Curated OER
Pioneering Children on the Move
Students inquire about life for pioneer children. In this pioneer period lesson plan, students analyze photographs of children, make information foldables, and create a covered wagon that was typical of the ones of the past. Students...
Curated OER
Games Children Play
Help your middle schoolers recognize the similarities and differences between the games they play and those played by pioneer children. Using the Internet, they research a game of their choice and discover how it has evolved over time....
K12 Reader
Analyzing O! Pioneers
Readers of O! Pioneers are asked to cite evidence from a paragraph of Willa Cather's novel to support an analysis of Alexandra Bergson, the personal qualities she possesses, and how these qualities will help the Bergson family after her...
Curated OER
Wagons Ho! Hard Times! Hard Choices!
You have just hit the lesson plan jackpot! This isn't just a lesson, 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...
Curated OER
Laura Ingalls Wilder and Pioneer Life
Fourth graders complete a three-week unit about Laura Ingalls Wilder and pioneer life. They research the topography of Michigan in the 1870's, conduct Internet research, write journal entries, participate in polka and waltz dancing, and...
Family & Children's Service
Children in Change
While children may not have the opportunity to directly affect the changes happening in their family life, help them develop necessary coping skills for expressing their emotions and dealing with those changes.
Curated OER
Wagons West!
The first pioneers faced many obstacles on their journey west. Middle schoolers read different historical fiction texts (ideas are provided), make connections, and complete a detailed packet (included). Reading guides, journal ideas, and...
Curated OER
Pioneers Find Fun
Fourth graders investigate pioneer Studentss games. They research various games, play a pioneer game, and in small groups, create their own original pioneer game to teach to the class.
Curated OER
Quilting - A Pioneer Craft
Fifth graders explore quilting in pioneer families. In this quilting instructional activity, 5th graders review the history of quilts, the role of women, and quilting patterns. They create their own pattern and quilt square.
Curated OER
Pioneer Kitchen
In this pioneer worksheet, students read a short passage about different ways of pioneer cooking. Students then find 12 given words in the word search provided.
Curated OER
Johnny Appleseed
Young scholars engage in a study of apples using children's literature. They conduct research using a variety of resources. Student list facts about apples and compare them while answering some guided questions. They plant some apple...
Curated OER
Making Corn-Husk Dolls
Second graders create corn husk dolls. In this pioneers lesson plan, 2nd graders use corn husks, thread, scissors and simple cloth to create corn husk dolls. They discuss how the pioneer children used these toys, this discussion is...
Curated OER
Oral Assessment Plan
Students practice active listening skills. In 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 or...
Curated OER
A Pioneer Journal
Fourth graders take on the persona of a pioneer boy or girl. They write a fictional series of journal entries describing, from a child's view, some of the events, hardships and adventures of the trek west
Curated OER
Pioneer Trails and Towns
Third graders research pioneer trails to discover how they have changed. In this pioneer trails and towns lesson, 3rd graders identify trails on a map and gather information on how those trails are now major roads and highways along town...
Maryland Department of Education
Our Children Can Soar
Amazing efforts of African American leaders are celebrated in a lesson on civil participation. The engaging resource focuses on primary and secondary sources to analyze the impact of African American leaders such as Ella Fitzgerald....
Curated OER
Long, Long, Ago
Students discover details of pioneer life. In this history lesson, students examine artifacts and play games from pioneer times.
Curated OER
Be a River Pioneer!
Pupils role-play as pioneers in Illinois river towns. They research and choose a home town and participate in the development of the town. They present their simulation in either a written report or visual presentation.
Curated OER
Centennial: A Day In The Life Of Children - Then And Now
Fourth graders compare and contrast the rules and responsibilities of children from today and in the past. In groups, they compare and contrast their daily lives with a child in history. After taking a field trip, they discuss how...
Curated OER
Children: Then & Now
Fourth graders discuss the roles and responsibilities of family members in their homes today. They decide what they do to help their families both inside and outside the home. They realize why it is important for each person to...
Curated OER
Johnny Appleseed
Young scholars investigate Johnny Appleseed. For this cross curriculum literacy and U.S. history lesson, students listen to Johnny Appleseed by Steven Kellogg, and dictate important events in his life as the teacher writes them on index...
Curated OER
Education On The Trail
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.
San Francisco Symphony
Quilt Making and Copland's Rodeo
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...
Curated OER
Push or Pull?
Utilizing the Nebraska State Quarter, pupils learn about the pioneers who had wagons that were pulled across Nebraska by oxen during the westward movement. Excellent worksheets are embedded in the plan that guide them through this fine...