Illinois Grades 1–4 Social Studies: Early American History Units
Yes, you can teach early American history in an Illinois Grade 1–4 classroom without writing the lessons yourself. The Early American History Bundle gives you eight ready units, from Native Americans and the Pilgrims to pioneers, timelines and historical sources, each planned down to the worksheet and the slides. It is not written for Illinois, so you check it against the state's social science standards and add your own Illinois material.
See the eight unitsThe Early American History Bundle ($99.99) holds eight Grades 1–4 units: Native Americans, explorers, the Pilgrims and the first Thanksgiving, pioneers on the frontier, timelines, historical sources, and school and family life then and now. Each unit has an overview and three sub-units with a lesson plan, a differentiated worksheet with reading passage and word bank, a project or source activity, an answer key and slides. Bought one by one, the units cost $199.92.
The resources
Early American History Bundle, Grades 1–4
8 resources in one download: $99.99 instead of $199.92 bought separately.
Start with the first resource; the others are optional add-ons. Open any cover for the full contents and price.
Early American History Bundle | Native Americans, Explorers, Pilgrims & Pioneers | 8 Units | Grades 1–4
Elementary History Curriculum | All 20 History Units | Grades 1–4
Ancient Civilizations Bundle | Egypt, Greece, Rome, China, Vikings & Stone Age | 8 Units | Grades 1–4
Civics & Civil Rights Bundle | Martin Luther King Jr., Voting, Direct Democracy & Freedom of the Press | 4 Resources | Grades 5–9
The real problem
What the Illinois grade themes ask of a primary teacher
Illinois organizes elementary social studies around one theme per grade under the Illinois Learning Standards for Social Science, adopted by the state board in December 2015. Grade 1 is Living, Learning, and Working Together. Grade 2 is Families, Neighborhoods, and Communities. Grade 3 widens to Communities Near and Far, and Grade 4 becomes Our State, Our Nation, with standards on the founding and development of Illinois and on events in Illinois history. The themes give you a direction, not lessons. History for six- to nine-year-olds has to be concrete: how children went to school long ago, what a pioneer family carried west, how people learn about the past from objects and pictures. Topics like Native Americans and the Pilgrims also need careful, respectful framing, which takes time to research from scratch. Grade 4 adds a twist, because the state story sits inside the national one. A teacher there needs national material on first peoples, explorers and settlement, plus Illinois lessons no general product contains. The real question is how much of the national and then-and-now teaching you can hand off, so your planning time goes to the Illinois pieces.
Why it fits
Where the eight units can sit in an Illinois year
These are placement ideas, not a match to any standard. Decide where each unit earns its time.
- Family & Daily Life Then and Now and School Then and Now suit a Grade 2 families and communities theme.
- Timelines & Measuring Time gives Grade 1 and 2 students a concrete way to talk about long ago.
- Pioneers & Life on the Frontier offers settlement content a Grade 4 teacher can pair with Illinois lessons.
- Native Americans: First Peoples of North America gets a full unit of its own, framed factually and respectfully.
- The Traces of the Past unit shows children how objects, pictures and documents tell us about history.
- Every sub-unit has a reading passage with a word bank, so early readers can follow the content.
Getting started
A simple way to roll it out this year
This pacing is one option. Adjust it to your social studies minutes and your district's curriculum map.
- Map the units to your grade themeBefore teaching, read the eight overviews and note which ones fit your grade's Illinois theme. Set aside any you will not use this year; each unit can be taught on its own.
- Open with then and nowSchool Then and Now or Family & Daily Life Then and Now makes an easy start in the fall. Children compare their own day with a day long ago before you move into harder topics.
- Teach source skills earlyUse Traces of the Past and Timelines & Measuring Time before the explorers and Pilgrims units, so students already know how to read a picture source or place an event on a line.
- Plan November with careThe Pilgrims & the First Thanksgiving unit fits the weeks before the holiday. Teach the Native Americans unit first so students hear more than one perspective on that period.
- Add your Illinois layerIn Grade 4, follow the explorers and pioneers units with your own lessons on the founding and development of Illinois. The bundle supplies the national frame; local history, maps and field trips come from you.
What to buy
Early American bundle, full curriculum or something else
For early American history alone, the Early American History Bundle at $99.99 is the right size; the eight units cost $199.92 separately. If you also want the ancient world, the Elementary History Curriculum ($169.99) includes all 20 elementary history units, these eight among them, and costs $499.80 as single units. A teacher who only needs Egypt, Greece, Rome, China, the Stone Age and the Vikings can take the Ancient Civilizations Bundle ($99.99). The Civics & Civil Rights Bundle ($54.99) is written for Grades 5–9, so it suits an older group, not a Grade 1 class.
Honest limits
What this bundle will not do for an Illinois classroom
Nothing in these units is written for Illinois. There are no Illinois history lessons, no Illinois standards codes and no claim that the units match the Illinois Learning Standards for Social Science, so check them against the standards and your district's plan yourself. Grade 4 lessons on the founding of Illinois, local maps and community history are yours to supply. The license covers your own teaching; a grade-level team should send Teach Lessons a short message before sharing. If the units are not a fit, you can exchange them within 7 days for store credit of equal value, not cash.
Good to know
Frequently asked questions
Is this bundle aligned with the Illinois Learning Standards for Social Science?
No. The bundle is not aligned with, approved under or written for the Illinois Learning Standards for Social Science, and it carries no Illinois standards codes. Its topics can sit next to grade themes such as Families, Neighborhoods, and Communities or Our State, Our Nation, but you should read the standards and your district's curriculum map and decide for yourself where each unit fits.
Does it include any Illinois history for Grade 4?
No. The Grade 4 theme includes the founding and development of Illinois and events in Illinois history, and none of that is in the bundle. What you get is the national material around it: first peoples of North America, explorers, the Pilgrims and pioneers on the frontier. Use those units as background and teach the Illinois chapters with your own sources.
Can a Grade 1 class really use these units?
Yes, with read-aloud support. Each sub-unit has a differentiated worksheet with a reading passage and a word bank, plus slides for presenting the content to the whole group. In Grade 1 you might read the passage together and make the project or picture-source activity the main task, keeping written answers short.
How are Native Americans and the Pilgrims handled?
Both topics are framed factually and respectfully. Native Americans: First Peoples of North America is a full unit with its own lesson plans and source work, not a single page inside another lesson. Read both units before teaching, and consider teaching the Native Americans unit before the Pilgrims unit so children meet that history first.
Would it work for an Illinois homeschool?
It can be one part of your social sciences teaching. The lesson plans, slides and answer keys work at a kitchen table as well as in a classroom. Social sciences are among the subjects Illinois lists for home instruction; check current law with the state or a homeschool legal resource before relying on any one product.
How do I get the files and share them with my team?
The units arrive as a digital download right after checkout, by email link and under Orders in your customer account, ready for print or a classroom screen. The license is for your own teaching. If your grade-level team wants the same bundle, send Teach Lessons a short message before you share anything.
Let the national part be planned, keep your energy for Illinois
Open the bundle page to see all eight units, each one also linked as its own product.
See the eight units