Focus: This Grade 1 Core Knowledge History and Geography unit focuses on the determination of some famous Americans to explore the West when our country was young. Students discover that as a boy, Daniel Boone learned about living in the forests from the Lenape Native Americans. This knowledge later helped him lead a group of men to clear the Wilderness Road, allowing settlers to travel through the Appalachian Mountains into Kentucky. They then learn about the Louisiana Purchase, Thomas Jefferson’s successful effort to buy a vast territory from French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. Students meet Meriwether Lewis, army leader and outdoorsman, and William Clark, an explorer who was also an artist, who Jefferson chose to journey through this vast territory all the way to the Pacific Ocean. Students travel with Lewis and Clark and the group of explorers they led, the Corps of Discovery, and discover the indispensable help the Corps had from Native Americans along the way. Finally, students take a closer look at Sacagawea, the brave and resourceful Shoshone woman without whom Lewis and Clark would not have made it to the Pacific.
Number of Lessons: 4
Additional Search Terms: Daniel Boone • Appalachian Mountains • Wilderness Road • Native Americans • Lenape • Louisiana Purchase • Mississippi River • flatboat • New Orleans • Thomas Jefferson • Napoleon Bonaparte • Meriwether Lewis • William Clark • Corps of Discovery • Missouri River • Mandan • Sacagawea • Charbonneau • Jean Baptiste • Pacific Ocean • Shoshone • Rocky Mountains • nonfiction • informational text • Native Americans
CKHG Grade Levels: CKHG units are correlated to topics at the grade levels specified in the Core Knowledge Sequence, which allows students in schools following the Sequence to build knowledge grade by grade. In other settings, individual CKHG units may be used as supplemental resources. In general, the content and presentation in the CKHG units for Grades K-2 are appropriate for students in the lower elementary grades. The Exploring the West Student Book (available in English and Spanish) is intended to be read aloud by the teacher as the students look at images on each page.
We have intentionally left the pacing and timing needed to teach the content presented in the Teacher Guide and Student Book very flexible. Teachers can choose how much they read aloud and discuss in a single instructional period, as well as how often each week they use the CKHG materials.
