Engage your students in the spirit of westward expansion along the Oregon Trail as they practice skills from several curricular areas while using technology as a tool for learning.

This multidisciplinary unit is intended for students in grades 4-8. It addresses the Massachusetts's Language Arts and Social Studies curricular standards and encourages collaboration and critical thinking skills.

To begin the unit, students will imagine a four-month trip through the wilderness with their family, brainstorm a supply list, rank the items in terms of importance and then compare these items to an actual Oregon Trail supply list. They will view a video called The Oregon Trail and discuss the reasons that so many pioneers went West. In small groups they will brainstorm phrases that might attract and convince settlers to move West such as "rivers filled with gold." Finally, each student will create an advertisement using persuasive writing techniques to lure settlers into joining the westward movement.

During the unit, students will participate in a variety of activities including literature circles involving fictional books about the pioneer life, and Internet research about the Oregon Trail route and its hardships. Students will write a daily diary account of their adventures on the trail using a word processor. After reviewing the web site materials, they will compose a guide to the Oregon Trail, create a spreadsheet of mileage and expense information from William Porter's diary, and use a database to enter and compare transportation information in pioneer days and modern times. Finally, students will write an essay about the personal qualities possessed by the pioneers and the impact of the Oregon Trail on United State's history.

Get ready to head down the trail to adventure!

Note: If you are using Netscape on a Macintosh, you will not be able to open the student activities that use MS Excel. Please use Internet Explorer to open these files.

Westward Ho! Lesson Plan

Student Activities:

William Porter's Oregon Trail Accounts (MS Excel)
Travel Then and Now (MS Excel)
Sample Student Activity: The Diary of Jane Holden