In 2003, the United States will celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Louisiana Purchase. This interdisciplinary workshop will help you bring this historical event to life for your students. The workshop will present a variety of teaching strategies and activities that address social studies, communication and process skills.

There are eight lessons that include from geography, history, economics, mapping:

Lesson 1
Students learn that explorers respond to incentives, such as the promise of wealth and fame or the hope of excitement and adventure. They participate in activities that help them recognize that it takes courage to explore a new place or idea and to help them see that the idea of "the west" means something different today than it did in the late 1700s.

Lesson 2
Students participate in an activity that helps them understand how important a map can be. Students read about Thomas Jefferson, Meriwether Lewis, and the Louisiana Territory and begin a Louisiana Territory time line.

Lesson 3
Students participate in an activity designed to show that access to the Port of New Orleans affected Americans' ability to trade. They participate in a play that explains some of the history of the Louisiana Purchase and discover that President Jefferson knew the strategic importance of controlling the Mississippi River and the Port of New Orleans.

Lesson 4
Students engage in a brief trading activity to help them understand why Lewis took items to trade on the expedition. Then, they participate in a group activity to learn about the crew and supplies that Lewis took on the expedition as well as the training he received prior to the expedition.

Lesson 5
Students look at maps marking the Louisiana Territory and the trail that the expedition took. They meet various groups of Native Americans that the expedition met and learn about the keelboat that the expedition took upriver. They participate in a trade activity to help them understand the benefits of trade.

Lesson 6
Students make an uninformed choice. They read about an important choice that Lewis and Clark had to make. They learn about the importance of having accurate information when they make choices.

Lesson 7
Students compare the expedition's accomplishments to the three broad goals that President Jefferson set for the expedition. They learn that the expedition was considered a success even though all goals were not fully met.

Lesson 8
Students learn about Gross Domestic Product (GDP). They look at the GDP for the United States in 2000 and the GDP in 2000 for 13 states that were part of the Louisiana Territory. Students learn about the circular flow of the economy and work in groups to research additional information about the 13 states.

NO BACKGROUND IN ECONOMICS IS NEEDED. All curriculum materials provided.