In this lesson plan, students will use a combination of maps, letters, and original railroad company documents to examine and identify the impact of railroads on life in Texas. Students will use their new knowledge to plan a 250 mile long trip by train, working in groups to develop a story to describe the journey. The groups will choose both a beginning point and a final destination, and attempt to anticipate any problems they might face during their expedition.
Created by Rhonda Williams , 2004
The student will apply absolute and relative chronology through the sequencing of, and events in, the development of the railroad system in Texas. TEKS §113.23. Social Studies, Grade 7. (b) (1)(B)
The student will identify the effects of the growth of the railroads on significant individuals, events, and issues from Reconstruction through the beginning of the 20th century. TEKS §113.23. Social Studies, Grade 7. (b) (6)(A)
The student will use a thematic map representing the railroads in Eastern Texas during the late 19th century to collect, analyze, and interpret data. TEKS §113.23. Social Studies, Grade 7. (b) (8)(A,B)
The student will trace the development of the railroad in Texas as a major industry that contributed to the urbanization of Texas. TEKS§113.23.Social Studies, Grade7. (b) (12)(B)
The student will analyze the effects of scientific discoveries and technological innovations, such as the railroad, on the development of Texas. TEKS §113.23. Social Studies, Grade 7. (b) (20)(C)
The student will analyze how scientific discoveries and technological innovations, such as the railroad system, have resulted in interdependence between Texas and the United States. TEKS §113.23. Social Studies, Grade 7. (b) (20)(E)
The student will differentiate between, locate, and use primary and secondary sources, such as biographies from the Handbook of Texas, and written documents, such as contemporary letters, to acquire information about the growth of the railroad system in Texas in the last half of the 19th century. TEKS §113.23. Social Studies, Grade 7. (b)(21)(A)
The student will analyze information from these sources by sequencing, categorizing, identifying cause-and-effect relationships, comparing, contrasting, finding the main idea, summarizing, making generalizations, and drawing inferences and conclusions. TEKS §113.23. Social Studies, Grade 7. (b)(21)(B)
The student will identify points of view from the historical context surrounding an event and the frame of reference that influenced the authors, using biographies, textbook information, and his own words from primary documents. TEKS §113.23. Social Studies, Grade 7. (b)(21)(D)
The student will create written material based on research and experiences, incorporating main and supporting ideas, using social studies terminology correctly, and using standard grammar, spelling, sentence structure, and punctuation. TEKS §113.23. Social Studies, Grade 7. (b)(22)(A,D)
Teaching Activity: Read information about railroads from the textbook together, or read selected passages from “Railroads” in The Handbook of Texas.
Focus Activity: Place the following assignment on the board/a transparency/or a slide.
Brainstorm and create a list of available means of transportation in Texas during the Civil War. Record this list in your journal. To each item on the list, add one problem that each type of transportation had.
Allow students 5-10 minutes to complete their lists and then discuss to give them a chance to compare. Ask if the growth of the railroad system would solve any of the problems that existed with transportation in Texas.
Review with students the tremendous growth in the mileage of rail lines between 1872 and 1900. Show students the railroad map, “The Eastern Half of Texas.” Examine the different parts of the map in “Zoom” with the students, and have students find the answers to the questions on the Map Analysis Sheet and share them with the class.
Read textbook information on the growth of the railroads in Texas. Discuss the lack of railroad connections between Texas and to the rest of the United States.
Show students the facsimile copy of Patton's letter of February 7, 1872. Pass out Document Analysis Sheet # 1 - Railroads. Read the transcript together. Ask students what they can infer about the inclusion of speculation about the building of a railroad line in a personal letter. Have students complete the analysis sheet. Check answers and discuss.
Pass out Document Analysis Sheet # 2 - Railroads. Read “The Sabine and East Texas Railway Company Announcement” with students. Have the students complete the analysis sheet. Check answers and discuss.
Divide the class into groups of 4, distribute a copy of the “Map of Eastern Texas,” and make the following assignment.
Your group is going to make a trip by train. Brainstorm with your group to develop a story to explain the journey [transporting cattle, going to visit grandparents, moving west, etc.] and to choose a beginning point and a final destination. This trip must be at least 250 miles long. Write this information down on a separate piece of paper labeled “Trip Plan.”
Using your group's copy of the map, trace your journey on the map using a colored map pencil.
Add answers to the following questions to your “Trip Plan:”
Finally, on your “Trip Plan,” describe any problems that you believe your group might have making this journey.
