Lewis and Clark: Facing challenges—real and imagined
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/xpeditions/lessons/06/g35/challenges.html
A lesson plan for grades 3 and 5 Information Skills and Social Studies
In this lesson from Xpeditions, students will consider how they perceive geographic features and obstacles, and how the Lewis and Clark expedition members might have done so. The mental maps of expedition members could not prepare them for what lay ahead; nonetheless, they met and overcame numerous challenges. If possible, begin the lesson before your students see the large-format film Lewis and Clark: Great Journey West, and finish it after they have seen the movie.
Students will:
- describe and draw their perceptions of geographic features
- consider what Lewis and Clark might have known or thought about the geography of the West before they began their journey
- compare and contrast perceived challenges with real challenges
- realize that perceptions can change based on experience
- think about ways people overcome obstacles
North Carolina Curriculum Alignment
Information Skills (2000)
Grade 3
- Goal 3: The learner will RELATE ideas and information to life experiences.
- Objective 3.05: Describe how information and ideas are influenced by prior knowledge, personal experience, and social, cultural, political, economic, and historical events.
Grade 5
- Goal 3: The learner will RELATE ideas and information to life experiences.
- Objective 3.05: Describe how information and ideas are influenced by prior knowledge, personal experience, and social, cultural, political, economic, and historical events.
Social Studies (2003)
Grade 5
- Goal 1: The learner will apply key geographic concepts to the United States and other countries of North America.
- Objective 1.01: Describe the absolute and relative location of major landforms, bodies of water,and natural resources in the United States and other countries of North America.
- Goal 4: The learner will trace key developments in United States history and describe their impact on the land and people of the nation and its neighboring countries.
- Objective 4.03: Describe the contributions of people of diverse cultures throughout the history of the United States.
