Primary
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Primary Source Set: Exploration of the Americas

For Students 9th - 10th
This collection uses primary sources to explain the early exploration of the Americas.
Website
Library of Congress

Loc: Online Exhibition: The Cultures and History of the Americas

For Students 9th - 10th
Examine some of the rare books, maps, prints and other artifacts in this online exhibition. The exhibition explores several themes on the cultures and history of the Americas. The collection focuses on the period of pre-contact through...
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Khan Academy

Khan Academy: Us History: 1491 1607: European Exploration in the Americas

For Students 9th - 10th
A quick comprehension check over European Exploration in the Americas.
eBook
OpenStax

Open Stax: Portuguese Exploration and Spanish Conquest

For Students 11th - 12th
From a chapter on "Early Globalization: The Atlantic World, 1492-1650," this section describes the importance of Portuguese exploration of the Atlantic and Spanish exploration of the Americas.
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Louisiana Department of Education

Louisiana Doe: Louisiana Believes: Social Studies: Grade 5: The Age of Exploration in the Americas

For Teachers 5th
Read and study the sources about the European Age of Exploration. As you read the four sources, think about the ways in which exploration during this time period impacted the Americas.
Unit Plan
The Newberry Library

Newberry: Commodities and the Transformation of the American Landscape

For Students 9th - 10th
Learning resource uses primary source material to explore the ways in which commodities are extracted, produced, and exchanged and how those processes have shaped the physical and cultural landscape of North America.
Handout
Mariners' Museum and Park

Age of Exploration: Changing View of the World: The Development of Map Making

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Read a summary of the history of map-making and the maps that were produced as a result of European exploration in the Americas. See examples of these maps and find out more about each one in this exhibit from the Mariners' Museum.
Primary
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Primary Source Set: Secession of the Southern States

For Students 9th - 10th
This collection uses primary sources to explore the secession of southern states from the United States prior to the Civil War.
Primary
Library of Congress

Loc: Discovery and Exploration

For Students 9th - 10th
This American Memory site documents the discovery and exploration of the Americas with both manuscripts and published maps, many of which date from the European Age of Discovery. The site includes 22 map titles and descriptions, as well...
Unit Plan
The Newberry Library

Newberry: Shakespeare's the Tempest and Utopias of the European Renaissance

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Newberry Library learning module uses primary source material of Shakespeare in a lesson on how Renaissance writers and artists portrayed European exploration of America. Students read excerpts from works of Renaissance literature to...
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The British Museum

British Museum: Explore World Cultures: Arctic Peoples of North America

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn about the art of the native Americans of the Arctic region in this overview of their art with a selection of relevant objects each with it's own detailed object description.
Website
NPR: National Public Radio

Npr: End of Life: Exploring Death in America: "Last Day" From "Charlotte's Web"

For Students 9th - 10th
This site, from an National Public Radio program, The End of Life, provides the text of the last chapter of E.B. White's "Charlotte's Web."
Website
Other

Mesoweb: An Exploration of Mesoamerican Cultures

For Students 9th - 10th
An Exploration of Mesoamerican Cultures and Art is a database of many resources, publications, books, and articles. Click Search and enter the topic. Click Resources for archaeological sites and monuments such as Chichen Itza and Cacaxtla.
Lesson Plan
Huntington Library

Huntington Library: Causes of the American Revolution: Trouble in Boston [Pdf]

For Teachers 5th
In this lesson, 5th graders look at ideas and British policies that contributed to the outbreak of the American Revolution. Includes background information for the teacher. Students explore ideas that were circulating in America before...
Website
Other

Southern Nature: Scientific Views of the Colonial American South

For Students 9th - 10th
These colonial members of the American Philosophical Society explored the southern colonies. Here you will see what they found to be of scientific importance. There are accounts of indigenous people, flora, and animal species.
Unit Plan
Annenberg Foundation

Annenberg Learner: America's History in the Making: Civil War, a Nation Divided

For Teachers 9th - 10th
A wonderful resource using primary and secondary source materials to explore many facets of the Civil War from the war itself to its impact on the home front. Includes video and text downloads.
Primary
Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History

Gilder Lehrman Institute: History Now: The Americas to 1620

For Students 9th - 10th
[Free Registration/Login Required] A look into the history of the Americas from the beginning of time to 1620. Learn about the American Indians, imperial rivalries, and exploration with resources from this page.
Unit Plan
Texas Education Agency

Texas Gateway: Exploration and Colonization of America

For Students 9th - 10th
Given short summaries about the reasons for European exploration and colonization of North America, students will compare English and Spanish settlements in the New World.
Website
Curated OER

National Park Service: The Forts of Old San Juan: Guardians of the Caribbean

For Students 9th - 10th
Visit such Spanish sites in Puerto Rico as El Morro, the fort that provided the keystone to protection of the Spanish Empire that spread across the Caribbean. Many photographs and drawings.
Website
Other

Social History of the North: Circumpolar History Timetables

For Students 9th - 10th
Find information on 37,000 years of civilization in the far North, including Russia, Northern Europe, and North America. This site is well organized, frequently updated, and offers an extensive bibliography.
Whiteboard
ClassFlow

Class Flow: Exploration of the New World

For Students 3rd - 5th
[Free Registration/Login Required] This flipchart explores the impact and progress of different nations as they explored the Americas. It also presents the links between that exploration, and that of West Africa. The students click and...
Website
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Mit: Open Course Ware: The Conquest of America

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Consider these resources while illustrating the natives' response to Europeans settling into the Americas.
Unit Plan
Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History

Gilder Lehrman Institute: Age of Exploration

For Students 9th - 10th
[Free Registration/Login Required] Learn about the exploration of the Americas. Site includes primary source documents, videos, essays, and lesson plans to help students research the exploration of the new land.
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Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian: Textiles of the North American Southwest

For Students 9th - 10th
This site explores the weaving traditions of the Native American and Hispanic peoples of northern Mexico and the southwestern United States. A gallery of artifacts, timeline, map glossary, and textual descriptions are included. This is a...