Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Whose Manifest Destiny?

For Teachers 7th - 10th
Students examine the Westward expansion. In this North American settlers lesson, students will view a PowerPoint presentation and answer critical thinking questions. Students will write an essay that analyzes the impact of westward...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Pilgrims: The First Americans

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders become familar with the pilgrims and first Thanksgiving through essays about important people of the time.  In this Thanksgiving lesson, 5th graders choose an important figure from the time of the Pilgrims and write a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

American Immigration Past and Present

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students simulate a Commission hearing in which the class attempt to arrive at an immigration policy; individual essays by each student; and, if time permits, individual or group projects based on some aspect of America's immigration...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Johnny Tremain/Boston Tea Party

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders understand chronological order of events. In this Boston Tea Party instructional activity, 5th graders compare the events surrounding the Boston Tea Party to current times. Students learn vocabulary and customs of the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The U.S. Trade Embargo on Cuba

For Teachers All
Students examine perspectives for and against the U.S. trade embargo on Cuba, develop a position on the embargo and articulate viewpoints in a public forum.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Revolutionary War, Timeline and Causes

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders explore important events leading up to the Revolutionary War. In this Revolutionary War lesson, 3rd graders work in pairs to research dates and important events prior to the Revolutionary War. Class discussion is followed...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Desert is Theirs: Adapting to Our Environment

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students determine how animals and people adapt to the desert environment. In this desert lesson plan, students review vocabulary about the desert and how humans have to make changes to accommodate their environments. They listen to and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Dear Abby- Colonial Style

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students review the Colonial period in American history and read literature from this era. They assume the roles of a colonial young person and an adult to compose letters from each and communicate their ideas through the letter writing...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Dressing in Early American Times

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders, by doing research and seeing actual and simulated artifacts, gain knowledge of and make comparisons about clothing in the Colonial and early Republican eras with attire of present time.
Unit Plan
Curated OER

Deerfield Debates Its Future: The Colonial Revival

For Teachers 9th - 11th
Students analyze why the Colonial Revival came as a response to cultural changes caused by technological development, industrial growth, and changing populations in Deerfield and the Connecticut River Valley.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

"Families and Schools of the Past"

For Teachers 1st
First graders listen to and discuss historical fiction and bigraphies from the early American time period. They role-play, draw, write stories and dress up to re-create events from these historical characters.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The History of Thanksgiving Day

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders study the history of Thanksgiving. In this holiday lesson plan, 3rd graders read about the history of Thanksgiving, complete vocabulary activities, and write a journal entry from the point of view of someone who lived...
PPT
Curated OER

Social Studies: Vocabulary

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Build vocabulary and have a class discussion. Use this PowerPoint to illustrate concepts of Early American History, including, Bill of Rights, Supreme Court, elections, and the Constitution. Note: Each slide has only a single vocabulary...
PPT
Curated OER

Social Studies: Famous History

For Teachers 2nd
While a rudimentary overview of facts relating to U.S. History, this resource could be used as a starting point for a discussion of this topic. However, there is very little information included on each slide, and one of the terms used...
Interactive
Curated OER

America: 1763-1776

For Students 8th - 11th
For this online interactive history worksheet, students respond to 10 short answer and essay questions about the United States between the years 1763 and 1776.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Tempest

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Young scholars discuss cultural beliefs about magic. They investigate European exploration and colonialism. They create a cartoon strip of an episode that is described or dramatized in the play.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Causes of the Revolution Newspaper

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Learners examine the events that led to the Revolutionary War. Using the internet, they discover the advantages and disadvantages of each side. They use the information to produce a special edition newspaper on the war. They must include...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What is an American?

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students investigate how the definition of being American has changed over the years using online primary source documents.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

State of Affairs Between the Native Americans and the European Settlers

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Students examine relationship and contact between Native Americans and European Settlers, using primary sources.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The constitution and The Bill of Rights

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students explore an Internet site that introduces the Framers, court cases, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights and even games and quizzes.
Worksheet
1
1
K12 Reader

Rocky Relationships

For Students 4th - 5th Standards
Conflicts between Native Americans and colonists are the focus of a comprehension worksheet that asks readers to use information found in the provided article to answer comprehension questions.
Unit Plan
Boston University

South African Short Stories: Apartheid, Civil Rights, and You

For Teachers 10th Standards
How are short stories from South Africa connected to issues of civil rights in the United States? A unit plan uses South African short stories to discuss issues such as apartheid, colonization, and civil rights. Questions and activities...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Dos mapas de Florida, el Caribe y parte de Sur America

For Teachers 7th - 12th
What can maps tell us about the past? Find out with a Spanish lesson that incorporates geography. After examining maps individually, comparing two old maps of Spanish Florida and writing notes in the provided Venn diagram, pupils pair up...
Handout
ProCon

Gun Control

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
According to some estimates, there are more guns than people in the United States. Learners decide if America should enact more gun control laws. They analyze information about gun deaths in the United States by year, read about the...