[Detail] A family of emigrants entering the South Loup Valley
Lesson Overview
What motivated thousands of people to journey west during the 1800s?
Was it the prospect of land ownership advertised on a broadside tacked to a tree that convinced a family to pack up all their belongings and travel across a continent in search of a better life? Or was it a letter from a friend announcing their good fortune of striking gold in California
Objectives
Students will be able to:
- evaluate and gather information from a first person narrative
- analyze, interpret and synthesize primary sources such as photographs, prints, broadsides and maps to understand a point of view through online primary sources; and
- integrate multiple resources to develop an understanding of westward expansion.
Standards
Time Required
- Four weeks
Recommended Grade Level
- 6-8
- 9-12
Topic
- Maps & Geography
Era
- National Expansion and Reform, 1815-1860
- Rise of Industrial America, 1876-1900
Credits
Donna Cantarella and Mary Alice Misuta
