5 5 5 the gold rush of 1849 TG

The Gold Rush of 18495.5.5 GENERALIZE GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS SUMMARY This article describes the allure of the Gold Rush of 1849 in California.. It relates the Gold Rush to the history of Cal

The Gold Rush of 1849

5.5.5

GENERALIZE GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS

SUMMARY This article describes the allure of

the Gold Rush of 1849 in California It

dis-cusses why so many people risked everything

to go there It describes the risks and rewards

involved in searching for gold It relates the

Gold Rush to the history of California The

book is filled with vivid illustrations and

photo-graphs from the period

LESSON VOCABULARY

economic freight

independence overrun

recalled scrawled

INTRODUCE THE BOOK

INTRODUCE THE TITLE AND AUTHOR Discuss with

students the title and the author of The Gold

Rush of 1849 Ask students to think about the

title and what the book will be about Have

them look at the illustration on the cover of

the book and ask if it gives them further clues

about the book’s content

BUILD BACKGROUND Discuss what the

stu-dents know about the California Gold Rush

of 1849 Have any of the students visited

a ghost town?

PREVIEW/USE TEXT FEATURES Encourage

stu-dents to study the illustrations in the book

Discuss how the illustrations, photographs,

and maps help to make vivid the lives of

those who came in search of gold

READ THE BOOK SET PURPOSE Most students will be interested

in reading this book so that they can find out more about the Gold Rush of 1849

STRATEGY SUPPORT: GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS

Suggest that students draw a simple graphic organizer as they read the book to help them understand ideas that seem difficult They can create a chart in which they jot down details as they read

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

PAGE 5 Who controlled California in the early

1840s? (Mexico)

PAGE 6 How did John Sutter dream of making

his fortune? (in farming)

PAGE 8 What was James Marshall building

when he discovered gold? (a sawmill)

PAGE 10 How did Sam Brannan make his

fortune? (by selling gold mining tools)

PAGE 20 What were the miners’ towns called that had been left vacant after the Gold

Rush? (ghost towns)

PAGE 22 Name a few of the other states where

gold was discovered (Alaska, Arizona, Idaho,

Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming)

The Gold Rush of 1849

108

REVISIT THE BOOK

READER RESPONSE

1 Possible response: Most people were not

successful because there wasn’t as much

gold as people hoped Some of the most

successful people were those who sold

equipment to the miners

2 Possible responses: California Before the

Gold Rush: Only 5,000 people living there

in the early 1840s; not a state

California After the Gold Rush: Three years

after the Gold Rush, there were 250,000

living in California; California became a

state in 1850

3 The prefix of independence is in It

chang-es the word dependence to an opposite

meaning The prefix of recalled is re It

changes the word called to mean call again

Sentences will vary

4 Responses vary.

EXTEND UNDERSTANDING Have students look

at the maps on pages 14–15 Ask students

if these maps help them understand more

clearly how the miners traveled to California

during the Gold Rush of 1849

RESPONSE OPTIONS

WRITING Have the students write a letter from

the point of view of a miner They are sending

a letter home about their adventures traveling

to California and the results of their search

for gold

SOCIAL STUDIES

CONNECTION

Have students

research the history of

the California-Oregon Trail When

did people start crossing to the West on this

trail How long did the journey take? They can

use the Internet or the library

TEACH/REVIEW VOCABULARY

Go over the meaning of the vocabulary words Tell students you have chosen a mystery word and it is their job to guess what the word is, based on two clues about the word (For example: Which words can

be broken into two separate words?

over-run, in-dependence) Create mystery

words for all other vocabulary words

Ask your ELL students if any of them have been to California If they have, have them describe what they saw there

TARGET SKILL AND STRATEGY

GENERALIZE As this book presents a number of facts and figures about thousands

of people who rushed to California in 1849, students will need to organize these facts to

generalize To express what the gold miners

have in common, students’ generalizations should show likenesses by using clue words

such as many, most, generally, and overall.

GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS Remind students

that graphic organizers are used to organize

information in a visual way Have students create a before and after chart by taking a piece of lined paper and drawing a line down

the center Have them write Hopes over the left-hand column, and Reality over the

right-hand column Then as they read, have them enter what the miners hoped to find before they arrived out West, and what they found once they got there

ADDITIONAL SKILL INSTRUCTION

MAIN IDEAS AND DETAILS Remind students that each text can be boiled down to a number of main ideas Remind students that each of the main ideas will be supported

by a number of supporting details As they read, have them think about what are the

main ideas of The Gold Rush of 1849.

Skill Work

The Gold Rush of 1849 109

© Pearson Education 5

Generalize

• A generalization is a broad statement or rule that applies to many examples

• A generalization is made after thinking about a number of examples or facts and what they

have in common

Directions Tell whether each of the following is a broad statement or a specific statement.

1 Some made the journey by boat and others by land

2. The Mexican government gave a land grant to Sutter

3 Sutter built a huge complex

4. The people seeking gold destroyed his fort and crops

5. Many people from the East chose to travel by boat to California

7. Although many people gave up and left town, thousands stayed

8. California now had its independence from Mexico, but was not yet

a state

9 The fort has sleeping quarters, a bakery, blanket factory, blacksmith

shop, and carpenter shop

10. Sam Brennan was a San Francisco merchant

11 Unfortunately, many people found very little gold or none at all

12. Gold was easy to find in the waters of the American River

13. The first people to find gold became rich

The Gold Rush of 1849

110

Name

© Pearson Education 5

111

The Gold Rush of 1849

Name

Vocabulary

Directions Write the word from the box that has the same meaning as the underlined word or

phrase in the sentence

1 In the evenings, the miners sometimes quickly wrote letters home

2 The empty towns became known as ghost towns

3 In 1847, California had won its freedom from Mexico, but was not yet

a state

4 Many left their homes and families and braved going to California

5 Many miners endured a lonely life in the hope of money-related gain

6 The mining camp was filled to the brim with people looking for gold

7 Men felt homesick when they remembered the life they had before

coming west

8 Traders had to haul their transported goods by wagon or boat

Directions For each set, write the word that does not belong.

economic independence recalled vacant

freight overrun scrawled ventured

Check the Words You Know