| Objectives | Students will be able to: (1) explain the “sugar revolution”; (2) describe the plantation hierarchy; (3) draw a detailed plantation map. |
|---|---|
| Materials | Sugar revolution data, hierarchy diagram, drawing paper. |
| Key vocabulary | sugar revolution, monoculture, planter, absentee, overseer |
| Engage (starter) | (10 min) “Sugar changed everything. It made some rich, and enslaved millions. Why was sugar so powerful?” |
| Develop (main) | (35 min) 1. Sugar revolution (mid-1600s): shift from tobacco/cotton to sugar, requiring more land and labour. 2. Created a wealthy planter class, often absentee. 3. Hierarchy: absentee owner → attorney → overseer → driver → field slaves → house slaves. 4. Draw a plantation map with legend. 5. Write a letter from an absentee planter to his overseer. |
| Plenary (close) | (10 min) Map gallery; discuss perspective. |
| Assessment | Map detailed; letter reveals planter mindset. |
| Teacher notes | Analyze power dynamics. |
| Objectives | Students will be able to: (1) describe how enslaved people maintained their culture (music, religion, language); (2) explain forms of daily resistance; (3) create a “Resistance Quilt” square. |
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| Materials | Quilt square paper, fabric markers, resistance examples. |
| Key vocabulary | creole, obeah, maroon, sabotage, passive resistance |
| Engage (starter) | (10 min) “Enslaved people were not just victims. They created new cultures and resisted daily. How?” |
| Develop (main) | (35 min) 1. Culture: Creole language, African drumming, Obeah (spiritual practice). 2. Resistance: work slowdowns, breaking tools, poisoning, running away. 3. Design a “Resistance Quilt” square with a symbol of resistance (e.g., broken chains, a drum, a machete). 4. Assemble a class quilt. 5. Write an explanation of the symbol. |
| Plenary (close) | (10 min) Quilt assembly; gallery walk. |
| Assessment | Square symbolic; explanation clear. |
| Teacher notes | Quilt tradition from African American culture, adapt to Caribbean. |
| Objectives | Students will be able to: (1) compare revolts: Tacky (1760), Haitian Revolution (1791), Bussa’s Rebellion (1816), Demerara (1823), Sam Sharpe (1831); (2) create a comparative chart; (3) rank by impact. |
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| Materials | Revolt fact sheets, comparison chart, ranking criteria. |
| Key vocabulary | revolt, rebellion, maroon, Toussaint Louverture, Sam Sharpe |
| Engage (starter) | (10 min) “Revolts shook the Caribbean. Some failed, but Haiti succeeded. Let’s compare them.” |
| Develop (main) | (35 min) 1. Groups research a revolt: date, leader, causes, events, outcome. 2. Fill in a comparison chart (all groups share info). 3. Discuss: which had the most impact? 4. Rank them based on criteria (scale, result, legacy). 5. Write a justification for your ranking. |
| Plenary (close) | (10 min) Chart and ranking discussion; debate. |
| Assessment | Chart complete; ranking justified with evidence. |
| Teacher notes | Haitian Revolution as case study of success. |
| Objectives | Students will be able to: (1) narrate the events; (2) explain the role of Toussaint Louverture; (3) analyze its global impact. |
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| Materials | Haiti map, timeline, Toussaint biography. |
| Key vocabulary | Toussaint Louverture, Dessalines, colony, republic, impact |
| Engage (starter) | (10 min) “How did a slave revolt become an independent nation? The story of Haiti is one of the most amazing in history.” |
| Develop (main) | (35 min) 1. Background: French colony Saint-Domingue, richest colony in world. 2. Revolt begins 1791; Toussaint emerges as leader, plays Spanish, British, French. 3. 1804: independence declared (Dessalines). 4. Create a timeline of key events. 5. Write an essay: “Why the Haitian Revolution matters to the whole Caribbean.” |
| Plenary (close) | (10 min) Timelines displayed; essay thesis sharing. |
| Assessment | Timeline accurate; essay shows understanding of significance. |
| Teacher notes | Link to Jamaica’s support of Haiti later. |
| Objectives | Students will be able to: (1) explain the British Emancipation Act; (2) compare apprenticeship across islands; (3) analyze the challenges of “freedom”. |
|---|---|
| Materials | Emancipation proclamations, apprenticeship comparison chart, statistics. |
| Key vocabulary | abolition, apprenticeship, compensation, free village, indentureship |
| Engage (starter) | (10 min) “Slavery ended, but what came next? Freedom wasn’t as simple as a proclamation.” |
| Develop (main) | (35 min) 1. 1834-1838 apprenticeship system. 2. Compensation to planters, not freed people. 3. Challenges: no land, low wages, continued dependency. 4. Rise of free villages and peasantry. 5. Write a speech from an ex-slave in 1838 about hopes and fears. |
| Plenary (close) | (10 min) Deliver speeches; discuss “What is true freedom?” |
| Assessment | Speech captures historical context and emotion. |
| Teacher notes | Transition to indentureship next. |