Lesson 1: Technology in the West

In this lesson, students will examine how technology and other developments changed the West and analyze the implications of these developments.  This lesson is designed to allow students to draw connections between the technology in the West and technological developments today.  While participating in the activity, students will learn about particular groups of people and particular developments that occurred in the mid-1800s-early 1900s.  The main learning event of this activity is a scavenger hunt in which students will analyze primary sources while learning about and analyzing technological developments in the West. By Lindsey Passenger, Department of History at Northern Arizona University.

Lesson 2: Native American Boarding Schools

This lesson teaches students about the experience of Native youth in Government Boarding Schools in the 19th and 20th centuries. It combines primary documents, collaborative learning techniques, and other strategies for teaching historical subjects more effectively. This lesson may serve as a template for other subjects that can easily incorporate primary documents. The lesson can be edited to last from 50 to 110 minutes.

Supplemental Materials for Lesson 2: Native American Boarding Schools, PowerPoint for Students, Native American Boarding Schools, PowerPoint for Teachers,Native American Boarding Schools, Primary Sources.

Lesson 3: The First Transcontinental Railroad

This lesson uses a simulation in which students are "building" the First Transcontinental Railroad to understand what it was like to be a worker on the Union or Central Pacific Railroads.  During the activity, students use primary and secondary sources to gain information then apply the information in a variety of ways.  This activity provides for movement, collaboration, teamwork, and accomodating different skill levels and learning styles.  All together, the lesson would take about 90 minutes to complete.

Supplemental Materials for Lesson 3: The First Transcontinental Railroad, PowerPoint, The First Transcontinental Railroad, Visual Aids, The First Transcontinental Railroad, Station Packets, The First Transcontinental Railroad, Station Questions, The First Transcontinental Railroad, Overnight Camp Sheet, The First Transcontinental Railroad, Note Sheet, The First Transcontinental Railroad, Table of Contents.

Lesson 4: Land Grabbing

This lesson plan uses a variety of teaching methods to portray the idea of Land Grabbing in the American West. It intertwines a variety of genres along with crossing curriculum. The main ideas in this lesson include assimilation, stereotypes, Westward expansion, and Native Americans. To teach these concepts, a vocabulary graph is used along with a board game, student drawings, a journal entry, and a foldable review guide. This lesson plan includes primary documents and maps. A teacher may format this lesson easily for English Language Learners, younger ages, and different achievement levels. It also provides a variety of assessments throughout the lesson.

Supplemental Materials for Lesson 4: Land Grabbing PowerPoint,Land Grabbing, Elaborate 1, Land Grabbing, Engage 1, Land Grabbing, Engage 2, Lang Grabbing, Engage 3, Land Grabbing, Explain 1, Land Grabbing, Explore 1, Land Grabbing, Explore 2.

Lesson 5: The Intermountain West: An Environmental History of Its People, Places, History, and Cultures

The Intermountain West: An Environmental History of Its People, Places, History, and Cultures is a teaching unit plan designed to give secondary students of United States History and understanding of the shaping force the environment has on the American character and, furthermore, to help students in the Intermountain West see themselves as part of a diverse cultural and physical landscape. The unit is derived from constructivist and social learning theories.