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South Texas Plains Main
Prehistoric Texas Main

Teaching Resources

Welcome, Teachers! The lessons below will introduce your students to the South Texas Plains of Texas. The first will introduce the remarkable native peoples of the region, as viewed through the eyes of a Spanish explorer who traveled among them. Another lesson, focused on artifacts, will stimulate critical thinking skills. Students' knowledge of geology will be broadened in the third lesson, focused on one of the most deeply stratified sites in Texas. Each lesson is correlated to TEKS objectives and offers mutli-disciplinary learning opportunities.

Cabeza de Vaca Meets the Coahuiltecans Using historic documents, students will learn to distinguish the difference between primary sources, such as Cabeza de Vaca's journal, La Relación, (The Account) and secondary sources, such as their history books or the posters they will create in this lesson. Suggested for grade levels 4 and 7 (but easily adapted for 5th, 6th, or 8th).

Stratigraphy - Layers of Time in the Earth
This science and social studies lesson introduces students to the concept of stratigraphy, combining both natural and human processes, and helps explain soil formation and the impact of floods on a watershed. The lesson is based on the deeply stratified Richard Beene site on the Medina River near San Antonio. Suggested for grades 11 and 12 but suitable also for lower grades.