Extra! Extra! Lewis and Clark Explore America
  |
Presidential Historical Review Committee
Extra! Extra! Lewis and Clark Explore America
|
Presidential Historical Review Committee
Congratulations! You have been selected as the class to help our nation celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. In the year 2004 the United States will be establishing a National Holiday to commemorate the contribution of these heroic explorers. Your job is to produce, in team, a Special Edition Newspaper highlighting the Lewis and Clark Expedition. One newspaper from your class will be chosen by the Presidential Historical Review Committee to be printed and distributed across our nation. We look forward to visiting your classroom and listening to the exciting presentations of your newspaper.
Sincerely,
Presidential Historical Review Committee
THE TASK
You will work in a small group selected by your teacher. Each group will work together to produce one historically accurate newspaper from the point of view of different roles. Follow these steps carefully.
1. Answer Who, What, Where, When and Why (5 W's) for background information.
2. The groups will be formed of 5 students, each with a different role.
3. Choose one role: [see below for explanation of these roles]
THE PROCESS
There are three main parts to this project:
- Step 1: Gaining background knowledge
- Step 2: Collecting information
- Step 3: Writing and assembling the newspaper
Step 1: Gaining Background Knowledge
Before working on your role, check that you and everyone in your group understand the basic facts behind the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Use the links listed after the questions to find the information. Answer the 5 W's in your Research Journal.
- 1. Who?
- 2. What?
- 3. Where?
- 4. When?
- 5. Why?
- Lewis & Clark
- http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/
- Route
Using this interactive map you can follow the route of Lewis and Clark from border to border.- http://lewisandclark.state.mt.us/discovery.shtm
- Discoveries
- http://www.lewis-clark.org/index.htm
Step 2: Collecting Information
This is where you take on one of the roles and explore the related Internet links. Have fun. Look for interesting and important people and events. Be prepared for surprises.
- 1. Choose one role.
- 2. Investigate the links related to your role.
- 3. Take notes, draw pictures and maps in your research journal.
- 4. Note the Internet location (URL) of each site.
Learning links
Historian
Background information on the Louisiana Purchase and the reasons for the expedition.
- Lewis and Clark at PBS
- http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/living/idx_1.html
- Louisiana Purchase (Primary Source)
- http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/american_originals/loupurch.html
- Jefferson's Letter (Primary Source)
- http://www.mt.net/~rojomo/landc.htm
Journalist
Relate first-hand experience of crossing the U.S.
- L&C at Three Forks
- http://www.mt.net/~rojomo/landc1.htm
- L&C at the Gates of the Rocky Mountains
- http://www.mt.net/~rojomo/landc2.htm
- L&C at the Falls of the Missouri
- http://www.mt.net/~rojomo/landc3.htm
- L&C at the Yellowstone River
- http://www.mt.net/~rojomo/landc4.htm
Cartographer/Illustrator
Uncover maps of the area and the trails
- Activated Map (Take the Journey)
- http://staff.washington.edu/~muzi/LC/LCmap.html
- Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail Homepage
- http://www.nps.gov/lecl/welcome.htm
Find illustrations of the expedition. Be sure to have a caption for each picture.
Pompey's Pillar
http://www.ourheritage.net/Lewis_and_Clark/1806-07-25.html
Fort Clatsop
http://www.nps.gov/lewi/
Biographer
Choose one person or group of people to research. Your teacher may choose to assign a different person for each newspaper. Focus on the contribution the person made to the trip. You may include details from their early life that prepared the person for the trip.
- William Clark
- http://www.nps.gov/jeff/LewisClark2/CorpsOfDiscovery/TheLeaders/Clark/Clark.htm
http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/people/a_c/clark.htm- http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/living/idx_3.html
- Meriwether Lewis
- http://www.meriwetherlewis.org/
- http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/people/i_r/lewis.htm
- http://www2.lucidcafe.com/lucidcafe/lucidcafe/library/95aug/lewis.html
Sacajawea, and the slave, York
http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/people/s_z/sacagawea.htm
http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/living/idx_4.html
http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/living/idx_5.html
Describe the Indian tribes met along their way and the encounters with the expedition
- Mandan
- http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/native/idx_man.html
- Shoshone
- http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/native/idx_sho.html
Nez Perce
http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/native/idx_nez.html
Scientist
What kinds of plant and animal species did the expedition find? What types of transportation did they use?
- Keelboats
- http://www.lewisandclark.net/boats.htm
Plants and Animals
http://www.uky.edu/ArtsSciences/ModernStudies/HumSocSci/lc94/Section2/Section.html
Step 3: Writing and Assembling the Newspaper
Now is the time to take your notes and write your article and editorial from your role's point of view. Proofread, edit, and produce a final copy. Take these articles and editorials from each person in the group and assemble them into a historical newspaper with graphics and a headline. Your group will produce one newspaper.
Editorial Topics(Choose one)
- 1. Why was this expedition so important to America?
- 2. Who do you admire most on the expedition and why?
- 3. Did Thomas Jefferson get a good deal on the purchase of this land?
- 4. What were the most important discoveries of the expedition?
- 5. Compare the land covered by the expedition 200 years ago to the same land today.
LEARNING ADVICE
To stay organized keep a research journal with you at the computer. Start with the 5 W's overview and then take notes on your roles. Keep track of where you got your information by writing down the Internet location URL (http://www.........) Draw pictures and sketches of people, maps, etc. as you research. Share daily your obtained information with your group and help each other edit and proofread the newspaper articles. Use your time wisely at the computer so you can find all the necessary information in the time your teacher has given you.
EVALUATION
CONCLUSION
Present your newspaper in teams to the Presidental Historical Review Committee. You may want to wear a costume befitting your role. After the presentations, participate in a class discussion using the questions below:
- Was there a water route to link the trading ports in the Northeast?
- What natural obstacles were in the way?
- Were the Indian tribes in the West more hostile than the Natives in the East?
- What scientific and geographic information did the expedition gather?
What an adventure the Lewis and Clark Expedition was! Through looking closely at the history of the expedition, the journals of Lewis and Clark, and the landmarks of the trail, I hope you have a better understanding of how the United States grew and the courageous people that helped develop our nation. The Lewis and Clark Expedition proved to be the key in opening up the western lands to expansion.
REFLECTION
Be prepared to answer in a paragraph the next questions in your journal.
TEACHER NOTES
Grade Level/Unit
H/SS Content Standards:
5.8 Students trace the colonization, immigration and settlement patterns of the American people from 1789 to the mid-1800's, with emphasis on the defining role of economic incentives and the effects of the physical and political geography and transportation systems, in terms of:3.the explorations of the trans-Mississippi West following the Louisiana Purchase (e.g., draw from maps, biographies and journals of Lewis & Clark, Zebulon Pike, John Fremont)
Historical and Social Science Analysis Skills Grades K-5
Lesson Purpose:
Goals:
Information Literacy Skills:
Length of Lesson: It is recommended that one to two weeks are needed if you integrate the writing with your English and computer time with your Social Studies. Lack of computer availability may require more time. Students could write the articles outside of class once research is completed, but need class time to proofread articles and assemble the newspaper.
Resources or materials needed:
Class Resources (5th grade level)
The Value of Adventure -The Story of Sacagawea by Anne Donegan
The Incredible Journey of Lewis & Clark by Rhoda Blumberg
Sacagawea - The Story with art lessons (Scholastic) by Raphael & Bolognese
The Lewis & Clark Expedition Coloring Book (Dover) by Peter Copeland
Teacher Resources
Undaunted Courage - Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson and the Opening of the American West by Stephen E. Ambrose
The Journals of Lewis and Clark by John Blakeless
Supplies:
Students may create the newspaper using a word processing program in columns such as The Writing Center, ClarisWorks, or Microsoft Works. Graphics may be inserted using clip art or saved pictures from the Internet.
Background information that might be helpful: Students need to have several skills to be successful in this activity. Introducing types of newspaper articles, using the 5 W's, and writing opinion editorials need to be taught as writing styles. The activity assumes the students can access and navigate the Internet and work in cooperative groups. It may help to save computer time during research by grouping all students with the same role. For example, the Historians could gather at the computer and look up the Internet links together. The Biographer role could be assigned for more than one student in the group if you need more roles for groups of different sizes.
Adaptions for special needs students: Assign roles that have easier Internet links to research such as the Biographers or the Cartographer. Pair the special needs students to do research. Set the groups up to accommodate pairing.
Interdisciplinary connections:
- Read biographies of Lewis, Clark, Jefferson, and Sacagawea
- Write a final report to President Jefferson from Lewis and
- Clark's point of view.
- animal habitats and introduce the Grizzly Bear
- river watersheds
- plants as medicine, Indian herbal remedies
- Missouri River, Columbia River, Rocky Mountains, Western States