Book excerpt: Combine engaging tasks and effective exam preparation with this depth study for Schools History Project GCSE specifications. Essential The American West 1840-1895: The Struggle for the Plains is an entry-level textbook which covers the required content and skills for exam success with any board. It investigates the lives of the Sioux prior to the settlers' arrival, looks at why people moved to the Great Plains, considers how the different waves of settlers affected the Plains Indians, examines law and order and analyses the definitive conflicts between the settlers and the Indians. Clear, relevant and useful, it is ideal for mixed-ability teaching and helps students become better thinkers. - Ensure your students really understand the issues with creative tasks which build content knowledge and confidence while catering to a variety of learning styles. - Develop your students' exam skills with 'Exam Busters' features throughout which provide effective revision strategies and advice on how to understand the demands of GCSE. - Utilise a range of active learning techniques and thinking skills strategies to make exam preparation both fun and relevant to students' wider learning objectives.