Sixth graders work in small groups to organize a wagon train for a trek westward. They determine leadership responsibilities and rules needed to make a successful trek.

You have just hit the lesson plan jackpot! This isn't just a activity, it's a ten-day unit covering westward expansion, pioneer life, and the Oregon Trail. Activities include baking, model building, role-play, newspaper writing, science...

Students investigate the hardships related to pioneer life and the Wagon Train. They listen to an excerpt from the book "Little House on the Prairie," and discuss the hardships faced by pioneers travelling west. In small groups...

Fourth graders demonstrate knowledge of the size of a wagon by making several different predictions. They develop a list of items that pioneers would need while traveling on a wagon train.

Students assume the personality of a pioneer on a wagon train and create daily journals.  In this journal writing lesson, students read excerpts from The Way West:  Journal of a Pioneer Woman.  Students use their imaginations to write...

Students use educational software to examine the hardships and problem solving skills needed by the pioneers as they endured frontier life. They work as teams while using the game simulation. They work a number of project while not on...

Students practice active listening skills.  For this literacy and U.S. history lesson, students predict the hardships pioneers using the Mormon Trail might have faced. Students view the movie "Children of the Wagon Train," then confirm...

Students explore westward movement through eyes of doll belonging to Patty Reed, member of Donner Party. They write journal entries from points of view of characters in book, Patty Reed's Doll, participate in Pack the Wagon game, and...

Students participate in an Oregon Trail simulation in order to learn the hardships that the emigrating settlers faced. In this U.S. history instructional activity, students are required to work as a team and use the internet to research...

In this daily writing prompt instructional activity, students learn that on this day in 1834 the first wagon train reached the state of California. Students respond to 3 questions.

Did you know horsepower is actually based on the power of a horse? 60 horse power is the equivalent of being pulled by a team of 60 horses! Viewers will learn other interesting facts like this from a presentation that begins with the...

Students investigate what life on the Oregon Trail was like. In this Westward Movement lesson, students eat foods that were eaten by settlers on the trail as they read textbook pages about the trial. Students then draw an Oregon Trail...

Students listen to the song, The Wheels on the Bus. Instead of a bus, students attempt to sing the song using a different mode of transportation.

Learners analyze and describe the contributions of various dance artists, performers, teachers, and choreographers. In this dance lesson, students fill in any gaps of knowledge they have in regards to dance training and choreographic...

Students read map symbols for transportation, specifically canals, railroads, and highways.

Fourth graders explain the unique experience of pioneer studenT education on the trail. They invent ways to provide schooling to pioneer students while they were on the trail.

Students face a challenge. In this survival lesson, students discover the hardships faced by the pioneers who moved west and see if they would survive a similar situation. They discuss essential items they need to survive and...

I love time capsules. After reviewing elements of pioneer life, your class will create a time capsule that would have belonged to a pioneer in the 1830s. Each person must write a description of each item they would have brought and why...

Reading about history is nothing like experiencing it firsthand. Encourage your eighth graders to do the next best thing with a historical narrative prompt, in which they describe the experience of a first-time traveler on the...

Grab the popcorn and take a seat for a Hollywood premier! Eighth graders grasp the concepts behind Westward Expansion and create engaging videos by working through a set of 18 engaging tasks. They also hone their technology, social...

Kids make quilts as they learn about pioneer life and the concept of tempo. The Aaron Copland piece, Rodeo is used to convey rhythm and tempo in music. As the children discuss tempo and rhythm, they also discuss what life was like for...

Designed for Hard Gold, a novel in Avi's I Witness series, this teaching guide includes a summary of the story and information about the writer as well as chapter-by-chapter vocabulary lists, text-based reading questions, activities,...

The Oregon trail is a very interesting part of American history. The class, having read or discussed the events leading to the westward expansion and settling of the Oregon Territory, can answer each of these fill-in-the-blank...

In this comprehension worksheet, students read chapter 10 of the book Twister on Tuesday and complete 5 multiple choice questions. Answers are provided.