Introduction

Heading West


Did you know that without the Oregon Trail, most of the American west, including states like Oregon, California, Nevada, Idaho, Utah, and Washington would today be part of Canada or Mexico? Around 1843, people began to head West, due to overpopulated land in the northeastern coast of the nation. They looked to the West for better living space and also for new opportunities and exploration. The Oregon Trail was the best land route for travel to the western United States. It was the only practical way for settlers in wagons with their tools, livestock, and supplies to cross the mountains.

The journey on the Oregon Trail usually began at Independence, Missouri near the Missouri River. During a period of about six months, families traveled through prairies, deserts, and across mountains to the Pacific Northwest. The journey was a difficult test of strength and endurance.

Are you ready to ‘pull-up-stakes' and head West with your ‘family’ for an exciting, yet dangerous journey on the Oregon Trail? Using the websites provided, you will gather information about the experiences of pioneers traveling on the Oregon Trail. Think about how they traveled, sites they saw, supplies they took and used, hardships they endured, etc.

After completing the two web site assignments, you will complete a project, putting yourself in the shoes of a pioneer on the Oregon Trail. You are going to write a letter to your relatives once you make it to Oregon, telling them about your experience on the Trail. As you complete the following assignments, think about what you might tell your family members.

All About the Oregon Trail

Web site #1



The first web site you will visit is called "All About the Oregon Trail."

Through exploring this site, you will gain a better understanding of what the journey on the Oregon Trail was like for pioneers. Follow each of the steps below. Write your answers to the bold questions in your notes.

1. Click on the above link to get to the site. This is the Menu site.

2. Click on "Introduction."
Read this page. Think about the importance of the Oregon Trail. Write down your thoughts in your notes.
Question: What are two reasons why people traveled West?

3. Go back to the Menu site. Click on "Jumping Off."
Read this page. Listen to historian Larry Jones talk about congestion.
Question: How could a person prepare for their journey on the Trail? What time of year was the best to leave? Why was this a good time?


4. Go back to the Menu site. Click on "The Route West."
Read this page. Click on the link "Historic Sites Along the Trail."
Pick one historic site from three different states. Describe the three sites. Was it a landmark? Was it a body of water one had to cross?

5. Go back to the Menu site. Click on "Power."
Read this page. Listen to historian William Hill talk about oxen.
Question: What animal was the best to pull the wagons? Why?


6. Go back to the Menu site. Click on "Hardships."
Read this page. Listen to historian Merrill Mattes talk about walking on the trail.
Question: Think about the hardships faced and some you will report back to your family. What encouraging advice will you give them?

7. Go back to the Menu site. Click on "Camping."
Read this page. Think about the daily schedule while traveling on the Trail.
Question: What would you do to keep your spirits up during the long days and uncomfortable conditions?

8. Go back to the Menu site. Click on "Buffalo."
Read this page.
Question: What is one advantage and one disadvantage of encountering buffalo on the Trail?

9. Go back to the Menu site. Click on "Native Americans."
Read this page. Listen to historian Charles Martin Sr. talk about relationships with Native Americans.
Question: What is an encounter you may have with a Native American along the way? Is it a good encounter or a bad encounter?


10. Go back to the Menu site. Click on "Conclusions."
Listen to historian Merrill Mattes talk about the Oregon Trail.
Question: Why do you think the Oregon Trail is one of the 10 most important events in American history?

Provisions for the Trail

Web Site #2

The second web site you will visit is called "Provisions for the Trail."

Through visiting this web site you will gain a better understanding of what an economic burden traveling the Oregon Trail was. You will also discover what kinds of supplies pioneers needed during the journey. Can you imagine towing all of those supplies for miles and miles? Write your responses to the following bold questions in your notes.


1. Click on the above link to get to the site.

2. Read this page.

3. Look at the list under "Draft Animals." How much would it cost to buy 6 oxen, 2 cattle, 1 pack horse, 1 horse blanket, and 1 pack saddle?

4. Look at the list under "Wagons." How much would it cost to buy 1 covered wagon and one cloth cover?


Click here to learn more about the covered wagon. Here you will get an idea of the function of the wagon and how all of the supplies fit on it.

5. Go back to the "Provisions of the Trail" site. Look at the list under "Sundries and Camp Equipment." Pick 6 things you may need and describe what you will use them for. How much is the total cost?

6. You will need at least one weapon on the Trail. Pick one weapon and describe what you may use it for. How much does it cost?

7. Look at the list under "food." The amount of food recommended for each adult was : 150 lbs. of flour, 20 lbs. of corn meal, 50 lbs. of bacon, 40 lbs, of sugar, 10 lbs. of coffee, 15 lbs. of dried fruit, 5 lbs. of salt, half a pound of saleratus (baking soda), 2 lbs. of tea, 5 lbs. of rice, and 15 lbs. of beans. Using the price list on the web site, calculate the cost of this amount of food for two adults.

8. Add up the total cost of the animals, wagon, equipment, weapon, and food that you calculated above. You may use a calculator.


Go to this web site, "The Inflation Calculator," to figure out how much it would cost to travel on the Oregon Trail today.

In the first box, enter the amount of money you calculated in step #9 above. In the second box, enter 1850. This is around the year you would have purchased supplies for the Oregon Trail. In the third box, enter 2005. Click "submit." Record the amount of money it would cost today in your notes.

How expensive was it to go on the Oregon Trail? Was it affordable? Why do you think families spent the money to go? What are some things you will tell your family about gathering supplies for the trip?

Your Task

Now that you have a better understanding of what it was like to travel on the Oregon Trail, you are ready to become a pioneer yourself. Imagine yourself back in the mid 1800s, having just arrived in beautiful Oregon Territory. You and your family have just completed six long months of traveling 2,000 miles.

Using the information you now know about the trip on the Oregon Trail, write a letter to your relatives back in Independence, Missouri, encouraging them to make the journey West. Imagine what you and your family may be feeling now that you are "home." Imagine the mixed emotions you may be feeling...excitement about a new start, and distress over the long and dangerous journey you just completed.

Guidelines for the letter:

• Your letter must be a minimum of 2 pages (you may write more) typed and double spaced. You should have correct spelling.
  
• Choose what relatives you will be writing to (siblings, parents, aunts, uncles, etc.).
  
• Because you are writing to family members, your letter should be informal. Include emotion--how did you feel during the trip? Include a greeting and a closing.
• Incorporate why your family should come using what you learned in the web site assignments. Give them advice about traveling on the Trail. What happened that was good, what happened that was bad?
• Be creative! Did you have children traveling with you? What are their names? What happened to you and your family on the Trail? How do you feel now that you are "home"? Place yourself in the shoes of a pioneer and demonstrate that you completed the web site assignments and that you understand the Oregon Trail.
  
• Your letter must include: How you traveled (talk about your wagon and oxen), sites you saw, supplies you took and used, hardships you endured and how you overcame them.

Remember to have fun with this--use your imagination!

Teacher's Guide

1. Intended Audience: This WebQuest is designed for fifth grade students. Students at this age are able to successfully read the different web sites. They have the ability to gather information, and use that new information to create a project that demonstrates their knowledge.

2. Learning Goals:

• Students will develop a deeper understanding of the Oregon Trail and what people experienced while traveling on it.
  
• Students will understand what an economic burden traveling the Oregon Trail was.
  
• The student will understand why the Oregon Trail was a significant event in American history.
• Students will learn how to interpret information they have gathered, creating their own new ideas, in order to complete a task.
• Students will communicate through writing what they have learned and understood about the Oregon Trail.

3. Skills Students Need: Before beginning the Quest, students need to know how to navigate on the Internet. They also need to know what an emigrant is because this word appears many times on the web sites. Students also need to know how to type well enough to write their letter using the computer.

4. Computer Time Needed: Students will be in the computer lab one hour, twice a week, for three weeks. So, they will have six hours total to complete the assignment. There will be six computer lab sessions, each being one hour.

• Session One: Students will read the introduction and start working on Web Site #1. They should get up to step #4.
• Session Two: Students should get through step #8.
• Session Three: Students should finish Web Site #1 and should get through step #3 on Web Site #2.
• Session Four: Students should keep working on Web Site #2
• Session Five: Students should finish Web Site #2
• Session Six: Students should read the project task and begin brainstorming ideas for their letter. They will have time at home to write the letter.

5. Grading Guidelines: To grade the letters, check to see if students followed the guidelines presented in the "Your Task" portion of this WebQuest. Also, check to see if the learning goals listed above have been met.

Great Work: The student has completed a two (or more) page letter with correct spelling. Through this letter, the student has creatively demonstrated what he/she has learned from completing this WebQuest assignment. The student has developed his/her own new ideas from studying the Oregon Trail.

Work That Is OK: The student has completed a two (or more) page letter with few spelling mistakes. The student demonstrates what he/she has learned by including exactly what they found on the web sites, using little creativity.

Not So Great Work: The student has completed a less than two page letter with many spelling mistakes. The student shows that he/she has not completed the WebQuest assignment by including information in their letter that was not on the web sites. Little to no creativity was used. The student has demonstrated that he/she did not understand how to gather and interpret information about the Oregon Trail.