New England colonies and society were very different from the Jamestown and subsequent Southern colonies. Find out the reasons the colonists had for founding the New England colonies.

Article with photographs on the expansion of the new England Colonies to include the Middle and Southern Colonies. Links to primary source documents.

View the complete text of the 1620 British Charter for the settlement of New England granting authority to colonize and govern.

In this lesson, 5th graders learn about the people who founded the New England colonies and the role that religion played in shaping them. Includes background information for the teacher. Students explore primary resource readings on the...

View the complete text of the New England Articles of Confederation 1643, an alliance of the English colonies of Massachusetts Bay, Plymouth, Connecticut, and New Haven.

A multi-purpose site that provides information on history and historic artifacts from New England. There are also some interesting games that serve to enhance learning about New England. Be sure to watch video demonstrations of Early...

Read about how the colony of Connecticut grew from an expansion of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. See how Thomas Hooker's idea of government resulted in a model of colonial charters, and find out how two very different settlements in...

Primary source documents on how the political relationship between the colonies and Great Britain changed from 1690 to 1763 and how the colonists responded.

Essay discussing the Bay Psalm Book (1640) and the New England Primer (1683). Topics include: Classroom Issues and Strategies; Major Themes, Historical Perspectives, and Personal Issues; Significant Form, Style, Artistic Conventions;...

No group has played a more pivotal role in shaping American values than the New England Puritans. The seventeenth-century Puritans contributed to our country's sense of mission, its work ethic, and its moral sensibility. Today, eight...

An overview of the Puritans who established the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the New Haven Colony and Rhode Island. The internal and external struggles with these colonies is discussed including the Salem Witch Trials, King Philip's War,...

Read the online historical text written in 1620 establishing religious freedom, means of governing, and rule by law in the Plymouth colony and New England.

[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text about the thirteen original colonies. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.

An overview of the Puritans who facing religious persecution in England set sail for the New World establishing the colony at Plymouth.

A map of the New England colonies showing the early permanent Pilgrim settlements and their dates of establishment, including Plymouth (1620), Little Harbor, New Hampshire (1623), Pemaquid, Maine (1625), Salem, Massachusetts (1628),...

A map of the New England Colonies showing the westward expansion of the Pilgrims from Plymouth (1620) to Stamford, Connecticut (1641). The map shows settlements in the area with dates of establishment given, colony boundaries, New...

Learn about the theory of mercantilism and how it affected the economies of the New England, Middle, and Southern colonies. Practice making a bar graph showing the value of exports to and imports from England between 1700 and 1774 with...

Read a brief description of the Pilgrims' journey to North America. Find out how many travelers on the Mayflower were actually Pilgrims, and find out why a mistake in navigation led to the first written constitution in the New World.

The Virginia House of Burgesses was the first elected legislature in the New World. Find out why the governmental conditions in England led to this representative government and how it was so different from the governing of colonies in...

This site describes the influence of the Reverend Joseph Bellamy and religion in 18th century colonial life. This lesson plan has excellent information, an inquiry question, historical context, maps, readings, images, and activities.

This 10-question multiple choice quiz is immediately scored and includes a variety of questions covering early settlement of the New England colonies.

The religious and civil conflict in England in the mid-17th century limited immigration, as well as the attention the mother country paid the fledgling American colonies. In part to provide for the defense measures England was...

Complete text of the Connecticut Colony Charter of 1662 which provided the basis for Connecticut government until 1818.

Beginning with a discussion on how people adapt to or relocate to environments, this instructional activity encourages middle schoolers to explore why the Colonists settled in specific regions. In groups, students examine primary...