The Battle of Plattsburgh Association has been a gift to teachers. It reminds us of our rich local history and provides resources to teach that history.

Now there's more opportunity to bring northern New York to the classroom, because we're in the midst of two quadricentennials.

Samuel de Champlain sailed from France in April 1608. Tradition holds that he landed July 3 in what is now Quebec City. In September, some of his French colleagues returned home, while Champlain remained in Quebec with 28 men. The winter began early, and Francis Parkman wrote, "November sank upon the shivering waste, chill and somber as the tomb."

By spring 1609, only eight of the 28 men were still alive, and four of them had scurvy. In June, Champlain left Quebec and started the journey that resulted in his discovery of the lake named after him.

The 400th anniversaries of those two events -- the founding of Quebec City and the exploration of Lake Champlain -- are full of potential for area teachers.

The Lake Champlain Maritime Museum has developed a K-12 quadricentennial curriculum that explores eight topics. The lessons lend themselves to social studies, math and science classes. For example, "Mapping from the Horizontal" teaches students about Champlain's difficulty in making maps when he had no aerial views. Then they compare what the explorer drew to satellite images we have now.

A good curriculum allows a teacher to go off in different directions -- geology, history, art and culture, math, etc. -- in response to the students' needs and curiosity. This Champlain-centered curriculum has that kind of flexibility.

Fiction, too, can provide local history for students, and in this case, the author is also local. One of the contributors to the Maritime Museum curriculum is Plattsburgh teacher and novelist Kate Messner. Her award-winning "Spitfire" dealt with the 1776 battle on Lake Champlain. Her new book, "Champlain and the Silent One," tells the story of a Native American who encounters Champlain in 1609.

On this side of the lake, Plattsburgh State's Center for the Study of Canada/Institute on Quebec Studies is also developing a very impressive celebration, intended for both teachers and the general public.

"We're producing a full-color iconographic map, New France and the Champlain Valley: 1609-1759,'" says Institute Director Chris Kerkey. "Trade routes, landmarks, brief texts about major figures -- all in both English and French."

Kerkey is also excited about a new 72-page biography of Champlain and a packet of material they're putting together for K-12 teachers. Kerkey and the institute's Outreach Coordinator Amy Southern will also be ready to visit schools to talk to teachers and students about Champlain -- the lake, the valley and the explorer.

There's more.

When Champlain explored his lake, he probably stopped at what is now Ticonderoga but then headed back to Quebec. Had he continued south, he might have met Henry Hudson, who arrived in Albany in September of 1609. So, with Quebec City and Lake Champlain, Henry Hudson's explorations are part of a third quadricentennial.

The "Explore New York 400" Web site offers educators information about Champlain and Hudson, as well as the Erie Canal and steamboater Robert Fulton.

There will also be unusual commemorations. Plattsburgh State history professor Kevin Dann has a pilgrimage in mind for the spring of 2009. He calls it "A Corridor of Amity," the corridor being mostly the Champlain and Hudson Valleys. Dann intends to walk from Montreal to Manhattan (about 380 miles) to bring attention to the area and some activists who have lived here.