|
Compare and Contrast the Life of a Child Living at Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello and in the Quaker Village of Waterford
An Educational Lesson Plan for Grade 4: Virginia History
Overview:
Children tend to view history as a series of unrelated events. It is the purpose of the Virginia History Social Studies curriculum to teach our state’s rich past as an interconnected whole, a sum of its parts. Thus, students learn about the interaction of the topography of the land and its settlers, of how Native Americans, African-Americans, and white Americans were all interdependent and yet able to establish and maintain their unique cultures throughout the events of Virginia’s long history.
The Journey Through Hallowed Ground seeks to recognize and value hundreds of individual sites of our history, and still simultaneously view them as part of an interconnected 175 mile geographic corridor. In learning about our country’s history on this hallowed ground, students should learn to see the interconnections and the diversity as a function of time.
The People of Virginia and the Journey Through Hallowed Ground
 |
|
Geographic Regions of Virginia
|
Since its founding four hundred years ago, Virginia has been a land of contrasts. During the 18th and 19th centuries, there were large plantations owned by wealthy men whose economic existence depended on enslaved African labor. However, most Virginians were not large land owners. They were small farmers hoping to survive on what they could make, trade, and grow for their own families. Many small farmers banded together to form villages that served their common religious and economic needs.
It is the intent of this lesson to compare and contrast two extremely different life styles as seen through the eyes of a child living in the Virginia Piedmont along the Journey Through Hallowed Ground.
Lesson
Compare and contrast the life of a child living at Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello and in the Quaker Village of Waterford 
Objective:
The purpose of this lesson is to introduce students to the life of a child living at Monticello, a wealthy plantation located in the Virginia Piedmont and the home of a president of the United States, and a child living in the village of Waterford, a humble Quaker settlement in northern Virginia.
Materials:
As this lesson will offer many options for the teacher, any materials required will be listed in the activity descriptions.
Activities:
The lesson will first introduce a child’s life at Monticello and then at Waterford. Activities will accompany each part of the lesson. Also included is a separate set of culminating activities.
Section One: Life on a Plantation: Daily Life of Children at Monticello
Background:
Thomas Jefferson was the third president of the United States and author of the Declaration of Independence. He was born in 1743 near Charlottesville, Virginia. He had one brother and six sisters. At age 16, he entered the College of William and Mary and studied to be a lawyer. After graduating, Thomas practiced law in Williamsburg and entered politics. He also married a widow, Martha Wayles Skelton, and they moved to his home called Monticello. Monticello means “little mountain” in Italian. During the next ten years, Martha Jefferson gave birth to six children, although only two girls lived into adulthood. Their names were Martha and Maria. Unfortunately, Jefferson’s wife Martha died young.
Thomas Jefferson was a devoted father. He wrote his daughters often when he was away, and they accompanied him to France while he was in government service there. Once Jefferson retired, he returned to live at Monticello. His daughter Martha, her husband, and their eleven children also lived there. Jefferson was a devoted grandfather in his old age.
Daily Life
 |
|
Monticello and Garden with Jefferson's grandchildren
|
The Plantation
Monticello, together with five other neighboring farms, consisted of 5,000 acres of land. The house was originally built with eight rooms; however, when Jefferson retired he enlarged the house to twenty-one rooms. He was very interested in architecture, and the house included many inventions new to American buildings including the first dome built on a private house. Monticello was a working plantation as well as a family home. Initially tobacco was the main cash crop, but by the end of the eighteenth century, tobacco had worn out the soil and Jefferson and most of his neighbors switched to growing wheat. In order to support his vast estate, Monticello was home to 150 African-American slaves. Thomas treated these slaves well and tried hard to keep families together. African-American slave children worked alongside their parents every day except Sunday. Some of the slaves worked in the house and kitchen, many in the fields, and others worked on Mulberry Row. Mulberry Row was named for mulberry trees that grew alongside it. It contained many of the working buildings of the plantation such as the smokehouse, dairy, blacksmith house, nailery, joinery, carpenter’s shop, sawmill, and a stable. White and enslaved craftsmen worked there producing supplies that were necessary to support life at Monticello.
Food
Food at Monticello was plentiful and varied. Jefferson was an expert gardener who oversaw the planting and maintenance of at least 250 varieties of fruits and vegetables. He also planted large vineyards for making wines. While Jefferson was in France, he learned to love French cooking and taught one of his slaves, James Hemings, to master their recipes. Dinner at Monticello often was a mix of French and American dishes.
Clothing
At the beginning of the eighteenth century, children were dressed as small adults. Until they were five or six, boys and girls wore linen dresses that laced up the back and had strings to keep the child close by when walking. After that, wealthy girls like Jefferson’s daughters and granddaughters wore silk dresses with stays to improve their posture. Boys wore waistcoats, breeches, and silk stockings.
Education
Thomas Jefferson was a well educated man who believed in giving his children and grandchildren a good education. Martha and Maria were taught to read and write and when Thomas was a minister to France, both girls went to school there and learned French. Martha and Maria were also taught everything they would need to know to manage a plantation and be a wife and mother. When Martha grew up and became the mother of eleven children, she set up a classroom right at Monticello.
Free Time
Most wealthy white children during the 18th and 19th centuries learned to play music. Jefferson’s wife, daughters, and granddaughters played several instruments including the guitar, harpsichord, and the piano. They often played for guests who gathered in the Parlor after dinner. Board and word games were popular pastimes for all ages.
Communication
Before modern transportation, traveling between plantations on horseback took many days. With no telephone, writing letters was the main form of communication. It is from surviving letters that we have learned a great deal about life at Monticello.
Classroom Activities
1. Have the children locate Charlottesville, Albemarle County and Monticello on a map of Virginia. Discuss the topography of the area. Why did Jefferson name his home, “Monticello?”
2. Hand each child a copy of the picture above showing Monticello and its gardens with Thomas Jefferson’s grandchildren. Alternatively, use a computer and projector to display the picture for the entire class. Discuss as a group what the picture tells of life for a white child growing up at Monticello.
3. Make a mock-up of Monticello.
- Assign each student or team of students a building from the plantation.
- Divide the house into several areas or rooms. Have the students research the appearance and function from library materials and/or on the web.
- Students should then draw and cut out their room/building or use a paint program on the computer and create a rendition of their assignment to be printed out.
- Take a large piece of poster board or white paper and paste all buildings in their proper locations.
- Have students color in the landscaping area with crayons or markers.
4. After learning about Monticello and Jefferson’s family life, discuss as a class the life of a slave child growing up there.
- Would slave children have the time or freedom to stroll or play as Jefferson’s grandchildren did in the picture?
- Jefferson allowed his slaves to grow and sell crops for their own benefit in their free time. There is also evidence that some of his slaves were literate. Would this have been typical of plantation life in Virginia?
- Jefferson also worked hard to keep families together. Often three generations of African-American families lived and died at Monticello. Discuss how this would have impacted the preservation of black culture and traditions.
5. Make ice cream. It was one of Thomas Jefferson’s favorite treats. Take a poll of your students’ favorite flavors, then have them create a bar or pie chart of the results.
6. Write letters to each other. Assign each student a real or fictitious child who would have lived at Monticello and a “pen pal.” Purchase old-looking paper or dye some white paper with tea. If possible, show your students a quill pen. Have each class member write a letter to their friend describing a typical day in their life at Monticello.
7. If at all possible, schedule a field trip to Monticello.
Section Two: Life in a Village: Daily Life of Children in Waterford
Background
The village of Waterford in Loudoun County, Virginia, was founded in 1733 by Amos and Mary Janney. The Janney’s were Quakers who migrated from Bucks County, Pennsylvania seeking fertile farmland. They settled on the shores of the South Fork of the Catoctin Creek and were soon joined by fellow Quakers. Eventually, German Lutheran and Scotch-Irish Presbyterian farmers also arrived bringing with them skill in growing grains. Amos Janney built a log mill next to the creek and after his death, Amos’ son Mahlon built larger saw and grist mills on the same site. The town thrived as a commercial center for small neighboring farms. It was first called Janney’s Mill, but was renamed Waterford in the 1780’s after the Irish hometown of one of its residents. During the early nineteenth century, wheat and corn milled in Waterford was hauled to nearby Point of Rocks where it was loaded on barges and shipped down the Potomac River. After the Civil War, the town went into stagnation as roads and especially railroads passed it by. Luckily, Waterford was not deemed a good place for commerce or development, and it was left alone. In the 1940’s, brothers Edward and Leroy Chamberlin started buying and restoring the old buildings. Today the village of Waterford and its surrounding farmland are one of three National Historic Landmark Districts in the U.S. It is also a Loudoun County Historic and Cultural Conservation Site, a Virginia Historic Landmark, and on the National Register of Historic Places.
Daily Life
 |
Map of the village of Waterford, Virginia
Copyright Gene Scheel
|
The Village
The early settlers in Waterford were subsistence farmers who grew what their family needed to eat. In addition to the grist mill, the presence of a saw mill allowed farmers to cut their logs into planks for making homes, barns, and furniture. Historical records indicate that Waterford also had a blacksmith shop for making cooking utensils, fireplace tools, shoes for the horses, nails, hinges, and farming implements from iron and a tannery for making leather for making shoes, belts, and harnesses. Women made candles from beeswax and spun wool and some cotton for clothing. Religion played a central role in the community. The Quakers were devout and the first meetinghouse dates to 1741. As the village grew and became more diverse, the Quaker influence was tempered by other cultural and religious groups. Some residents owned slaves and slave auctions were even held on Main Street. However, since most of the settlers came from a background of religious persecution in Europe, they were a remarkably tolerant group who rejected the use of slavery so prevalent in the rest of Virginia. Waterford, thus, continued to be home to many free black families.
Food
Farms were managed by the male head of the household, his sons, and hired help if needed. Wheat and corn were grown, taken to the mill, and ground into flour and bran for the family. Anything extra could be traded for other needed goods. Families grew everything they needed in season and the women and daughters preserved their crops for the winter. Fruits, vegetables, cows, hogs, and flowers used as herbs for seasonings were all part of a typical small farm existence. Flowers were also used as medicine for healing.
Clothing
Small farmers had little money for buying expensive silk and velvet. Clothing was plain and made at home. Making clothing for the family was the job of the women and girls of the farm household. Girls were taught to sew at an early age and their first projects were often a sampler of stitches and quilt squares. As they grew, their mothers taught them how to spin thread and wool, weave other cloths, and sew clothing. Infants and toddlers were dressed alike in simple dresses. Boys switched to britches at around four years old.
Education
Quakers placed a priority on education. Children went to school when farm chores allowed them to be away for a day or more at a time. The one room school housed children of all ages. Many Quaker families secretly taught African-Americans to read and write as well. Subjects included reading from books called primers, ciphering (arithmetic), memorization, recitation, and stories with a moral lesson. These stories taught children to be kind and fair and to “do the right thing.” In 1867, the Second Street School was built for the purpose of educating African-American children of the community.
Free Time
Children in a community like Waterford had precious little free time. Survival meant the entire family had to work. However, simple crafts, games, music and picnics were popular. Girls made cornhusk dolls and used fabric scraps to decorate boxes. Boys made simple wooden toys like whirligigs. Jumping rope and making stenciled prints from potatoes were also popular pastimes.
Communication
The town center was the hub of communication. A trip to town with mom for marketing or dad to visit the blacksmith would certainly have been a highlight for a child. Children would also share their experiences and make friends at school. On Sundays and religious holidays, families from the entire community attended church together.
Classroom Activities
1. Have the children locate Waterford and Loudoun County on a map of Virginia. Discuss the topography of the area. Have students explain why Amos Janney chose to settle on a site next to water.
2. Hand each child a copy of the map above showing the village layout. Alternatively, use a computer and projector to display the map for the entire class. Discuss as a group the important features of the map.
3. Make a mock-up of the village of Waterford.
- Assign each student or team of students a building from the village.
- Follow the directions listed for Monticello. Make sure the final poster board village shows the topography of the land and the presence of the Catoctin Creek.
4. Discuss the life of a white, Quaker child living on a farm in Waterford. What would a “typical” day be like?
5. Discuss the life of an African-American child living in Waterford. Research the Second Street School and discuss why building this school was important in the history of the village.
6. Create crafts using materials that Waterford children would have had at their homes:
Potato Block Printed Paper:
- Bring several potatoes to class.
- Cut each one in half and hand one to each student.
- Have each student draw a shape on the flat part of their potato half and then scoop out the edges so the design is raised. If using a paring knife, perhaps parent volunteers could help.
- Dip each potato into a container of water-based paint.
- Stamp the potato onto clean paper to create a stencil.
- Exchange potatoes to decorate each paper with many shapes and colors.
- Use the paper for display, gift wrapping, or to decorate the boxes described below.
Decorate frames or boxes:
- Have your students bring in scraps of fabric, yarn, paper and a wooden or cardboard box.
- Cut out shapes of fabric and /or paper.
- Have each student decorate a box with items of their choosing using white glue.
- Line the boxes with fabric glued to the inside.
Create a class centerpiece of nature’s bounty:
- Bring in a large basket to sit in a prominent place in the classroom.
- Line the basket with burlap allowing it to drape over the sides.
7. Take a class walk around your school grounds or have the children bring from home pinecones, leaves, dried flowers, seed pods, Indian corn, gourds, fruits and vegetables, etc. to fill the basket.
8. If at all possible, schedule a class field trip to Waterford. The village offers walking tours, and the Second Street School offers an educational program designed for fourth grade students through the Living History Program of the Waterford Foundation.
Section Three: Making Connections: Compare and Contrast
Classroom Activities
1. Set up “Colonial Times” News Teams
- Divide your students into four teams
- Assign one team the role of Jefferson’s daughters or grandchildren, one team the role of an African-American enslaved child at Monticello, one team the role of a white small farmer’s child in Waterford, and the fourth team the role of a free African-American child in Waterford.
- Have each team review their portion of the previous lesson and conduct new research in the school library and/or on the web.
- Set up a series of discussion panels in which each team presents in character their information on the topics presented in the lesson: food, clothing, education, free time, and communication.
Extension: Use the news team approach throughout the year to allow your students to research, interact as a group, organize, and present information.
2. Mapping
- Review as a class prior information on the topography of Virginia and its influence on settlement patterns.
- Give each student a blank map of Virginia.
- Have each student color in the major mountain areas, rivers, and the fault line.
- Have the students locate Monticello and Waterford on the map and the nearest population centers.
- Discuss as a class the effect of the location of these two communities on lifestyle and communication.
3. Set up a class museum and have a special-event day to celebrate!
- Select an area of the classroom to be the museum.
- Place the Waterford centerpiece in a central location.
- Place the Monticello and Waterford villages on either side of the centerpiece.
- Ask the children to dress in colonial apparel and invite parents and school administrators to a special day.
- Use the news team format for the students to showcase their knowledge to the adults present.
- Serve colonial treats such as apple cider and cornbread.
Extension: Take the children to the school’s computer lab and have them create PowerPoint presentations of what they have learned.
Sources
Map: Geographic Regions of Virginia. Virginia Department of Education.
Monticello:
Monticello web site: A Day in the Life of Thomas Jefferson
Monticello, Home of Thomas Jefferson. February, 2003. Thomas Jefferson, Foundation, Inc.
Wikipedia online encyclopedia. Jane Braddick Peticolas. “View
of the West Front of Monticello and Garden,” watercolor. 1825.
Noted from Wikipedia: The two-dimensional work of art depicted in this image is in the public domain worldwide due to the date of death of its author, or due to its date of publication. Thus, this reproduction of the work is also in the public domain.
Monticello: A Guide for Visitors. Thomas Jefferson Foundation. Charlottesville, Virginia.
Waterford:
The History of Waterford,
Virginia web site
The Village of Waterford,
Virginia web site
Share with Us: Waterford, Virginia’s African-American Heritage. An Interpretive Guide to Your National Historic Landmark Village. The Waterford
Foundation, Inc. 2002.
Early History of the Waterford
One-Room School and Public Education for Black in Virginia, Supplement to the Social Studies
Curriculum, Loudoun County.
General Interest: Historic Communities Booklets (purchase):
Kalman, Bobbie.
Historic Communities Series. Crabtree Publishing Company. New York.
Visiting a Village. 1993.
Pioneer Projects. 1997.
18th Century Clothing. 1993.
Kalman, Bobbie and John Crossingham. Historic Communities Series: Colonial Home. Crabtree Publishing Company. New York. 2001.
Kalman, Bobbie and Tammy Everts. Historic Communities Series: A Child’s Day. Crabtree Publishing Company. New York. 1994.
Academic Interest for classroom use (purchase):
Monticello School Resource Packet, Thomas Jefferson’s Family Life,
for grades 3-6. It is available through the Monticello
educationpage |
