Historical map of usa (animated) http://www.pinterest.com/pin/407223991279983762/

The top ten languages in the USA, other than English 1. Spanish 2. Chinese 3. French 4. German 5. Vietnamese 6. Tagalog 7. Korean 8. Russian 9. Italian 10. Portuguese

Source: http://www.alsintl.com/blog/top-10-languages/ The four most spoken languages in the USA are 1. English 2.Spanish 3.Chinese 4. French

According to the U.S. Census Bureau 2010, nearly 1-in-5 people, or 47 million U.S. residents age 5 and older, spoke a language other than English at home at the turn of the 21st century. The report, Language Use and English-Speaking Ability: 2000, affirmed that 55 percent of the people who spoke a language other than English at home in the U.S. also reported that they spoke English “very well.”

After English and Spanish, Chinese was the language most commonly spoken at home (2.0 million speakers), followed by French (1.6 million speakers) and German (1.4 million speakers). Of the 20 non-English languages most frequently spoken at home, the second largest proportional increase was for French Creole speakers (the language group that includes Haitian Creoles), whose numbers more than doubled from 188,000 to 453,000.

In the state of New Jersey, there are approximately 40,000 people who speak French at home, and more than 21,000 who speak French Creole. [Source: http://www.census.gov/] Purple dots indicate large concentration of French speakers in the US

US Census Bureau 2010 Regions with large concentration of French speakers in the USA 1. Northeast 2. Southeast 3. California After the discovery of America in 1492, several European nations sent explorers and conquerors to find new riches and to claim and control new lands. The conquerors were to rule over the people who already lived there, by imposing hard work, new language, customs and religion. Punishment was severe to those who resisted the new system. Many lost their lives while fighting for their freedom. But is was not all pleasant for the conquerors. All European explorers in America encountered intense cold, disease and death. They found unknown hazards and uncharted routes. They met Native Americans who might be friend or foe, and other Europeans ready to go to war to fight over new territories. They even fought fiercely among themselves (treason, envy, vengeance) or for power and found treasures.

The early French explorers and settlers claimed ownership of the land and bodies of water they discovered during their expeditions, in the name of the king of France. They named these places with French names. For example, Louisiana, Vermont, Pierre (South Dakota), Boise (Idaho), Des Moines (Iowa), Detroit (Michigan), Baton Rouge and New Orleans (Louisiana), Montpelier (Vermont), Eau Claire and Racine (Wisconsin), Provo (Utah), Belle Plaine (Iowa), Fond du Lac (Minnesota), Sault Sainte Marie (Michigan), and Lake Champlain. Name five places with French names in the USA 1. Louisiana 2. Vermont 3. Pierre (SD) 4. Boise (ID) 5. Des Moines (IO) 5. Detroit (MI) 7. Baton Rouge (LA) 8. Montpelier (VT) 9. Provo (UT) 10. Lake Champlain (NY) 1. Jacques Cartier (1491-1557) was a French explorer who led three expeditions to Canada between 1534 and 1541. He was looking for a route to the Pacific through North America but did not find one. Cartier paved the way for French exploration of North America. Cartier sailed inland, going 1,000 miles up the St. Lawrence River. He also tried to start a settlement in Quebec (in 1541), but it was abandoned after a terribly cold winter. Cartier was given directions by Huron-Iroquois Indians for the route to "kanata," a village near what is now Quebec, but Cartier later named the entire region Canada. 2. Samuel de Champlain (1567-1635) was a French explorer and navigator who mapped much of northeastern North America and started a settlement in Quebec. Champlain also discovered the lake later named for him (1609) and was important in establishing and administering the French colonies in the New World. 3. Father Jacques Marquette (1637-1675) was a French Jesuit priest and explorer. He sailed to Quebec in 1666 and in 1671 started a Chippewa mission at the western end of Lake Superior. Louis Joliet and Father Jacques Marquette found the Mississippi River in 1673. They traveled along Lake Michigan to Green Bay, canoed up the Fox River, and went downstream on the Wisconsin River to the Mississippi River. They traveled almost to the mouth of the Arkansas, and then stopped because they were warned of hostile Indians and Spanish explorers. They returned via the Illinois River, then the Chicago River to Lake Michigan. 4.René-Robert Cavalier, Sieur de La Salle (1643-1687) was a French explorer. He was sent by King Louis XIV to travel south from Canada and sail down the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico. He was the first European to travel the length of the Mississippi River (1682). His mission was to explore and establish fur-trade routes along the river. La Salle named the entire Mississippi basin Louisiana, in honor of King Louis XIV and claimed it for France on April 9, 1682. He also explored Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, Lake Erie, and Lake Ontario. He tried to start a settlement in the southern Mississippi River Valley, but the venture ended in disaster due to illnesses and wars. Louisiana was passed to the Spanish in 1763, then was returned to French control in 1802. 5. Antoine Laumet de La Mothe de Cadillac (1658 -1730) was a French explorer, soldier, and leader. Cadillac founded the city of Detroit in 1701 and was the governor of the Louisiana Territory from 1710 to 1717. The city of Cadillac (in Michigan, USA), Cadillac Mountain (in Maine, USA), and the Cadillac car (an upscale General Motors car produced since 1903) are all named for Antoine de Cadillac. Name three (3) French explorers of the USA 1. Jacques Cartier 2. Samuel de Champlain 3. Father Jacques Marquette 4. René-Robert Cavalier, Sieur de La Salle 5. Antoine Laumet de La Mothe de Cadillac

In 1803, US President Thomas Jefferson arranged the purchase of the Louisiana Territory from the emperor of France, Napoleon Bonaparte. This would allow the US access to the Mississippi River and to the Gulf of Mexico. Show me videos The Louisiana purchase http://www.showme.com/sh/?h=Z6G7gyx The Louisiana Purchase is considered the greatest real estate deal in history. The United States purchased the Louisiana Territory from France at a price of $15 million, or approximately four cents an acre. The purchase was completed on April 30, 1803. The ratification of the Louisiana Purchase treaty by the Senate on October 20, 1803, doubled the size of the United States and opened up the continent to its westward expansion. The Louisiana Purchase. Draw a map of the USA in your French notebook. Then, color the Louisiana territory as it was in 1803.

Year: 1803 Sale Price: 15 million American President: Thomas Jefferson

French Emperor: Napoleon Bonaparte