Purpose:

The students will create a Middle Ages manor using the Neighborhood Map Machine program. The students will be required to include items from a list of buildings, areas, weapons, and defenses common to Middle Ages manors.

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Middle Ages Manor Map Instructional Movie
Press the play button above to watch a 5 minute instructional movie about this lesson plan.
See the written lesson plan below for more details.

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Curriculum Connection:

Social Studies
Standard 2
Students trace the development of European history from the Middle Ages to 1900.
            Objective 1
Trace historical events of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.
    * Identify the stages of organization of governance; e.g., Germanic tribes, feudal system, merchant class, city-states.
    * Contrast the economic systems of the feudal manor and the Italian merchant-princes.
Standard 5
Students examine the development of European culture from the Middle Ages to 1900.
            Objective 1
Describe life under the feudal system.
    * Compare the lives of a feudal lord and serf.
    * Examine the role of religion in everyday life.
    * Describe economic structures of the Feudal system.

Music (optional)
Standard 1
Objective 3
Discover how songs, singing games, and dances relate to various cultures in the history of the world. (See Social Studies Core.)
   1. Share songs, instruments, and music enjoyed by various cultures in the history of the world.
   2. Describe how music is used by cultures in world history.
   3. Play singing games, enjoy traditional folk dances and patriotic songs that have originated in the cultures of the world, and explain what they mean personally.

Educational Technology
Standard 5
Apply productivity/multimedia tools and peripherals to support personal productivity, group collaboration, and learning throughout the curriculum.

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Materials:

Computer for each student
Neighborhood MapMachine (located on the dock on all computers in Jordan School District computer labs.)
Middle Ages Manor Vocabulary List (pdf)
CD player, iTunes, or similar tool (optional)
Middle Ages Music (optional)

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Prerequisite Knowledge:

Students should have already studies Middle Ages Manors. This project is best used as a final review of the content.

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Procedure:

Have the students open Neighborhood MapMachine on their computers. (This program is located on the dock on all computers in Jordan School District computer labs.) Hint: Ask the students to turn off their computers’ sound before opening the program.

Once in the program, students will click on “Continue”, then “Create New Map”. Have them select “Large (24 X 24)” the click “OK”.

Give the students a brief tour of the program. Have them explore the variety of images they can put on their maps: roads, pathways, buildings, plants, people, animals, water, land, etc. While they explore, ask them to think about which items do not look medieval and which do. For example, there were not many cacti in medieval Europe, so pine trees would be a better choice. Even though there were farms in the Middle Ages, they did not use tractors.

They do not have to use the images for the same thing they were meant to be – they can get creative. For example, train tracks would not have existed during the Middle Ages, however train tracks can look like a good portcullis. Swing sets may not have been around during the Middle Ages, but a swing set can look like a catapult or a trebuchet.

Once the students have had a brief tour, have them get to work creating their own manor map. They must somehow represent and label all the items from the vocabulary list (pdf) on their maps, and the maps must be historically accurate.

When students have finished their maps, have them save their work (I have my students save to their own folder on the school folder.) and print.

To print: Click the “Print” button at the bottom of the Neighborhood MapMachine tools. Students will type their name and a title for the manor in the boxes provided. Under Print Options, students can include or exclude whatever they would like to. I prefer keeping the grid, but nothing else. I keep print size at “Single Page” and the print quality at “More Color”. Click “Print”.

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Technology Tips:

Many students do not like having the default red arrow on their project. The red arrow will not be printed on their final project as long as the student deselects “Student Marker” in the Print Options before printing.

Clicking on the artist pallet under the Neighborhood MapMachine tools allows the students to type (good for making labels of their required vocabulary) or to draw (sometime helpful in making pathways, etc.). They can select a tool and then select the color they want.

Clicking on the key button above the Neighborhood MapMachine tools brings up a list of items with their title. This is not as important for this assignment since the students are not using imnages for what they really are.

To remove items that have been placed on the map, click the “Select” tool, click on the unwanted item, then type the delete key on the keyboard. Items that have been drawn on, like pencil lines, must be erased. The eraser tool is in the artist’s pallet and looks like the top of a pencil.

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Adaptations:

You may shorten the list of required items for students’ maps. You could also give them more time as needed. I have had some classes do well with only 30 minutes, while with other classes I have given them three 30-minute sessions. It is up to you!

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Extensions:

Play Middle Ages Music in the computer lab while the students work on their maps.

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