This integrated unit on the H. J. Heinz Company is intended for fourth grade and provides a broad understanding of history, social science, geography, science, mathematics, literature and economics. Students will discover that many other industries, besides iron and steel, were prospering in the mid-1800s. The table of contents lists: (1)…

This curriculum guide for teaching the history of Florida is designed as a teaching unit in the Social Studies program for fourth graders in the Duval County Public Schools (Jacksonville). The central theme is "Our Widening World," and the primary idea is how conflict and interdependence brought about the growth and development of…

From 1997-2001, the Kentucky Historical Society and the Kentucky Arts Council have cosponsored an annual Kentucky Folklife Festival to celebrate the traditions of diverse groups from across the state. Folklife, or folklore, includes traditions that are shared by a group of people who have a mutual background or interest. Folklore can be expressed…

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…

This 8-week interdisciplinary unit for fourth- and fifth-grade students helps children address the U.S. westward expansion in the 1840's using the interactive software program, The Oregon Trail. The unit provides connections to literature, geography, computer/mathematics skills, language arts, and research skills. The work is done in cooperative…

This is volume one of a two-volume civics curriculum on law and effective citizenship for upper-elementary students. The lessons, set in American historical eras, engage students in cooperative-learning activities, role plays, simulations, readers theater, stories, and guided discussions, which introduce and reinforce law-related and civic…

These teacher developed lessons focus on the impact of the New Deal and World War II on east Tennessee. The forum for developing the lessons included a series of lectures by experts in 20th-century scholarship and interpretation, tours, and experiences at historic sites in the region. During the week long program, teachers traveled throughout east…

Encountering the U.S. Civil War on a smaller, human scale makes the conflict more approachable, vivid, and real. Rivers Bridge State Historic Site (South Carolina) offers a glimpse of the Civil War on such a scale. The small area allows visitors to comprehend the entire battlefield, its tactics, and to see how veteran troops near the end of the…

In 1777, out of the confusion, fear, and chaos of battle, soldiers of the Continental Army forged a victory over professional British and German soldiers near Saratoga (New York). The two battles fought there changed the course of the American Revolution and insured the independence of the former British colonies that became the United States of…

At the First Battle of Manassas (Virginia) in 1861 many Union doctors fled the battlefield in fear. Those who remained found themselves without adequate medical supplies or ambulances for their patients. As the U.S. Civil War progressed and casualties mounted, military surgeons became more adept at caring for the wounded. By the Battle of…

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 to help teachers, this curriculum guide outlines a field trip fourth-grade students take to visit a Florida student museum. Included are objectives for student learning, student activities for both before and after the visit, and activities for comparing a turn-of-the-century classroom with the classroom of today. All of these activities…

This curriculum guide for Fort Worth schools covers grade 6 social studies, Texas history/geography, United States history/citizenship, pointers on how to study, and cultural studies. The guide includes the following materials: a statement of philosophy and broad goals for each content area; objectives organized around broad content goals or…

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…

Developed through a broad-based national consensus building process, the National History Standards project has involved working toward agreement both on the larger purposes of history in the school curriculum and on the more specific history understandings and thinking processes that all students should have equal opportunity to acquire over 12…