Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Narrative History - Hypertext Dialogues

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students create scripts about California settlers. The document reflects the settlers' fears, expectations, and realizations.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

"Go West, Young Man!"

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine reasons why people migrated west. They describe how the geography of the U.S. changed in the 19 th century and design a PowerPoint presentation to convey factors for westward expansion.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Foreign Miners

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students examine primary source documents from miners who went to California in the search of gold. They compare and contrast the letters they read and discuss what types of discrimination still exists today.
Assessment
New York State Education Department

US History and Government Examination: August 2011

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
Using primary source documents, pupils consider how the United States' democratic story has evolved over time. A second essay question examines the role of geography in history, and multiple-choice questions sharpen test-taking skills.
Interactive
DocsTeach

Reasons for Westward Expansion

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
"Go West, young man!" is a familiar refrain in American history. But why did people leave their homes in the East to travel westward and what impact did that movement have on people already living in the American West? By examining...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Go West Young Man#148

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students determine the difference between immigration and emigration. They read and listen to books about emigration westward during the Gold Rush years. They examine life in Gold Rush towns while determining why gold is so valuable....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

San Francisco Explodes

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students investigate why San Francisco grew so quickly during the Gold Rush. They
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Decision-Making Scenerios

For Teachers 11th
Eleventh graders review what they have gathered on the Gold Rush and how the Native Americans lived in the Plains. Using a worksheet, they choose one scenerio they would have liked to be a part of and write their opionions about it...
Lesson Plan
San Francisco Symphony

By the Great Horn Spoon!

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
By The Great Horn Spoon is a fantastic novel for introducing learners to life during the California Gold Rush. First, kids research and analyze American folk songs, then they connect to the text as they listen to symphonic pieces written...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Understanding Cause and Effect

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Identify the author's organizational pattern for expressing ideas. After reading an article on the California Gold Rush, middle schoolers determine the author's purpose for writing a passage of informational text. A full list of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Geography: Why Is the Sacremento Valley a Good Place to Grow Rice?

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders locate the Sacramento Valley in California where rice is grown. In this rice growing location lesson, 3rd graders locate the Sacremento Valley, California on a map, and color the mountain ranges and terrain that is around...
Organizer
Curated OER

Early American History

For Teachers 5th - 12th
US history classes will enjoy the challenge of a cut-and-paste activity in which they put various historical events in chronological order. The worksheet provides space for learners to write details about each event, which could be...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Savvy in Sacramento

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Young scholars take a field trip to the state capital, Sacramento. Using the Internet, they explain the physical and human geographic features of the area and discuss interactions between the people of California between the time of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The California Gold Rush:

For Teachers 3rd - 10th
Young scholars complete an Internet treasure hunt designed to give them practice in using Internet resources.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Debate: Whose Land Is It?

For Teachers 10th - 11th
Students identify the main factors involved in determining who was able to claim the land of California as their own. They determine the factors of unjustness in the Gold Rush times. Students reflect on what they learned from the debate...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Biblical Perspective

For Teachers 9th - 11th
Young scholars analyze money using a Biblical and business perspective. In this algebra lesson, students define their money relationship biblically and in a business fashion. They compare their view with the view of someone in the Gold...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Gold Mountain

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Students read primary and secondary sources to find jobs as a Chinese immigrant. In groups they create a chart listing jobs for Chinese and write a letter about employment and living conditions to a Chinese friend.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

We Accuse Colored Peoples of California V. State of California

For Teachers 10th - 11th
Students participate in a WebQuest to investigate discrimination of African Americans, Chinese and Californio/Latino during the Gold Rush era. They act as law clerks to write a letter to their clients about a potential trial.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Call of The Wild

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Prompt your class to interact with Jack London's Call of the Wild. By analyzing the events in the novel, middle schoolers discover how human experiences create who a person becomes. They critique and analyze the reading, focusing on...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Opportunity and Discrimination, A Dream of Gold

For Teachers 4th - 12th
Students focus on what it means to be a citizen of the United States and why the Chinese Exclusion Act is important when considering the concept of racism.
Worksheet
K12 Reader

Call of the Wild

For Students 7th - 9th Standards
Using a paragraph from Jack London's Call of the Wild, readers demonstrate their ability to identify the main idea and supporting ideas in a passage.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Rincon History Museum

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students visit the Rincon History Museum in California. They discover different periods in the state's history and discuss. They view the art and explain what can be learned from it.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Values and Beliefs of Manifest Destiny

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders examine the beliefs of Manifest Destiny and its role in the California Gold Rush. They analyze a painting to gather information about Manifest Destiny.
PPT
Missouri University of science & Technology

General Overview History of the Panama Canal

For Students 10th - 12th
Called the Eight Wonder of the World by some and the Big Ditch by others, the Panama Canal is indeed an engineering marvel. The long, complicated, and sometimes controversial history of the canal is captured in a presentation loaded with...