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Activity
Smithsonian Institution

Stamp Stories of Westward Expansion

For Teachers 4th - 7th Standards
What a fantastic project idea for discussing not only the history of America's expansion into the West, but for reviewing any major unit of history in your class. Pupils build stamp collections to visually represent themes of the unit,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Integrated Lesson Plan

For Teachers 4th - 5th
An ambitious and engaging lesson on the Westward Movement for your students to enjoy! Groups of learners rotate between learning tasks such as learning about the Chislom Trail, Lewis and Clark, and the Gold Rush. A WebQuest is also...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Pioneer America: Legendary Westerners - Can One Person Really Make a Difference?

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders research famous Americans from the Westward Movement and complete an interview. In this Westward Movement instructional activity, 4th graders work in pairs to research someone who was important during this time period....
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Helping Hand: The Role of Guides During Western Expansion

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students research and examine the lives and culture of western mountain guides during the early to mid 1800s. Students write reports about a guide they research, do a simulation of the guide by keeping a journal, managing money and...
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Lesson Plan
NET Foundation for Television

1850-1874 Native Americans and Settlers

For Teachers 4th - 12th Standards
Did Western settlers receiving free land from the Homestead Act realize it wasn't really free at all? Scholars investigate the impact Western expansion had on Native American culture in the mid-1800s. They use documents, timelines, and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Exploring Pioneer America

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders research pioneers who had a strong influence on westward expansion. In this westward expansion lesson, 4th graders write an essay about four pioneers and an interview script about one. Students work in pairs to present...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Moving West

For Teachers 1st - 5th
Students research the Westward Movement and struggles encountered by the pioneers as they moved from Nebraska, Westward along the Oregon Trail. For this Westward Expansion lesson, students read an Oregon Trail poem and visit 5 different...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Impact of Westward Expansion on Indigenous Populations

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students study the impact of westward expansion on Native American populations. They create a diorama of a Native American scene, write imaginary letters as a pioneer child reflecting on his/her experiences, and create story sticks that...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Keeping the Home Fires: The lives of Western women

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders explore the various trails that settlers took West from Missouri. They examine the reasons that people took these trails as well as the kind of people who made the journeys. They examine the Oregon, the Mormon, the Santa...
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Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

Settlement of Frontier Alabama

For Teachers 4th
What comes to mind when the class imagines settlers traveling out West? The lesson teaches pupils about the western frontier of Alabama and what life was like for people traveling West—in wagons with few possessions. Scholars write,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Values and Beliefs of Manifest Destiny

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders examine the beliefs of Manifest Destiny and its role in the California Gold Rush. They analyze a painting to gather information about Manifest Destiny.
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Lesson Plan
Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media

What Brought Settlers to the Midwest?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
Drawn by promises of fertile land, thousands of settlers poured West because of the Homestead Act of 1862. By examining images of the ads that drew them westward, learners consider the motivations for movement. They also consider how the...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Heading West

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Young scholars study the concept of the westward expansion. In this exploration of the western U.S. lesson, students participate in different activities that explain economic hardships, jobs, and land opportunities. Young scholars...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Flip It!

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Learners research an endangered animal using both printed material and the Internet. They organize their information and develop sentences to write a story to create a flip-it book. A worksheet is embedded in the lesson for students' use.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

American Indians

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Students research early Indian adaptations in this instructional activity. They research the different American Indian tribes. They also research and compare the tribes' rituals, daily lives, and their impact on the Europeans who came...
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Interactive
Curated OER

Plane/Plain

For Students 3rd - 6th
In this plane or plain worksheet, students choose the correct word to complete each sentence. Students choose plane or plain for 8 sentences.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Vast Ocean

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students explore oceans, and demonstrate reading comprehension skills, including reading strategies, inference, literal meaning, and critical analysis.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Mapping the West

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Learners determine how Americans' perception of the geographical features of the West changed following the Lewis and Clark expedition. They analyze historical maps of the West.

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