There are many fun, hands-on ways to learn about Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery. I've done both a long, extended unit study on L&C that took us on a road trip to places like Fort Clatsop, as well as spent just a few days on the subject within a larger U.S. History unit years later.
It was recently that we spent just the few days, and we topped that off with a field trip that was our own mini version of the expedition. Mountain canyons in Utah lend themselves well to this type of thing, but wherever you live you can find a way to adapt.
First, we made simple blank journals by just stapling some printer paper together like a book. These were for drawing maps, sketching the wildlife and plant life encountered, and journaling about our experiences along the way. We packed some offerings for the natives--bread to feed the ducks we knew we'd see. Then we took to the trail. A local mountain river was our Missouri/Columbia, a nature center on the trail was our Fort Mandan for warming up and resting up, and a dam on the river was our Pacific Ocean where we stopped and turned around. We also took our large dog along because Lewis and Clark brought their Newfoundland, Seaman, along. (It was our first unit study on L&C years ago that prompted us to get our first Newfoundland and began a lifelong love of these awesome dogs!)
Now, our field trip took place in the winter because that's when the topic fell chronologically in our unit. It would be better during a different season if you are planning ahead.
No comments:
Post a Comment
If you find these posts useful, I'd love to hear from you!