Entry #2 The Louisiana Purchase

This is a third grade lesson introducing the Louisiana Purchase and focusing on map skills of the territory of the United States. The Louisiana Purchase was the largest land purchased in American history. At the start of the 19th century, Americans were moving to the west. More land was needed for them to live and farm. The Louisiana Territory at that time was owned by France. New Orleans was a huge French settlement. Many Americans were already living in and around New Orleans. Due to the Mississippi River, many American ships sailed back and forth on the river. The U.S. Government wanted to protect American shipping and settlements. So the third US President Thomas Jefferson sent someone to France to buy New Orleans and the surrounding area. Napoleon, who was the Emperor of France said no at first. Later however, Napoleon French leader did sell all of the Louisiana Territory. The area was more than 828,000 square miles. The United States paid a little more than twenty three million dollars for the purchase. Both sides agreed, and in 1803, the Louisiana Territory became American and the size of the country doubled. (Content)

Students will generate a map of the territory that the Louisiana Purchase included. They will develop a map key to label the land forms, states, rivers, etc. (Creative Idea)
As a class we will use the large classroom map of the United States, and discuss all the key components of a map, the state borders, directional coordinates, water and landforms located in the map key and how they are found on the map. (DOK1) I will then place a map of the Louisiana Purchase territory on the smart board. I will show students the area of the land that was purchased. (present-day Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska. It also included parts of Minnesota, most of North Dakota, nearly all of South Dakota, northeastern New Mexico, northern Texas, the portions of Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado east of the Continental Divide, and Louisiana on both sides of the Mississippi River, including the city of New Orleans.)
We will discuss the key components the Americans faced before the purchase of the land and after the territory was United States. (Standard 8.1.3.A.) (DOK2) We will discuss the government and the cost of the land, how this differs from the cost of owning land today (renting an apartment, owning a house…) as well as the changes in living the way we do today and how they did back then. (Standard 8.3.3.A., 8.3.3.B.) We will compare the large map of the United states, to the old map of the land before and directly after the purchase of the land. (Standard 8.3.3.C., 8.3.3.D.) (DOK3) Students will complete a map of the Louisiana Purchase territory (given to them with the outline of the states), and will generate a map key, label the states, territories, rivers and bodies of water, and landforms. (DOK4) Then they may use the computers to use National Geographic Education website/ Adventure Island and go on a journey across a map (interactive). This reinforces map skills. (DOK4)

Domain 1a, 1b, 1c, 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 3c, 3d

Resources: http://education.nationalgeographic.com/education/multimedia/interactive/maps-tools-adventure-island