happened to the Roanoke colony, which is often called the “Lost Colony”?
The colonists disappeared under mysterious circumstances; historians believe they may have joined nearby Native tribes or died from starvation.
What does “majority rule” mean in the context of the Pilgrims and the Plymouth Colony?
It means decisions were made based on what most people wanted.
What was the main type of trade that helped both the French and Dutch build strong relationships with Native American groups?
The fur trade
Name three different animals that people have identified as constellations in the night sky.
Lots of correct answers! Ursa Major (Great Bear), Cygnus (Swan), Canis Major (Great Dog), or Cancer (Crab)
What was Spain’s main goal in settling the borderlands?
To protect its empire by gaining wealth and power, often through the exploitation and enslavement of Native Americans.
What did Pocahontas do to help the settlers at Jamestown?
She helped make peace between the settlers and her people and later married John Rolfe, bringing temporary peace.
Where was the Mayflower supposed to land, and where did it actually land?
It was supposed to land in the Virginia Colony but instead landed in Massachusetts, where the Pilgrims founded Plymouth.
Why did Samuel de Champlain build his colony beside a wide river instead of farther inland?
Because the river made it easy for travel, trade, and alliances with Native peoples.
Which of the following constellations is associated with a figure from Greek mythology?
A) Neptune B) Perseus C) The Southern Cross D) The Little Dipper
B) Perseus
Life in the Spanish borderlands mixed many cultures. What three groups of people influenced daily life in places like New Mexico and Florida?
Spanish, Indigenous (Native American), and African peoples.
What cash crop, grown to be sold for money, became very important to the success of Jamestown and the Virginia Company?
Tobacco
Who were Squanto and Samoset, and how did they help the Pilgrims?
They were Native Americans who taught the Pilgrims to plant crops, fish, and survive their first year.
French explorers Marquette and Joliet paddled down a giant river in 1673. What were they hoping to find, and what did they actually discover instead?
They hoped to find a water route to Asia but instead discovered the Mississippi River flowed south to the Gulf of Mexico.
What is the name of the well-known asterism within the constellation Ursa Major that helps people find the North Star?
The Big Dipper
Why did Spain build missions and presidios throughout the borderlands instead of just one big city?
o spread their religion, protect their empire, and control the land by placing small settlements across a wide area.
What were the Powhatan Wars, and how did they impact the Jamestown colony?
They were a series of conflicts between English settlers and the Powhatan Confederacy, making it harder for peace and cooperation to continue.
What was the Mayflower Compact, and why was it important for the Plymouth Colony?
It was an agreement to make fair laws and govern themselves by majority rule—an early step toward self-government in America.
The French wanted their colonies to grow along the Mississippi River. What city did they build near its mouth, and why was that a smart choice?
New Orleans, because it was a powerful port for trade and travel throughout North America.