Lewis and Clark: On to the Great Falls

Summary
The reading selection records events of the spring of 1805 when the Lewis and Clark Expedition left their winter camp near the Mandan Indians. Activities include True and False comprehension questions.

Objectives
• Obtain basic information about the Lewis and Clark Expedition by reading the material that is included, and participating in a group discussion.

• Answer comprehension questions true or false.

• Write a subtitle for each paragraph which indicated the main idea of the section.

• Pose as a reporter to write a newspaper article and headline.

Suggested Grades
4th Grade
5th Grade
6th Grade

Excerpt
On April 7, 1805, the permanent party of the expedition left their friends of the Mandan tribe and continued on the next leg of their journey. Up until this point, the explorers had had some fairly accurate maps to help them along their way. These came from trappers and traders who had floated their goods down the river and shared information with others. The lands west of Fort Mandan, however, were almost completely uncharted. Captain Lewis had talked to a variety of Indians and mountain men, and he knew that the Missouri had a ?great falls? in it that they would have to get around. He also knew that the Rocky Mountains lay somewhere in front of him, but he had no real idea of how far away they were, or how difficult they would be to cross. The Corps of Discovery was heading out into a great unknown.

Continued...