Columbus did not discover America!
Around the year A.D. 1000 Viking sailors landed
on the continent of North America.
These fierce traders and fighters had come from Scandinavia
in Northern Europe (Norway, Sweden, and Denmark) to Iceland.
From there they traveled to Greenland hunting for walrus.
The Vikings hoped to make money in the ivory trade with Europe.
Learn about the first Viking who landed on the continent of North America. Click here.
What was his name?
Next, led by Leif Ericson, they traveled to Canada. They called it Vinland.
Today we call this area Newfoundland.
Columbus did not land on the continent of North America until A.D.1492.
Do you know where he landed? Click here to see maps of
the Bahamas and the island of San Salvador.
Columbus came to the new world after the Vikings. Use your calculator to learn how many years later Columbus arrived here.
Click here to learn more about Columbus.
Learn more about the Vikings here.
Activity #1: Find four words in the readings above that describe the Vikings.
(They can be adjectives or nouns.)
Activity #2:
Copy the map below into Paint.
Label all the countries above that are highlighted in green.
Draw red lines from each of the Scandinavian countries to Iceland.
Draw a red line from Iceland to Greenland.
Draw a red line from Greenland to Canada.
Include a legend showing that the red lines represent Viking routes.
Click a continent above if you need help.
