Oklahoma 1st Grade Social Studies: Then and Now Units for Grades 1–3
Oklahoma 1st Grade Social Studies: Then and Now Units for Grades 1–3
If you teach first grade in Oklahoma and want past-and-present lessons already planned, the Then and Now Social Studies Bundle ($89.99) has six units: school, family life, old trades, inventions, timelines and historical sources. Those topics stay useful while Oklahoma's social studies standards are being revised. The bundle does not teach Oklahoma history or economics.
See the Then and Now bundleThe Then and Now Social Studies Bundle costs $89.99 and includes six units: School Then and Now, Family & Daily Life Then and Now, Old Trades & Crafts, Inventions That Changed the World, Timelines & Measuring Time, and Traces of the Past. Each unit has three sub-units with a lesson plan, a differentiated worksheet with reading passage and word bank, an activity, an answer key and slides. It is not built on the Oklahoma Academic Standards.
The resources
Then and Now Social Studies Bundle, Grades 1–3
6 resources in one download: $89.99 instead of $149.94 bought separately.
Start with the first resource; the others are optional add-ons. Open any cover for the full contents and price.
Then and Now Social Studies Bundle | School, Family, Trades, Inventions, Timelines & Sources | 6 Units | Grades 1–3
Elementary History Curriculum | All 20 History Units | Grades 1–4
Early American History Bundle | Native Americans, Explorers, Pilgrims & Pioneers | 8 Units | Grades 1–4
Thanksgiving and Fall Bundle | Pilgrims, First Peoples, Autumn Crafts | Grades K–4
The real problem
Planning Oklahoma social studies while the standards change
Oklahoma's standards go by the name Oklahoma Academic Standards, and the social studies set has had an unusual couple of years. The 2025 social studies standards were nullified by the Oklahoma Supreme Court in late 2025. On March 26, 2026, the State Board of Education approved revised standards and sent them to the Legislature, and schools could begin using them in 2026-27 if the Legislature permits. Which version your district follows this year is something to confirm with your district or the State Department of Education before you build plans around it. For a first grade teacher this matters in a practical way. The revised draft puts content on consumer and producer roles in the U.S. economy in grade 1, so part of your year may go to economics, while the rest still needs the basics of time and change: what school looked like long ago, how families lived, how we know about the past at all. Those topics are useful whichever version is in force, and they take the longest to prepare for six-year-olds, who need short readings, word banks and activities that keep their hands busy.
Why it fits
How the six units serve a grades 1–3 classroom
Think of these as the time-and-change part of your year. Economics and state content come from elsewhere.
- School Then and Now starts with something every first grader knows: their own classroom.
- Family & Daily Life Then and Now has children compare their routines with family life long ago.
- Old Trades & Crafts, from smith to baker, pairs naturally with lessons on producers and work.
- Timelines & Measuring Time gives young students a first sense of order, sequence and how long ago.
- Traces of the Past shows children how we learn about history from historical sources.
- Word banks and differentiated worksheets support early readers and students still learning English.
Getting started
One way to spread the units across first grade
A suggestion only. Fit it around your district's map and whichever standards version applies this year.
- Confirm the standards versionAsk your district which social studies standards apply in 2026-27. Then mark where time-and-change topics sit in your year and how many weeks you can give them.
- Begin with your own schoolIn the first weeks, teach School Then and Now. Children compare their classroom with schools of the past, which builds the then-and-now vocabulary for the rest of the year.
- Add family life in the fallFollow with Family & Daily Life Then and Now. Its project activity can become a take-home task if your class regularly shares work with families at home.
- Winter: timelines and sourcesTeach Timelines & Measuring Time and Traces of the Past back to back. Students order events first, then learn how people find out what happened long ago.
- Spring: trades and inventionsClose with Old Trades & Crafts and Inventions That Changed the World. Both connect to any economics lessons on producers and goods you teach that term.
What to buy
Which bundle suits your grade
For grades 1–3 time-and-change topics, the Then and Now Social Studies Bundle at $89.99 (parts $149.94) is the focused choice. A teacher who wants a whole elementary history library can buy the Elementary History Curriculum ($169.99, parts $499.80), which contains these six units plus 14 more, including ancient civilizations and early America. The Early American History Bundle ($99.99, parts $199.92) adds Native Americans, explorers, Pilgrims and pioneers. For November, the Thanksgiving and Fall Bundle ($49.99, parts $69.96) has two history units and two fall art activities.
Honest limits
Where the bundle stops
Nothing in these units is written for Oklahoma. There is no Oklahoma history, no tribal history specific to the state, no economics unit and no standards codes, and the bundle has not been approved by the State Department of Education or any district. Because the social studies standards have been in flux, check the units against the version your district uses. Crayons, paper and printing for the projects are yours. To use the files across a grade-level team, message Teach Lessons before buying. If it is not a fit, exchange it within 7 days for store credit of equal value; there is no cash refund.
Good to know
Frequently asked questions
Is this aligned to the Oklahoma Academic Standards for Social Studies?
No. The units were not written for Oklahoma and have not been aligned to, reviewed or approved under any version of the Oklahoma Academic Standards. With the 2025 standards nullified and revised standards approved by the State Board on March 26, 2026, confirm which version your district follows and compare the units with it yourself.
Does it cover the grade 1 economics content?
No. The revised draft has grade 1 content on consumer and producer roles in the U.S. economy, and none of the six units is an economics unit. Old Trades & Crafts and Inventions That Changed the World can support a conversation about work and goods, but you will need separate economics lessons.
Is it only for first grade?
No. The units are written for grades 1–3. Second and third grade teachers can use them for the same past-and-present topics, and a combined class can share one unit, with the word bank supporting younger readers and the project or source activity stretching older ones.
How long does each unit take?
There is no fixed length. Each unit has an overview and three sub-units, and each sub-unit has a lesson plan, worksheet, activity, answer key and slides. One class might finish a sub-unit in a single lesson, another in two or three. Pace it to your students and the minutes your schedule gives social studies.
Will it work for a substitute day?
It can. Every sub-unit has a step-by-step lesson plan and a complete answer key, so a substitute can follow it without much explanation from you. Print the worksheet, leave the slides ready if your room has a screen, and keep one sub-unit set aside for that purpose.
Can my grade-level team share it?
The licence is for your own teaching. If other first grade teachers at your school want to use the same files, send Teach Lessons a short message before buying so team use is arranged. Sharing the files online or with other schools is not allowed.
Have your then-and-now lessons ready to print
See the six units and what each contains on the product page.
See the Then and Now bundle