📖

Mercantilism: England's Economic Plan

Colonial Economy and Trade

Day 36of 180
Week 8of 36
30Minutes
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🖨️ Download Worksheet (PDF)
🎯 What You'll Learn

Learning Objectives

1

Understand what mercantilism is

2

Explain how colonies benefited the mother country

3

Analyze economic relationships between England and its colonies

📖 Scripture Connection

Proverbs 13:11

“Wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished, but he who gathers by labor will increase.”

— Proverbs 13:11 (WEB)

Demonstrates the importance of honest economic practices and hard work

📦 Materials Needed

  • World map
  • Chart paper
  • Colored markers
  • Economic concept cards
📚 Step-by-Step

Lesson Plan

1Opening (5 min)

Begin with a map activity showing England and its colonies. Ask students to imagine they are merchants in the 1700s trying to build an economic empire.

💭 Review Question: What do you know about how countries traded in the past?
2Teaching (10 min)

Explain mercantilism as an economic system where colonies exist to make the mother country rich by providing raw materials and buying manufactured goods.

📌 Key Talking Points:
  • Colonies were seen as economic resources
  • England wanted to control trade
  • Raw materials flowed from colonies to England
  • Finished goods flowed from England to colonies
💬 Discussion Questions:
  • Why might a country want to control its colonies' trade?
  • How do you think colonists felt about these trade rules?
  • What resources did the American colonies have that England wanted?
3Activity: Mercantile Trading Game (10 min)
hands-on

Students role-play as English merchants and colonial producers, trading resources and manufactured goods.

📝 Instructions:
  1. Divide class into 'England' and 'Colonies' groups
  2. Give each group resource and product cards
  3. Simulate trading with specific rules that benefit England
  4. Discuss how the game reflects real historical trade
🔄 Variations:

Simpler: Use fewer trading cards and simpler rules

Challenge: Add taxation and trade restriction rules

4Closing (5 min)

Summarize how mercantilism shaped colonial economic relationships

📝 Review Questions:
  • What was mercantilism?
  • How did England benefit from its colonies?
  • What might have been unfair about this system?
🙏 Prayer:

Lord, help us understand how to be fair in our dealings with others and to treat all people with respect.

Coming up: Tomorrow we'll learn about the Navigation Acts and how they controlled colonial trade

💎 Memory Verse

Proverbs 13:11

“Wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished, but he who gathers by labor will increase.”

— Proverbs 13:11 (WEB)

🎯 Activity: Memory chain - students pass a ball and each says next word of verse

👨‍👩‍👧 For Parents

Teaching Notes

📚 Background:

Mercantilism was an economic system that viewed colonies as economic resources for the mother country

💡 Teaching Tips:
  • Use simple language to explain complex economic concepts
  • Encourage empathy for both English merchants and colonial inhabitants
  • Connect economic lessons to biblical principles of fairness
🤔 Common Struggles:

Understanding abstract economic systems and trade relationships

👀 Signs of Understanding:

Evidence of understanding trade dynamics and economic interdependence

🚀 Want More?

Extension Activities

  • Create a detailed map showing trade routes
  • Research a specific colony's main exports
  • Write a diary entry from a colonial merchant's perspective

Ready for Tomorrow?

Great job completing today's lesson!

Continue to Day 37 →Back to History & Social Studies