Disciplinary Unit

Westward Expansion of the United States, mid 1800s

Anchor Texts
Title

Manifest Destiny: Nobel Ideal or Excuse for Imperialist Expansion

Author/Illustrator/Sour
ce

http://www.ndhs.org/s/1012/images/editor_documents/library/issues_and_controversies_in_a
merican_history_-_manifest_destiny.pdf

Summary

This lengthy article will be selectively used to define how Manifest Destiny originated and
the case for and against it. This text will serve as a good reference for writing prompts in
lesson one and five.

Quantitative: Flesh
Reading Ease & FleshKincaid Grade Level
Qualitative:
Text Structure,
Language Features,
Meaning/Purpose,
Knowledge Demands

33.7 & 13.7

Reader/Task:

Text structure Slightly complex Text is well-organized to build on the issues sequentially
and is supported with varying graphics to support learning
Language features- Complex - This selection requires prior knowledge and teacher
assistance to connect historical dots. Vocabulary can be discipline-specific, which will
require further class conversations and work.
Meaning/Purpose Moderately complex The theme and arguments are well-defended with
supporting evidence. A graphic organizer would be used to help collect all key information
and claims
Knowledge demands Complex This secondary source is rich in information but since it
relies on prior knowledge and historical comprehension, then it should not be assigned to
independent readers.
Focal Themes: This text offers excellent points to illustrate the rise of Manifest Destiny in US

Focal Themes,
Challenges, Supports

and the perspectives of its critics and supporters. It is definitely challenging for 8th graders,
but it will introduce a number of key historical debates and talking points for future lessons.
Challenges: This text is difficult to comprehend based on content-specific vocabulary alone
and the sheer breadth of historical topics covered. Therefore, the text will be chunked in
collaborative groups and discussed in whole-group.
Supports: The maps, pictures, captions, and quotations all help the comprehension of the
text

Title

Oregon Trail Diaries

Author/Illustrator/Sour
ce

http://www.henrystrobel.com/saintboniface/oregon-trail-diary.pdf

Summary

Chronicle and compare two different accounts detailing the hardships of life on the
Oregon Trail. This text permits students to put themselves in these first-person
narratives and react to and reflect on events that are happening.

Quantitative: Flesh
Reading Ease & FleshKincaid Grade Level
Qualitative:
Text Structure,
Language Features,
Meaning/Purpose,
Knowledge Demands

77.8 & 4.6 (Strobel)

57.4 & 11.6 (Brown)

http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentationsandactivities/presentations/timeline/expref/oregtral/
jhbrown.html

Text structure: Complex (Brown text) with longer sentences and a more daunting
narrative form and Slightly complex (Strobel) due to its frequent bread crumbs of
daily entries that require readers to fill-in-blanks.
Language Features: Complex (Brown text) with new vocabulary and unfamiliar
names. Not complex (Strobel) with simple sentences and vocabulary.
Meaning/Purpose Moderately complex On occasion, the text introduces obsolete
terms or unique spellings, but the meaning and mood are easily determined by

Reader/Task:
Focal Themes,
Challenges, Supports

readers
Knowledge Demands Slightly complex The texts are chronological and paint a
clear picture day-after-day of life on the Oregon Trail.
Focal themes: These texts offer great first-person chronology of historical events on
the Oregon Trail. Readers will update learning logs in which they will react and
respond to events as they unfold in the accounts.
Challenges: The Brown text might require more teacher assistance to dissect
meaning. Both texts do not include much in the way of graphic aids or other
supports.
Supports: Readers would benefit from comparing both texts ideally leveraging Strobel
for added context to comprehend the Brown text.

Title

Patrick Breen Diary

Author/Illustrator/Sour
ce

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/primary-resources/donner-diarypatrick-breen/

Summary

Patrick Breen penned the most famous dairy of the Donner Party expedition. This
tragic story can be charted on a timeline and like the Oregon Trail diaries include
learning logs (reactions and reflections)

Quantitative: Flesh
Reading Ease & FleshKincaid Grade Level
Qualitative:
Text Structure,
Language Features,

75.5 & 8.9

Text structure: Moderately complex the diary entries are short and concise.
Language Features: Moderately complex spelling of certain words may pose
problems for readers

Meaning/Purpose,
Knowledge Demands

Reader/Task:
Focal Themes,
Challenges, Supports

Meaning/purpose: Moderately complex This topic is a sensitive issue detailing

famine, tragedy, and death. Readers will be able to interpret the overall meaning of
the collection of entries because the reporting is sequential and chronological
Knowledge Demands: Moderately complex Readers need to have an understanding
of geography of these events and the names of other members of expedition who are
frequently included in entries.
Focal themes: This text is wonderfully engaging because it provides opportunities for
readers to react to and predict the course of events. Other research in class will be
done to compare other accounts, but this one is so central to the history.
Challenges: Readers may not grasp the geographic influences at play or the role and
arc of other individuals included in diary entries. Key is also to help readers
understand the emotion involved in this narrative.
Supports: Read the entries in chronological order and use document analysis sheet to
react to and discuss collection of entries every month

Title

Gold Rush primary sources

Author/Illustrator/Sour
ce

http://www.huntington.org/Education/GoldRush/Lessons/mid.lesson.1.pdf

Summary

Three brief artifacts that are part of a Document-Based Question series to have
primary sources illustrate the varying reactions to the Gold Rush in California. John
Sutters account is the official proclamation and invitation of the Gold Rush. Walter
Colton and William Reynolds detail the impact of the Gold Rush on the people,
economy, and life in California.

Quantitative: Flesh

78.5 & 3.9

Reading Ease & FleshKincaid Grade Level

Qualitative:
Text Structure,
Language Features,
Meaning/Purpose,
Knowledge Demands

Reader/Task:
Focal Themes,
Challenges, Supports

Text structure Slightly complex The excerpts are all brief and include
accompanying titles, captions, and questions that provide further context.
Language features Moderately complex The vocabulary is familiar, but the
sentence structure is unusual for modern readers to navigate different spelling and
grammar rules.
Meaning/purpose Slightly complex The readability statistic is low for the grade
level, but these entries will allow them to have superior comprehension to evaluate
additional non-written primary sources too
Knowledge Demands Limited prior knowledge of details is needed since the
concepts of western expansion have been introduced in prior lessons
Focal themes: To give readers a sense of the significant change afoot in California due
to the Gold Rush. The primary sources give three fresh perspectives of different
Californians who recap and predict events.
Challenges: There are few challenges that exist in these texts in isolation. Readers
will be only challenged to connect dots from these various accounts to determine
trends and effects in the Gold Rush.
Supports: Will have a pre-reading activity that prepares readers for how the discovery
of gold might have positive and negative effects.

Title

Chinese Immigrants and the Gold Rush

Native Americans in the Gold Rush

Author/Illustrator/Sour
ce

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/goldrush/peopleevents/p_chinese.html
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/goldrush/sfeature/natives_01.html

Summary

Crucial investigation of primary and secondary sources highlighting negative impact

of Gold Rush in California. Non-white groups were marginalized during the boom of

gold mining and rise of California. Multiple perspectives in each ethnic group are
shared to form a collage of testimonials.
Quantitative: Flesh
Reading Ease & FleshKincaid Grade Level
Qualitative:
Text Structure,
Language Features,
Meaning/Purpose,
Knowledge Demands

Reader/Task:
Focal Themes,
Challenges, Supports

50.0 & 11.2 (Chinese)

55.8 & 10.5 (Natives)
Text Structure: Very complex Both texts have different challenges. The Chinese text
is choppy and abrupt with excerpts, which makes it hard to piece together. The
Natives text jumps back and forth to different viewpoints/voices.
Language Features: Moderately complex The texts have basic vocabulary with only
unfamiliar geographic places and persons mentioned that might pose a few problems
Meaning/Purpose: Very complex - This is a critical pairing of texts to include diverse
viewpoints/voices in the U.S. History classroom. It is a mature topic to detail the
suffering that occurred to these disadvantaged groups due to the Gold Rush.
Knowledge Demands Very complex Readers must have prior knowledge of
westward expansion and then add in these new cultural layers expressed from the
Chinese and Native perspectives.
Focal themes These texts provide rich material for an assessment activity to create
a poster that includes evidence of discrimination during the Gold Rush.
Challenges Readers may have difficulty understanding specific geographic and
cultural elements expressed and balancing multiple viewpoints.
Supports Have a document analysis worksheet that allows readers to record and
react to key evidence that can be used in the poster and written activity.