This case study explores how indian boarding schools impacted thousands of Native youths and allows students to examine the effects of assimilation. Designed for High School, but easily adaptable for upper elementary or middle school. Full lesson plan included.

The Cherokee Nation virtual field trip affords an in-depth look at the lives of the Cherokee Indians, from their first encounters with Europeans to events, such as the Gold Rush and the signing of the Indian Removal Act by Andrew Jackson, that led to their forced relocation to Indian Territory in 1838.

This infographic enables students to explore multiple points related to gold discovery in the western United States in the latter half of the nineteenth century and discover what resulted.

Welcome to a fascinating course on cowboys and Conestogas, migration and miners, expansion and ethnicity. This course will teach students how to critically analyze and evaluate competing perspectives on western American history, with an emphasis on the century spanning from 1830, at the time of the Indian Removal Act, to 1930 and the beginnings of the Great Depression. Students will use primary sources, class readings, discussions, and assignments to explore the cultural and historical underpinnings of the American West.  The final project for this course will be a research project where they will showcase their ability to analyze and prioritize information and reflect on a historical event.  The course is aligned with the state of Utah's Core Standards for Social Studies, U.S. 1 Strand 6: Expansion Standards 6.1 and 6.2

The road to Emancipation was indeed stony! Enslaved people struggled to free themselves and loved ones, one person at a time.

This activity includes primary sources from the official records of the U.S. District Court at Boston that tell the story of William and Ellen Craft, a young couple from Macon, GA, who escaped to freedom in Boston in 1848. The two traveled together, Ellen as a White gentleman (she was the daughter of an African-American woman and a White master and passed as White), and William as her slave valet. They made their way to Boston, and lived in the home of Lewis Hayden, a former fugitive and abolition activist.

With the passing of the Fugitive Slave Act in September, 1850, the Crafts' respective owners employed the legal system to regain their escaped property. A U.S. Marshal was sent to the home of Lewis Hayden. Hayden refused to let the marshal in and threatened to ignite kegs of gunpowder; the Marshal left. Ellen and William fled to Britain, where they remained for 20 years. They eventually returned to the United States and settled back in Georgia.

In this activity, students will examine historic documents about these fugitives from slavery. Then, using the documents, they will construct historical narratives to tell their story. They can explore perspective and use standard elements of writing (plot, character, setting, conflict, impact). Thinking about essential questions/topics, they will begin their writing with a topic/opening sentence that sets out the main idea.