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Monday, February 13, 2012

Days 112 & 113 Westward Expansion


February 7 & 8, 2012

Days 112, 113

LA Book: 2 pages

Math: 2 pages

Solving Math Problems in American History: Exercise 1 Identifying and Using Roman Numerals

Latin: Chapter 5 & Flashcards

Western Expansion book
Who remembers reading Choose-Your-Own-Adventure books? This is the same format but teaching about history. The books are engaging and fun with great pictures and facts about history.

Link to book
West. Expansion web-quest

Westward Expansion Webquest

1.       Follow this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ha11IunYN4 LOVE THAT SONG!


A.      What is Manifest Destiny? Good—6 sentence + paragraph.

B.      The Manifest Destiny is the belief of the American citizens of the 19th Century that it was their god given right to move into the west. Thomas Jefferson developed this idea in 1803 when he bought the Louisiana Territory from Napoleon. Lewis and Clark proved that it was possible to travel to the West and back. America needed more space so people traveled to along the Oregon Trail, Proving that Manifest Destiny was possible.



3.       Follow this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_X2tfAtHC_8

A.      What are some of the hazards people faced on their journey west? 6 sentence paragraph

Some of the hazards that people faced on this journey were, facing miles of open prairies, Getting lost from the trail was one of the dangers people feared most, they might have never gotten back on the right track! Another of the hazards was Desert storms, where they couldn’t see the trail. There were many other hazards that made the Oregon Trail and Westward Expansion so difficult.


A.      What are some of the many good reasons people traveled west? 6 sentence paragraph

Well it basically was the Manifest Destiny, that’s one of the main reasons that people traveled west. Another reason is that they could start new businesses and earn more money so people traveled west for that. Also People traveled along the Santa Fe Trail during the Gold Rush, and they left their families behind. It was probably a real disappointment for all of the families left in the east because there really wasn’t as much gold in California then they thought there was, so the people that left usually just stayed in California and made a new living.          


A.      What did you learn? Write 6 paragraph paper about Westward Expansion



Westward Expansion started back in 1775 during the Revolutionary War when Daniel Boone ventured into Kentucky. This was the first idea that proved that well there was a west, although they still didn’t know how big it was yet. Daniel Boone took about 30 men and traveled into the west cutting down trees and moving some of the Indians out. Daniel made some shelter for some of the American family’s that were living in the cities to stay in the wilderness and get away from battle.



The idea of Westward Expansion didn’t continue until the early 19th century when Thomas Jefferson was elected president. Jefferson noticed that we were running out of space in the 13 colonies in the east and knew that there was more land in the west. It took a few tries, but Jefferson got the Louisiana Territory from Napoleon in France; this was called the Louisiana Purchase. Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson’s secretary volunteered to go with his friend William Clark, to survey the new land.



The journey was long and harsh but Lewis and Clark went to Oregon and back with the help of Sacagawea and Toussaint Charbonneau. Lewis and Clark proved that there was a whole bunch of land in the west that could be explored. Lewis and Clark also proved that they could make it to the west and survive, because on their journey west only one man died.



In 1806 a person named Jed Smith went out again with his team again and searched the west. He started mapping down the easiest routes to Oregon and California. In about what is now Indiana, Smith got attacked by a grizzly bear that tore his scalp and ear off. Smith’s brother, Tyler sewed them back together, and Jed Smith survived.



In 1809-1810, Westward Expansion begun when courageous families sold their land and furniture and headed off west in a Prairie Schooner. They would follow along in the wagon train down the Oregon and Santa Fe Trail. I learned about the Donner party who made the wrong decision and went down a shortcut, which really was more of a “death cut”. They traveled through the mountains, and with the terrible mountain conditions, broke an axle. That night 5 inches of snow fell and the Donner Party was stranded in the mountains with no food, two of the people in their party had died that night, so to redeem themselves from hunger; they ate them, and survived.



The westward Expansion lasted all throughout the beginning of the 20th century until it was completely settled.



Westward Expansion 6x6

*This one is a little different because Sophie actually wrote this 6 x 6 and I completed it—at least I did the Vocabulary, the Questions, and the web-sites.

6. Vocabulary

1. Interactive: to engage with; be a part of

2. Pioneers: the named for the large group of American people and families who migrated from the East coast of the US to the Western frontiers in the nineteenth century; also used to describe any group of people who embark on a place or journey that is unexplored or unsettled

3. Chimney Rock: a large rock formation along the Oregon Trail, a significant landscape marker along the trail

4. Territory: a somewhat-defined area of land that is yet to be explored or settled, usually refers to land that is recently acquired by a country but is not officially part of the country

5. Expansion: to increase in size, used to describe the American Westward Expansion of the country and its people in the nineteenth century

6. Cowboy: a colloquial name for men who rode horses and worked on the Western ranches herding steer; American folklore and mythology of the “Wild West”

6. Sentences

1. I learned about Westward Expansion from a You Choose Book, An Interactive History Adventure.

2. The pioneers that traveled along the Oregon Trail during the westward expansion used wagons that were also called “prairie schooners.” 

3. Chimney Rock was like a milestone on the Oregon Trail; Chimney Rock was named so because of how it went up out of the ground just like a chimney.

4. The Native Americans living in the west at this time were confused about Westward Expansion; they did not understand why the whites were settling into their territory.

5. The American citizens believed that it was their right to expand into the West; this idea was called Manifest Destiny and was developed by Thomas Jefferson.

6. When people settled in the west they didn’t have any jobs, so people made up the idea of moving the cattle or cows out of their land; the people that led the cows to the West were called Cowboys, although they rode on horses!



6. Facts and Details

1. Americans built towns and Railroads as they moved to the West

2. Wagon trails usually traveled single file on the Oregon Trail. This was called a Wagon Train

3. Graves of Pioneers who died can still be found today; their graves were made of many rocks covering a hole.

4. people often climbed Independence Rock and carved their name on to it.

5. Pioneers used three small islands as stepping stones to cross the Snake River.

6. Cowboys and sheepdogs are somewhat alike; they would watch their sheep over night to see if anyone takes them.



6. Questions and Answers

1. What is a Baron? A: a person, usually a man, who owns large tracts of land or business—an employer

2. What type of Animals were used to pull the Pioneers Wagons? A: oxen

3. What Did the Native Americans think about Westward Expansion? A: They did not understand why all the people came to their land, where all the people came from, and how any people could “own” land or draw lines on a map to determine ownership

4. What are some ways that Pioneers used to cross the River? A: send the oxen to swim over and then float with the wagon across, hoping to make it. Moving down or up the river to find an easier crossing place or waiting until the right time of year when the water wasn’t running high. Bridges and ferries came later.

5. How long did the Westward Expansion last? A: the bulk of the pioneers moved West and settled the land over about 40 years, by the end of the 1890s Westward Expansion was considered over

6. After the Civil War, Thousands of former slaves moved west, mostly to Kansas, Do you think they experienced the same as the Pioneers? A:  



6 Images









6 websites

1.       http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/modules/westward/index.cfm Write a sentence or two about what you learned:

1.       the US increased its size by a third in just 5 years

2.       the population of the Western frontier increased from 6 to 17 million in just a few decades

3.       the belief in “Manifest Destiny” made it easy for white American settlers to displace or remove the native peoples of the land they settled

2.       http://www.sonofthesouth.net/texas/westward-expansion.htm Write a paragraph on what you learned:

1.       Most of the American “states” were formed and established in less than 30 years after the original charter of 13 colonies granted by the king of Great Britain in the sixteenth century

2.       The US bought most of the land from France with the Louisiana Purchase, then Florida from Spain (and a few wars were fought with the Seminole Indians),

3.       Oregon and the surrounding states were est. by Lewis & Clark exploration, then boundaries finalized with Canada by 1848

4.       Texas was fought for and won during the Mexican American War of 1848

5.       California and surrounding states were purchased from Mexico as part of the treaty that ended the Mexican War

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