Russell, Andrew J. Trestle work—Promontory Point, Salt Lake Valley. 1869. Photograph. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division. https://www.loc.gov/item/2003668258/.
Students will first use this resource as part of their writer’s notebook prompt, which is meant to act as an anticipatory exercise to get them thinking about the themes of the lesson. As the lesson progresses, the teacher will use the resource to highlight the creation of the transcontinental railroad. Students will be expected to use their knowledge of imported goods that they use, both domestic and foreign, as a way of considering the importance of trade and transportation.
The transcontinental railroad was one of the most ambitious and important projects in the history of the United States of America, allowing trade to span across the United States, which was particularly difficult across the Rocky Mountain region. The ceremonial “last spike” was driven at Promontory Point, Utah, signifying the completion of the project.
Source: https://www.loc.gov/ghe/cascade/index.html?appid=531a16f45bec4008bc19de2e805be362
- What are some of the safety issues you notice about this construction?
- What about the design of this project is different from how we build bridges in the modern day?
- What challenges can you see in the surrounding geography that would make this construction more difficult?
ELA Standard
Range of Writing 1. Develop flexibility in writing by routinely engaging in the production of shorter and longer pieces for a range of tasks, purposes, and audiences. This could include, among others, summaries, reflections, descriptions, critiques, letters, and poetry, etc.
Social Studies Standard
6-12.USH1.1.4.2. Explain how the development of various modes of transportation increased economic prosperity and promoted national unity.
Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).
- Writer’s Notebooks: The teacher should post the resource on the board or print it for students to view individually. Students should answer one or all of the following questions during their freewriting notebook time:
- Why is transcontinental trade important for the United States?
- Which kind of trade is more important: domestic or foreign?
- Is it okay for a country to risk the loss of individual life in pursuit of a common good? If so, how many lives is it okay to lose?
- How much would you have to get paid to work on this railroad?
- Students should be given time to share their writing with the whole class or with a partner/group.
- Parking Lot: Students should engage in a “parking lot” anticipation to prepare them for their learning. The goal of this activity is to get students to think about where their goods and services come from and how much they rely upon transportation to obtain them.
- The teacher should post five categories of foods around the classroom, ideally on poster paper.
- Fruits and Vegetables
- Candy
- Canned Foods
- Snack Items
- Meats
- Students should be given five sticky notes, one for each food category. For each category, students should write and post their favorite using their sticky notes..
- The teacher should post five categories of foods around the classroom, ideally on poster paper.
- Transportation Mini-Lesson: The goal of this mini-lesson is to get students thinking about the importance of transportation, and some of the different factors surrounding the transcontinental railroad.
- Economic Importance: Explain to students the importance of transportation for the economy, specifically citing food. Using this USDA resource, the teacher can choose some of students’ favorite foods and note how lack of transportation would make it impossible to get them.
- Pros and Cons of the Railroad: This PBS resource has many points the teacher can use in their instruction.
- Chinese Involvement: This National Parks resource can be used to explain the essential role that Chinese Americans served in creating the railroad.
- Essay: Students should write an essay in response to the following prompt: “The last spike at Promontory Point, Utah, signified the end of the transcontinental railroad project. The impact of the railroad cannot be overstated, but it did not come without its costs. Do you think that the danger associated with transportation is worth it? Explain your reasoning.”
Gottscho-Schleisner, Inc. World's Fair, railroad pageant. Promontory Point, driving the golden spike. 1939. Photograph. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division. https://www.loc.gov/item/2018735575/.