New York Elementary Social Studies: 20 History Units for Grades 1–4
New York Elementary Social Studies: 20 History Units for Grades 1–4
New York teachers in Grades 1–4 who need ready history lessons beside the state's social studies framework can use the Elementary History Curriculum: 20 units, from family life then and now to ancient China and the Vikings, each with lesson plans, reading worksheets, projects, answer keys and slides. It is not built on New York's framework and has nothing on New York State history, so you fill that part yourself.
Browse the 20 history unitsThe Elementary History Curriculum costs $169.99 for all 20 elementary history units (parts bought separately: $499.80). It includes then-and-now units on family, school, trades and inventions; ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome and China; the Stone Age and the Vikings; knights and medieval towns; and Native Americans, explorers, Pilgrims and pioneers. Each unit has three sub-units with a lesson plan, differentiated worksheet, project or source activity, answer key and slides. It is not aligned to New York's framework.
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
How New York's framework moves from family to state history
The New York State K-12 Social Studies Framework, with its K–8 portion revised in February 2017, widens the child's world one grade at a time. Grade 1 is My Family and Other Families, Now and Long Ago. Grade 2 is My Community and Other Communities. Grade 3 is Communities around the World, and Grade 4 turns to New York State and Local History and Government. The themes are clear, but a framework is not a set of lessons. A Grade 1 teacher still has to show six-year-olds what long ago actually means. A Grade 3 teacher has to make faraway places concrete for children whose world so far is their street and their school. By Grade 4, students are expected to handle real history, with dates, sources and change over time, often before they have had much practice reading informational text at all. Building that yourself every week, for a subject that often gets squeezed behind reading and math, is hard to sustain. What a busy elementary teacher needs is something in between a textbook and a blank page: short readable passages, a word bank, a project or source task, and a key so checking takes minutes.
Why it fits
Matching the units to New York's grade themes
These pairings are suggestions to check against the framework, not alignment. Several units can serve more than one grade.
- Family & Daily Life Then and Now and School Then and Now suit Grade 1's look at families long ago.
- Timelines & Measuring Time gives Grade 1 and Grade 2 students a concrete way to picture now and long ago.
- Old Trades & Crafts and Inventions That Changed the World show how communities worked and changed, useful in Grade 2.
- Ancient Egypt, ancient China, the Greeks and the Romans give Grade 3 detailed studies of societies far from New York.
- Native Americans, explorers and pioneers offer Grade 4 general background before your New York State history lessons.
- The historical sources unit teaches children to ask what an object or text tells us, a skill every grade uses.
Getting started
Spreading 20 units across Grades 1–4
A suggested split for a school or a homeschool family. Move units between grades as your framework planning requires.
- Grade 1: families and timeUse the family and school then-and-now units with Timelines & Measuring Time. Children compare their own lives with long ago and practice putting events in order.
- Grade 2: work, tools and changeTeach Old Trades & Crafts, Inventions That Changed the World and the historical sources unit. Children see how communities depend on work and how that work changed over time.
- Grade 3: societies around the worldPick from ancient Egypt, hieroglyphs, mummies and tomb art, ancient China, the Greeks, the Romans and the Vikings. Pair each with maps and present-day material you add yourself.
- Grade 4: background for state historyTeach the Native Americans, explorers and pioneers units as general context, then shift to your New York State and local history materials for the core of the year.
- Keep the rest for enrichmentKnights & Castles, Life in a Medieval Town, the Stone Age and the Pilgrims unit fit wherever you have room, including sub days, since every lesson plan is complete.
What to buy
The full curriculum or one of the eight-unit bundles
For a school or homeschool covering several of Grades 1–4, the Elementary History Curriculum at $169.99 is the better value: all 20 units instead of $499.80 bought separately. A single-grade teacher may need less. The Early American History Bundle ($99.99, parts $199.92) holds the eight units on Native Americans, explorers, Pilgrims, pioneers, timelines, sources and then-and-now life, which suits Grades 1 and 4. The Ancient Civilizations Bundle ($99.99, parts $199.92) fits a Grade 3 world communities year. Both sit inside the full curriculum, so do not buy them on top of it. Homeschoolers in Grades 3–6 wanting several subjects can look at the Complete Learning Books Bundle ($99.90).
Honest limits
Where this curriculum stops
Nothing in the 20 units covers New York State, local history or New York government, and there are no framework codes on the pages. Grade 2 community studies and Grade 3 communities around the world are only partly served, since most units are historical. Compare each unit with the New York State K-12 Social Studies Framework and your district's scope before planning. Project supplies are your own. A grade team that wants to share one copy should message Teach Lessons first. If it is not a fit, you can exchange it within 7 days for store credit of equal value, not a cash refund.
Good to know
Frequently asked questions
Is this aligned to the New York State K-12 Social Studies Framework?
No. It was not written for New York and is not aligned to, approved or endorsed under the framework or by any district. Some units sit close to grade themes such as families now and long ago or communities around the world, but you need to check each lesson against the framework for your grade yourself.
Does it include New York State history for Grade 4?
No. Grade 4 in New York is New York State and Local History and Government, and this curriculum contains no New York content. The Native Americans, explorers and pioneers units can serve as general background, but the state and local history itself has to come from your district's materials or your own.
Can I use it for one grade only?
Yes. Each unit stands alone, so a Grade 3 teacher can use only the ancient world units and leave the rest. If you will never use most of the 20 units, one of the eight-unit bundles described above may be the cheaper and simpler choice for your classroom.
What do Grade 1 children actually do in a sub-unit?
You teach from a step-by-step lesson plan with slides. Children read a short passage with a word bank on a differentiated worksheet, then complete a project or source activity, and you check their work with the answer key. With younger children, plan to read the passage aloud together.
We homeschool in New York. Will this help with our IHIP?
It gives you material to list. New York's homeschool rules require an Individualized Home Instruction Plan and quarterly reports describing material covered, and Grades 1–8 must cover U.S. history and New York State history. This curriculum supports history in general but has no New York State content. Check current rules with your district or a homeschool legal resource.
When can I start teaching from it?
The same day. After checkout a download link arrives by email, and the files stay in your customer account under Orders if you need them again. Print the worksheets, or use the slides and assign pages in a digital classroom. Nothing is mailed, and there is no waiting for a box.
Fill the history gaps in Grades 1–4
Open the product page to see all 20 unit titles and decide which grade gets which units.
Browse the 20 history units