Historic Maps in K-12 Classrooms, developed by The Newberry Library, offers resources for using historical maps to teach lessons on geographic and historic themes. In total there are eighteen lessons spanning six themes. Each historical map has a lesson plans designed for use at different grade levels. The grade levels are divided K-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12. Each lesson plan comes with links to additional resources and images for enhancing and modifying the lessons to suit your needs.

Applications for Education
Maps, in general, are great resources for the visual learners in your classroom. As my friend Jim Wells says, “maps provide a visual framework for learning.” The historical maps and lesson plans provided by the Newberry Library could be good resources for providing a visual framework for history and geography lessons.

Here are some related items that may be of interest to you:
20,000+ Historical Maps – Many on Google Earth/ Maps
New York Then and Now – Interactive Map & Images
This Day in History Videos