Grade 7 students have been studying westward expansion. To better get to know our United States, they designed and mapped out their very own modern road trips. As part of the journey students did the following:

-Picked a theme (historical sites, mountains, rivers, cities, national parks, concert venues, restaurants etc.)

-Selected a specific vehicle for the road trip: Van, SUV, Camper Bus, etc.

-Started anywhere on the east coast, travelled up to 300 miles a day, described the route with a map and directions, ending on the west coast

-Explained one specific historical event associated with each stop. Examples: battle sites, city origin stories, birthplaces of famous Americans, information about Native American groups that lived in that area, etc.

-Shared one fun activity they participated in during each stop

-Created an original road trip song

Students uploaded beautiful photos and worked on their road trips in Zoom break out rooms. The final projects were presented live and received “real time” positive peer feedback.