Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Differentiated Way through Think Dots

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Young scholars examine reasons that led people to explore, identify "West" as defined following Revolutionary War, explain importance of finding natural resources, develop time line of dates and events leading up to Lewis and Clark...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Anasazi Basket Weaving

For Teachers 6th - 8th
The Anasazi Indians of Mesa Verde are the focus of this art and social studies activity. Working in pairs or groups of three, students utilize computers and go online to search for websites about the Anasazi. Students will choose two or...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Native American Images in the Media

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine various images of Native Americans in the media. In groups, they create a list of present Native American stereotypes and what the media did to continue the stereotype. To end the lesson, they write in their journals...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

How the West was Won? Conflict and Change on the Western Frontier

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders assess the conflict and change that occurred in the westward expansion following the Civil War. They list specific reasons why different groups moved west and the interaction between the "white" European civilization and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson 3

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students demonstrate knowledge of geography and early inhabitants of Virginia by locating and identifying water features important to early history. They also locate three American Indian language groups. Both of these activities require...
Lesson Plan
National First Ladies' Library

Will the Real Pocahontas Please Stand Up?

For Teachers 1st - 5th
Learners explore the life of Pocahontas and Powhatan Indians. After studying information on a given website, students compare and contrast what they read about Pocahontas and what they previously thought of her. They explore life in a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Reasons for English Colonization

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Learners explain the reason for English colonization. They review the reasons for the colonization and settlement in Virginia and trace the route from England to Virginia through the Chesapeake Bay to Jamestown on a map.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson Plan: The Math of Removal

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students consider the plight of those who walked the Trial of Tears. In this Indian Removal lesson, students compare statistics regarding Indian survival rates.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Women in India: Tradition vs. Modernity

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners explore cultural aspects such as gender roles and their impact on Indian culture and compare and contrast issues associated with those roles in America through literature.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Farming on the Virginia Frontier

For Teachers 4th - 5th
In this social studies worksheet, young scholars discover how early frontier settlers in Virginia planted and raised their crops. Students read an information paragraph and answer 5 questions.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Athabaskan Migration & Bering Strait

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students study Athabaskan migration patterns and the Bering Strait Land Bridge theory. They investigate the importance of the expansion of trade and compare the differences between American Indian oral tradition accounts of origin and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Tribal Termination & Urbanization

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students list the main events in historical sequence of tribal termination and urbanization. They identify a present-day American Indian experience or phenomenon as a result of termination and urbanization and refer to 'Navajo...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Whose Land Is It Anyway?

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders comprehend the interaction and conflict beween Native Americans and white settlers in the years following the Civil War. They listen to T"his Land is Your Land." Students are asked what their interpretation of the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Jamestown Celebrates 400th Anniversary

For Teachers 2nd - 5th
Students view a world map and identify the locations of England and Virginia and discuss what kinds of things they would take with them on this kind of trip. They read the words in the news box on the student page and fill in the blanks...
Lesson Plan
Smithsonian Institution

Picturing George: A Pictorial Survey of the Life of George Washington

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students create pictorial biographies of George Washington. Working in groups, they research various portions of Washington's life, highlighting significant events. After presenting their projects to the class, they are displayed for...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Anasazi Basket Weaving: 0-500 A.D.

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders study Period 1- Basket Maker 0-500 A.D. of Anasazi Culture. They identify the sequence of history in Anasazi Culture and Indians of the Mesa Verde. They discover American Indian contributions to the world and develop...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Anasazi Pueblo Period: 700-1050 A.D.

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders study Period 3-Developmental Pueblo 700-1050 A.D., of Anasazi culture. They identify the sequence of history in Colorado and recognize American Indian Contributions to the world. They study Indians of the Mesa Verde and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Expansion and Reform: Applying the Declaration of Independence

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students conduct inquiries and research-acquiring, organizing, analyzing, interpreting, evaluating, and communicating facts, themes, and general principles operating in American history. They use the Declaration of Independence to...
Lesson Plan
Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media

Early English Settlements History Detectives

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Young historians play the role of history detectives as they investigate some primary source texts and images related to the early colonization of America, The Jamestown Settlement, and the Mayflower Compact. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Jamestown Scavenger Hunt

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Young scholars identify and share Primary Sources in Early American History by Janey Levy. Then they discuss the usefulness of using primary sources in uncovering the past. Students also research original documents from Jamestown to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Jamestown in Context: The Colonization of North America

For Teachers 8th - 11th
Learners analyze the significance of Jamestown in the broader picture of colonization and analyze a historical document to determine the effects of previous explorations on the expectations of the Jamestown colonizers
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Designing Your Inner Self

For Teachers K - 6th
Students identify connections between various cultures and the symbolism used in them. Individually, they reflect on their own culture, beliefs and values and identify the symbolisms they use to show them. They discuss how their clothes...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Athabaskan Migration & Bering Strait

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students examine the various migration patterns of the Athabaskan. In groups, they discuss the Bering Strait Land Bridge theory of migration and take notes on a lecture from their teacher. To end the lesson, they brainstorm the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Anasazi

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers investigate and determine the origins of the ancient Anasazi who inhabited present-day Utah and the Four-Corners-Region.