Students research different European colonies in the Americas and write encyclopedia entries.
See our Unit 8 Bibliography for suggestions. Explain to students that colonialism is a system in which a nation controls the land and people of another nation or area, usually by force. A colony is usually governed by the ruling nation and is used as a source of wealth. Discuss the European colonization of the Americas beginning with the Spanish explorations of the 15th century. Describe how the conquest of Native Americans and the Spanish colonization of the Caribbean and Latin American regions pushed other European nations to establish their own colonies.