Because the French and Indian war took place over large swaths of territory, there are several important forts, people, and other locations that students will encounter when studying this event. In order to help mitigate confusion and allow students to better understand each aspect, students can use a spider map to illustrate each person, location, or event.
In this activity, students will choose one of the major figures, battles, or terms of the French and Indian War to research. Following their research, students will create a spider map that reflects the description of the term chosen and the significance of it on the French and Indian War. Have students ask meaningful questions to show the term's importance.
Students may also benefit by creating a spider map that contains more than one term, person, or location. As an alternative to this assignment, students can identify and describe each thing in one cell. Alongside the illustration they create, the completed spider map will provide a quick reference for students to look back on.
(These instructions are completely customizable. After clicking "Copy Activity", update the instructions on the Edit Tab of the assignment.)
Student Instructions
Create a storyboard that describes a key battle, figure, location, or term from the French and Indian War and it's significance to the war.
Engage students by having them work together to build a visual timeline of key events and terms from the French and Indian War. This helps reinforce chronological understanding and makes learning interactive for everyone.
Give each student or pair a unique topic to research and present. This ensures full coverage of important terms while allowing students to become ‘experts’ on their assigned subject.
Ask students to prepare a short summary and a simple drawing for their event or person. Visuals and concise writing make the timeline engaging and easy to reference later.
Arrange all the student-created entries in date order, physically or digitally. This gives students a clear, big-picture view of how the war unfolded.
Use the collaborative timeline to review key concepts and ask guiding questions about cause and effect or the significance of each event. This encourages deeper thinking and recall.
Key terms for the French and Indian War include militia, Iroquois Nation, George Washington, St. Lawrence River, Forks of the Ohio River Valley, Fort Duquesne, Edward Braddock, James Wolfe, Treaty of Paris, William Pitt, Fort Necessity, and the Proclamation of 1763. Knowing these helps students understand major people, places, and events from the war.
Students can create a spider map by choosing a key figure, battle, or term related to the French and Indian War, placing it in the center, and branching out with questions and answers about its significance, role, and impact. Visuals and descriptions help deepen understanding.
A strong classroom activity is to have students research a key term from the French and Indian War and create a visual vocabulary board (like a spider map) with questions and answers that explain its meaning and importance, plus illustrations for each aspect.
Understanding the significance of people and places helps students see how different figures, battles, and locations shaped the outcome of the French and Indian War and influenced American history.
A spider map encourages visual learning and deeper connections by allowing students to organize information around a central idea, while standard worksheets usually focus on definitions and memorization without as much emphasis on relationships and context.