Intermediate and junior high school students learn about the social history of Vermont by studying events and trends during a 30-year period of the life of a famous Vermont native, Calvin Coolidge. Although designed for students in Vermont, materials can easily be adapted for use in other states, particularly those in the New England area. In…

In 1875, a man fishing in the isolated Trout River of California discovered several large gold nuggets. This lesson plan asks fourth-grade students to develop a plan to avoid another 1849 gold rush. The plan is to design a new town while considering transportation, housing, food and goods for the miners, and the preservation of the area's…

Designed primarily for sixth grade students, this 2-week learning packet on Alaska can be adapted to grades 5 and 7. Material is divided into three sections. Following a discussion of how and when to introduce this unit, the teacher section contains a brief summary of each of the unit's seven lessons. The student section contains readings and…

"The Story of California" is a history and geography of the state of California, intended for classroom use by limited-English-proficient, native Spanish-speaking students in California's urban middle schools. The book is designed with the left page in English and the right page in Spanish to facilitate student transition into…

Designed for use with fourth and fifth grade combination classes, this student worktext combines concepts and content from both California and U. S. history courses. Material is arranged into the following seven chapters: Discovery and Exploration; Colonizing a New Land; A New Nation and New Californians; Westward Expansion; Civil War,…

A volume in the Scholastic Homework Reference Series, this document provides fourth to sixth grade students and their parents with the information they need to complete U.S. history assignments. With the help of Dial-A-Teacher, which has operated a telephone helpline since 1979, this American history reference guide presents easy-to-understand…

The readings and activities in this 5-day unit for 4th and 5th grade classes are designed to introduce students to Amish culture in America. A total of five lessons are outlined in which students discuss Amish family life, role play Amish celebrations, make basic products such as bread and soap, and examine Amish customs and occupations. A…

Designed for small group instruction, this fifth-grade classroom activity deals with the creation of a special edition newspaper commemorating the 200th anniversary of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. The activity contains five roles for students (historian, journalist, cartographer/illustrator, biographer, scientist), and each group is to produce…

This activities booklet focuses on the story of Alaska's flag. The booklet is intended for teachers to use with students in the intermediate grades. Each activity in the booklet contains: background information, a summary and time estimate, state standards, a step-by-step technique for implementation of the activity, assessment tips, materials and…

This teaching guide seeks to add to and enhance the teaching of Wisconsin history and culture in public and private schools. Designed with the fourth-grade classroom in mind, studying state history with this guide becomes a real investigation that demonstrates the dynamic relationship Wisconsin's inhabitants share with the past. The activities in…

Suitable for students in the intermediate grades, the calendar provides teachers and students with a source of topics dealing with U.S. history and its cultural heritage. Following each calendar page is a day-by-day list of related questions to be used with students working independently, in groups, or in whole class discussions. This document is…

This volume is book 5 in a 10 part series on U.S. history for children. The book tells the story of the Antebellum era--especially the story of children from a variety of backgrounds. Some of the characters depicted in this volume include Jedediah Smith, Davy Crockett, John Quincy Adams, Emily Dickinson, Sojourner Truth, John James Audubon, and…

Prepared for middle school students, this magazine issue covers presidential campaigns, the election process, and Herbert Hoover, an Iowan native. The articles include: (1) "Meet Clara Bell, 1848"; (2) "On the Campaign Trail"; (3) "Caucus Spotlight" (K. B. Brosseau); (4) "Kids Ask the Candidates"; (5)…

Designed for use by intermediate and junior high school students, this paper gives first-hand information on the U.S. territory of the Virgin Islands. Material is divided into five sections. An introduction outlines the basic geographic, economic, social, and educational characteristics of the territory. Separate sections then focus on each of…

The key to a successful field trip is planning. This publication, designed to provide guidelines for the middle school teacher, outlines the step-by-step experience of a visit to Montpelier, the home of James Madison. A prefatory article by constitutional authority A. E. Dick Howard, called "James Madison and the Constitution," provides…