LEARN NC

K–12 teaching and learning · from the UNC School of Education

Social Studies — Grade 5

Goal 3: The learner will examine the roles various ethnic groups have played in the development of the United States and its neighboring countries.

Objective 3.01. Locate and describe people of diverse ethnic and religious cultures, past and present, in the United States.

Additional related resources

We’re in the process of aligning our content for students to the Standard Course of Study. As we do, you’ll find it here.

General resources

Aligned lesson plans

Walking the Trail of Tears
Students will read accounts and learn about what happened on the Trail of Tears. They will discuss the causes of removal, explore the trail, and understand the effects it had on the Cherokee.
Format: lesson plan (grade 4–5 Social Studies)
By Marsha Davis.
A walk of betrayal: The Trail of Tears
In this lesson plan for fourth and fifth grade students will read various resources and watch videos about the Cherokee. They will trace the history of the Cherokee, discuss the outcomes of the impact of the white man, and determine how that intrusion led the Cherokee to the Trail of Tears. The students will examine the survival of the Cherokee and explore their accomplishments into the 21st century.
Format: lesson plan (grade 4–5 Social Studies)
By Mary Towles.
Spinning spider stories
This interdisciplinary lesson is designed to introduce students to the purpose and process of comparative literature. The literary selections may be altered according to audience and purpose, from grades 5 through 8.
Format: lesson plan (grade 4–5 English Language Arts and Social Studies)
By Edie McDowell.
Observing connections: North Carolina pottery and face jugs (Lesson 3)
This is the third lesson in a series of three in which students are creating art based on their observations: Lesson 1 Observing connections—art, poetry and the environment; Lesson 2 Observing connections—changing landscapes; Lesson 3 Observing connections—North Carolina pottery and face jugs.
Format: lesson plan (grade 4–5 Visual Arts Education and Social Studies)
By Lisa Mitchell.
North Carolina Cherokee Indians: The Trail of Tears
In this two week unit, students will study the Cherokee by participating in literature circles, learning about Native American story telling, writing a letter to Andrew Jackson to protest against the Creek War, and more.
Format: lesson plan (grade 4–5 English Language Arts and Social Studies)
By Gina Golden.
Native American music: Two North Carolina tribes
In this lesson plan, students will listen to songs from two North Carolina tribes. Students will learn about the music through listening, analyzing, singing, moving, and playing instruments.
Format: lesson plan (grade 4–5 Music Education and Social Studies)
By Merritt Raum Flexman.
Mini totem poles
Students will create mini totem poles using paper towel tubes and Crayola Model Magic clay. Totem poles of Northwest Coast Indian tribes will be explored.
Format: lesson plan (grade 5 Visual Arts Education and Social Studies)
By Mary Ann Athens.
A living timeline of civil rights
This fifth grade lesson plan is one piece of a civil rights unit. This particular lesson is an opportunity for students to demonstrate knowledge of a specific person or event that occurred during the civil rights movement. The students will share their research with others as they take on the role of a museum artifact.
Format: lesson plan (grade 5 Social Studies)
By Laurie Lietz.
It's in the garbage
In Intrigue of the Past, page 1.9
In studying archaeological concepts, students will analyze garbage from different places demonstrate competence in applying the concepts of culture, context, classification, observation and inference, chronology and scientific inquiry.
Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts and Social Studies)
In the spirit of... (museum visit)
This is an integrated unit that focuses on masks in cultures as reflections of individual spirits. This lesson focuses on students' observations of masks while visiting a museum.
Format: lesson plan (grade 5–6 Visual Arts Education and Social Studies)
By Shannon Kelly.
In the spirit of... (museum pre-visit)
This is an integrated unit that focuses on masks in cultures as reflections of individual spirits. In this pre-visit lesson, students will explore the cultures of the Western Hemisphere.
Format: lesson plan (grade 5–6 Visual Arts Education and Social Studies)
By Shannon Kelly.
The Greensboro Sit-ins
Students will explore the Greensboro Sit-ins. They will experience segregation through drama, research the people involved in the protest at Woolworth's, and then stage a re-enactment of the event.
Format: lesson plan (grade 5 Information Skills, Social Studies, and Theater Arts Education)
By Lucinda Gainey.
Freedom songs of the civil rights movement
Students will listen to freedom songs recorded during the civil rights movement, 1960–1965. Students will write about personal reactions to the music and lyrics. Through reading and pictures, students will briefly explore historical events where these songs were sung. Listening again, students will analyze and describe — musically — particular song(s).
Format: lesson plan (grade 5 Music Education and Social Studies)
By Merritt Raum Flexman.
Formulating questions to meet information needs of ESL students
This is a multi-activity lesson plan to teach the concept of asking engaging, researchable questions prior to reading. This leads to effective inquiries during project or research work in any content area. Using engaging questions creates a sense of connectedness by linking academic contents with students' personal concerns. The lesson is primarily designed for English Language Learners although it can be adapted for mainstream students. This lesson can also be modified for use with grades 4-8.
Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Development, Information Skills, and Social Studies)
By Deborah Wilkes, Kristi Triplett, and Karen Waller.
Chronology: The time of my life
In Intrigue of the Past, page 1.6
In their study of chronology the students will use personal timelines and an activity sheet to demonstrate the importance of intact information to achieve accuracy, and compare and contrast their timelines with the chronological information contained in a stratified archaeological site.
Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts and Social Studies)

Resources on the web

Weeping camel: What is a ritual?
In this Xpeditions lesson, students identify characteristics of traditional and modern rituals found in different cultures. Through reading articles and watching videos of several rituals, students identify some of their characteristics. (Learn more)
Format: lesson plan (grade 4–5 Social Studies)
Provided by: National Geographic
Religion, culture, and diversity
Diversity and pluralism are hallmarks of North American society. Within our culture there coexist a plethora of traditions and values that are bound to conflict with each other and at the same time enrich each other. In a nation of immigrants, each new... (Learn more)
Format: lesson plan (grade 5–7 Social Studies)
Provided by: PBS
Not "Indians," Many Tribes: Native American Diversity
In this unit from the National Endowment for the Humanities and EdSitement, students will heighten their awareness of Native American diversity as they learn about three vastly different Native groups in a game-like activity using archival documents such... (Learn more)
Format: lesson plan (grade 3 and 5 Social Studies)
Provided by: EDSITEment
Interpreting rock art of the Anasazi
Students are introduced to the ancient Anasazi people through samples of rock art preserved in the public lands of the Four Corners region. (Learn more)
Format: lesson plan (grade 5 Visual Arts Education and Social Studies)
Provided by: National Geographic
History in quilts
Students will recognize how people from different cultures and time periods have passed down the tradition of quiltmaking. (Learn more)
Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 Visual Arts Education and Social Studies)
Provided by: National Endowment for the Humanities