CKHG Early American History Part 2: First Presidents through the Civil War
Early American History: Part 2
How We Organize Free Core Knowledge Curriculum for Family-Style History
I explain our reasons for organizing Core Knowledge’s curriculum in a chronological approach as opposed to keeping the unit as scheduled in Part 1. But briefly, here are the bullet points:
We want a family-style history.
We don’t operate like a traditional classroom
We didn’t begin homeschooling from preschool
Our kids had some previous study of early American history
A chronological approach to history felt right for our approach
The following is part 2 of our cohesive early American history curriculum. This may span half a school year or a full school year, depending on how often you schedule history in your week. Feel free to use or borrow from this approach if it works for you, too!
Please note: I may share additional resources that we used along with the free Core Knowledge curriculum. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases at no cost to you.
Yearly Schedule at a glance
To get a sense of how these may fit in a year, this was approximately how long each unit took. But the main takeaway is — be flexible and make it work for you!
The Early Presidents/The War of 1812 (grade 4 unit 9/grade 2 unit 7) - 3 weeks
Westward Expansion Before the Civil War (grade 5 unit 10) - 4 weeks
The Civil War (grade 5 unit 11) - 5 weeks
Westward Expansion After the Civil War (grade 5 unit 12) - 4 weeks
Native Americans: Cultures and Conflicts (grade 5 unit 13) - 4 weeks
Total - approximately 20 weeks
This leaves time for additional studies, such as geography or government.
Early Presidents: Grade 4 Unit 9 + The War of 1812: Grade 2 Unit 7
View CKHG Early Presidents Grade 4 Unit 9 on Core Knowledge
View CKHG The War of 1812 Grade 2 Unit 7 on Core Knowledge
We start the year with some review of early Presidents and the beginning of the United States government after the end of the American Revolution. One you get to chapter xx which focuses on the War of 1812, it may be helpful to bring in the grade 2 unit 7 on The War of 1812 for a more in-depth study of the war if your students have not had an introduction to it.
Additional resources:
Native American Stories for Kids:
Westward Expansion Before the Civil War: Grade 5 Unit 10
View CKHG Westward Expansion Before the Civil War Grade 5 Unit 10 on Core Knowledge
This uni
Additional resources (may contain affiliate links):
The Oregon Trail: Journey to Willamette Valley Board Game (fun board game to simulate the Oregon Trail)
Bound for Oregon by Jean Van Leeuwen (story about a young girl and her family on the Oregon trail)
The Oregon Trail: The Race to Chimney Rock (the first of an eight book series - all interactive stories on different aspects of the Oregon Trail)
The Civil War: Grade 5 Unit 11
View CKHG The Civil War Grade 5 Unit 11 on Core Knowledge
There are two good options fo
Additional resources and literature
Pedro’s Journal: A Voyage with Christop
Westward Expansion After the Civil War: Grade 5 Unit 12
View CKHG Westward Expansion After the Civil War Grade 5 Unit 12 on Core Knowledge
This book covers the
Additional resources
A Lion to Guard Us: An Acclaimed Histor
Native Americans Cultures and Conflicts: Grade 5 Unit 13
View CKHG Native Americans Cultures and Conflicts Grade 5 Unit 13 on Core Knowledge
It picks up with an overview of the colonie
You can explore additional reading together or assign it to your student using Core Knowledge Language Arts (CKLA) Native Americans Grade 5 Unit 8.
Additional resources
Evan Moor History Pockets: The America
The Constitution: Grade 4 Unit 8
As expected this was a helpful introduction to the creation and structure of early government, from the Articles of Confederation to checks and balances, and the Constitution as it is today. At times this is a bit dry and not as story-driven, so I think it helps to bring in other hands-on activities, books, or videos to add to the understanding of the Constitution and government.
Additional resources
A More Perfect Union: The Story of Our Constitution by Betsy Maestro and Giulio Maestro - View on Amazon
Shh! We're Writing the Constitution by Jean Fritz - View on Amazon
We the Kids: The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States by David Catrow - View on Amazon
Mark Twain Understanding the US Constitution Workbook - View on Amazon *great for older students who need a more in-depth study of the Constitution with reading passages, comprehension questions, and worksheets
The Early Presidents: Grade 4 Unit 9
View CKHG The Early Presidents Grade 4 Unit 9 on Core Knowledge
We didn’t cover the entire unit this year. To end our studies, we read about Washington and his first year as President from the first two chapters of the unit. It felt like a fitting end to our early American history study this year!
What’s next?
For the 2026-2027 school year, we plan to continue our early American history sequence using more chronological Core Knowledge units — stay tuned for info on how we organize that soon!