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Exploring the Overland Trail

Jennifer Mooney and Brooke Jackson

Rogers Elementary School FILLIN "Insert Your First and Last Name" \* MERGEFORMAT

FILLIN "Insert Your School Name" \* MERGEFORMAT

Summer 2007

American Environmental Photographs Collection,

[AEP Image Number, e.g., AEP-ORS50], Department

of Special Collections, University of Chicago Library.

Through this week long unit, students will experience the emotions and events of the pioneers on the Overland Trail as they read the novel Dear Levi by Elvira Woodruff. This book is a work of historical fiction, written in the form of letters from a young boy who is making his way west on the Overland Trail. The author was inspired to write this story after reading the original diaries of pioneers who actually traveled the trail. Students will also be able to read an original journal and analyze other primary sources related to the Overland Trail from American Memory through the Library of Congress. Doing this as they read Dear Levi will help them gain a deeper understanding of the hardships and accomplishments of the pioneers on the Overland Trail.

Overview/ Materials/LOC Resources/Standards/ Procedures/Evaluation/Rubric/Handouts/Extension

OverviewBack to Navigation Bar

Objectives

Students will:

analyze photographs from American Memory through the Library of Congress.

compare and Contrast letters from Dear Levi to journal entries of a pioneer on the Overland Trail.

discuss the conflicts between the Native Americans and Pioneers and the emotions involved.

write letters to a family member acting as though they are a pioneer on the Overland Trail.

Recommended time frame

5 days, 45-60 minutes a day

Grade level

5th grade

Curriculum fit

Language Arts, Social Studies, Reading

Materials

Dear Levi by Elvira Woodruff

Selected photographs from resource table, printed for students to view

Photograph analysis worksheet

Butcher paper

Markers

Notebook Paper

Pencils

Journal Entries (April and May, 1851) from resource table, printed for student use

Compare and Contrast Checklist

Letter Writing Rubric

Letter Writing Requirements handout

Illinois State Learning StandardsBack to Navigation Bar

English Language Arts:

GOAL 1: Read with understanding and fluency.

1.B. Apply reading strategies to improve understanding and fluency.

1.B.2a Establish purposes for reading; survey materials; ask questions; make predictions; connect, clarify and extend ideas.

1.B.2b Identify structure (e.g., description, compare/contrast, cause and effect, sequence) of nonfiction texts to improve comprehension.

1.B.2d Read age-appropriate material aloud with fluency and accuracy.

1.C. Comprehend a broad range of reading materials.

1.C.2a Use information to form and refine questions and predictions.

1.C.2b Make and support inferences and form interpretations about main themes and topics.

1.C.2c Compare and contrast the content and organization of selections.

GOAL 2: Read and understand literature representative of various societies, eras and ideas.

2.B. Read and interpret a variety of literary works.

2.B.2a Respond to literary material by making inferences, drawing conclusions and comparing it to their own experience, prior knowledge and other texts.

GOAL 3: Write to communicate for a variety of purposes.

3.A. Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization and structure.

3.A.2 Write paragraphs that include a variety of sentence types; appropriate use of the eight parts of speech; and accurate spelling, capitalization and punctuation.

3.B. Compose well-organized and coherent writing for specific purposes and audiences.

3.B.2a Generate and organize ideas using a variety of planning strategies (e.g., mapping, outlining, drafting).

GOAL 4: Listen and speak effectively in a variety of situations.

4.A. Listen effectively in formal and informal situations.

4.A.2b Ask and respond to questions related to oral presentations and messages in small and large group settings.

4.B. Speak effectively using language appropriate to the situation and audience.

4.B.2b Use speaking skills and procedures to participate in group discussions.

Social Sciences

GOAL 16: Understand events, trends, individuals and movements shaping the history of Illinois, the United States and other nations.

16.A. Apply the skills of historical analysis and interpretation.

16.A.2c Ask questions and seek answers by collecting and analyzing data from historic documents, images and other literary and non-literary sources.

16.D. Understand Illinois, United States and world social history.

16.D.2b (US) Describe the ways in which participation in the westward movement affected families and communities.

ProceduresBack to Navigation Bar

Pre-planning:

Print Crossing of the Platte River picture (from resource table), one for each student.

Print Indians gambling for the possession of a captive picture (from resource table), one for each student

Cut five large pieces of butcher paper

Print April and May journal entries (text pages) from John Powels Journal, five copies per month

Day One:

Pass out a picture of Crossing of the Platte River from the resource table and the picture analysis handout to each student.

Have students look at photograph for a few minutes and tell them to think about everything that they see.

Complete photo analysis worksheet together. Discuss ideas as they come up. Students will be completing one on their own on Day Three.

Conduct a short discussion predicting what Dear Levi might be about.

Begin reading pages 3-25 in Dear Levi together. Call on different students to read out loud.

Assign any unfinished reading for homework.

Day Two:

Read pages 26-51 together. Call on different students to read out loud.

Read for about 40 minutes. If the section is not finished, assign the rest for homework.

Divide students into five small groups.

Pass out copies of journal entries from the text pages of the Powel journal to each group. Each group gets a copy of April and May entries.

Explain to students that they will be reading these journals and comparing and contrasting them with the letters Austin wrote to Levi. Be sure to explain that these entries were actually out of a real persons journal. This person did not always spell correctly or use complete sentences. Explain that they need to do the best that they can to read it and that they should be sure to ask for help if they do not understand.

Review with students how to make a Venn diagram on the board.

Tell students that when they are finished reading through the journals, they are to make a Venn diagram, in their groups, comparing them with the letters in Dear Levi.

They must include three similarities and two differences on each side of the diagram. Pass out checklist (see below) as a reminder of requirements.

Give students about 15 minutes to complete this task.

After 15 minutes, explain to students that they will use the ideas in the Venn diagram to write a paragraph comparing and contrasting the journal entries and letters. This will be done individually.

They will need to use clue words for comparing and contrasting.

As a class, come up with a list of words for comparing and contrasting up on the board.

Allow 10 minutes for students to write these paragraphs.

Have students turn paragraphs in for a grade.

Day Three:

Read pages 54-76 in novel. Call on different students to read out loud.

Read for about 30 minutes. If the section is not finished, assign the rest for homework.

Pass out the Indians gambling for the possession of a captive picture from the resource table to each student. Also provide a photo analysis sheet to each student.

Allow five minutes for students to complete photo analysis worksheet individually.

Discuss what students noticed in the picture.

Ask students how this picture relates to the events in the book. This will feed into a discussion about the conflicts between Native Americans and pioneers and the emotions that are involved.

Here are some questions that can be asked during discussion:

What was the conflict in the book?

By looking at this photograph, did this same conflict really happen on the Overland Trail?

Why do you think the pioneers and Native Americans had trouble getting along?

Do these problems still exist between other groups of people today? How so?

Day Four:

Read pages 77-101 in novel. Call on different students to read out loud.

Read for about 40 minutes. If the section is not finished, assign the rest for homework.

Pass out directions and rubric for letter writing activity.

Go over directions with students and explain that they will be writing a letter to a family member. They are going to pretend that they are a pioneer on the Overland Trail.

See letter writing hand out and rubric below for proper directions and requirements.

Students have 10-20 minutes to begin writing their letter. They will finish writing the letter on Day five.

Day Five

Finish reading Dear Levi. Call on different students to read out loud.

Allow 10-15 minutes for students to finish writing their letters.

If time allows, students can choose to read their letter aloud to the class.

If time allows, have students talk with each other or as a whole class about their feelings on the book.

EvaluationBack to Navigation Bar

Students will be evaluated by:

Participation in classroom discussions and photo analysis completion

Checklist for Compare and Contrast Writing

Rubric for Letter Writing

Accelerated Reader Test over entire novel

Extension Back to Navigation Bar

Students can pick a copy of any of the photographs from the resource table and write a detailed story about the picture that they choose. They must tell who is in the picture and what is happening.

Using the map and scale on pages one and two of Dear Levi, students will figure out the total miles of Austins journey.

Primary Resources from the Library of Congress

Back to Navigation Bar

Image

Description

Citation

Permanent URL

The original fourty-nine [sic] Overland Trail / J. E. Stimson photo, Cheyenne, Wyo.

Western History/Genealogy Department, Denver Public Library

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/hawp:@field(NUMBER+@band(codhawp+10021928))

[A man and woman with a] covered wagon, Prospect, Oregon

American Environmental Photographs Collection, [AEP Image Number, e.g., AEP-ORS50], Department of Special Collections, University of Chicago Library.

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/aep:@field(DOCID+@lit(aep003734))

Emigrant train

Western History/Genealogy Department, Denver Public Library

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/hawp:@field(NUMBER+@band(codhawp+00105436))

Indians gambling for the possession of a captive

Western History/Genealogy Department, Denver Public Library

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/hawp:@field(NUMBER+@band(codhawp+10033757))

Native American Man

Western History/Genealogy Department, Denver Public Library

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/hawp:@field(NUMBER+@band(codhawp+10033159))

Wild West Show covered wagon

Western History/Genealogy Department, Denver Public Library

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/hawp:@field(NUMBER+@band(codhawp+00105339))

Powel, John A.. Journal, 1851-1878

Powel, John A. 1851, Journal. Trails to Utah and the Pacific: Diaries and Letters, 1846-1869. 1998-1999. Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library. Brigham Young University. June 12, 2007

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/upboverbib:@field(DOCID+@lit(dia2140))

Crossing the Platte River

Crossing the Platte River. 2002.Trails to Utah and the Pacific: Diaries and Letters, 1846-1869. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Archives. Utah Academic Library Consortium. June 13, 2007