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U.S. Expansion

Years: 1790-1840

Driving Questions

In the early 19th century, hundreds of thousands of men, women, and children left their homes and went to live somewhere else.

Overview

This 3-day mini-unit will provide students with an introduction to using Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and the potential and limitations of GIS. Students will study census data over five decades to answer questions about Westward Expansion, and will gain an understanding of the difference between questions that can be answered with GIS, and those that can be answered by studying historical documents. This mini-unit serves as an introduction to GIS, as well as an introduction to a larger unit on US Westward Expansion.

Objectives

Students will...

  • Practice manipulating all of the functions and layers used in the GIS software for a given US census data map (1790)
  • Compare and contrast total population information for cities, counties, and states using census data maps from 1790-1840, and translate numeric information into properly-constructed, descriptive sentences
  • Gather evidence from primary and secondary source documents to build general conclusions about causes and effects of Westward Expansion in the early 1800s

Lessons: U.S. Expansion

Lesson 1 (Computer Lab)

  • Anticipatory Image: Map discussion & intro to Westward Expansion
  • GIS Tutorial: accessing the site, reading the map, reading the legend, zoom in, zoom out, full screen, turning on and off layers, reading the search query
  • Vocabulary: Push and pull factors, quantitative data
  • Handout 1: Using the GIS Map
  • HOMEWORK: Finish Handout 1

Lesson 2 (Computer Lab)

  • Anticipatory Set: Visual differences in the map as it is changed from one census to the next
  • Handout 2: Observing Changes in the GIS Map
  • Handout 3: Calculating Population Change Over Time
  • Handout 4: Geographic Factors in US Expansion
  • HOMEWORK: Read assigned document and be prepared to discuss it for the next class session

Lesson 3 (Computer Lab)

  • Handout 5: What is GIS good for?
  • Vocabulary: qualitative data
  • Jigsaw reading and group assessment in Handout 6: Answering Historical Inquiry Questions with Documents
  • Review Discussion
  • HOMEWORK: Final assessment (writing assignment)

ASSESSMENT

  • Evaluation of written responses to Handout 6 group assessment prompts
  • Evaluation of written responses to Final Assessment

    Document 1

    Letter from Thomas Jefferson to Meriwether Louis regarding the exploration of the Western Territories

    http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/jefferson/168.html

    Document 2

    Andrew Jackson's Message to Congress on Indian Removal

    http://www.ourdocuments.gov/print_friendly.php?page=transcript&doc=25&title=Transcript+of+President+Andrew+Jackson%27s+Message+to+Congress+%27On+Indian+Removal%27+%281830%29

    Document 3

    John O'Sullivan's description of manifest destiny

    http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/osulliva.htm

    Document 4

    Letter from surveyor Isaac Hite describing his business interests in the West.

    http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/faw:@field(DOCID+icufawcmf0003)
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