The Great Wagon Road

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 read about the history of cattle trails and complete language arts, math, social studies, and more activities about barbed wire. In this barbed wire lesson plan, students read poetry, research changes over time, draw cattle...

Fourth graders work in small groups to become experts on different colonial trades in the eighth lesson of this unit. Working toward the long-term goal of writing a piece of historical fiction, young scholars read informational texts and...

While cities had only a small fraction of the population in colonial America, they played a significant role in pre-revolutionary years, and this was certainly true for the largest city in the North American colonies: Philadelphia. Your...

Fifth graders research the evolution of transportation systems. In this transportation lesson, 5th graders research the early methods of transportation and the technology that advanced the systems. Students work in groups to present...

What an exceptional hands-on experience for learning about the period of Westward Expansion in the United States! Learners are divided into groups and embark on one of three "trails" to learn about the challenges early pioneers...

Quiz your students or prepare them for the big exam with this presentation. Included are 24 multiple choice questions related to Early American Government, The Colonial Period, Westward Expansion, and State Formation.

Students explore the National Road to Indiana. In this U.S. highway history and primary source research lesson, students read an original journal written by Jane Voorhees Lewis in 1806 describing her trip west on the first federally...

In this comprehension worksheet, students read chapter 4 of The Great Fire and complete multiple choice questions. Students complete 10 questions.

Students use a primary document that traces and describes the path of the National Road through Indiana and the experiences of westward-moving settlers. They locate the National Road in Indiana on a current map and describe the...