Lat. Amer. Col. Lesson 2 Lesson Plan
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Dublin Core
Title
Lat. Amer. Col. Lesson 2 Lesson Plan
Subject
Pre-European Contact/First Contact
Description
This lesson plan is meant to have students critically analyze historical accounts that glorify the Spaniards at the time of the so-called “discovery” and conquest of what is today Latin America. Traditionally in American History textbooks, Europeans are portrayed as “heroic” in their colonization of the Americas, thus devaluing the experiences and pre-existing advanced technologies of the Indigenous civilizations and empires. In this lesson, students will analyze sections of Columbus’ diary edited by Las Casas and come to recognize the power that authors have in determining the way that history is written. This lesson will ensure that students are able to identify and understand the role of Las Casas as an editor of Columbus’ text on the “discovery” of the Americas as well as understand the need of Columbus to glorify himself in front of the Spanish Crown in his writing.
Creator
Yesenia Ayala, Valerie Benoist, Deborah Michaels
Language
English
Spanish
Type
Lesson Plan
Spatial Coverage
Caribbean
Cuba
Temporal Coverage
1400s
Audience Education Level
Low High School, Upper High School
Date Created
2018
Files
Citation
Yesenia Ayala, Valerie Benoist, Deborah Michaels , “Lat. Amer. Col. Lesson 2 Lesson Plan,” Native History Project, accessed April 28, 2026, https://native-history.sites.grinnell.edu/items/show/127.