Instructor: Ms. Vines Lesson Title: California or Bust!

Curriculum Area: Social Studies Standards Connection:

Grade Level: 5th Grade Date: April 11, 2013 Estimated Time: 30 40 minutes

AL Standard 5th Grade Social Studies: 10.) Describe political, social, and economic events between 1803 and 1860 that led to the expansion of the territory of the United States. Examples: Louisiana Purchase, Indian Removal Act, Texas-Mexican Wars, Mexican-American War, Gold Rush of 1849 Tracing expeditions of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark in the American West, including the role of Sacagawea Identifying the purpose of the Monroe Doctrine Learning Objective: Students will explain who the 49ers were, why they went to California, and what they did when they got there with no errors. Kid Friendly Objective: Today we are going to learn about the 49ers in the California Gold Rush. Evaluation of Learning Objective: At the end of the lesson, students will demonstrate their knowledge of the California Gold Rush by writing an exit slip in which they explain who the 49ers were, why they went to California, and what they did when they got there in a journal entry format. Students will be assessed by their basic knowledge of the Gold Rush based on their answers in the exit slip. Students are expected to cover all parts of the journal entry instructions. Engagement: Teacher passes the Gold Mining Pan around the class. Who would like to guess what this is used for? Wait for student answers. Those are all good guesses. This is actually a pan that is made for panning for gold. Gold miners use a pan like this to pick up sand at the bottom of a creek and then shake the sand around. That causes the gold to move to the bottom of the pan and the sand to go to the top. This pan is much like what pioneers used in the 1840s and 1850s in California. Today, we are going to learn about the 49ers in the California Gold Rush. Now, just to refresh your memory, we already know that people have been exploring the land in the western United States thanks to what expedition? Students answer the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Exactly, Lewis and Clark helped pave the way for settlers to begin moving West in search of new land and opportunities.

Design for Learning: I. Teaching: Teacher passes out note taking worksheet. I am going to show you a PowerPoint today and I would like you to fill in the correct answers on your sheet as we cover it. Teacher begins 49er PowerPoint. Today we are talking about the California Gold Rush that lasted between the years 1848 1864 Background Slide: In January 1848, James Marshall was working in a sawmill on the American and Sacramento Rivers in the town of Coloma, CA. He noticed something that was shiny on the ground, when he picked it up he realized that the small, shiny rock looked a lot like gold. He tested the gold to determine if it was real or not by smashing it with two rocks. Gold is soft and easy to mold; since there were no jewelry stores nearby James Marshall had to test the gold himself. When it hit the rock, it flattened revealing to James Marshall that he just found gold. Marshall wanted to keep the gold a secret, but soon it was discovered that there was gold in California. Turn and Talk to your neighbor about how you would feel if you were James Marshall and just found gold. Would you decide to keep it a secret? Slide 2, the 49ers: As more people learned about the gold, the more they relocated to California to get rich, these people were called 49ers. People came from the United States and foreign countries in search of gold in California. The people who came to mine for gold were called 49ers because the 49ers came to California in 1849 in search of gold. The 49ers were mostly men who left their families in hopes of building better lives for themselves when they returned to their wives and children. Many men spent all their money to get to California. With no roads, cars or airplanes, how do you think that the American 49ers made it to California? Students answer. They would have to take either a boat or a covered wagon. People who could afford it could travel around South America by ship, but most Americans went across the land by covered wagon. Both trips were miserable with disease and dangers threatening them every day. Gold miners that arrived to California late had to look for gold in streams or creeks, but the first miners that arrived were able to simply pick it up off the ground. Once the easy gold was already taken, 49ers searched in streams. They would pan for gold using pans much like the one I brought in today, but oftentimes, the men would not find the fortune they hoped for. Regardless, Californias population grew very fast, and the government could not keep up. Would you choose to move to California to search for gold? Raise your hand if you would; Raise your hand if you would not. Many

towns did not have laws, mayors or sheriffs. Can you imagine how Birmingham would be if we did not have laws or law enforcement? Students answer. Slide 3: California as a State: In 1953, California became a state with rules and a government. At this point, the Gold Rush was ending, and many people went home with very little or no gold. Some 49ers discovered that they could make money in ways other than searching for gold. They began to open stores or hotels for the miners in order to meet the towns needs. Many of these people decided to stay in California permanently. Many 49ers also chose to stay. They learned that California was great for agriculture. Many people grew grain, vegetables and citrus. Congress also began to talk about building a Transcontinental Railroad that would stretch from the East Coast to the West Coast. How do you think life would be different if gold was not found in California? II. Opportunity for Practice: Teacher passes out Letter from the Gold Rush and index cards. This is what we call a primary source. It is a real letter from 1852 from a mother that was written to her son. She is among the 49ers while her son lives somewhere in the United States (remember, California wasnt a state yet!) I want you to find one or two direct quotes from the letter that you find interesting. Look for something that tells you about the life of a 49er. Teacher pauses, giving students the opportunity to read and find quotes. In a minute I will tell you to turn and talk to your neighbor. What you are going to do is show your neighbor the quote you took from the letter and your partner will tell you what he or she thinks about it. Then you are going to tell your partner why you picked it. Each person will have a turn to share their quote with their partner. Teacher circulates the room to facilitate conversation. Would anyone like to share the quote they picked? Students answer. III. Assessment: I would like you all to take out a sheet of paper now. Pretend you are a 49er. Write a diary entry like the one we just looked at and explain who the 49ers were, why you went to California, and what you did when they got there. We mentioned many things that a 49er did once he or she got to California. This is your chance to show me what you ve learned today. IV. Closure: What did we learn about today? What kind of struggles did the 49ers face? Did they all get rich? Did the gold in California encourage or discourage Westward Expansion? Knowing what you know about the Gold Rush, would you have moved to California to get gold? Why?

Differentiation Strategies: H Students will research primary documents from the California Gold Rush. L Students will complete a timeline of the California Gold Rush. Materials and Resources: Gold Mining Pan Gold Rush PowerPoint Gold Rush Note Taking Guide Primary Source from http://www.eduplace.com/kids/socsci/ca/books/bkd/sources/bkd_template.jsp?name=balloum 2&state=ca Index Cards Paper Pencils Promethean Board http://www.glittering.com/letters/ http://www.learningpt.org/literacy/adolescent/strategies/lastword.php http://www.calgoldrush.com/ http://www.museumca.org/goldrush/fever17.html http://ceres.ca.gov/ceres/calweb/geology/goldrush.html

Reflection:

Primary Source October, 30, 1852 My Dear Selden: . . . Well I suppose you would like to know what I am doing in this gold region. Well I will try to tell you what my work is here in this muddy Place. All the kitchen that I have is four posts stuck down into the ground and covered over the top with factory cloth no floor but the ground . . . . . . . Well sometimes I am washing and Ironing sometimes I am making mince pie and Apple pie and squash pies . . . . Sometimes I am feeding my chickens and then again I am scareing the Hogs out of my kitchen and Driving the mules out of my Dining room. You can see by the description of that I have given you of my kitchen that anything can walk into the kitchen that choeses to walk in and there being no door to shut from the kitchen into the Dining room you see that anything can walk into the kitchen and then from kitchen into the Dining room so you see the Hogs and mules can walk in any time day or night if they choose to do so . . . . Sometimes I am taking care of Babies and nursing at the rate of Fifty Dollars a week but I would not advise any Lady to come out here and suffer the toil and fatigue that I have suffered for the sake of a little gold neither do I advise any one to come . . . . . . . There I hear the Hogs in my kitchen turning the Pots and kettles upside down so I must drop my pen and run and drive them out. So you [see] this is the way that I have to write jump up every five minutes for somthing and then again I washed out about a Dollars worth of gold dust the fourth of July in the cradle so you see that I am doing a little mining in this gold region but I think it harder to rock the cradle to wash out gold than it is to rock the cradle for the Babies in the States . . . . . . . I must close soon for I am so tired and almost sick. Oh my Dear Selden I am so Home sick . . . . It seems as if my heart would break when I realise how far I am from my Dear Loved ones. This from your affectionate mother, Mary B. Ballou Excerpted from an 1852 letter by Mary B. Ballou published in Early American Women: a documentary history, 16001900. Nancy Woloch, ed. Belmont, California: Wadsworth, Inc., 1992.

Name: __________________________________________
Main Idea:

Note Taking Guide

Today we are talking about the __________________________________________________________ that lasted between the years ____________--_____________. People: The ________________________________ came to California in 1849 in search of gold. Some people found other ways to make a fortune besides gold they opened______________________________, or __________________________________. Places: People came from the ______________________________________ and _____________________________________ in search of gold in _________________________________________. Things: Gold miners that arrived late would look for gold in ___________________________ and ____________________________, but the first miners picked the gold up from the _________________________________, oftentimes, the men that arrived late would not find the _____________________________they hoped for.

Name: ____Teacher Key_________________________

Main Idea:

Note Taking Guide

Today we are talking about the __California Gold Rush________________________________________ that lasted between the years __1848______--__1864______. People: The ___49ers___________ came to California in 1849 in search of gold. Some people found other ways to make a fortune besides gold they opened ___hotels__________________, or ____Stores_________________. Places: People came from the ___United States__________________ and _____Foreign Countries_____________ in search of gold in ____California___________________. Things: Gold miners that arrived late would look for gold in ___creeks________ and ____streams____________, but the first miners picked the gold up from the ____ground_________, oftentimes, the men that arrived late would not find the ___fortune_________ they hoped for.