Curated OER
Patterns of Settlement in Early Alabama
Fourth graders study the settlement of Alabama. They collect data from the U.S. census website and answer questions regarding settlement patterns in the counties of Alabama in 1820. They write a paagraph describing where they would have...
Curated OER
Whose Land Is It Anyway?
Seventh graders comprehend the interaction and conflict beween Native Americans and white settlers in the years following the Civil War. They listen to T"his Land is Your Land." Students are asked what their interpretation of the...
Curated OER
The Conestoga Wagon
Learners research the Conestoga wagon. In this early transportation lesson, students use primary documents to research how the invention of the Conestoga wagon improved transportation.
San Diego State University
Sdsu College of Education: Westward Movement
A group of organized lessons provides ideas for teachers when planning a unit on westward expansion in the US. Some activities include planning what to pack in your wagon, learning what obstacles were faced, mapping, and more.
Teachnology
Teachnology: Westward Expansion Teaching Theme
Enhance classroom teaching Westward Expansion with this broad assortment of resources including lesson plans, activities, interactive sites, and much more.
US National Archives
Docsteach: The Impact of Westward Expansion on Native American Groups
In this activity, students will examine the impact of westward expansion and settlement on Native American groups following the Civil War. Students will explore a variety of documents to get a sense of the issues faced by Native...
US National Archives
Docsteach: Reasons for Westward Expansion
Learners will examine a variety of documents that reference reasons why Americans living in the East migrated west of the Mississippi immediately before, during, and right after the Civil War. Documents cover the mining industry, new...
PBS
Wnet: Thirteen: Freedom: A History of Us: Liberty for All? Webisode 3
Webisode 3 - Liberty for All? The history of the United States is presented in a series of webisodes, within each are a number of segments.Included are links to lesson plans, teacher guides, resources, activities, and tools.
US National Archives
Herbert Hoover Presidential Library: Pioneer Life With Laura
This site is an integrated teaching unit on pioneer life and Westward Movement of the United States, using books by author Laura Ingalls Wilder. It includes suggested read-alouds, a wealth of large and small group activities, a pioneer...
George Eastman Museum
Photographers of the American West
Original pictures of Westward expansion. Great activities and discussion questions for cross-curricular learning.
National Gallery of Art
National Gallery of Art: Rolling on the River
Students will explore how westward expansion increased the number of jobs available in the nineteenth century, including being a flat boatman through a painting by George Caleb Bingham.
Nebraska Studies
Nebraska Studies: Pioneer Children: Games, Toys, and Recreation
Learn about the lives of pioneer children whose families moved to Nebraska during the period of Western Expansion. Topics include toys, games and other activities for enjoyment.
Scholastic
Scholastic: Our America: Western Expansion
Reviews of children's literature, student activities, and interactive games from Scholastic that enrich a student's understanding and appreciation of western expansion before the Civil War.
![U.s Mint: Which Side Is Which [Pdf] Lesson Plan](https://content.lessonplanet.com/knovation/original/249033-ff1ff264a293b5ffb6c4bba64baec78d.jpg?1661243090 "U.s Mint: Which Side Is Which [Pdf] Lesson Plan")
US Mint
U.s Mint: Which Side Is Which [Pdf]
Introduce learners to the Louisiana Purchase and Lewis and Clark's Expedition. Then take a look at the Peace Medal nickel and differentiate between heads and the tails sides. Finally, do a coin-flip activity, and record and analyze the...
US National Archives
Docsteach: Indian Nations vs. Settlers on the American Frontier: 1786 1788
In this activity, students will compare and contrast two documents from the Revolutionary period written by 1) a combined group of Native American tribes and 2) an American territorial governor, Arthur St. Clair. Students will analyze...
Constitutional Rights Foundation
Constitutional Rights Foundation: Conflict of Cultures: President Polk and the Taking of the West
Lesson and activity on conflict of cultures in which students study U.S. overtaking lands of Mexico and California and form policy on property rights and citizenship of conquered cultures. Activity guidelines, questions for discussion...
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Learner: America's History in the Making: Taming the American West
Comprehensive teaching unit that explores the settling of the American West in the late 1800s and the challenges these settlers faced. Contains video and text materials, web interactives, student oriented activities, and a timeline of...
ClassFlow
Class Flow: Southwest Literacy Unit
[Free Registration/Login Required] This flipchart is a literacy unit based around a Southwest / Westward Expansion Theme. Native Americans, pioneers, and the old west is covered. 8 different literacy strategies are taught with FULL...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Neh: Edsit Ement: If You Were a Pioneer on the Oregon Trail
Lesson plans that introduce the Oregon Trail to students and guide them into an activity where they create a personal narrative describing their journey out west. Provides a link to an excellent site that details many aspects of the...
Department of Defense
Do Dea: Ap Us History: Unit 3: The Growing Republic
This extensive learning module examines how the United States' efforts to increase foreign trade, add new territory, and isolate itself from Europe affected its foreign policy and other initiatives. It investigates how advances in...
Department of Defense
Do Dea: Ap Us History: Unit 4: A House Divided
This extensive learning module examines how the United States became more connected with the world as it pursued an expansionist foreign policy, became the destination for many new immigrants, and encouraged migration to the Pacific...
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Harcourt: Biographies: Meriwether Lewis 1774 1809
A biography of Meriwether Lewis and information about his exploration of the Louisiana Territory that led to the development of the American West. Includes several maps.
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Harcourt: Biographies: Meriwether Lewis
A biography of Meriwether Lewis, the man in charge of one of the great expeditions of the United States. (In Spanish)
Harry S. Truman Library and Museum
The Trumpet Club: The Birchbark House
Come and check out this informative site featuring the book "Birchbark House," by Louise Erdrich. This site provides a plot summary, discussion of settings and characterizations, and a class project idea.