Prior to a curriculum unit on the English colonies in America taught within a U.S. history course, two classes of fifth-graders stated what they knew or believed was true about colonies and what they wanted to learn about them. After the unit, they reported what they had learned about the English colonies in North America. In addition, a…

Prior to a curriculum unit on European exploration of the New World, a class of fifth grade U.S. history students stated what they knew (or thought was true) about the discovery of America and what they wanted to learn about it. After the unit, they reported what they had learned about the general topic of European exploration of North America. In…

The study that is the subject of this document focused on how fifth-graders' knowledge and thinking about the westward expansion of the pre-Civil War United States was affected by students' participation in a curriculum unit on the topic. A stratified sample of 10 students was interviewed before and after they participated in the unit to…