|
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
Oregon Trai |
The Oregon Trail Webquest
Designed By Judy Mousel
INTRODUCTION:
Imagine walking for 2,000 miles
barefoot.
That is what many children did as they traveled the Oregon Trail
in the 1800s. Being a pioneer was not easy. The weak did not survive.
But those who were strong and determined had an incredible adventure.
Pretend you are a young
child, between the ages of 9-12 years old, living in Missouri in the
1840's. Your family has just decided to move to Oregon with the
hopes of starting a new life. Your family will keep a journal of
their adventures while traveling along the Oregon Trail. Your
journal will begin as you prepare for the journey, include week to week
entries discussing weather, disease, land marks, rivers, forts,
mountains, etc., and end after you arrive and settle in the new
country.
TASK:
PART 1
As you begin your journey, you will be assigned to a family and your family will be a member of a wagon team.
Each
family member will be given a role and will be responsible for
specific duties along the way. First your family must research
what life was like on the Oregon Trail. You will be using handouts,
books, and websites that will help you better understand what life on
the Oregon Trail was like. Once your family completes the research ,
you will begin Part 2.
Your first research project will be to head west on the wagon trail as
you learn about the early pioneers who settled the new frontier. Click
on the site below to begin:
Next, you will read All About the Oregon Trail by clicking on the site below. When you have finished reading all of this information, you will be ready to begin Part 2. The All About the Oregon Trail articles are also available as handouts.
2. The
Oregon Trail
PART 2:
For part two you will continue working as a family. You will
become pioneers who have chosen to travel the Oregon Trail.
While you are venturing west you are going to keep a diary detailing
your adventures.
PROCESS:
Each family (group) will consist of 4 or 5 members. Each
member will be assigned one of the following roles.
1. Wagon Master- You will be in charge
of your team. You will be researching and labeling a map (get
map template from your teacher) showing your Oregon Trail route. You
will also be in charge of see that all members of your group complete
their assigned duties and stay on task throughout the project.
2. Father- in charge of
researching and deciding about the type of
wagon and team.
3. Mother- in charge of
deciding what needs to be taken on the trip. Make a list of goods and supplies showing what
you took when you started, as well as any supplies you would need to
get while on the trail.
4. Child- in charge of
researching what a day on the trail would have been like. Each member
of your family will keep an imaginary journal under your
guidance. Your journal will include at least 15 journal entries
describing different types of days on the
trail. You will be given a journal template where you will journal and
illustrate each entry. When your journal entries are complete, you will
make a quilted book cover so that your journal can be compiled
into a book.
Here are some questions to think
about as you write each of your entries: What was their day like? Did
they follow daily routines? What types of things did they do in the
evenings for entertainment?
What were some of the problems they might have run into? What types
of hardship did they encounter while on the trail? What special
tricks did they develop while on the trail to make things easier? How
do you think they felt as they traveled into unknown territory? Did
members of the wagon team ever die along the way?
The sites below are examples of diary and journal entries, some real and some imaginary .
End
of the Oregon Trail
Frequently asked questions about the Oregon Trail;
a diagram of a "prairie schooner"; provisions and
prices; biographies and diaries.
Western Expansion
Click on this site from Scholastic and read some
journal entries written by other students. You can even enter one of
your entries.
The
Oregon Trail
This Oregon Trail Website provides a
virtual tour of landmarks along the historic trail. Visitors to the
site can see both a modern map and a 19th century map of the trail.
Landmarks can be clicked on the map to lead the visitor through paintings,
drawings and photographs of trail sites.
CONCLUSION:
You have just completed a 2000
mile trip across the North American continent. You now have a better
understanding of the problems, challenges, decisions, and surprises
the pioneers encountered when they came across the continent over a
hundred years ago.
EVALUATION:
Each member completes their role/assignment
| 15 points
| Completed Map
| 10 points
| List of supplies
| 10 points
| Westward Ho assignment
| 10 points
| Completed information of wagon and teams
| 10 points
| Completed Journals-(minimum 15 entries)
| 30 points
| Completed Illustrations to match Journal entries
| 15 points
|
TOTAL POINTS
|
100 points
|
|
Beginning
1
|
Developing
2
|
Accomplished
3
|
Exemplary
4
|
Score
|
|---|
|
Factual Accuracy
|
main ideas do not
coincide with the Era, demonstrates very little or no research
|
demonstrates some
research, ideas and details go back and forth with relevancy to Era
|
demonstrates adequate
research, ideas and details are relevant to the Era
|
demonstrates significant
research, ideas and details are relevant to the Era
|
|
|
Feasibility
|
main ideas are based
on pure imagination with no relevancy to the Era and likelihood of occurrence
|
some ideas are based
upon the possibility of occurrence with relevancy to the Era
|
most
main ideas are based upon the possibility of occurrence with relevancy to
the Era
|
main ideas are based
upon possibility of being done with relevancy to Era
|
|
|
Quality of Itinerary
|
ideas are limited,
poor readability, inconsistency, and unorganized
|
identifiable main
ideas, partially organized thoughts, readability is hindered
|
creative, clarity,
focus, and control, main ideas stand out
|
creative, clarity,
focus, and control, main ideas stand out and are supported by rich details
|
|
|
Grammar and Spelling
|
many spelling mistakes,
no grammar punctuation
|
little grammar punctuation
and spelling mistakes
|
a few spelling and
grammar mistakes
|
no spelling or grammar
mistakes
|
|
|
