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Vikings in America

Viewing Ideas

Before Watching

1. Vikings have often been portrayed as fierce warriors and barbarians. What impressions do students have about Viking culture and colonization? As they watch the video, have students look for evidence to support or contradict these images of Vikings.

2. Ask the students to put themselves in the shoes of archeologists working to verify the theory that Vikings settled in North America around 1000 A.D. What kinds of evidence would they seek out? Where? What sources of information would they pursue? In what kind of evidence would they have the most confidence? As they watch the program, have students document the research stra-tegies of the archeologists and the evidence they gathered.

After Watching

1. What evidence did archeologists discover that supported the historical sagas about the Viking voyages? Discuss how archeologists in the program interpreted evidence to support their theories. What evidence did they consider valid? What evidence did they consider weak? Why is there still disagreement about the true location of Vinland? What other theories could be supported by the same evidence?

2. During the era of the Vikings, most Europeans believed that the world was flat and the ocean emptied into an abyss. What other assumptions in history have limited exploration and since been disproved?

3. The Vikings did not establish a permanent settlement in North America. One of the principal reasons for their failures seems to have been their difficult relations with Native Americans. As a class, brainstorm a list of differences that may have contributed to the conflict between these two groups.