Market Place Activity: How did Homesteaders overcome the problems they faced on the Great Plains?

This outstanding lesson on the American West is designed to help students understand how the Homesteaders adapted to and overcame the many challenges of life on the Great Plains. Learners will explore problems such as water shortages, natural hazards, extreme weather, protecting crops, bankruptcy, insect infestations, and relations with Native Americans. The central activity focuses on an engaging marketplace (gather and share) exercise that encourages active learning and collaboration, making it suitable for the full range of abilities.

The lesson includes a 26-slide PowerPoint presentation packed with clear aims, objectives, differentiated outcomes, starter and plenary activities, information slides, and a variety of engaging learning tasks. These include a thinking skills triangle activity, the marketplace task, and options for extended writing or mind mapping to consolidate understanding. A range of images, diagrams, and summary templates are also provided to support visual learners and encourage deeper analysis.

For a closer look at what’s included, please see the sample preview.

Aims and Objectives

Theme: How successful were the Homesteaders at settling on the Great Plains?
Know: What problems did they have to overcome?
Understand: How did the Homesteaders adapt and survive?
Evaluate: What impact did these solutions have on the Homesteaders, the environment, and Native Americans?
Skills: Cause, Consequence, Change, Continuity & Source Evaluation

WILF – What Am I Looking For?
Can You Describe: The problems Homesteaders faced.
Can You Explain: How they tried to overcome these challenges.
Can You Analyse: T impact their solutions had on themselves, the environment, and Native Americans.

If you enjoy this resource, why not explore my other lessons on the American West in The History Academy TES shop? Many have been thoughtfully bundled together, including this one, to offer even greater value and convenience.

You can also follow The History Academy on Twitter, YouTube, Google Plus, and Facebook for updates, new releases, and teaching ideas. All of our resources are designed to be affordable, high-quality, and easy to use, so you can spend more time doing what you love — teaching.

Have fun teaching, and stay in touch!

Kind regards,
Roy – The History Academy