INQUIRY 3: EXPLORATION

Exploration Preparation

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Newspapers to Use: All.
Note: This Inquiry is a set-up for Inquiry 4. The focus areas are geography and math. Students work in teams of two or three.

Essential Questions:
What is exploration, and what forms do exploring expeditions take?
What are exploring expeditions intended to accomplish and why?
As present-day explorations go in search of life on other planets, how is "life form" defined and how is this definition different or similar to ideas of life held by people in the past?

Vocabulary:
Exploration refers to the act of traveling to and documenting for others a particular place. Some of the most famous exploring expeditions were scientific in nature. The Lewis & Clark Expedition (1804-1806) and the American Exploring Expedition (1838-1841) commanded by Charles Wilkes are two examples. These exploring expeditions documented the landscape, plant and animal life, people, and climates of the areas they traveled to. Even now, as humans begin to examine other places in the universe, we have to build upon the knowledge and insights gained (both immediate and over time) through previous exploration.

Inquiry Set-up for Students:
You are on an exploration team that is representing Washington State during a past decade. Time assignments have been issued by the Central Exploration Office, and you will receive your time assignment immediately following this message. In preparation for your exploring team's departure, you must first list all of the places noted in the newspaper section that corresponds to your time assignment—both near and far. Once you have identified all the places, chart them on a map. You may then select an exploration destination outside of Washington State, and make a proposal to your Exploration Officer (your teacher). Your exploration proposal should include the following points:

1. Your destination (city, state, country)
2. A mission statement for your exploring expedition that describes why you chose that destination and what you expect to find there.
   For example:
   The mission of the 1890 Klondike Geologic Expedition is to study the gold ore in Alaska and the Yukon. It is suspected that massive amounts of gold ore can be found in the rivers of the north and that it can be mined from the earth with ease.
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3. Any known connections between the destination and the events, people, or places in Washington State.
   (If you know some connections, great, if not just say "none known.")

Once your destination has been approved, you will need to determine the following:

1. How far (in miles and kilometers) is your selected destination from the city or town in which you live?
2. Considering your time assignment, what form(s) of transportation will you use to reach your destination? Create an itinerary and map that shows how you will get from your school or town to your destination and how long you expect it to take. Remember that you can't use cars if they weren't invented yet!

Activity Plan: Teacher Directions
Step 1: Write out memos from the "Central Exploration Office" that give student teams time assignments. These time assignments correlate to the years represented by the historic newspaper sections and current papers (1900-1990). Be ready to hand these out after you read the Inquiry Set-up.

Step 2: Read the Inquiry Set-up to the students, listing the items they will need to include in their exploration proposals either on the board or in handout form.

Step 3: Have the students select a teammate. Teams should be no larger than 3 students.

Step 4: Distribute the time assignments to the students, making sure they correlate the correct newspaper with the assignment.

Step 5: Have students list all the places mentioned in their newspaper sections. Each team will have a slightly different list. Hand out copies of world or United States maps to each team for the mapping exercise. Students will locate each place on their list on the map, highlighting it or marking it with a colored dot.

Step 6: Student teams select a destination for exploration and prepare their exploration proposals. These will be turned in to you, the Exploration Officer.

Step 7: Once you have approved the exploration proposals, students create an itinerary and map showing the route from their city or town to the destination; what forms of transportation they will use; how many miles and kilometers their journey will cover; and how long they expect it to take. All of these must be calculated based on the teams' time assignments.

EALRs:
Reading 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 3.1, 3.2
Writing 1.1-1.3, 2.2
Math 1.1, 1.2
History 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2
Geography 1.1, 2.1, 3.1