Students view and discuss historical documents regarding Native Americans and Californians prior to the gold rush in the 1940's. They complete a variety of activities designed to show what they have learned from these sources and class...

Eighth graders explore the components of the Westward Movement in the United States. Understanding the past and the linkages it has to the present is the intended goal of this seventeen day unit.

Fifth graders explore U.S. geography by reading assigned text about American Indians. For this migration lesson, 5th graders identify the differences between Native Americans and European settlers who traveled through middle America in...

Here is a nice set of worksheets that your kids can use while studying the fascinating period of Westward Expansion in the United States. Types of worksheets include a vocabulary quiz, acrostic poem handout, reading comprehension,...

Students examine and study the routes of trailblazers. In this American history instructional activity, students find a route on a map and compare that to the route of trailblazers. Students will then compare that map with a...

Fourth graders reasearch the history of the Pony Express on the internet or they can use books from the school or public library. They write a one-page story which incorporates their research. They share their stories with the class by...

Seventh graders study frontier forts. In this Kansas history instructional activity, 7th graders research the history and conditions of Fort Leavenworth, Fort Scott, Fort Riley, Fort Larned, and Fort Hays. Students write letters...

Class members investigate The Indian Removal Act of 1830, U.S. Theft of Mexican Territory Timeline, and President Abraham Lincoln’s letter to Horace Greeley, 1862, and then conduct a mock trial of each of these documents to determine...

Students discuss the different kinds of faults in the earth's crust and examine photos of the San Adreas Fault. Working in groups, they experiment with fault making by placing fabric in a pan and filling the inside with wet dirt. When...

Young scholars compare and contrast African-American, Asian-American, Chicano and Native-American movements with the civil rights movement and are exposed to the sociopolitical and economic factors involved in the rise of social movements.

Fifth graders analyze a landscape depicting Yosemite during the time of the Wild West. They compare their perceptions of the West from film and television to this representation. They observe the use of scale and color to depict size and...

Students investigate the basic parts of plant and that plants are living things which require water, air, light and nutrients for survival. They do this through a series of scientific experiements and multi-curricular hands-on activities.

Students read My Name is America about the Donner Party journey and create a scrapbook of what they read. For this Donner Party lesson plan, students also map out the journal they read about.

Third graders study the history, etiquette and different flags of the U. S. At the same time they make decisions, compromises and value other persons opinion as they work in small cooperative groups.

For this American West worksheet, students complete a 24 questions test about the American West. Answers are included beneath questions on worksheet.

Fifth graders choose a topic they are interested in related to the history of Utah. Using the internet, they research the topic making sure to cite where they gathered the information and take notes. To end the instructional activity,...

Students recall their knowledge of Native American people who lived in the West and reflect on how their perspectives differed from pioneers and argonauts of the 19th century.

Students learn the history of the Mormons and are able to explore items made during the Mormon era by creating their own by hand. In this Mormon Era lesson, students create covered wagons, can lanterns, candles and sourdough bread as...

Students, working in pairs, use maps to determine the most efficient routes between two cities. They research which route would have been used by early trailblazers. They present a first person account of one of the trailblazers place in...

In this Westward Expansion worksheet, students read assigned textbook pages which describe  Manifest Destiny and respond to 33 short answer questions.

In this Arizona history worksheet, students read a 5 page selection that includes primary sources about time periods in the state's history. Students then respond to 5 short answer questions based on the selection.

Eleventh graders recognize how social reform occurred at the turn of the century. Through a debate, 11th graders determine advantages and drawbacks of traveling west using original sources and descriptions of the attitudes, beliefs, and...

Students research the Spanish explorations and North American geography. They create web pages based on their study.

Young scholars investigate the history of Kansas City and then create recipes from the area, including Kansas City Barbecue Sauce, and Kansas City Corn.