Manifest Destiny and the Growing Nation 1© Teachers’ Curriculum Institute

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USI_LG_U05_01U.S. Territorial Acquisitions, 1803–1853Fourth ProofTCI19 83

U.S. Territorial Acquisitions, 1803–1853

G U I D E T O G E O G R A P H Y C H A L L E N G E

Manifest Destiny and the Growing Nation 2© Teachers’ Curriculum Institute

G U I D E T O G E O G R A P H Y C H A L L E N G E

Geography Skills

Score 1 point for each correct answer. Use the map on the previous page to check shading and labeling.

1. Adding the Louisiana Territory in 1803 about doubled the size of the United States.

2. Texas was added in 1845 and the Mexican Cession in 1848. The Gadsden Purchase was the other territory acquired from Mexico.

3. The Oregon Trail crossed the Louisiana Territory on the way to Portland. The Santa Fe Trail crossed it on the way to Santa Fe. The California Trail crossed it on the way to Sacramento.

4. The United States added Oregon Country in 1846.

5. The western end of the Old Spanish Trail was Los Angeles.

6. Following the Santa Fe and Old Spanish trails to California required settlers to cross the Arkansas River, Rio Grande, and Colorado River as well as the Rocky Mountains and Sierra Nevada. (Note: Students may not be certain about the Arkansas River.)

7. The California Trail left the Oregon Trail at Fort Hall.

8. The Mormon, California, and Oregon trails crossed the Rocky Mountains at South Pass.

Critical Thinking

Questions may have more than one correct answer. Score 1 to 3 points for each reasonable answer, depending on the strength of students’ geographic reasoning. Possible answers are given here.

9. By following rivers, the trails provided travelers with a source of water along much of their journey.

10. Moving wagons over mountains, and with snow and cold weather, would have been slower than riding over flat land.

11. Had the Louisiana Territory not become part of the United States, Americans traveling to Oregon and California would have had to cross land that belonged to another nation. This might have discouraged Americans from settling in these regions.

Using Scores to Inform Instruction

Geography Skills A score of 6 out of 9 or better indicates that students have acquired sufficient geographic information to proceed with the unit.

Critical Thinking A score of 6 out of 9 or better indicates that students are beginning to understand the relationships between physical geography and the different ways in which people live.

Modifying Instruction

ELL or Learners with Special Education Needs Consider focusing on map-reading questions or limiting the number of “Critical Thinking” questions.

Students with Weak Map or Critical Thinking Skills Assign appropriate pages from the Social Studies Skills Toolkit in the back of the Lesson Masters.