
Continuing my series on what our lesson plans look like for anyone who is considering homeschooling. This is 4th grade American history.
TEXTS:
Abeka, The History of Our United States from a Christian Perspective
Various Non-Fiction Children’s Books (noted below – there are a lot)
Age of Exploration and First Settlements
- Introductory discussion – What distinguishes the American experiment from other countries
- Read Chapter One – Europe: Where the New World Began; Columbus Discovers America
- Chapter One, continued – North America is Claimed for England; America Gets Its Name; Did Anyone Ever Find a Sea Route to the Indies; A New Ocean is Formed; Ponce de Leon Explores Florida
- Read Chapter Two – Spain: The Conquest of Mexico; France: Cartier Explores the New World
- Chapter Two, continued – Spain: Coronado’s Search for the Seven Cities of Cibola; Spain: DeSoto Discovers the Mississippi; England: Drake the Dragon; France: The First French Settlement in the New World
- Field Trip: St. Augustine Colonial Quarter
Native American History and Culture
- Read Chapter Three – The Differences in American Indians; Indian Games; Indian Way of Life Changes; Missionaries to the Native Americans
- Read Marie and Douglas Gorsline, North American Indians
- Read Ellen Levine, If You Lived with the Iroquois
- Read Peter and Connie Roop, If You Lived with the Cherokee
- Read Ann McGovern, If You Lived with the Sioux Indians
- Read Geraldine Woods, The Navajo
- Read Bill Martin and John Archambault, Knots on a Counting Rope
- Read E.K. Caldwell, Bear
- Read Jonathan London, Fire Race: A Karuk Coyote Tale
- Read Tim Jessell, Amorak
- Read North American Indian (DK)
The Colonial Period
- Read Chapter Four – Planting a Colony; England and the Bible; The Lost Colony
- Chapter Four, continued – Jamestown: The First Lasting English Colony
- Read Joyce Milton, Pocahontas: An American Princess
- Chapter Four, continued – The Pilgrims: Lovers of Religious Freedom
- Read Ann McGovern, If You Sailed on the Mayflower in 1620
- Read Chapter Five – Settling the North; The Massachusetts Bay Colony; The Puritans; Governor John Winthrop: Rhode Island and Roger Williams; New Hampshire; Connecticut
- Read Avi, Finding Providence: The Story of Roger Williams
- Read Chapter Six – New York; Delaware; New Jersey
- Chapter Six, continued – Pennsylvania and the Quakers
- Chapter Six, continued – Virginia; Maryland; The Carolinas; Georgia: England’s Last Colony; Many People, One Land
- Chapter Seven – A Picture of Colonial Life
- Read Ann McGovern, If You Lived in Colonial Times
- Read Barbara Brenner, If You Lived in Williamsburg in Colonial Times
- Introductory discussion – What was the “Great Awakening” and how did it shape American culture?
- Read Chapter Seven – Jonathan Edwards: A Great Puritan Preacher; John Wesley: Founder of the Methodist Church; George Whitefield: The Great Evangelist to America; Missionary Work in America
- Read Chapter Nine – New France and Its Colonies; The Differences between French and American Colonies; The French and English Become Enemies
- Chapter Nine, continued – The French and Indian War and Its Historical Significance
The American Revolution and Basic Civics
- Read Chapter Ten – Thirteen English Colonies in America; The American Colonies Demand their Rights as Englishmen; Stamp Act; More Problems
- Chapter Ten, continued – The Colonists Speak Out; New Taxes; The Boston Massacre; The Boston Tea Party
- Chapter Ten, continued – The Revolutionary War Begins; The Colonists Prepare to Fight; The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere
- Read Esther Forbes, America’s Paul Revere
- Read “Paul Revere’s Ride” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
- Chapter Ten, continued – The Second Continental Congress; The Battle for Bunker Hill; Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys; More Decisions
- Chapter Ten, continued – The Declaration of Independence
- Read the Declaration of Independence
- Read James Cross Giblin, Thomas Jefferson: A Picture Book Biography
- Chapter Ten, continued – The War Continues; The Colonial Army in New York City; Patriots Who Risked Their Lives; The Colonial Army at Trenton, New Jersey; A Flag for Our Country
- Chapter Ten, continued: The Colonial Army at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania; The War on the Frontier; A New Navy; The War in the South; Victory at Yorktown, October 1781; Treaty of Paris
- Read, Kay Moore, If You Lived at the Time of the American Revolution
- Read Chapter Eleven – After the War for Independence; The Articles of Confederation; The Constitution of the United States; A Brand-New Government
- Read Elizabeth Levy, If You Were There When They Signed the Constitution
- Read Syl Sobel, How the US Government Works
- Read Elissa Grodin, D is for Democracy: A Citizen’s Alphabet
- Chapter Eleven, continued – The New Republic; An Election; A New Capital
- Read Ruth Belov Gross, If You Grew Up with George Washington
Manifest Destiny and Its Consequences
- Read Chapter Twelve: America Pushes Farther West; Daniel Boone and the Wilderness Road; Settling the Northwest Territory; The Land Ordinances
- Chapter Twelve, continued: The United States Doubles in Size; The Louisiana Territory; The War of 1812 and Its Historical Significance; Our National Anthem
- Read Joyce Milton, Sacajawea: Her True Story
- Chapter Twelve, continued: The Purchase of Florida; The Second Great Awakening
- Chapter Twelve, continued: The United States Gains the Southwest; Texas Decides to Fight for Independence: The Alamo; War with Mexico; The Gadsden Purchase
- Read Elaine Landau, The Alamo: Would You Join the Fight?
- Chapter Twelve, continued: The Great Rush to California; The Oregon Territory; An Education System Evolves
- Read Joseph Bruchac, The Trail of Tears; discuss how forcefully relocating Native Americans was a destructive aspect of settling the former colonies and new territories
Pioneers
- Read Ellen Levine, If You Traveled West in a Covered Wagon
- How It All Began
- Rachel Dickinson, Great Pioneer Projects – Mapping the Way
- Rachel Dickinson, Great Pioneer Projects – The Decision to Go West
- Rachel Dickinson, Great Pioneer Projects – Wagon Trains
- Rachel Dickinson, Great Pioneer Projects – Hardships on the Trail
- Rachel Dickinson, Great Pioneer Projects – Popular Routes
- Rachel Dickinson, Great Pioneer Projects – The Transcontinental Railroad
- Rachel Dickinson, Great Pioneer Projects – Building Homes
- Rachel Dickinson, Great Pioneer Projects – Frontier Farming and Food
- Rachel Dickinson, Great Pioneer Projects – At Home and At School
- Rachel Dickinson, Great Pioneer Projects – Fun and Holidays
- Rachel Dickinson, Great Pioneer Projects – Cowboys and Indians
- Rachel Dickinson, Great Pioneer Projects – Documenting the West
- Play the Oregon Trail board game
- Read Tod Cody, The Cowboy’s Handbook: How to Become a Hero of the Wild West
- DK Eyewitness Books, The Wild West
- Read Bree Burns, Sitting Bull and Other Legendary Native American Chiefs
Slavery in America
- Read Chapter Thirteen – The North with Slavery; The South with Slavery; Troubled Times
- Read Patricia McKissack, Amistad: The Story of a Slave Ship
- Read Anne Kamma, If You Lived When There Was Slavery in America
- Somersett
- Quaker Protest
- A Prince
- A Vanished Slave and His Return
- A Kidnapped Child
- Jenny Slew
- Read Virginia Hamilton, Many Thousand Gone: African-Americans from Slavery to Freedom – Part Two
- Elizabeth Freeman
- The Right of Chloe
- Advertisements
- Th Gabriel Prosser Uprising
- Josiah Henson, Running-Away and Guide
- A Slave
- The Nat Turner Rebellion
- Some Conductors on the Underground Railroad
- Eliza
- Isabella, Sojourner
- The Captain of the Pearl
- Solomon Northrup
- Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey
- The Brave Conductor
- “All Right, Sir!”
- Read Virginia Hamilton, Many Thousand Gone: African-Americans from Slavery to Freedom – Part Three
- Anthony Burns
- A Mother’s Despair
- A Slave from Missouri
- A Kentucky Runaway
- Alexander Ross, Down from Canada
- Jackson, of Alabama
- Wisdom
- An Unnamed Fugitive
- Three Fugitives
- Exodus
- Proclamation
- Deliverance
- The Tide of Freedom
- Read Ellen Levine, If You Traveled on the Underground Railroad
- Read Monica Kulling, Escape North! The Story of Harriet Tubman
- Read Marie Bradbury, More than Anything Else
The Civil War
- Chapter Thirteen, continued – The Civil War and the Emancipation Proclamation
- Chapter Thirteen, continued – The Battles in the Civil War
- Read Ann Turner, Drummer Boy: Marching to the Civil War
- Read Kate Boehm-Jerome, Civil War Sub: The Mystery of the Hanley
- Read Patrick O’Brien, Duel of the Ironclads: The Monitor vs The Virginia
- Read Jean Fritz, Just a Few Words, Mr. Lincoln: The Story of the Gettysburg Address
- Read D’Aulaires’ Abraham Lincoln
- Read Ann McGovern, If You Grew Up with Abraham Lincoln
- Chapter 13, continued – The Assassination of President Abraham Lincoln
- Read Stephen Krensky, A Man for All Seasons: The Life of George Washington Carver; discuss what life was like for former slaves after the Emancipation Proclamation, opportunities and problems
Reconstruction and the Gilded Age
- Read Chapter Fourteen – Rebuilding the South and The Last Frontier
- Chapter Fourteen, continued – Indian Reservations; Railroads; The Homestead Act; The Oklahoma Land Rush; Cyrus McCormick
- Read Chapter Fifteen – Immigration
- Read Ellen Levine, If Your Name Was Changed at Ellis Island
- Read Elvira Woodruff, The Memory Coat
- Read Amy Hest, When Jessie Came Across the Sea
- Read Russell Freedman, Immigrant Kids
- Discussion – Immigrants in our own family from Finland, the Netherlands, and Switzerland; Catholic heritage brought with them
- Read R. Conrad Stein, The Story of the Erie Canal; discuss the role immigrant labor played in massive public works projects like canals and railroads
- Chapter Fifteen, continued – Steel and Oil; Famous American Inventors
- Field Trip – John D. Rockefeller’s House in Ormond Beach
- Read George Shea, First Flight: The Story of Tom Tate and the Wright Brothers
- Read Chapter Sixteen – Alaska and Hawaii
- Watch “The Great Alaskan Race”; discuss the origins of the Iditarod
- Chapter Sixteen, continued – The Spanish-American War and the Rough Riders; The Panama Canal
- Read Chapter Seventeen – World War I
- Chapter Seventeen, continued – The Roaring Twenties
- Documentary on the Roaring Twenties
- Chapter Seventeen, continued – The Great Depression
- Read Steven Otfinoski, The Great Depression
- Read Don Nardo, Migrant Mother: How a Photograph Defined the Great Depression
The World Wars and Modern American History
- Chapter Seventeen, continued – The World Between the Wars; The Rise of Communism, Fascism, and Nazism
- Read Angela Gluck Wood, Holocaust: The Events and Their Impact on Real People; DVD of Holocaust Survivors’ Stories
- Read Michelle McCann, Luba: The Angel of Bergen-Belsen
- Chapter Seventeen, continued – World War II Begins; The United States Builds Its Armed Forces; Germany Attacks England; Hitler Surprises the Russians; Three Wars in One
- Chapter Seventeen, continued – The Attack on Pearl Harbor
- Read Shelley Tanaka, Attack on Pearl Harbor: The True Story of The Day America Entered World War II
- Watch “Midway” movie about the war in the Pacific
- Read Shelley Tanaka, D-Day: A Day that Changed America; discuss great-grandfather’s role in storming Normandy
- Chapter Seventeen, continued – Victory Comes at Last; Continuing World Problems; Berlin is Divided; the Korean War; discuss family members who served in Korea
- Chapter Eighteen – Freedom and Opportunity for All Americans
- Read Robert Coles, The Story of Ruby Bridges
- Read Ellen Levine, If You Lived at the Time of Martin Luther King
- Read Philip Caputo, 10,000 Days of Thunder: A History of the Vietnam War
- Read Vietnam War (DK); discuss experiences of Vietnam veterans in the family
- Read Judy Donnelly, Moonwalk: The First Trip to the Moon
- Read James Buckley Jr., Home Address: ISS, International Space Station
- Field Trip: Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral
- Read Mitch Frank, Understanding September 11th: Answering Questions about the Attack on America
- Reflections on what we’ve learned about our country
Unit on Florida History
- Abeka, My State Notebook (research project)
TEXT: Abeka, Geography Teaching Maps
- The World, Charts 1-2
- North America – Physical Map, Charts 3-4
- North America – Political Map, Charts 5-6
- Early Settlements, Charts 7-8
- The 13 Original Colonies, Charts 9-10
- Our Nation Grows, Charts 11-12
- Landforms, Charts 13-14
- United States – Political, Charts 15-16
TEXT: Abeka, The History of Our United States, Geography / Maps and Reviews
TEXT: Kate Siber, National Parks of the USA
- East
- Central
- Rocky Mountains
- Southwest
- West
- Alaska and Tropics
Jason Chin, The Grand Canyon
Susan, Goodman, On this Spot: An Expedition through Time