Inventors,/Inventions, Industry, Entrepreneurs and Capitalists, Urban Development, and the Gilded Age.
Lesson Outline
Cam and I had a vibrant discussion today about the inventors who created industry in America. He enjoys learning about the entrepreneurs who built America like Rockefeller and Carnegie and the inventions that forever changed the world.
Cam worked on the homesteading part of his fictional narrative being sure to include the vocabulary terms he learned in Section 4 of Chapter 17. Then he will be heading East to learn about Industry and Urban Growth of Chapter 18.
We talked about how the expansion of the West helped build America into a superpower. We covered the Homestead Act, homesteading, the use of marketing to entice settlers to the Dakota territory/Great Plains, sod and sodbusters, granges, farm cooperatives, the importance of the railroads for bringing crops to market, the farm family as a labor force, William Jennings Bryan, and the gold standard. Cam completed a crossword puzzle which he said helped to reinforce his learning. I will create more crossword puzzles for class. He also wrote more of his narrative. He is making a good effort!
I reviewed with Cam vocabulary flashcards for Chapter 17, Unit 3: The Cattle Kingdom. Cam wrote some of his narrative that pertains to Unit 3 and read me his latest entry. It is very creative so far. I had a few suggestions for more details that he could add.
Cam and I sat in the computer lab, so he could type his narrative. As he was working, I was able to answer any questions he had. I will present historical information per the course textbook. Then, he can synthesize what he is learning into his historical narrative.
Session Minutes
45
Minutes Student Attended
45
Lesson Comments
I told Cam that we are halfway through this quarter. Therefore, he needs to work harder and produce more work if he expects a decent grade.
Cam read to me his latest entry to his narrative. It is very creative! I suggested that he weave The Homestead Act and the homesteading experience along with cattle drives and cowboys into his narrative since these historical events can work well with his latest entry. I also presented to him some very informative timelines with photographs/images from the Library of Congress. I also read a few excerpts of a narrative written by a cowboy born in Texas in 1866 who experienced many cattle drives. Then, I attempted to show a documentary by Prairie Public called Homesteading with historical narratives, diary entries, and letters; maps of the United States and Europe; historical photographs; and expert scholarly commentary about the homesteading experience of the Great Plains.
