You have just hit the lesson plan jackpot! This isn't just a instructional activity, it's a ten-day unit covering westward expansion, pioneer life, and the Oregon Trail. Activities include baking, model building, role-play, newspaper...

Students identify geographical features of different regions encountered by migrants on the Oregon trail. Students research how the Oregon landscape may have affected life and 19th century westward migration. Students write a narrative...

Students explore prairie life. In this Oregon Trail lesson, students read literature regarding the move west and participate in cross-curricular activities. Students should take digital photographs of the participation in activities and...

Identify natural resources in the world and how they translate into economic development. In this global economy lesson, your class will utilize the Internet to view an Oregon Time Web which they research to examine the history of...

Campfires are not the only way that forest fires start. In a worksheet and word matching activity, young campers learn about common fuel and heat sources that, when combined, can be the spark to a dangerous and harmful forest fire.

Fifth graders explore U.S. geography by reading assigned text about American Indians. In this migration lesson, 5th graders identify the differences between Native Americans and European settlers who traveled through middle America in...

Students read a variety of Native American Literature and discuss the main idea by answering critical thinking questions about the poem. Students use context clues to understand the feeling of the Native American culture about the Earth....

Students discover ways to stay healthy by utilizing Internet education software.  In this computer technology lesson, students investigate Internet programs that simulate a field trip by showing images and video.  Students...

Students examine terminology related to the study of volcanoes, geology, or the ecosystems that surround them. They make note of key words while reading exhibits, interpretive signs, or labels, or hearing them from each other, their...

Young scholars study the gray whale migration and compare their populations to the increasing ocean temperature.  In this whale watcher lesson students draw a food chain.

High schoolers see that there are many different kinds of wilderness. They study equipment and supplies to see how they differ for different types of wilderness experiences. They discuss ways to allow access to wild places without...

Students explore how to prepare for a wilderness journey. In this wilderness survival lesson, students construct a compass from a magnet and a sewing needle.

This section of Discovering Lewis & Clark examines Lewis's role as a naturalist and features biographical sketches of botanists David Douglas, Frederick Traugott Pursh, Thomas Nuttall, and Constantine Samuel Rafinesque-Schmaltz.