Laudonnière's Account of the 1564 Voyage

Clash of Cultures Activity

OBJECTIVES 

Students will recognize present-day landmarks and geographic features of St. Johns Bluff from a journal written in 1564 by the leader of the settlement at la Caroline.

AGE 

4th-6th grade

ENHANCES 

SS.A.1.2.2, SS.A.6.2.2, LA.A.2.2.2

TIME AND PLACE 

Classroom post-visit activity, 20 minutes. It is recommended that your class visit the Ribault Monument during their fieldtrip (the monument is located 1/4 mile from the park entrance on Fort Caroline Rd. and can accommodate a school bus).

WORKSHEET 

Laudonnière's Account (80k pdf)

This file must be viewed using Adobe Acrobat Reader. To download this program (free), click here.

PROCEDURE 

(please follow if you are not scheduled to receive a ranger program)


When your class visits Fort Caroline and reaches the river overlook behind the visitor center, make the students aware of the terrain. Point out that they are not at river level. To the east is the apex of St. Johns Bluff. When the French chose this area for their settlement, the Bluff was one the reasons since it offers a great view of the area. Ask the students what river they are facing (St. Johns). The French gave it a different name when they came to explore and claim this area for France (the Timucua had their own name for the river as well). The French arrived at the mouth of the river (where the river meets the ocean) on the 1st of May 1562 and called this the River of May.

EVALUATION 

1. St. Johns Bluff
2. Atlantic Ocean
3. St. Johns River
4. Individual teachers create the guidelines for this question, focusing on writing skills.