GOLD!!! GOLD!!!!
THIS WAS THE CRY THAT MADE THOUSANDS OF
PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD GO TO
CALIFORNIA TO FIND THEIR FORTUNES!!

THE YEAR IS 1850, YOU AND A PARTNER ARE NEWSPAPER
 REPORTERS FROM NEW YORK CITY.  YOU MUST FIND OUT
 ABOUT 5 DIFFERENT THINGS THAT HAPPENED DURING THE
 CALIFORNIA GOLD RUSH AND REPORT BACK TO YOUR EDITOR.

IN ORDER TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE GOLD RUSH THAT
 SWEPT THE COUNTRY GO TO THE FOLLOWING WEB SITES:

Oakland Museum of California - Gold Fever Virtual Tour

The Gold Rush (PBS)

Gold Prospecting
The California Gold Rush

Kidport: California Gold Rush

TAKING NOTES AND WRITING YOUR PAPER

1. Look at all 4 web sites and find information that is interesting to you and your partner.            
2. Write down key words and phrases. You do NOT need to write down long sentences.
Try to answer these questions:

• Why did the miners stay in California for a long time?
• What did miners do in their free time?
• What kind of jobs did miners do after looking for gold?
• What did men from other countries do in California?
• Who were gamblers? Did they make life difficult for the miners?
• Were women miners too? What jobs did women have?
• How did miners get water during their trip to California?

Writing notes together:
When you have all the information you and your partner will write your notes onto one or two pages.

Organize your information by topic:
Example: Topic- Hard trip to California Information: 1 year travel, little food

After you organize your facts, begin writing sentences. Combine your sentences to make paragraphs. Write down the websites (your sources) for each piece of information. Please do NOT copy sentences off the Internet that is cheating!! You and your partner will present the information to the class.

GRADES
Your grade will be based on how well you work with your partner, on your writing and your oral presentation.

Excellent A
Good B
Satisfactory C
Unsatisfactory D

Works very well with partner.Answers 5 questions clearly and describes them in paragraph form. Writes 1 ½ pages and cites sources.
Speaks clearly on presentation.

 Works cooperatively with partner. Shares the computer and writing.
Writes on 4 topics and describes them in paragraph form. Writes 1 page and cites sources. Gives a clear presentation.
 Works most of the time with partner. Shares the computer and writing but may use computer longer than partner. Answers 3 questions and writes 1 page in paragraph form. Cites most sources. Gives a clear presentation. Does not work together with partner. Answers 2 or less questions. Writes less than 1 page of work. Does not write in paragraph form. Does not cite sources. Does not present findings.

 

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