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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Imperialism in Africa

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students study imperialism in Africa. In this Imperialism activity, students consider how democratic revolutions around the world led to imperialism in Africa. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Coming to California

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders read excerpts from Juan Bautista de Anza's diaries. They analyze the impact of primary sources. They write journal entries for characters in stories they have read during the year.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

French and Indian War

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders engage in activities that familiarize them with the causes of the French and Indian War. They discuss the problem that started the war, the countries involved, and the effects to come about as a result of the French and...
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Unit Plan
The Newberry Library

The Aztecs and the Making of Colonial Mexico: Europeans Invade the Aztec Empire

For Students 9th - 10th
Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes invaded the Aztec empire in the 16th century. This conquest led to the colonization of Mexico. The Newberry Library provides an in depth look into this period of Mexican history through photos,...
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Article
Texas State Historical Association

Texas State Historical Association: Mexican Colonization Laws

For Students 9th - 10th
Read about the Colonization Law of August 18, 1824 where a Mexican statute allowed foreigners to immigrate to the country.
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Website
Other

New Mexico Genealogical Society: Early Spanish Exploration of the Southwest

For Students 9th - 10th
This site describes the early Spanish exploration and beginning of colonization in what we know today as New Mexico.
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Article
University of Groningen

American History: Essays: Anglo Amer. Colonization in Texas: Texas 1836 1848

For Students 9th - 10th
A brief look at the declaration of independence from Mexico by Texas in 1836, the removal of restrictions on slavery, and how this dramatically increased the population and led to a much greater reliance on the cotton industry in the...
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Article
Texas State Historical Association

Texas State Historical Association: Anglo American Colonization

For Students 9th - 10th
An in-depth synopsis of Anglo-American colonization in Mexican Texas which took place between 1821 and 1835.
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Article
Son of the South

Son of the South: Stephen F. Austin's Trip to Mexico in 1833

For Students 9th - 10th
Read about commissioner Stephen F. Austin's key trip to Mexico City in 1833 shortly after the adjournment of the Mexican Presidential convention.
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Primary
Texas State Library and Archives Commission

Texas State Library and Archives Commission: Hard Road to Texas 1836 1845: Texas Breaks Away Texas and Mexico

For Students 9th - 10th
After being taken over by Mexico in 1821, Texas became very attractive to people wanting to settle. New policies, however, upset the Texans, which lead to rebellions and the Texas Revolution of 1836. Read about it all, and check out...
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Website
Digital History

Digital History: Spanish Colonization

For Students 9th - 10th
Spanish culture had a great impact on the economy, politics, and even geography of the Southwest, California, and Mexico. Read about the Spanish settlements and the structure of the social classes that left an impact the continues even...
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Handout
Other

New Mexico Office of the State Historian: Pope

For Students 9th - 10th
Read this fascinating information about Pope, the leader of the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. Learn how he was able to unite several tribes of Pueblo Indians who did not even speak the same language into a force that was able to push out the...
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Website
Other

New Mexico Tourism Department: Hispanic History and Culture

For Students 9th - 10th
A history of Spanish influence in New Mexico is found here. Read about the cultural heritage that the Hispanics instilled in the inhabitants of New Mexico.
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Article
Texas A&M University

Sons of De Witt Colony Texas: The De Leon Colony

For Students 9th - 10th
Introduce yourself to the De Leon's Colony, the only predominantly Mexican colony in Texas in the United States established by Martin De Leon in 1824. De Leon was one of the several impresarios in Texas who was granted colonization...
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Unit Plan
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Harcourt: Biographies: Alvar Nunez Cabeza De Vaca

For Students 3rd - 8th
Gain insight into the life and adventures of Spanish explorer, Cabeza de Vaca, whose expeditions led him to Texas and Mexico.
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Website
Digital History

Digital History: European Colonization North of Mexico

For Students 9th - 10th
Although settlements by other northern European countries are mentioned, the primary focus of this article is on English settlements and the types of immigrants who came to the New World from England.
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Primary
Yale University

Avalon Project: Address of the Honorable s.f. Austin, March 7, 1836

For Students 9th - 10th
This is the text of an address Austin made to the people of Louisville, Kentucky explaining the conflict between Texas and Mexico, and asking for support.
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Unit Plan
Bullock Texas State History Museum

Bullock Museum: The Story of Texas: Ch. 5: A Growing Sense of Separateness [Pdf]

For Teachers 4th - 8th
A teacher guide designed to support a visit to the Bullock Museum, but can be used on its own using available resources. Includes information, discussion questions, activities, and worksheets. The module looks at Texas in the 1820s and...
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Handout
PBS

The West: Stephen Fuller Austin (1793 1836)

For Students 9th - 10th
PBS presents a biography on the life of Stephen Fuller Austin. Known as "The Father of Texas," Stephen F. Austin established the first Anglo-American colony in the Teas province of Mexico and saw it grow into an independent republic.
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Article
A&E Television

History.com: This Day in History: Stephen Austin Imprisoned by Mexicans

For Students 9th - 10th
Read this short account of when the Mexican government imprisoned the Texas colonizer Stephen Austin in Mexico City.
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Graphic
A&E Television

History.com: Native American History Timeline

For Students 9th - 10th
As explorers sought to colonize their land, Native Americans responded in various stages, from cooperation to indignation to revolt. The timeline begins in 1492 with the arrival of Christopher Columbus and ends on March 15, 2021:...
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Unit Plan
National Humanities Center

National Humanities Center: Toolbox Library: Enslaved Peoples, American Beginnings: 1492 1690

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Two Spanish accounts of enslaved Indians in the Caribbean and enslaved Africans in Mexico and statements of the difficulty of maintaining slavery and the lurking threat of a slave revolt.
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Article
National Humanities Center

National Humanities Center: Toolbox Library: Indian Wars, American Beginnings: 1492 1690

For Students 9th - 10th
Five documents representing the full range of Indian-European antagonisms, struggles for power, and outright warfare among the Spanish, Pueblo, Wampanoag, English, and French in New Spain, New France, New Mexico, and New England.
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Article
Other

Seguin Descendants Historical Preservation: Erasmo Seguin

For Students 9th - 10th
Dig deep into the life of Erasmo Seguin, the sole representative from Texas to the constitutional convention after Mexico achieved independence from Spain. He helped to draft the Constitution of 1824 and was a major influence in the...