Indiana Social Studies 5.H.2
The Standard
Examine accounts of early European explorations of North America, including major land and water routes, reasons for exploration, and impacts of the exploration.
2026 Indiana Academic Standards: K-12 Social Studies
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students read accounts of European voyages and trace sea and land routes on a map. They explain why explorers traveled and how their arrival affected Indigenous communities.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student can trace Cartier's route along the St. Lawrence River and de Soto's route across the Southeast. They can use an account to explain a reason for travel and an effect on people already living there.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think every explorer was looking for gold, or confuse an ocean voyage with an overland route. They may describe the land as empty, even though Indigenous peoples lived and traded along these routes.
How to Assess It
- Give students a blank map and a short excerpt from Cartier's account of Stadacona. Ask them to trace his route, name one reason he traveled, and explain one effect of his arrival on local people.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Use colored string on a North America map to trace Cartier's Atlantic and St. Lawrence voyage and de Soto's overland route from Florida.
Read a short Cartier journal excerpt, then ask: 'Whose account of his arrival at Stadacona is missing?'
Deal route, motive, and impact cards for Cabot, Cartier, and de Soto; students match each set and defend one match using a map.
Compare a modern St. Lawrence shipping map with Cartier's route, then locate Stadacona to show that Indigenous people already lived along the river.
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Printable 5.H.2 Worksheet
A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to 5.H.2, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.
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