For Teachers

The history of New Netherland is as much the history of America's colonization and settlement as that of the Virginia and Massachusetts Bay colonies. Under Dutch rule, a distinctive culture of diversity, entrepreneurship, religious tolerance, and global engagement emerged in the region that is now New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and parts of Connecticut and Pennsylvania. These classroom tools and professional development opportunities are designed to help educators teach a topic too often overlooked.

From the New Netherland Institute and the New Netherland Research Center.

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New York's Colonial Dutch History: An Educational Resource Guide Developed by the New York State Archives

This is an education resource created by the New York State Archives with funding from the Dutch Consulate with support from the New Netherland Institute to provide teachers with document sets and lesson plans highlighting New York's Dutch Colonial History.

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What Was New Netherland?

Travel back in time to the early 1600s and see what life in New Netherland was like—where European settlers lived, what food they ate, what games their children played—in this introduction to the people and places of Dutch North America designed for elementary and middle school students. Also see these classroom-tested questions designed to improve reading comprehension and to prompt analysis of What Was New Netherland.

More Classroom Materials Online

Downloadable Lesson Plans from the New Amsterdam History Center
The NAHC offers free lesson plans for the 4th, 7th and 11th grades; each lesson explores a different aspect of New Amsterdam history.

About the New Netherland Institute

For over three decades, NNI has helped cast light on America's Dutch roots. In 2010, it partnered with the New York State Office of Cultural Education to establish the New Netherland Research Center, with matching funds from the State of the Netherlands. NNI is registered as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. More

The New Netherland Research Center

Housed in the New York State Library, the NNRC offers students, educators, scholars and researchers a vast collection of early documents and reference works on America's Dutch era. More

 

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Subscribe to NNI's  e-Marcurius and DAG to receive information about New Netherland-related events, activities, conferences, and research.

 

Support NNI

By supporting NNI you help increase awareness of the 17th century Dutch colony of New Netherland and its legacy in America.