Students examine art and primary documents that depicts the Native Americans' crossing of Washington's Bitterroot Mountains to arrive at the Spokane Council. Students investigate and compare maps and other historical materials determine...

Students examine symbols used by the Plains Indians. Using examples of African art, they discuss what symbols they use that relate to the Native American symbols. They compare and contrast the two cultures and discuss as a class to end...

Students examine the language and cultural differences that were encountered by the Indians and the Dutch leading to disaster for the first European settlement in Delaware.

Young scholars explore how construction of a dam on the Gila River affected the lifestyle of Pima Indians. In this social studies lesson, students locate the Gila River and the Coolidge Dam. Young scholars record dates on a timeline and...

Eleventh graders recognize the interaction between early settlers and indigenous people in the U.S. They recognize the impact of the Indian Removal Act on displaced Natives in the early West and the impact on Native attitudes today.

Students, in groups, analyze one map at a time, first the 1885 map, then the 1891 map. After they have completed the analysis sheets, they compare the two maps and answer questions imbedded in the plan.

After looking at the back of a quarter featuring Oregon terrain, learners distinguish between fiction and non-fiction and identify the beginning, middle and end of a story. First, they listen to legends that describe the creation of...

Young scholars identify why the Hopi tribe practiced running as it relates to health, delivering messages, defeating other tribes, and for ceremonial events. In this social studies lesson, students use maps to identify latitude and...

Students investigate the Navajo Code Talkers and their role in World War II. They complete a Webquest, explore various websites, encode a short message, analyze maps, answer discussion questions, and read newspaper articles about secure...

Sixth graders study Columbus Day in relation to who discovered Canada. They complete a KWL about Canada and discuss Columbus Day as an American holiday. After viewing a video, they read articles of Christopher Columbus and work in groups...

Students inquire about past and present traditions and customs and formulate their own perspectives. They become actively involved in the studying process and explore the different aspects of the topic.

Elementary schoolers study the history and purpose of potlatches. The listen to two stories about potlatches, then design a potlatch that they will host for their family members. They must come up with the gifts they would give, the...

Students investigate the history of America with the help of children's literature. The story is structured as a timeline that begins at the time of Columbus and progresses to the present. The teacher reads the story with the class and...

Young scholars research nonprofit organizations. As they research, they learn how those living in the colonial period formed community organizations to provide for the common good of their society. Each pupil chooses one organization to...

Analyzing historical legends is a fun way to develop critical-thinking skills. Pupils will use a graphic organizer to compare and contrast two historical legends relating to volcanoes. While this lesson focuses on the image of Crater...

Students write a class A,B,C book based on people and events important to the class. They use capital letters at the beginning of sentences and for proper names. They use periods at the end of sentences.

Students investigate the lifestyles of the Native Americans and look at a recipe found on a website. They read the recipe and pay attention to the measurements. They differentiate between the various measures in order to apply them to...

Third graders research life of Plymouth Plantation and write letters about life there home. In this Plymouth life lesson, 3rd graders complete a webquest as they gather information about the journey to America on the Mayflower and the...

Second graders observe and describe several masks from different parts of Africa housed in the Smithsonian Institute (National Museum of African Art) Washington, D.C. They use the internet to view the Smithsonian's virtual exhibits.

Second graders get an authentic field trip view of an archeological site replicating the influences of the Apalachee Indians and Spanish missionaries. The following day, 2nd graders share their journals at team tables.

Fifth graders read Sing Down The Moon independently and keep a journal where they write their reactions to the book. Students access websites imbedded in this plan and research a variety of other Indian tribes.

Students practice singing the harvest song in their native Oneida language and English. They sing the lyrics to the melody of "Children Go Where I Send Thee." Students discover the meaning of the song as it expresses thankfulness to...

Students sing The Earth Is My Mother in English and discuss its meaning to the Oneida people. They copy the words in the Oneida language and practice singing it in their native tongue. Students discover how the song relates to the...

Students perform research in order to answer an essential question: How did the cultural characteristics, beliefs, attitudes, behaviors, and economic conditions of the French, English, and Indians contribute to the growth of inter-group...