Welcome to 4th and 5th Grade History
The 4th Grade History lessons will focus on California History. Weekly lessons listed below.
The 5th Grade History lessons will focus on U.S. History. Weekly lessons listed below.
4th GRADE HISTORY - Ms. Sherman
Week 1: Where in the World is California? (4.1, 4.1.3) Students will become acquainted with Studies Weekly. They will also learn about California’s geographic features, cities and bordering regions.
Week 2: California Regions (4.1, 4.1.3, 4.1.4, 4.1.5) Students will study the prehistoric events that formed California. They will also learn about the features of California’s four regions.
Week 3: California’s Water (4.1, 4.1.3, 4.1.4, 4.1.5) Students will learn about the importance of water to California’s earliest settlers. Students will also learn how water is currently supplied to California’s population.
Week 4: California’s Climate (4.1, 4.1.1, 4.1.2, 4.1.3) Students will study California’s climate and natural resources. Students will define hemispheres, continents and oceans. They will also use lines of latitude and longitude on a globe.
Week 5: The First Californians (4.2, 4.2.1) Students will be introduced to the American Indians who first inhabited California. They will discuss how California’s American Indians lived based on which region they inhabited.
Week 6: Pacific Coast American Indians (4.2, 4.2.1) Students will learn about the costal tribes of California, including their skills, rituals and beliefs.
Week 7: Desert & Valley American Indians (4.2, 4.2.1) Students will study inland American Indians and their skills for thriving in desert regions.
Week 8: Northeast & Mountain American Indians (4.2, 4.2.1) Students will learn about the beliefs, customs and diets of tribes from the northeast and mountain regions of California.
Week 9: Early Spanish Visitors (4.2, 4.2.2) Students will study early and explorers and their discoveries in America.
Week 10: Presidios & Pueblos (4.2, 4.2.3, 4.2.4, 4.2.5) Students will discuss the prominence of Spanish settlers in California. They will also learn about the relationships between American Indians, missionaries and soldiers.
Week 11: Early Spanish Settlements (4.2, 4.2.3, 4.2.4, 4.2.5) Students will study the El Camino Real and its functions.
Week 12: Mission Life & Style (4.2, 4.2.3, 4.2.4, 4.2.5, 4.2.6) Students will study what missionaries taught American Indians and what life was like in the missions.
Week 13: Mexico Gains Independence (4.2, 4.2.7, 4.2.8) Students will learn about Mexico’s secession from Spain. They will cover California’s early government.
Week 14: Fur Trappers & Traders (4.1, 4.1.4, 4.3, 4.3.1, 4.3.2) Students will discuss California’s new settlers and the goals they had for the land.
Week 15: Bear Flag Revolt-California Republic (4.3, 4.3.3) Students will learn about the Bear Flag Revolt and General Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo. They will learn how California became a republic.
Week 16: Mexican-American War (4.3, 4.3.3) Students study the struggle for control of California in the Mexican-American War.
Week 17: Gold Discovered (4.3, 4.3.3, 4.3.4) Students will be introduced to the discovery of gold as a turning point in California history.
Week 18: Life in the Gold Rush (4.3, 4.3.3) Students will study mining camps and the laws that governed them. They will also learn about the difficult journeys some faced in trying to reach California.
Week 19: Compromise of 1850 (4.3, 4.3.4) Students will learn about Biddy Mason as a freed slave who worked hard to help others. They will also learn about California’s constitutional convention, slavery in America, and the Compromise of 1850.
Week 20: Statehood for California (4.3, 4.3.5, 4.5.1, 4.5.2, 4.5.3) Students will define constitution and will learn how California’s was written. They will learn how California became a state thanks to its constitution.
Week 21: Stagecoach, Pony Express, Camels (4.4, 4.4.1) Students will learn about the stagecoach as a means of transportation. They will learn how mail was sent via the Pony Express and the dangers associated with the Pony Express.
Week 22: Telegraph (4.4, 4.4.1) Students will study the efficiency of communication by telegraph.
Week 23: Transcontinental Railroad (4.4, 4.4.1) Students will be introduced to the Transcontinental Railroad. They will learn that the railroad was initiated by engineer Theodore Judah and was completed with the help of immigrants.
Week 24: Honoring Immigrants (4.4, 4.4.3, 4.4.4) Students will study the importance of immigrants in shaping California.
Week 25: California Agriculture (4.4, 4.4.2) Students will be introduced to the innovations of farmer Luther Burbank. They will also study the progression of farming in California and the farming industry of California today.
Week 26: Dust Bowl, Depression and WWII (4.4, 4.4.5) Students will study the impacts of the Great Depression on California. Students will learn how World War II improved the economy.
Week 27: California Industries (4.4, 4.4.6, 4.4.9) Students will learn about the rise of the entertainment industry in California. They will also look at California’s many industries, such as mining, oil and forestry as well as transportation and communication.
Week 28: California’s State Government (4.5, 4.5.4, 4.5.5) Students will be introduced to California’s state capitol building. They will also look at various levels of government, such as state, county and local governments.
5th GRADE HISTORY - Ms. Sherman
Week 1: World/U.S. Geography Students will use a map to identify physical features of the U.S. They will discuss cartography and learn about Alexander von Humboldt.
Week 2: U.S. States and Regions Students will learn about the natural regions of the United States. They will discuss physical features such as mountains, plains and plateaus.
Week 3: American Indian Nations Students will discuss ancient civilizations/ historic tribes and compare cultural aspects by region.
Week 4: How Did It All Begin? Students will examine and understand the causes and effects of European colonization in the United States beginning in 1565.
Week 5: Spanish and Portuguese Explorers Students will discover the process of exploration by focusing on motives and accomplishments of early Spanish and Portuguese explorers.
Week 6: English and French Explorers Students will discover the process of exploration by focusing on motives and accomplishments of early French and English explorers.
Week 7: Dividing the New World Students will know some benefits of interaction among American Indians, explorers and colonists and will discuss the Columbian Exchange.
Week 8: Early English Colonies Students will study early English colonies— Roanoke, Jamestown and Plymouth.
Week 9: New England Colonies Students will study colonies in New England— Massachusetts Bay, Rhode Island, Connecticut and New Hampshire.
Week 10: Middle Colonies Students will study the Middle Colonies—New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware.
Week 11: Southern Colonies Students will study the Southern Colonies— Georgia, Virginia, Maryland and the Carolinas.
Week 12: Slavery in the Colonies Students will discuss Triangular Trade and slavery in the colonies.
Week 13: Mounting Tensions Students will study events that led up to the American Revolution.
Week 14: Declaring Independence Students will discuss some important events of 1775 and the writing/signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776.
Week 15: The Revolutionary War Students will study events of the American Revolution, focusing on George Washington as the commander of the Continental Army.
Week 16: Growing Pains Students will discuss some of the problems facing the new nation—a weak central government, Shays’ rebellion and the need for a national currency.
Week 17: The Constitution Students will define a constitution, understand the rights/responsibilities of a U.S. citizen and explain our system of checks and balances.
Week 18: Plans for the New Government Students will demonstrate their understanding of the Constitution and Declaration of Independence and will compare Federalist and Anti-Federalist views of government.
Week 19: Government of the People Students will explain the structure and function of government.
Week 20: Louisiana Purchase Students will study and describe the events leading up to, during and resulting from the Louisiana Purchase.
Week 21: War of 1812 Students will explain the causes/ effects of the War of 1812 and the effects of westward expansion on American Indians.
Week 22: Early Westward Expansion Students will recognize influential people of westward expansion and be able to describe the contributions they made.
Week 23: Westward Ho! Students will study the westward trails through secondary and primary sources, including journal entries of children who made the journey.
Week 24: Industry vs. Agriculture Students will examine life in the North and South in the first half of the 19th century.
Week 25: Conflicts and Compromises Students will discuss conflicts that eventually led to the Civil War, such as the Compromise of 1850, the Kansas-Nebraska Act and the 1860 election of Abraham Lincoln.
Week 26: The Civil War Students will discuss the secession of southern states and the beginning of the Civil War. They will study the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863.
Week 27: The War Continues Students will continue their study of the Civil War. They will discuss some battles of the war and the role of women as nurses, seamstresses and sometimes as soldiers and spies.
Week 28: Reconstruction Students will examine Lincoln’s plan to reunite the North and South and read about his assassination in 1865. They will learn about the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments.