This project was designed by fifth grade teachers in the Lakeland Central School District in order to provide teachers with Social Studies curriculum that is aligned with the New York State core curriculum and that meets the NYS learning standards.

The content understanding of the NYS curriculum includes the geography, government, history and economies of the United States, Canada, and the Latin American countries. Given this broad scope and sequence, this project focuses on the United States and Canada only. The same types of activities and lessons could be applied to the Latin American countries as well. Teachers would need to identify the appropriate resources to include that would be relevant to the study of the Latin American countries.

After completing the lessons in this project, students should be able to:

  • describe the geography, government and economy of Canada and compare to that of the United States
  • know important events in Canadian history and relate them to the United States
  • understand how geography has played a role in Canada's government, history and economy
  • identify the provinces and territories of Canada
  • identify the major imports and exports of Canada and understand the interdependent relationship of the US and Canada