Lesson Plans Provided by Andrea at Epic Homeschool Mentoring

An Index to the Lesson Plans is provided at the top of the page

Week 20: The Mexican American War and California

Homeschooling moms must fill up their knowledge bank in order to give the best to their kids. The more mom knows, the better she can teach. Research these topics and share the general idea with younger kids. For older kids, you might invite them to pick a topic to research.

Samuel Morse

Topics for Week 20

Mexican-American War

John C Fremont

Ranchos of California

Vaqueros

Samuel Morse (America's Da Vinci)

Discussion Questions

Mexican-American War

How much farther did this war expand America past Texas?

How much did this war cost American taxpayers?

Some people accused people of Mexican descent of thievery. How did this increase racial tension?


John C Fremont

He ran for President of the United States against what person?

Why was he accused of mutiny?

What did his reports encourage Americans to do?


Ranchos of California

What king granted land in California when it was part of Mexico?

What rules of the US Government caused Grantees to lose their land?

(More detailed discussions of the California Gold Rush in Week 22)


Vaqueros
What traditions of these cowboys still live on today?

Samuel Morse
His inventions made improvements in long distance communication. What mail service operation did the the telegraph put out of business?

Resources:

Books (all links go to Goodreads)


Free E-Books

Videos

The Vaqueros of South Texas (Includes a mention of cattle castration)



Activities

1. Write a message in Morse Code

2. Continue a State Cards Project. As each state enters the union, create a card with fun facts about that state. Younger kids might enjoy a coloring/activity book about the states. Add Iowa 1846, Wisconsin 1848


Image Credit: Samuel Morse / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain