This unit begins by inviting students to tell the story of their community using artifacts from Washington's history. This allows them to reflect on shared values as well as how people have organized to advocate for those values. Then, students explore how rights are established in their community by analyzing the Washington State Constitution, the Puyallup Tribe Constitution, and the Treaty of Medicine Creek. Next, students investigate four different historic examples of how people have advocated for their rights and values in their community and choose one to research in further depth. In the final phase of the unit, student teams develop an advocacy campaign for a right that is currently being challenged. They conduct research on an issue of their choice, create and execute an action plan, and participate in an advocacy fair to campaign for change in their community. Finally, students draw on what they've learned to answer the unit driving question: "Why do people advocate for issues in their community?"

Washington State passed legislation in 2021 to send a statue of activist and humanitarian Billy Frank Jr. to National Statuary Hall in Washington, D.C.Billy Frank Jr. dedicated his life advocating for equality, justice, and environmental protections. He fought to protect tribal treaty rights, native cultures and traditions, and the natural resources they are based upon. This resource links to information regarding the creation of the statue and associated educational materials provided by the Washington State Arts Commission (Arts WA) and the Nisqually Indian Tribe.

This unit is designed to build inquiry about and interest in the themes and topics woven throughout Educurious’s multi-unit Washington State History course. To start off, students discover and share how they are connected to their classmates by participating in a “Web of Connectedness” activity. Throughout the unit, students engage in mapping, data visualization, and cost-benefit analyses in order to unpack the theme of connectedness and answer the unit driving question: How are people in Washington connected to each other and the rest of the world? As students learn about resources, economies, innovations, people, and places in Washington, they draft a series of six interactive community boards that educate others about the ways in which people are connected. For the culminating product of this unit, student teams finalize one of their six draft community boards to help students in their school make connections between themselves, Washington, and the world.

The Cultivating Washington curriculum is intended to be a go-to resource for Washington state middle school educators seeking student-centered instructional materials that make learning about the history of the Pacific Northwest more relevant and meaningful for students.In addition, it is a resource for agricultural education teachers, parents, and community members interested in helping students discover the history and development of agriculture in the state of Washington.

Students learn about the controversial history of a mural in Anacortes, WA, and consider what it would take to create a more inclusive and accurate mural in Anacortes today. Then students learn about the tribes, immigrants, and settlers in the region where they live and how their stories are represented in local murals in public spaces. Students draw on what they have learned to respond to the unit driving question: What decisions and whose stories define Washington state? Then, drawing on local resources such as tribal members, historical societies, and museums, students work in teams to propose a new mural that tells an inclusive story of the people and place where they live.

It is important to educate future voters about the issues, processes, and impacts of voting in elections. These resources include links to lesson plans, videos, games, and printables to assist teachers K—12 to promote civic participation and voting.

Salmon play an important role in the ways of life, culture, history, and resilience of the tribes of this region. The tribes of Washington State and the Pacific Northwest have always depended on salmon as a primary source of food. Overfishing, roads, dams, pollution, and other human practices have been a growing threat to the survival of salmon, which has impacted fishing, salmon-eaters, and the environment. These lessons introduce to children the role of salmon in the history and culture of the first peoples of our region.

The Honoring the Salmon lessons are designed to be taught as a series but can also be taught individually, adapted for each grade level, K-3. They can easily be integrated into science units on salmon, water or watersheds. Content knowledge from these lessons can provide background knowledge for 3rd grade and 4th grade Social Studies CBAs.

NOTE: These lessons are designed around fiction and non-fiction books that are not a part of the STI curriculum. Most of them are easily available through public libraries. Some may need to be purchased.

These lesson resources align to additional Washington State Social Studies, English Language Arts, Environmental and Sustainability, and Social Emotional Learning standards. A full standard curriculum document is included at the bottom of the Pathway 2 introduction page.

This online lesson provides perspectives from Native American community members and their supporters, images, news footage, an interactive timeline, and other sources about an important campaign to secure the treaty rights and sovereignty of Native Nations of the Pacific Northwest. Scroll to begin an exploration of the actions Native Nations took to address injustices.

This online lesson provides perspectives from Native American community members, images, objects, and other sources to help students and teachers understand the efforts of Native Nations of the Pacific Northwest to protect and sustain salmon, water, and homelands. Scroll to begin an exploration of the Pacific Northwest history and cultures.

Civics is the study of our national government, constitution, and the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. Topics include democracy and other forms of government; legislative, executive, and judicial functions; the political process; and foreign and domestic policies. It also includes a summary of Washington State History and local native sovereignty.

Students kick off the unit with an analysis of images by engaging in a Four Corners activity, in which they begin to unpack the many positive and negative impacts of innovations on communication, infrastructure, and workers’ rights. After this initial analysis, students listen to oral histories, read narrative accounts, and study photos of people and places, to answer the question: How does innovation impact communities in Washington? Throughout the unit, students research a transformative innovation in workers rights, communication, and infrastructure in order to create a thought-provoking photo essay about how their chosen innovation impacts people and places in Washington.

Washington has been Ahead of the Curve since it first granted women the right to vote in 1883. In 1910 our state became the fifth to include women's suffrage in its constitution — a decade ahead of the nation. And Washington women keep blazing trails in fields from science to bridge building. This video, online exhibit, lesson plan, and poster set from Legacy Washington at the Washington Office of Secretary of State highlights some of these extraordinary women.

The unit from Central Valley School District in Washington, is focused on the examination of geography in terms of “place.” Students dive into inquiry to answer the compelling question, What is unique about living in Washington? Through this question students will understand where and why people live in Washington State. Students will dive into the regions of Washington State and define it through many characteristics. Students will ultimately choose a region to become an expert on and communicate what makes that region unique. Each student’s performance task product will reflect choice and build upon student strengths according to their skill set.

This course teaches critical learning abilities that are skills and attitudes to be taught across the curriculum: communication, problem solving or critical thinking, responsibility, and global awareness or diversity/appreciation. To these, we add information/technology literacy, and lifelong learning. By the end of the course students will be able to: Identify the major political, economic, and social developments in Pacific Northwest history and especially in the state of Washington; Integrate the perspectives of different peoples to interpret Pacific Northwest history; Describe the Pacific Northwestęs role in the context of American and world history; Apply your knowledge of Pacific Northwest history to your life by conducting an oral history and by researching and writing about issues in the region today; and Define current environmental issues in the Pacific Northwest and analyze their historical context.

In this unit from Central Valley School District in Washington, students dive into inquiry, engaging with compelling questions to help learn about the culture of some of their tribal neighbors and the forces that brought change to the northwest: fur trade era and exploration. The module includes detailed teaching notes for planning and executing instruction, emphasizing close reading of complex texts and specific strategies for supporting students' evidence-based reading and writing. It provides clear requirements for student work, along with summative assessments, central texts, key resources, and protocols to facilitate learning.

This standalone Civics course was developed by educators in Puyallup School DIstrict in Washington state.

Civics is the study of our national government, constitution, and the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. Topics include democracy and other forms of government; legislative, executive, and judicial functions; the political process; and foreign and domestic policies. It also includes a summary of Washington State History and local native sovereignty.

Civics is the study of our national government, constitution, and the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. Topics in the Puyallup Civics course include democracy and other forms of government; legislative, executive, and judicial functions; the political process; and foreign and domestic policies. The course also includes a summary of Washington State History and local native sovereignty.

This model course reflects 2018 Washington state legislation regarding the High School Civics Course requirement - RCW 28A.230.094.

This course is by Puyallup School District - only submitted by Barbara Soots.

Students begin this unit by exploring the themes of humanity and community as they discuss  the many factors that influence the development of personal identities. They unpack together how we show versus hide different parts of ourselves, and how our identities can be both fixed and ever-changing. Then, students listen to oral histories by Vietnamese Americans in Washington to learn how displacement and resettlement have impacted them personally and shaped their outlook on helping others. Using evidence from these firsthand accounts, students answer the question: What can the experiences of displaced people teach us about community, resilience, and humanity? Throughout this unit, students work in teams to create a podcast where they reflect on their collective responsibility to stand in solidarity with displaced people.

Students learn how young people in Washington exercised their rights and responsibilities through “fish-in” protests to fight for tribal fishing rights in the 1960s. Students use this example of civic engagement to reflect on their rights and responsibilities today, then begin to consider the unit-driving question: How can we use social media to engage community members on issues of injustice? Working in teams, students examine a case study on one of three critical issues: natural resources, the environment, or hazard preparedness. The case studies help students understand how social media can be used to raise awareness and promote action. Finally, teams create a social media campaign that engages their local elected officials and community on an issue of social and environmental justice.

This unit begins with a challenge in which students must make a decision for the common good. The task highlights the importance of considering various stakeholder perspectives in order to serve the common good. Students transfer what they have learned to their study of a major dam project in Washington State. Teams focus on one of four projects (Upper Skagit Hydroelectric Project, Lower Snake River Project, Columbia River Gorge Project, Columbia River Basin Project). Each team works together to understand the perspectives of diverse stakeholders as they develop a response to the unit-driving question: How can dams in Washington serve the common good? Teams apply what they have learned to come up with a recommendation for the future of the dam project that considers how it will impact people and places.