Fifth graders explore early American civilizations in a four-week ELA unit. Every lesson offers an opportunity to read and discuss a selected passage followed by word work that covers vocabulary, grammar, and morphology. Learners write...

What brought settlers from Europe to North America? By exploring primary sources, such as posters seeking recruits for the new lands, class members take a deeper look at these motivations. To finish, they present their findings to...

North American Indian civilizations had already been in place for over 10,000 years before the arrival of European settlers. Introduce your young historians to Indian tribes that lived in the Chesapeake region in the...

Bass drum, snare drum, tom-toms, cymbals. Perched behind their drum sets, wielding their drum sticks and wire brushes, drummers lay the grove and are the heartbeat of a band's performance. A dynamic lesson plan introduces young musicians...

A unit by Core Knowledge begins with information about early United States presidents. Pupils then explore social reformers such as Sojourner Truth and Frederick Douglas, abolitionism, women's rights, and more. Participants listen and...

Young historians explore the reason American colonists were unhappy under British rule. Class members complete hands-on activities and participate in a group discussions to understand why colonists drafted the Declaration of Independence.

Chicago is one city, four neighborhoods, and countless nationalities. The lesson explores the ethnic division of Chicago in the early twentieth century. Academics read primary sources, analyze maps, and tour an online exhibit to...

1776 was a year of political upheaval in the American colonies. Academics examine the Maryland Constitution to understand the desire to break with Great Britain. Young historians learn about Maryland's efforts to extend rights to its...

Take young scholars on a trip through history with this unit on the mathematics and architecture of the Mayan civilization. Starting with a introduction to their base twenty number system and the symbols they used, this eight-lesson unit...

A 67-page packet provides instructors with a complete course in the history of Jazz. Lessons look at the roots of jazz in early 20th century African American communities in the southern United States and continues to the New Orleans...

Almost every American is familiar with the Supreme Court case of Brown vs. Board of Education. Far fewer understand the constitutional reasoning or the wide-ranging consequences of the ruling in the field of criminology. The interesting...

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.

During the early 1500s, parts of modern-day New York were inhabited by Eastern Woodland Native Americans. To learn about the daily life, value, and traditions of these tribes, fourth graders research the Iroquois.  Groups select...

Throughout history, newspapers have reported the events of the day as they unfolded. Using primary and secondary sources from World War I, scholars uncover how the American people learned of the events of the War to End All Wars. History...

Scholars compare statues of Columbus and discuss how each memorial captures his personality. Academics also complete a worksheet and discuss how some people have called to remove statues honoring Columbus. 

With the stroke of a pen, Thomas Jefferson roughly doubled the size of the United States. The Louisiana Purchase not only grew the new country, but also it gave rise to the legends surrounding westward expansion and accelerated the...

Young historians explore the identity of the early United States in this four-part lesson series. Working in groups of three, students research the political, economic, and cultural atmosphere of each member of the...

Class members will dig this activity that has them trying their hand at recovering artifacts. Groups are assigned a section of a sandbox, carefully uncover the artifacts in their section, and then develop theories about who might...

Take some time to focus on Christopher Columbus, his three ships, the purpose of his voyage, and the new land he discovered. Pay special attention to the included additional materials, they are the real value in this resource.

Ever wonder where wool comes from? How it is used to make a woven rug? Introduce the Native American craft of rug making to your preschool or kindergarten class with a discussion. Learners examine and discuss images of a Native American...

Planes, trains, and automobiles. How many ways to travel are there? Scholars learn about modes of transportation in the past and how they have changed over time. Budding historians view a timeline, participate in group discussion, and...

What a fantastic project idea for discussing not only the history of America's expansion into the West, but for reviewing any major unit of history in your class. Pupils build stamp collections to visually represent themes of the...

The Election of 1912: an election with four competitive opponents. Pupils get to know the candidates with informative reading passages that provide context to the election. Then, the class engages in a debate and answers questions as one...

Bring life to your next California geography lesson with this great project! Learners design a three-dimensional wall relief map of California, painting and decorating regions using a variety of materials and labeling major geographical...