Indiana Elementary Social Studies: Early American History Units, Grades 1–4
Indiana Elementary Social Studies: Early American History Units, Grades 1–4
Indiana teachers and homeschool parents looking for ready early American history for Grades 1–4 can use the Early American History Bundle: eight planned units on Native Americans, explorers, the Pilgrims, pioneers, timelines, historical sources, and school and family life then and now. The then-and-now units sit closest to the Grade 2 standards; the rest build background for Indiana history in Grade 4 and U.S. history in Grade 5.
Open the early American unitsThe Early American History Bundle ($99.99, Grades 1–4) contains eight units: Native Americans: First Peoples of North America; Explorers & the Voyage to the Americas; Pilgrims & the First Thanksgiving; Pioneers & Life on the Frontier; Timelines & Measuring Time; Traces of the Past; School Then and Now; and Family & Daily Life Then and Now. Each sub-unit has a lesson plan, differentiated worksheet, source or project activity, answer key and slides. It has no Indiana-specific content.
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
How the Indiana sequence treats early American history
Indiana organizes K–8 social studies into four domains: History, Civics and Government, Geography, and Economics. The grade themes then narrow the focus year by year. Grade 2, in the 2023 standards, looks at past versus recent events and at continuity and change in local and regional communities. Grade 3, under the 2026 Indiana Academic Standards for Social Studies, turns to the local community, its region and Indiana alongside other Midwestern states. Grade 4 is Indiana itself: the periods, people, events and movements that shaped it as a state. The full story of the United States before European contact through 1800 waits until Grade 5. That leaves early grade teachers with a real question: where do Native peoples, explorers and pioneers belong before Grade 5? Students meet these topics in books and holidays long before the standards formally reach them. The new 2026 social studies standards are posted next to the 2023 versions with correlation guides, which gives teachers a reason to recheck their units this year. What helps is respectful, factual material you can place where it fits rather than a rigid course.
Why it fits
Where each unit can go in an Indiana year
None of the units is labeled for an Indiana grade. These are suggested placements based on the grade themes.
- School Then and Now and Family & Daily Life Then and Now suit Grade 2 work on past and recent.
- Timelines & Measuring Time helps Grade 2 students order events, a skill every later grade uses.
- Traces of the Past introduces historical sources, useful practice in any grade before Grade 5.
- Pioneers & Life on the Frontier gives Grade 4 general frontier background before your Indiana-specific lessons.
- Native Americans: First Peoples of North America presents Native nations respectfully and factually.
- Explorers and Pilgrims units preview the Grade 5 period from before European contact to 1800.
Getting started
One way to spread the units over two years
A suggestion for a Grades 2–4 team or a homeschool family. Adjust to your district map or your child's pace.
- Grade 2 fall: time and sourcesTeach Timelines & Measuring Time and Traces of the Past first. Students learn to order events and ask how we know something happened, which every other unit relies on.
- Grade 2 spring: then and nowUse School Then and Now and Family & Daily Life Then and Now to compare past and present. Invite students to bring family photos or stories as their own sources.
- Grade 3 or 4: First PeoplesTeach Native Americans: First Peoples of North America before any explorer or settler unit, so students learn who lived on the land first and on their own terms.
- Then explorers and PilgrimsExplorers & the Voyage to the Americas and Pilgrims & the First Thanksgiving fit around fall. Keep the focus on what sources show and on more than one point of view.
- Grade 4: pioneers, then IndianaUse Pioneers & Life on the Frontier as general background, then move to your own Indiana materials on statehood, people and places. The bundle does not supply that part.
What to buy
Which history set to choose
The Early American History Bundle at $99.99 is the focused choice; the eight units are $199.92 when bought separately. If you also want ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome and China, knights and medieval towns, the Elementary History Curriculum includes all 20 elementary history units for $169.99 instead of $499.80. The Ancient Civilizations Bundle ($99.99) is the other half of that set on its own. Teachers of older students moving toward Grade 5 and civics could add the Civics & Civil Rights Bundle for Grades 5–9 at $54.99, covering Martin Luther King Jr., voting and freedom of the press.
Honest limits
What you still supply as an Indiana teacher
This bundle is not written for Indiana. It has no Indiana history, no Grade 3 or Grade 4 state content and no Indiana Academic Standards codes, so check each unit against the standards and your district plan yourself. You add local sources, maps of Indiana and any project supplies. Homeschool families should treat it as one history piece among several. For use across a grade-level team, send Teach Lessons a short message first. If it is not a fit, you can exchange it within 7 days for store credit of equal value, not cash.
Good to know
Frequently asked questions
Is this bundle aligned with the Indiana Academic Standards for Social Studies?
No. It is not aligned with, approved by or endorsed under the Indiana Academic Standards, the 2026 social studies standards or any district plan. Some topics overlap with grade themes, such as past and recent events in Grade 2. Read the standards for your grade next to the unit list and decide which lessons to use.
Does it include any Indiana history?
No. The units cover early America in general: Native peoples, explorers, the Pilgrims, pioneers and life in the past. Indiana statehood, Indiana people and local places are not in the bundle. Grade 4 teachers will need their own Indiana materials, and the pioneer unit can serve as general background.
How are Native Americans and the Pilgrims presented?
The units are written to be respectful and factual, and the bundle is meant for families and teachers who want early American history taught that way, with real source work. Preview each lesson before teaching, as you would with any history material, and add local perspectives where you have them.
Can a homeschool parent in Indiana use this?
Yes. Each sub-unit has a step-by-step lesson plan, so a parent without teaching experience can follow it. Indiana homeschool law has no required subject list and makes the state standards optional, but you should still check current requirements with the state or a homeschool legal resource.
Will first graders manage the worksheets?
The worksheets are differentiated and include a reading passage and word bank. With first graders, read the passage together, lean on the slides and pick the simpler version. The project activities let younger children draw, sort or build instead of writing a lot, which keeps the lesson moving.
When do I get the materials?
Immediately after purchase. The download link comes by email and also sits in your customer account under Orders. You receive worksheets, activities, slides and answer keys you can print or use on a screen, and each part is listed by name on the bundle page.
Early American history, planned and ready
Open the bundle page to read all eight unit titles before placing them in your year.
Open the early American units