Ducksters: History: Oregon Trail for Kids

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

Students examine what it was like to travel west on the Oregon Trail. They develop a list of questions about the trip, explore various websites, and create a story about the experiences of a 19th century family travelling on the Oregon...

Students access the Oregon Trial website to find information on what it was like to experience traveling the Oregon Trial. Then, in groups, they create dioramas depicting events that could have happened along the Oregon Trail.

Journal writing can be a fun way to bring history to life. Upper graders read a series of journals from the time of the westward expansion, specifically the pioneer journey along the Oregon Trail. They compose an ongoing journal from the...

Students work with primary documents and latter-day photographs to recapture the experience of traveling on the Oregon Trail. Working in groups, they write a scene for the movie that is historically accurate and based on the kinds of...

Explore non-fiction comprehension strategies with your class. They will visualize daily activities and label a 4 circle Venn diagram with related phrases. They must identify the overlapping sections as "main ideas," then complete a...

[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text about traveling along the Oregon Trail during the Westward Expansion. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.

Fourth graders discover the significance of the Oregon Trail in Idaho history. In addition, 4th graders conceptualize the Oregon Trail in relation to their own lives. They engage in a wide variety of curricular activities, culminating in...

Information portal for the organization that oversees the preservation of the Oregon Trail, the California Trail, the Santa Fe Trail, the Applegate Trail, and the Mormon Trail.

Students use maps and diagrams to examine the Oregon Trail. In groups, they create their own poster of the trail showing the different types of artifacts found along the way. To end the lesson, they identify the sources of water and...