Visit Indiana:
4th Grade Social Studies Curriculum

Teachers, bring Indiana history to life with our free lesson plans and classroom resources.

Indiana Tourism is pleased to offer this interactive, six-week social studies course for 4th grade teachers. The curriculum provides a complete set of tools, lesson plans and classroom ideas to help you engage your students in an exciting exploration of Indiana’s history.

Created by teachers for teachers, the curriculum is designed to meet the state of Indiana’s academic standards for 4th grade social studies. It uses critical thinking, problem solving and collaboration to help your students discover the many historical attractions and natural wonders that Indiana has to offer—and inspire them to explore the great state we call home!

Download the Visit Indiana: 4th Grade Social Studies Curriculum as a complete unit or as individual resources below.

Complete Unit: 4th Grade Social Studies Curriculum

This comprehensive toolkit contains six weeks of Indiana history lesson plans for 4th grade students.

PDF, 3 MB (Large file) Download Now

Individual Resources and Lesson Plans

Only looking for a specific tool or lesson plan for your classroom? Simply click on the individual resource below to download the PDF file.

• Project Overview, Project Standards, Additional Standards & Ideas, Project Outline/Action Plan (PDF, 690K)

• Problem-Based Learning Unit, Days 1-10 (PDF, 737K)

  • Day 1: Communication Introduction (PDF, 435K)

  • Day 2: Communication Practice (PDF, 422K)

  • Day 3: Collaboration Introduction (PDF, 350K)

  • Day 4: Collaboration Practice & Creativity Demonstration (PDF, 416K)

  • Day 5: Critical Thinking Lesson (PDF, 412K)

  • Day 6: Review “4 C-s”, Project Management Systems & Entry Event/Driving Questions (PDF, 480K)

  • Day 7: Entry Event/Driving Question, Day 8: Research & Work Session, Day 9: Presentations, Day 10: Reflection (PDF, 414K)

• Worksheets:

  • Day 2: Geography Assignments:

    • Geographical Landform Dictionary (PDF, 243K)

    • Landforms and Physical Geography - Crossword Puzzle - Version A (PDF, 182K)

    • Landforms and Physical Geography - Crossword Puzzle - Version B (PDF, 216K)

  • Day 5: Critical Thinking:

    • Thinking Skills Chart (PDF, 261K)

    • Think Tank (PDF, 178K)

    • Thinking Skills List (PDF, 184K)

  • Day 6-10: Problem-Based Learning Project Forms:

    • What the 4 Cs Mean to Me! (PDF, 150K)

    • Basic PBL Process (PDF, 55K)

    • PBL Retrieval Chart (PDF, 36K)

    • Collaborative Jobs and Contract (PDF, 57K)

    • Collaborative Work Plan (PDF, 65K)

    • Research Documentation (PDF, 63K)

    • Research Collection (PDF, 47K)

    • Interactive Map Research (PDF, 68K)

    • Indiana Map Questing (PDF, 434K)

    • Dream Vacation (PDF, 168K)

    • Five-Paragraph Expository Essay Template (PDF, 59K)

• Resources:

  • Sample Rubric (PDF, 225K)

  • Classroom Slides: What are Landforms?

    • Classroom Slides - PowerPoint (PowerPoint, 2.6 MB - large file, it might take a few minutes)

  • Persuasive Essay Prompts (PDF, 307K)

  • How-to Instructions for Online Tools: (PowerPoint, 337K)

    • Saving Pictures from the Web (PDF, 174K)

    • Voice Thread Center Directions (PDF, 111K)

    • QR Code Center Directions (PDF, 92K)

  • Indiana Online Resources (PDF, 368K)

  • Indiana County Map (PDF, 192K)

Thank You to Our Curriculum Contributors

Special thanks to the 4th grade teachers at Noblesville’s Promise Road Elementary for their assistance in the creation of this resource guide and to Bruce Blomberg, Indiana Department of Education social studies specialist, for his thoughtful leadership and insight on this project.