This parent guide supports parents in helping their child at home with the 5th grade Social Studies content.

This resource accompanies our Rethink 5th Grade Social Studies course. It includes ideas for use, ways to support exceptional children, ways to extend learning, digital resources and tools, tips for supporting English Language Learners and students with visual and hearing impairments. There are also ideas for offline learning. 

This lesson introduces students to American colonial life and has them compare the daily life and culture of two different colonies in the late 1700s. Students study artifacts of the thirteen original British colonies and write letters between fictitious cousins in Massachusetts and Delaware.

Students assume the roles of detectives as they investigate the occurrences during the Salem Witch Trials. They also assume the roles of lawyers and explore the principles of American democracy through the documents and laws that are meant to protect citizens from such unjust treatment in modern history.

Students examine economic patterns of colonial America. Students make connections between industries, available resources in the area, and their impact on how people make a living. The development of a free enterprise market economy is also explored.

This lesson investigates where and why the English colonists settled in America. The lesson also looks at leaders who had an impact on the development of the colonies and their reasons for founding the colonies.

In this unit, students explore Colonial America through the building of timelines and investigating primary and secondary sources. This study of significant events in the colonization of North America and the aspects of everyday life in Colonial America is designed for students to gather, record, and organize their own Colonial Notebook. Students will take on the role of colonist in a given region and work with other 'colonists' of the same region to develop a report and presentation. The study will take students through the life and times of those early settlers and will have them preparing a colonial meal representative of their region of focus

This virtual field trip from Historic Bath State Site is a fun way to learn more about a kid's life in the 18th century. The field trip packet contains ,links to YouTube videos of costumed interpreters demonstrating historic activities, pre- and post-watch content for educators that provide context and engagement, and follow-up activities (games, crafts, and coloring pages). Live Q&A can be booked as part of the field trip as well.

Fort Dobbs has created a series of short videos designed to teach students about the settlement of the Northwest Carolina backcountry, the lives of the Native Americans living in and near the region of Fort Dobbs, the life of a North Carolina Provincial Soldier, and North Carolina's role during the French and Indian War. The videos are designed for teachers to use them separately to fit into their own lessons or can be grouped together by theme.

In 1584, Walter Raleigh funded his first voyage to the New World after being granted the patent from Queen Elizabeth I and quickly set about seeking a location for his future colony. His explorers not only located Roanoke Island quickly, but had their first important interaction with the Native Algonquians in the area.

Through this reading and activity, students will: a) Gain an understanding of England’s first glimpse of the New World; b) Explain the interaction between the Native Algonquians in the area and the Englishmen; c) Examine the benefits of the location of Roanoke.

This lesson helps students understand the causes and effects of exploration with an emphasis on European exploration of North America. Students learn when, where, and why groups of people colonized and settled what is today the United States. Through group activities, reading and discussions, students learn the economic, social and political reasons for exploration and settlement.

This lesson helps students gain a better understanding of geographic tools and their application for interpreting information. Students learn about why the early colonists settled in the areas they did and the types of economic patterns that emerged due to the physical environment. In the process, students differentiate between different types of regions and how they may develop based on human actions or their physical geography

In the previous unit, students learned about European exploration and colonization in the Western Hemisphere. Students were introduced to the English colonial regions (New England, Middle and Southern colonies) and reasons for coming to the New World. This lesson investigates where and why the English colonists settled in America. The lesson also looks at leaders who had an impact on the development of the colonies and their reasons for founding the colonies.

In this lesson students examine economic patterns of colonial America. Students make connections between industries, available resources in the area, and their impact on how people make a living. The development of a free enterprise market economy is also explored.

In this lesson, students learn about the political, economic, and geographic regional differences that led to conflict in the United States through map sketches, primary sources, problem-solving and points of view.

In this lesson, students will explore how the market economy and technological advances have impacted and continue to influence human settlement and ecosystems of the TarPamlico River Basin, by focusing on the longleaf pine ecosystem. In Activity 1, students are introduced to the landscape of the basin during the 1700’s, which appeared forbidding and dense to the visitor. Activity 2 allows students to explore some of the economic benefits of longleaf pine forests and the results of human activity on the ecosystem. Activity 3 incorporates current knowledge, technology and views of managing forests for both ecological and economic gain.

In this lesson, students work in small groups to organize a wagon train for a trek westward. They determine leadership responsibilities and rules needed to make a successful trek.

In this online interactive, students learn about the Homestead Act and its impact on the settlement of the West.

In this lesson, students engage in a role play about life in North America from 1890 to 1930. Students will also reference maps from the era and research modes of transportation that were available at the time people were moving west. Students will also write about and illustrate the journey west, describing reasons for moving.

This lesson helps students understand the causes and effects of exploration with an emphasis on European exploration of North America. Students learn when, where, and why groups of people colonized and settled what is today the United States. Through group activities, reading and discussions, students learn the economic, social and political reasons for exploration and settlement.