The Ultimate Guide to History Simulations
One of my favorite memories from third grade was the week we went to school dressed up like pioneers. We were given a new identity that included a name (mine was Molly), an age, and even siblings! Our classroom transformed into a “one-room schoolhouse,” and we lived that week as if we were early American pioneers. From homemade lunches in baskets to doing our work on chalkboards, it was a week I still remember over twenty years later!
Have you ever wanted to include a simulation in your classroom? Maybe you have already used simulations in your classroom and are looking for more. Or perhaps you are not sure where to even begin! Whatever your experience, I want to help you make the most of your U.S. History lessons with this ultimate guide to history simulations.
What Is a Simulation?
According to Hasan Jeffries, host of the Teaching Hard History podcast:
A simulation is “an attempt to re-create a situation or phenomenon from the past to put students in a re-created environment as much as possible.”
The theory behind this type of activity is to “allow students to assume the roles of other people and act out scenarios in order to gain deeper insight into historical events.”
A simulation can be a play, a game, a mock trial, elections, a role play, or a re-enactment.
Why Use Simulations in the Classroom?
There are many benefits to using simulations in the classroom. Simulations bring history to life for students. In addition, participating in simulations promotes critical and creative thinking, empathy, and collaboration. It also fosters independence in students.
Example Simulation
Before we dive into some tips on teaching simulations, let’s look at a simulation in depth. Here is a peek into the simulation included in our Declaration of Independence unit!
The Road to Independence Simulation
In our Declaration of Independence simulation, students take on the role of a colonist and experience first-hand the events leading up to the Declaration of Independence.
Day 1: Choose Your Destiny
Students are assigned a colonial identity, complete with a job, salary, home colony, and political faction (Patriot, Loyalist, or Neutralist), and take on that role for the entire unit. They create a character sketch, choose a colonial name, and begin a cause-and-effect timeline called the Road to Independence that they’ll build on throughout the simulation.
Day 2, Lesson 1: Patriots vs. Loyalists
Students sort primary source quotes by political faction and analyze the real arguments colonists used to support or oppose independence. This lesson grounds students in the perspectives they’ll be defending throughout the unit.
Day 2, Lesson 2: Stamp Act Simulation
The teacher (acting as “Town Crier”) announces that King George has issued the Stamp Act, and students immediately begin experiencing it, purchasing stamps with fake money and attaching them to every assignment they turn in. Students who fail to comply face fines, making the injustice of taxation without representation feel very real, very fast.
Day 3: Prepare for the Stamp Act Congress
Students learn how a colonial congress works and begin preparing for their own classroom simulation. Each student is assigned a role (giving a speech for or against a proposal or crafting a challenging question as a Neutralist) and can also create propaganda posters to hang around the room.
Day 4: Stamp Act Congress
Students take on the roles of delegates and hold their own Stamp Act Congress, debating and voting on five real proposals from 1765. After the congress, they compare their results to what actually happened and reflect on their experience.
Day 5, Part 1: Townshend Acts Simulation
A new tax arrives: students are now charged one pound for every piece of paper they use, and their desks can be searched at any time using a writ of assistance. This escalating simulation helps students feel the growing tension between the colonies and the crown.
Day 5, Part 2: Boston Massacre
Students become detectives, reading seven real eyewitness accounts of the Boston Massacre to piece together what actually happened. They analyze each speaker’s point of view and decide who they think is truly to blame.
Day 6, Part 1: Tea Act Simulation
The Tea Act hits the classroom: students must now rent their pencils for five pounds a day, mirroring how the act taxed a colonial necessity. This simple mechanic sparks discussion about why even a “cheap” tax could feel like an outrage.
Day 6, Part 2: Boston Tea Party
Students read about the Boston Tea Party from multiple perspectives and then create their own political cartoons about the event, choosing any point of view they like — Patriot, Loyalist, British citizen, or even King George himself.
Day 7, Part 1: Intolerable Acts Simulation
The harshest taxes yet: students from “Boston” must hand over all their money, are forbidden from talking to one another, may be forced to share desks, and could even be sent to another classroom for punishment. The simulation makes the punishing nature of the Intolerable Acts visceral and memorable.
Day 7, Part 2: All About the Intolerable Acts
Students walk around the room hunting for task cards that detail each of the Intolerable Acts, then use what they find to complete a worksheet explaining and illustrating each act and how colonists responded.
Day 8: Prepare for the First Continental Congress
Students prepare for their second simulated congress, learning about three real proposals from 1774 and crafting speeches or pointed questions based on their political faction. Propaganda posters go back up around the room.
Day 9: First Continental Congress
The classroom becomes Philadelphia in 1774 as students debate and vote on the real proposals from the First Continental Congress. They then compare their vote to history and reflect on what it felt like to be a delegate.
Day 10: Lexington, Concord & Thomas Paine
Students read about the Battles of Lexington and Concord, examining the myths and facts surrounding the first shots of the Revolutionary War. They then wrestle with excerpts from Thomas Paine’s Common Sense, translating his powerful arguments into their own words.
Day 11: Prepare for the Second Continental Congress
Students prepare for the unit’s biggest and most consequential congress, with seven real proposals on the table, including forming the Continental Army and ultimately signing the Declaration of Independence. Each student prepares a speech or question, and the stakes feel high.
Day 12: Second Continental Congress
The final and most dramatic congress of the unit: students debate and vote on all seven proposals, including whether to declare independence from Britain. This is also the last day of all the tax simulations, and students update their Road to Independence timelines to completion.
Day 13: Analyze the Declaration of Independence
Students first read a relatable “break-up letter” to understand the structure of a well-organized argument, then apply that framework to the actual Declaration of Independence, breaking it into five sections, annotating key ideas, and answering analysis questions.
Day 14: Key Ideas in the Declaration of Independence
Students dig into four revolutionary ideas from the Declaration — unalienable rights, equality, consent of the governed, and the right of revolution — by reading task cards scattered around the room, translating the ideas into their own words, and illustrating them. A gallery walk wraps it up with student commentary.
Day 15: Write Your Own Declaration of Independence
Using the Declaration as a model text, students write their own declaration of independence from anything they choose (e.g. social media, homework, broccoli, a bully) following the same structure as the real document. It’s a creative, memorable way to demonstrate mastery of what the Declaration actually says and does.
How to Design a Simulation
Similar to creating a U.S. History unit, one of the first things you should consider when designing a simulation is the end goal!
This is called “backwards planning.” To do this, you’ll need to:
- First, look over the U.S. History standards for your state.
- Next, choose the specific standard(s) you want to teach.
- Then, define your learning objectives – make sure to be very clear.
- And, last, think about what exactly you want your students to feel and understand by doing this activity.
Once your end goals are clearly defined, you can begin brainstorming ideas for your simulation. Consider these questions:
- What are my learning objectives? In what ways do I want my students to connect to these objectives?
- What types of activities will foster the connections I am seeking? Example activities include:
- Students adopt an identity and participate in experiences similar to those from a specific time period
- Mock trial, election, or congress
- Investigation
- Reader’s Theater
- Game (check out my gold rush game!)
- Escape room or cracking the code activity
- What educational value will this simulation provide?
- What specific background knowledge do my students need before beginning this simulation? How will I provide them with that knowledge?
- What reflection activity would best support this simulation?
Simulation from Westward Expansion Unit
Tips for Simulation Success
Here are some tips to help your simulations go smoothly!
First, set clear expectations.
Clearly define and explicitly state your expectations. For example, you should set expectations for learning objectives, student behavior, and quality of work.
Example Expectations:
- Learning Objective: I can identify Patriot, Loyalist, and Neutralist arguments. I can analyze and explain the main ideas of primary source quotes.
- Student Behavior: Students will not interrupt when listening to others. Students will respond respectfully to one another.
- Quality of work: Students will use evidence from the text to respond thoughtfully and in complete sentences.
Second, build adequate background knowledge.
Students must have good background knowledge about the topic to fully participate in and reap the benefits of a simulation. For example, read articles about the period or event, explain any specific information you think your students may need to understand before beginning the simulation, define difficult vocabulary words, etc.
Third, assign roles carefully.
You must think about the different roles represented in your simulation. Think about each student’s background, personality, and needs. Do not group students according to characteristics that represent real-life oppression (race, gender, etc.). You can also allow students to opt out of participating in the simulation if they feel uncomfortable.
And lastly, include an “exit ticket” where students can reflect on what they learned.
Give plenty of time for debriefing after each simulation activity. Be sure to include journal/reflection writing for students that might be uncomfortable talking aloud about their experiences.
- Remind students to disengage from the roleplay at the end of the activity.
- During debriefing, ask open-ended questions (ex. “What happened in today’s simulation?”).
- Connect student experiences to their real lives and help them apply what they have learned.
Simulation from Age of Exploration Unit
When NOT to Use Simulations
While simulations can be a fun and engaging tool, they are not always the most appropriate activity to use in every context.
In fact, the Anti-Defamation League recommends avoiding simulations for emotionally vulnerable topics, such as:
- Slavery and the Triangle Trade
- Indigenous people’s interactions with European conquerors
- The Holocaust
- Genocide
- Japanese American internment
- Discrimination
- War crimes
- Racism and sexism
- Sexuality
In this blog post, you can find more information about teaching with simulations. You can also download a free simulation evaluation checklist. This checklist will help you determine whether or not a simulation is the best tool to use in your history lesson.
Simulation from United States Constitution Unit
Ready-To-Go Simulations
Creating a history simulation can be a lot of fun! But it can also be quite time-consuming and overwhelming.
I have created several U.S. history simulations to make it easier for you! With detailed lesson plans, student worksheets, and everything else you need to print and go, these simulations are sure to bring engagement and excitement into your classroom.
Here are a few examples of simulations included in our U.S. History units!
- Declaration of Independence simulation: Students learn about the events that led to the Declaration of Independence by adopting the identity of a colonist.
- Revolutionary War simulation: Students learn about the significant battles of the Civil war by adopting the identity of a Continental soldier, officer, or spy.
- Age of Exploration simulation: Students learn about the risks of sailing during this time by adopting the role of a sailor.
- Westward Expansion simulation: Students learn about life on the Oregon trail by adopting the identity of an emigrant.
- Constitution simulation: Students learn about the major compromises of the Constitutional Convention by adopting the role of a delegate.
- Economics simulation: Students learn about major economic concepts as they form a business team and create their very own products to sell in a classroom marketplace.
Free Simulations Menu
Want to see all of our U.S. History simulations in one place? Check out our free Simulations Menu.
Click here to access the free U.S. History Simulations Menu!
Get Every Simulation in One Bundle!
The Ultimate U.S. History Bundle gives you every single U.S. history unit The Clever Teacher has ever made — all in one place, all ready to teach. Here’s what’s inside:
- Think Like a Historian (Intro to U.S. History; Why Study History?)
- Western Hemisphere Geography (Intro to Geography; Map Skills; 5 Themes of Geography)
- Native American Regions
- Age of Exploration
- 13 Colonies
- Declaration of Independence
- American Revolutionary War
- U.S. Constitution
- Presidential Elections
- Early Republic
- Westward Expansion
- Civil War
- Reconstruction
- Gilded Age & Industrialization
- Economics Fair Simulation
- U.S. History Quote of the Week (Parts 1 & 2) – Ready-to-use daily bell ringers all year long
That’s a complete, year-long U.S. history curriculum for grades 5–8. Fully planned, engaging, and ready to go the moment you download it. No more scrambling for lesson ideas, no more stitching together resources from a dozen different places. Just open it and teach.
Each unit is packed with interactive activities, primary sources, discussion questions, and hands-on projects designed to get students genuinely excited about history. These aren’t busywork worksheets, they are lessons students will actually remember.
And the value? You’ll save 20% compared to buying every unit separately. No coupon code needed; it is built into the bundle price.
If you teach U.S. history, this is the one resource worth investing in.
Learn More about the Ultimate US History Bundle!
Ultimate US History Bundle | 5th–8th Grade Activities & Lessons
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