The Oregon Trail and Westward Expansion by
This book relays the factual details of the Oregon Trail and the United States' westward expansion in the 1800s. The narrative provides multiple accounts of the event, and readers learn details through the point of view of a pioneer, a Native American in a territory crossed by the trail, and a U.S. soldier at a government outpost. The text offers opportunities to compare and contrast various perspectives in the text while gathering and analyzing information about an historical event.
Westward Journeys by
Westward Journeys contains three stories focusing on the American westward expansion, including the Oregon Trail and the Oklahoma Land Run. In Minnow and Rose, Rose and her family are traveling with a wagon train heading west on the Oregon Trail. When she encounters Minnow, a young native girl, their meeting has life-changing results for both cultures. The Oklahoma Land Run is the topic in Pappy's Handkerchief. When Moses and his family hear of free farmland out in Oklahoma, they head west to fulfill a lifelong dream of owning their own land. After a difficult wagon trip, they arrive at the staging point for the Oklahoma Land Run. In A Book for Black-Eyed Susan, Cora's family is faced with tragedy during their journey on the Oregon Trail. When Cora learns she is to be separated from her baby sister, she creates a memento of their journey together.
Westward Expansion by
Describes the people and events of the age of Manifest Destiny and the American West. The reader's choices reveal the historical details from the perspective of a traveler on the Oregon Trail, a laborer, or a Sioux warrior.
May B. by
I've known it since last night: It's been too long to expect them to return. Something's happened. "If May is a brave, stubborn fighter, the short, free-verse lines are one-two punches in this Laura Ingalls Wilder-inspired ode to the human spirit," raved Kirkus Reviews in a starred review. May is helping out on a neighbor's Kansas prairie homestead--just until Christmas, says Pa. She wants to contribute, but it's hard to be separated from her family by 15 long, unfamiliar miles. Then the unthinkable happens: May is abandoned. Trapped in a tiny snow-covered sod house, isolated from family and neighbors, May must prepare for the oncoming winter. While fighting to survive, May's memories of her struggles with reading at school come back to haunt her. But she's determined to find her way home again. Caroline Starr Rose's fast-paced novel, written in beautiful and riveting verse, gives readers a strong new heroine to love.
American Archaeology Uncovers the Westward Movement by
This engaging series examines civilizations of the past through the artifacts they left behind.
Children of the West by
In search of land and a new life, couples created farms and ranches in the rugged frontier. The children of the West took after their rugged and individualistic parents--they grew up learning determination with their prayers. While families worried about wild animals and Indian raids, their greatest difficulty might be just growing enough food to eat and staying sheltered. Yet, there was fun to be had, from tumbling down haystacks to grasshopper races, or a tea party with corncob dolls. Large families bustled with chores and chastisement, and there was endless opportunity for mischief among siblings.The West attracted people from all over America and from all over the world. Luchetti looks at the lives of the black Exodusters, the native Spanish who created wealthy rancheros, and the Chinese and Japanese who sought greater economic opportunities than they could find in their homeland. And many new settlers encountered the Indians, whose lives were disrupted by the mandate of Manifest Destiny. Brought into lively, and often painful, proximity, their stories were made even more poignant through the lives of their children.Children of the West reveals the bygone lives of the families who populated the pioneer West, as described in their own words in letters, diaries, and journals. We come close to them through their worries and joys. The photographs draw us even closer, as we see the face of family life in the changing West.
Dandelions by
Embarking on a new life in a new place, Zoe and her family journey west to the Nebraska Territory in the 1800s. They build their soddie, but in the endless miles of prairie it can’t be seen from any distance. Zoe finds some dandelions and replants them on their soddie as a surprise for her mother--a sunny beacon for all of them on the monotonous prairie.
Locomotive by
The Caldecott Medal Winner, Sibert Honor Book, and New York Times bestseller Locomotive is a rich and detailed sensory exploration of America’s early railroads, from the creator of the “stunning” (Booklist) Moonshot. It is the summer of 1869, and trains, crews, and family are traveling together, riding America’s brand-new transcontinental railroad. These pages come alive with the details of the trip and the sounds, speed, and strength of the mighty locomotives; the work that keeps them moving; and the thrill of travel from plains to mountain to ocean. Come hear the hiss of the steam, feel the heat of the engine, watch the landscape race by. Come ride the rails, come cross the young country!
