Wild West is the fifth unit in the American History course. In this unit learn about mountain men, pioneers who risked their lives to settle the West, gold rushes, the transcontinental railroad, cowboys, outlaws, and the Indian Wars in the West.

This book is for adult mentors to use as a resource when planning lessons, not a textbook for students.

This unit has sections on:

• Pioneers
• Indian Wars

Layers of Learning is activity-based and this unit guide includes many hands-on ways to learn about the Civil War. Here are a few things you will find to do inside this unit:

• Color a map of the westward expansion of the U.S., including the wagon trails, and the territorial purchases
• Make your own possibles bag like a mountain man
• Print and craft an oxen mask
• Read a real pioneer journal and then write your own entries
• Pan for your own “gold” nuggets as you learn about the California Gold Rush
• Make a notebooking page with cards and pockets about some famous lawmen and infamous outlaws
• Make a craft teepee as you learn about the lifestyle of the Plains Indians
• Design your own project about the Navajo people as you learn about their Long Walk
• Make a craft cavalry horse and learn about the U.S. Army’s patrolling and taming of the West
• Plus much more!

Layers of Learning History units include Library Lists of books on the topic, a family read-aloud suggestion, hands-on activities, printables and paper crafts, sidebars for extra learning, and tools to help you assess your student’s progress and mastery. Learn more about how Layers of Learning works.

See Inside

This is a view of a two page spread from Wild West:

This unit, like all of Layers of Learning is pick-and-choose so the mentor can decide which books to read and which Explorations to choose from among many options.

Flexibility

This unit was written to be used for a month but contains plenty of content for many more weeks of learning if you choose. This is a pick-and-choose curriculum, meant to be cycled back to in the future when your child is older. As such, it intentionally includes far more material than you can possibly cover in a month.

Wild West is also part of the overall American History course.

Printable Pack

This unit comes with a downloadable Printable Pack that includes all the student worksheets. The printables can be copied as many times as needed for your family or class.

You can download the Printable Pack from your receipt or from your account at Layers of Learning.

Extra Resources

This unit comes with extra weblinks and a YouTube video playlist on the American History Resources page.