History for a Montana One-Room School: 20 Units for the Younger Grades
History for a Montana One-Room School: 20 Units for the Younger Grades
For a Montana one-room school, the Elementary History Curriculum puts all 20 Grades 1–4 history units in one download, each already planned with lesson plans, reading passages, source activities and slides. It will not cover your seventh and eighth graders by itself, but it gives the younger half of the room a full history strand that older students can help teach. The price is $169.99.
See all 20 history unitsYes, there is a ready history program for the younger students in a Montana one-room school: the Elementary History Curriculum for Grades 1–4, $169.99 for all 20 units. 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. It contains no Montana or Indian Education for All content; that part you add.
The resources
Elementary History Curriculum, Grades 1–4
20 resources in one download: $169.99 instead of $499.80 bought separately.
Start with the first resource; the others are optional add-ons. Open any cover for the full contents and price.
Elementary History Curriculum | All 20 History Units | Grades 1–4
Early American History Bundle | Native Americans, Explorers, Pilgrims & Pioneers | 8 Units | Grades 1–4
Ancient Civilizations Bundle | Egypt, Greece, Rome, China, Vikings & Stone Age | 8 Units | Grades 1–4
Complete Learning Books Bundle | 10 Units: Grammar, Math, Science, History, ESL, Art & Music | Grades 3–6
Teach-Life-Balance: The Complete Time-Saving Course for Teachers (incl. Planner, Guides & Templates)
The real problem
One teacher, eight grades and one history period
Montana still has working one- and two-room schoolhouses. At Malmborg School near Bozeman a single teacher covers kindergarten through eighth grade, and older students help younger ones; Sunset School in Greenough is another small rural school still running. In a room like that, history is often the subject that gets squeezed. Reading and math need separate groups by grade. History, though, can be shared across ages if the material lets a first grader draw and label while a fourth grader reads a passage and a seventh grader leads the source activity. Montana adds its own layer. The Indian Education for All Act (HB 528, 1999) carries out Article X, Section 1(2) of the 1972 state constitution, so a history plan in a Montana school has to leave room for it, and a general unit on the first peoples of North America does not do that work by itself. Since the state replaced its 180-day requirement with an hours minimum in 2005, some districts have also moved to four-day weeks, which means fewer, longer days to plan. A one-room teacher needs history that is already organized, runs well with mixed ages and leaves space for local and tribal content.
Why it fits
Why the format works with mixed ages
The units were written for Grades 1–4, but their structure helps in a room where ages range widely.
- Three sub-units per topic let you run a short arc across a week for several grades together.
- Differentiated worksheets with reading passages and word banks let first and fourth graders share one topic.
- Project and primary-source activities give older students a natural role as helpers and group leaders.
- Slides for every sub-unit let the whole room start together before groups split off.
- Timelines & Measuring Time and Traces of the Past build skills that carry into upper-grade history.
- Pioneers & Life on the Frontier and School Then and Now connect easily to a rural schoolhouse's own past.
Getting started
Running one history unit across the whole room
A suggested weekly rhythm for a single teacher with K–8 students. Shift it to fit your schedule and your older students' own coursework.
- Launch with the slidesShow the unit overview and slides to everyone at once. Kindergartners listen and react; older students take notes or prepare questions. One shared start saves you several separate introductions.
- Split into reading pairsGrades 1–4 work the differentiated worksheet with its reading passage and word bank. Pair each younger reader with an older buddy who reads aloud and helps with hard words.
- Give older students a jobSeventh and eighth graders lead the project or source activity, explain the task and keep time. Explaining evidence to younger children is good practice for their own history work.
- Add the Montana layerPair units such as Native Americans: First Peoples of North America with materials on Montana tribes chosen with your district, as part of your Indian Education for All planning.
- Check together at week's endUse the answer keys to go over work together. Older students can check younger students' sheets, which frees you to sit with the reader who needs you most.
What to buy
All 20 units or a smaller history strand
For a one-room school that wants history for the younger grades all year, the Elementary History Curriculum at $169.99 is the clear choice; the 20 units cost $499.80 bought separately. If you mainly want early America, the Early American History Bundle ($99.99, parts $199.92) has eight units on Native Americans, explorers, Pilgrims, pioneers, timelines, sources and then-and-now life. The Ancient Civilizations Bundle ($99.99, parts $199.92) covers the ancient world. For a Grades 3–6 group that also needs grammar, math and science, the Complete Learning Books Bundle ($99.90) spreads across subjects. Teach-Life-Balance ($89.90) is a separate course on saving planning time.
Honest limits
Honest limits for a Montana schoolhouse
This is not a Montana curriculum. It has no Montana history, no lessons on Montana's tribal nations and no Montana standards codes, and it does not fulfill Indian Education for All on its own; plan that content with your district and check everything against the state's standards. The units are written for Grades 1–4, so Grades 5–8 need their own history materials. You supply paper, printing and any craft materials. If your district wants to use the units in several schools, send Teach Lessons a message first. If the bundle is not a fit, exchange it within 7 days for store credit of equal value.
Good to know
Frequently asked questions
Does this curriculum meet Montana standards or Indian Education for All?
No. The Elementary History Curriculum is not aligned to, reviewed for or approved under Montana's standards, and it is not an Indian Education for All resource. Its Native Americans unit treats the first peoples of North America in general and contains no Montana tribal content. Compare the units with the state standards yourself and add tribe-specific material through your district.
Can I use it with kindergartners and eighth graders?
Partly. The units are written for Grades 1–4. Kindergartners can join the slides, discussions and simple project work, and seventh and eighth graders can act as group leaders or help with source activities. Older students still need their own grade-level history; this bundle is not designed for them.
How are Native Americans and the Pilgrims handled?
Those units are meant to be taught respectfully and factually, with real source work rather than stereotypes. Read each one before teaching, as you would anything new. In a Montana school you will likely want to pair the general North America unit with local tribal perspectives, which this product does not provide.
We are on a four-day week. Will the units still work?
They can. Each sub-unit has its own lesson plan, worksheet, activity, answer key and slides, so you can teach two sub-units in one longer day or spread one across several. The pacing is yours. Some Montana districts, such as Florence-Carlton, run four-day weeks, and the unit structure does not depend on five school days.
Do I need a projector?
No device comes with the product. The slides are useful if you have a screen; if not, print them or teach straight from the lesson plan. Worksheets and answer keys work on paper or digitally, so a schoolhouse with one printer is enough. Projection only becomes useful for the shared start of a unit.
How do I get the files if our internet is slow?
Download once from wherever you have a good connection. The link comes by email right after purchase and stays in your customer account under Orders, so you can grab the files in town and print them back at school. Save a copy on the school computer as well, so a dropped connection never stops a lesson that is already planned.
Give the younger grades a full year of history
Open the product page to see all 20 units and the three sub-units inside each one.
See all 20 history units