Young learners discover how the Sioux and Assiniboine tribes preserved native culture through the making of traditional dresses, identifying the resources used to make the dresses and discussing behind the meaning behind some...

Explore Native American gardening traditions with a lesson on companion planting. Based on the concept that certain crops grow better when planted near other specific crops, kids research the gardening method with background links and by...

An interdisciplinary unit focuses on third-grade ELA skills and Native American stories. Over two weeks, scholars practice spelling patterns, work with plural possessive nouns and suffixes, and identify between its and it's. Readings...

Kids challenge their understanding of the world around them and consider the impact man has on the environment and animal life. They examine a Tlingit piece, read two Tlingit stories about man and animals, then participate in a research...

After completing an online activity about the Mayflower, scholars draw a picture about what they know of the Thanksgiving holiday, including a one-sentence summary. A reading of If You Were at the First Thanksgiving by Anne Kamma is...

The teacher reads and retells Californian tribal origin or creation stories that come from the traditions of a variety of California Indian tribes. Then, pupils get together in groups and retell the stories they just heard; just as...

After watching the documentary Dark Water about a traditional Chumash ceremony and reading a Chumash origin story, viewers are asked to create a coat of arms and to craft an essay that details a family tradition or their own origin story.

Make your classroom into a place of kindness and compassion with E.B White's Charlotte's Web. The first four pages of the lesson plan guide you through several steps and projects, including discussions on Charlotte and Wilbur's...

How have groups struggled to have their unalienable rights recognized in the United States? Acting as a research team for the Human Rights Council of the United Nations, your young historians will break into groups to research...

How did colonial settlement and the establishment of the United States affect Native Americans in the Chesapeake region? Your young historians will analyze contemporary and historical maps, read informational texts, and work in groups to...

Learners work in groups to identify the major characters and events found in a Nevada Native American folklore story. Each of the groups takes on the role of a different tribe, and they are given a story from that tribe's oral history....

After watching West of the West's documentary The Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island, class members imagine how Juana Maria/Karana may have felt about living alone on the island for 18 years and craft a blackout poem or a narrative in...

This lesson highlights the struggles of immigrants and the importance of showing empathy. Beginning with a read-aloud of a book in another language and a poem, scholars take part in a thoughtful discussion. Then, the class examines a...

The devastating changes happening to the Native American inhabitants of an island off the coast of Louisiana are the topic of an informational lesson. After scholars break into groups to explore particular topics, they come back together...

A read-aloud anthology focuses on Columbus and the pilgrims. Young scholars listen to several stories covering Christopher Columbus, the Mayflower, Plymouth Rock, pilgrims, meeting Native Americans, and the first Thanksgiving. Nine...

By way of group discussion, reading, and role-play a series of six activities encourage scholars to make responsible decisions. Following an online introduction, pupils review the concept of volition and answer questions. Middle...

English is not the only subject that requires its own set of vocabulary words—geography does too! A series of language development lessons designed to be used with Theme 5: One Land, Many Trails helps introduce readers to key vocabulary...

Spark some lively conversation about American holiday traditions and debunk accepted notions about the first Thanksgiving at the same time. After reviewing the mainstream version of the Thanksgiving story with your class, offer some...

There's nothing like the Wild Wild West! Scholars investigate the American Frontier through the eyes of Kit Carson. To complete the first installment of a three-part series, they use presentations, a short video, and primary and...

Stay or go? As part of a study of immigration and human rights, class members listen to the stories of several immigrants and must decide if the story was their own if they would stay in the United States as an undocumented...

Someone finds a time capsule 100 years from now, and it includes your family photo album. What would the photos tell that person about you and your place in history? Scholars investigate how artifacts tell stories. Using photos, maps,...

As part of a study of colonial and Native American history, class members focus on the beliefs and land use of the Pocumtucks, who settled near Deerfield, Massachusetts. Students examine their beliefs about land use and ownership, the...

Your shoes get a lot of mileage in familiar places. Represent the places you have traveled the most with an art project based on a print of Indian People Wear Shoes and Socks by Juane Quick-to-See Smith. Kids trace their shoes and...

As an introduction to literary criticism, class members recreate I.A. Richards' close reading experiment. Individuals select a poem, paraphrase the story, focus on the imagery used, consider what the imagery adds to the tale, and...