Eighth graders read standard road maps and topographical maps, and examine the lives of pathfinders who opened the trails to the West. They develop Living History presentations, role-playing a character from the past.

Seventh graders research the Indian groups that lived 1,000 years ago on the Llano River. They analyze paintings and photographs of tools and artifacts, develop inferences and conclusions about how the Indians lived, and present the...

Students read a story about the Pocumtucks' religious beliefs. Using the text, they discover their concept of land ownership and how they migrated within their territory in different seasons. They use primary and secondary sources to...

Students identify the principles of democracy when framing the United States Constitution. In groups, they analyze the differences that were settled before anyone signed the document. They role play their own activity in which they...

Eleventh graders compare and contrast the type of immigrant that came to America during the 19th and 20th centuries. They write letters as if they were immigrants coming to America and what they faced and their hopes for the future.

Students make a decision for site selection for a farm during the 1840s in the Midwest. They build research and writing skills by recording the information used for analysis in a chart and as diary entries.

Fourth graders answer questions about John Smith, and also they figure out what was necessary are needed for surviival. Students are given a replica of Smith's 1612 map, they then answer questions using the map as their resource. ...

Eleventh graders explore how the native peoples had lived in the Connecticut Valley for nearly 10,000 years, prior to the English settlement and how their culture and life ways were markedly different from that of the English settlers.

Young scholars discover how the railroads contributed to the interdependence between farms and towns. Using the railroads, they describe the effect of them on western settlement and the relationship between their location and the...

In this colonial American instructional activity, students read a 1-page selection about the Jamestown Colony and then respond to 5 short answer questions about the selection.

Pupils explain the reason for English colonization. They review the reasons for the colonization and settlement in Virginia and trace the route from England to Virginia through the Chesapeake Bay to Jamestown on a map.

Learners explore immigration in the late 1800's. They identify and describe the settlement patterns of European immigrants to the U.S. Students work in groups to research immigration from specified countries.

Students identify and share Primary Sources in Early American History by Janey Levy. Then they discuss the usefulness of using primary sources in uncovering the past. Students also research original documents from Jamestown to complete...

Students research why immigrants came to America and the processes involved in the settlement. They write a script for a short play explaining the causes for immigration and situations that immigrants found themselves in.

Students investigate Hawaii's history to help them explain how a Reorganization Act may affect its residents. students track the region's history from statehood, to kingdom, to human settlement.

Students examine the language and cultural differences that were encountered by the Indians and the Dutch leading to disaster for the first European settlement in Delaware.

Student discuss whether coming to the United States was good for certain groups of immigrants. Using the internet, they examine settlement patterns for immigrants over a period of time. In groups, they role play the role of a family...

Students research the first Thanksgiving. In this first Thanksgiving lesson plan, students research the Internet about how the first Thanksgiving came about between the Native Americans and the Pilgrims. They complete a KWL chart, and...

Pupils view a PowerPoint presentation on the Michigan Supreme Court Historical Society's Civil Rights and/or the Native American Rights. They write a reaction paper and prepare for a class discussion. They work in groups and discuss...

Eleventh graders explore the reasons for migration to California during the Gold Rush.  In this American History lesson, 11th graders read letters about the opportunities and obstacles people faced.  Students create a map of...

Fifth graders study the story of the voyage of the Mayflower told from the view point of the three Allerton siblings who were on board the ship. The book tells of their voyage across the Atlantic and their first year here on the North...

Students gain general knowledge of the goals, route, participants, and significance of the 1899 Harriman Expedition. They link names of glaciers, fiords, mountains, flora and fauna with names of the 1899 Harriman Expedition...

Sixth graders investigate the characteristics of explorers. They research the factors that contributed to the first European explorers that came to North America. Students also concentrate on the interactions that explorers had with...

Fourth graders work to solve one of the major problems facing the Jamestown settlers, the best location to settle upon arrival in Jamestown. Students discuss and review the past European and American events that lead to the...