Introduction to Elementary American Literature FREE Homeschool Lesson Plans

This is a summary of our American literature class for elementary students. The class is written for 24 weeks of classes, and it is aimed at students from 1st to 4th grade. Our homeschool group sessions typically last for one hour, so the lesson plans have been designed to accommodate that amount of time, but there is often additional material available. We offer a variety of options, including videos, songs, crafts, or a combination of activities, allowing you to choose what works best for your group of students, considering their abilities and ages.

WHO IS THIS WRITTEN FOR?

Many of the books are suitable for students up to the 6th grade level. If a teacher has a mix of first and 6th graders, they have the ability to tailor their activities and questions accordingly. This is all taken into consideration in the lesson plans, where some activities are better suited for younger students, while others are more appropriate for older ones. This also applies to the discussion questions, which are differentiated to suit different age groups.

The homeschool group lesson plans cover 24 weeks of activities, with the option to extend to 30 weeks or more. The group meets once a week for an hour to go over the lessons. The lessons are designed so students to do homework and read books at home with their parents. Then we bring the books to life in a group setting with their friends through games, crafts, and activities.

The lesson plans include:

• the list of books
• reading schedule
• vocabulary specific to an elementary literature class
• book discussion questions
• a year-long project where students choose a piece of American history or literature to memorize
• plus optional crafts, songs, coloring pages, video options, and active games

The books are listed chronologically by story and are a great combination with studying American history. Some of the books included in the lesson plans are:

1. "Columbus" by Edgar Parin D'Aulaire, Ingri D'Aulaire
2. "1492 The Year of the New World" by Piero Ventura
3. "The Mission Bell" by Leo Politi
4. "Colonial Kids: An Activity Guide to Life in the New World (Hands-On History)" by Laurie Carlson
5.  "The Courage of Sarah Noble" by Dalgliesh
6. "George Washington" by Ingri d'Aulaire, Edgar Parin d'Aulaire
7. "Ben and Me: An Astonishing Life of Benjamin Franklin by His Good Mouse Amos" by Robert Lawson 
8. "Can't You Make Them Behave, King George?" by Fritz
9. "Shh! We're Writing the Constitution" by Jean Fritz, Tomie dePaola
10. "Daniel Boone: Wilderness Pioneer" by Sanford or any
11. "The Star-Spangled Banner" by Peter Spier
12. "Paddle-to-the-Sea: A Caldecott Honor Award Winner" by Holling
13. "Welcome to Josefina's World 1824: Growing Up on America's Southwest Frontier"
14. "Coolies" by Yin
15. "Who let muddy boots into the White House? : a story of Andrew Jackson" by Quackenbush
16. "The Trail of Tears" by Bruchac
17. "Behind Rebel Lines : The Incredible Story of Emma Edmonds, Civil War Spy" by Reit
18. "Abraham Lincoln" by D'Aulaire
19. "Ellis Island: Gateway To The New World" by Fisher
20. "Click! : A Story About George Eastman" by Mitchell
21. "Hero Over Here" by Kudlinski
22. "Blueberries For The Queen" by Paterson
23. "A Kick in the Head: An Everyday Guide to Poetic Forms" by Paul B. Janeczko
24. "Through My Eyes : The Autobiography Of Ruby Bridges" by Bridges
25. "The Children's Book Of Heroes" By William J. Bennett

Several of the books are slated to read over two weeks. A few could definitely hold enough content to fill 3 weeks of activities and fun learning. Since there are so many classic book selections in these lesson plans, even if some are difficult to find or out of print, there are still plenty of excellent books to choose from.

If you're not in group classes some of the activities would be excellent for your own individual home school to make these books and a whole

year of learning come to life. Since they're free I highly encourage you to download them and look through them even for your own homeschool or group.



Good luck with your home school and ever forward!