New Jersey

Summary
A lesson on the state of New Jersey. The reading is accompanied by true/false questions.

Objectives
• To introduce students to salient features about the state of New Jersey and its history.

Suggested Grades
4th Grade
5th Grade
6th Grade

Excerpt
New Jersey is located on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, the state just south of New York. The Delaware River forms the boundary between New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the west. The Delaware River widens considerably as it flows into Delaware Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. The state of Delaware is located west of the mouth of the Delaware River.

Early History
Around 1200 CE, the Lenni-Lenape Native Americans became the dominant tribe in the area of present-day New Jersey. The Lenni-Lenape, later called the Delaware by Europeans, were part of the Algonquin people who lived in present-day eastern Canada and the United States. Even though the Algonquin tribes spoke various languages, they all were dialects of a common language and Algonquins shared some spiritual beliefs and other social customs. In the Lenape language the name of the tribe means ?original people? and other Algonquins looked to the Lenni-Lenape as mediators and elders.

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