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CURRICULUM MATERIALS

Stan Mendenhall

Overview

Main Ideas

Focus on Lewis and Clark is typically trained on the nearly three years of their expedition to the Pacific Northwest and back. However, they spent several months in or near the Illinois region preparing for their journey.

The previous article may surprise many students and some adults by the extensive and complicated preparations engaged in by Lewis and Clark. The article provides students with an opportunity to explore the Southern Illinois region, the mix of characters who inhabited the area in the early nineteenth century, and the hardships they endured.

Connection with the Curriculum

The narrative and curriculum materials may be appropriate for Illinois Learning Standards: 16.B.2d, 16.D.3a, 16.E.3a, 17.C.3a, 17.D.3a.

Teaching Level

The materials are designed for grades 7-12. The narrative is more appropriate for upper grades but can be adapted for junior high students.

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Gravesite memorial to William dark overlooks the Mississippi River at Bellefontaine Cemetery. Source: Mary C. Hartley

Materials for Each Student

Each student will need a copy of the narrative portion of the article and copies of the activity sheets. Textbooks, Internet access, and other print materials will be necessary.

Objectives for Each Student

• Recognize the Southern Illinois region as identified in the narrative.

• Identify and distinguish the use of tools and gifts carried by Lewis and Clark.

• Identify the background and contribution of various individuals associated with the expedition.

• Place the expedition within the larger context of the growth of the Southern Illinois region.

SUGGESTIONS FOR
TEACHING THE LESSON

Opening the Lesson

The lesson can be opened after the students have been made aware of the Louisiana Purchase, Jefferson's motives for its exploration, and a general introduction to the Lewis and Clark expedition. The students either individually or as a group may read the narrative portion of the article and conduct a guided discussion of the content of the narrative.

Developing the Lesson

Activity 1 is designed for the students to gain a visual idea of the locations in the narrative mentioned by the author. Students will be asked to locate and then briefly identify the various locations where Lewis and Clark made camp during their time in the Illinois region. Several of the sites in Illinois mentioned by the author are now state parks, and the Illinois State Park site provides historical information about the parks and area.

Activity 2 is designed for the students to understand the types of supplies the Lewis and Clark expedition used. Students will first identify the item and its intended use. They will then evaluate it compared to modern equipment of the same category. The second column lists items the expedition used for gifts for the various Native American tribes they may encounter. Students will indicate why they believe the Native Americans would consider each item valuable.

Activity 3 is designed for students to gain an understanding of the individuals who accompanied Lewis and Clark or who contributed to their expedition. The author identifies numerous individuals in the narrative. Students may select one or more individuals and write a brief biography of them. The bibliography at the end of the narrative will assist in researching the individuals as well as the Internet sites mentioned above.

Activity 4 is to place the Lewis and Clark expedition in the larger picture of the development of the Southern Illinois during the period from approximately 1790 to 1815. Using the maps provided and others they may encounter in their research, students will construct a time-line illustrating the growth and development of the region.

Concluding the Lesson

As a concluding activity, the instructor may ask the class to assess the impact that the Lewis and Clark expedition had on the Southern Illinois region. Students may contend that it had little impact or that it hastened development by several years. It is an open-ended discussion with no single correct conclusion.

Extending the Lesson

• Students may analyze the growth of Southern Illinois in more detail by examining population records, county and state records, etc.

• Students may create a detailed project or paper by researching a single place or time in Lewis and Clark's period in Illinois.

• Students may identify those who followed Lewis and Clark shortly after their expedition to compare their preparations with those of Lewis and Clark.

Assessing the Lesson

The individual lessons may be assessed according to the instructor's standards and expectations (rubric). The instructor may also use the Social Science Rubric located at the State Board of Education site for Social Sciences.

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Locate on the map each of the camps mentioned in the narrative portion of the article. Either on the map or on another sheet of paper provide a brief description of the camps. Use the narrative to locate the camps or one or more of the Internet sites that follow:

www.campriverdubois.com
www.nps.gov/jeff
www.iarchive.org
www.lewis-clark.org
www.lewisandclarktrail.dns2go.com
www.nps.gov/lecl
www.pbs.org/lewisandclark.

You may also want to access the Illinois State Parks web site for information.

From Olin D. Morrison, Illinois: Prairie State Historical Atlas (Athens, Ohio: Morrison, 1960).

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Arms & Accoutrements


15 Rifles
15 Powder Horns & pouches complete
15 Pairs of Bullet Moulds
15 do. of Wipers or Gun worms
15 Ball Screws 24 Pipe Tomahawks
24 large knives


Extra parts of Locks & tools for repairing arms


15 Gun Slings
500 best Flints Ammunition
200 lbs. Best rifle powder
400 lbs. Lead Clothing
15 3 pt. Blankets
15 Watch Coats with Hoods & belts
15 Woolen Overalls
15 Rifle Frocks of waterproof Cloth if possible
30 Pairs of Socks or half Stockings
20 Fatigue Frocks or hunting shirts
30 Shirts of Strong linnen
30 yds. Common flannel

Instructions:

Look at each item in the left-hand column. First, identify the item. Second, what item might replace it today? Would each item be necessary today?

Look at each item in the right-hand column. First, identify each item. Second, infer what made each item potentially valuable to Native Americans.

Indian Presents

5 lbs. White Wampum
5 lbs. White Glass Beads mostly small
20 lbs. Red Do. Do. Assorted
5 lbs. Yellow or Orange Do.Do. Assorted
30 Calico Shirts
12 Pieces of East India muslin Hanckerchiefs striped or check'd with brilliant Colours.
12 Red Silk Hanckerchiefs
144 Small cheap looking Glasses
100 Burning Glasses
4 Vials of Phosforus
288 Steels tor-striking fire
144 Small cheap Scizors
20 Pair large Do.
12 Groces Needles Assorted No. 1 to 8 Common points
12 Groces Do. Assorted with points for sewing leather
288 Common brass thimbles-part W. office
10 lbs. Sewing Thread assorted
24 Hanks Sewing Silk
8 lbs. Red lead
2 lbs. Vermillion-at War Office
288 Knives Small such as are generally used for the Indian trade, with fix'd blades & handles inlaid with brass

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Select one of the individuals mentioned by the author in the narrative. Write a brief biography of him. Include his original home, occupation, family, and other identifying information. The narrative supplies some background information, the Internet sites may offer more, and the bibliography at the conclusion of the narrative portion of the article will offer more information.

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Using the maps provided, create a timeline that illustrates the growth and development of the Southern Illinois region from approximately 1790 to 1815. The timeline should include the various settlements, counties, and territories. You may wish to consult additional maps to add more content to the timeline.

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