Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Make Me an Offer

For Teachers 1st
First graders examine the significance of the Louisiana Purchase and the journey of Lewis and Clark's Corps of Discovery. They become familiar with the features of the Keelboat Nickel reverse and identify trade goods used by Lewis and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Storytelling Festival

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students explore the native cultures of the Americas, to learn some aspects of oral storytelling, and to share their knowledge with others. They, in groups, write a story that should say something important about the culture from which...
Activity
HISTORY Channel

Westward Expansion of the United States

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
How did early American pioneers decide what to take with them on their journeys, and what was their traveling experience like? Here you'll find a collection of activities to help you explore Westward Expansion with your young learners.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Raven Mask

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students explore the artistic expressions of the Northwest Native American Indians and using traditional palette of colors, create a personal interpretation of the traditional raven mask.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Power of Journals: Going Beyond the Text

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders define and use new vocabulary and identify the reasons why Native Americans captured Europeans during the colonial period. They write their own journal entries about the topic and explain the importance of journals as a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Folklore; The Story Of The Milky Way

For Teachers K - 5th
The students choose and read a Native American Folktale, analyze and sequence the story-line using a graphic organizer, then make a "woven" story blanket (from construction paper) depicting character, plot (including problem) and outcome.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Abenaki Indians: A Jigsaw Activity

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Students work together to research the Abenaki Indians. They discover how the Native Americans lives where changed after contact with the Europeans. They compare and contrast the Indians and the Europeans and present their information to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Make a Bison

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students discover how bison were hunted by the Native Americans and compare it to the buffalo. Using construction paper, they trace a bison outline given to them and use coffee grounds to fill in the space where the fur would be. They...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Like Comparing Bison and Fish

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders examine the cultures of early American Indians in North America and how geographic characteristics impacted the development of American Indian cultures. Students discuss Lewis and Clark, their journey, the Plains Indians,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Raw Materials

For Teachers K - 12th
Students participate in a nature hike and record the natural resources observed. They compare traditional and modern versions of everyday use items, and create graphic organizers that demonstrate the interconnectedness of resources.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Westward Ho

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Young scholars examine primary sources regarding Western migration. In this Manifest Destiny lesson, students determine why the pioneers moved west and what the trip was like as they examine sources and write journals based on their...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

To Your Health

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students focus on how storks and other cultural icons, in both Bulgarian and American customs, are believed to encourage and bring good health. They list three natural phenomena in their region prominently associated with the coming of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Photography and the National Park Service

For Teachers 9th - 12th
During the 1800s the United States was expanding westward; land was there for the taking.  Kids explore how some early photographers used their photography to influenced the US Congress to save areas like Mirror Lake. They...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

When Worlds Collide

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students research on a focused topic. They gather information from a range of sources and orally cit it in a presentation. Students connect information acquired in previous lessons with research on the assigned topic. They research...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Money Talks

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Students move from fact finding to interpretation as they examine paper money from the time of the American Revolution. In the final exercise, they use the issue dates of the bills to construct a chronology of political changes during...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Savvy in Sacramento

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students take a field trip to the state capital, Sacramento. Using the Internet, they explain the physical and human geographic features of the area and discuss interactions between the people of California between the time of explorers...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The First Thanksgiving

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students explore the first Thanksgiving through the use of literature. Students discuss the pilgrims and where they came from as well as how the Native Americans helped the Pilgrims. Students create Pilgrim hats.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Science: Day and Night

For Teachers K - 4th
Students listen to the Sky Tellers Native American story, "Ant Dances for Light," and illustrate it. They observe how Earth's rotation results in periods of darkness and light. Students investigate how day length varies throughout the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Indian PowWow

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd
Students identify three different American Indian regions and tribes, their food, clothing, shelter, recreation, and transportation. Students create artifacts that can be placed in a museum. Students sing songs, chants, and dance. ...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Jim Thorpe's Bright Path

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students read about the life of Jim Thorpe and answer focus lessons about the book.  In this Jim Thorpe lesson plan, students celebrate the American Indian culture and learn of the hardships Jim Thorpe overcame.  Students find...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

"ART ZOO 'Blacks in the Westward Movement', 'What Can You Do with a Portrait', and 'Of Beetles, Worms, and Leaves of Grass'"

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Students study black history, examine portraits and portrait making and create their own portraits, and  investigate their natural environment. This humanities lesson provides a text that can be used to teach lessons in black...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Westward Movement

For Teachers Pre-K - 8th
Students study the westward movement through examining stamps. For this westward movement lesson plan, students draw conclusions, determine cause and effect relationships and examine the westward movement of the United States by...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Art Exploration-A Global Approach

For Teachers 9th - 12th
A high school unit focuses on a discipline-based study of artworks from many times, places, and cultures. Addressing historical works of art as well as modern techniques, the unit illustrates how a traditional organizational...
Unit Plan
Scholastic

Learning About the Pilgrims With Crafts

For Teachers Pre-K - 2nd
Students research the pilgrims in terms of why they left England, their voyage to America, the challenges they faced when they arrived, and their relationship with the American Indians. To conclude this unit, the students have a...