I have an easy Lewis and Clark map activity for your budding history buffs. Also, look at my page Lewis and Clark Fun Homeschool Unit Study and Lapbook for more ideas.
Additionally, I have a free map that can be used as an outline to teach younger children, and I share ways you can expand it for older learners. You can download the map at the bottom.
Lewis and Clark along with their team are the ultimate explorers in U.S. history. However, introducing the feat they accomplished on their journey to the Pacific is not easy to present to younger children.
Even older learners may not have an idea of their trek. This easy hands-on assignment using push pins and a map gives them a chance to touch history and makes their story have meaning.
And by tracing and learning about the expedition, learners understand that history happened in real places.
Too, if you happen to live in an area that Lewis and Clark traveled in or visited an area they trekked, history takes on personal meaning.
LEWIS AND CLARK BOOKS FOR KIDS
Next, I’ve rounded up some living books and other resources for multiple ages.
Add one or two to your home library.
14 Lewis and Clark | Sacagawea Exploration Unit Study Resources
Lewis and Clark is one of the most significant periods in American history and you can spend weeks exploring the lands and people west of the Mississippi with these fun books and resources.
Appealing art and descriptive text bring Lewis and Clark alive for young adventurers. Carefully chosen text from Lewis and Clark's actual journals opens a fascinating window into this country's exciting history.
Explore one of the most recognized figures in American history with this biography of Sacagawea. Kids will learn about her crucial role in the Lewis and Clark expedition and her influential legacy. The level 3 text provides accessible, yet wide-ranging, information for independent readers.
Commissioned in 1803 by President Thomas Jefferson to explore and open up this vast territory, Lewis and Clark felt it was the realization of a lifelong dream. Against the hardships of the wilderness, possible attack by hostile Indians, sudden blizzards and terrifying natural obstacles, these two men led the Corps of Discovery ably and nobly to complete their mission. Their Corps included American Indians from the Sioux, Mandan, Shoshone, Clatsop and Chopunnish tribes. Sacajawea, the only woman on the trip, was a Shoshone woman who contributed invaluable service as interpreter and guide. Daugherty's evocative sepia and black ink illustrations depict individuals of humor, vitality, passion, and strength.
From the New York Times bestselling author the definitive book on Lewis and Clark’s exploration of the Louisiana Purchase, the most momentous expedition in American history and one of the great adventure stories of all time.
The only book ever written that tells the eyewitness truth about this famous teenage Indian mother who was indispensable to the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
On May 14, 1804, the Corps of Discovery set out from Camp Dubois, Illinois, heading westward under the command of Captain Meriwether Lewis and his Second Lieutenant, William Clark. While Lewis led the group in terms of rank, the two men became de facto equals, giving their names jointly to a journey that would shape the future of the fledgling United States — the Lewis and Clark Expedition. This book presents journal entries taken directly from the expedition.
Describes how Sacagawea found adventure guiding Lewis and Clark to the Oregon coast.
Take Your Own Journey through History on the Lewis & Clark Trail! Follow the journey of the Corps of Discovery from Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello through the Midwest and the Rockies, to the Pacific Ocean and back with this detailed chronicle of the Lewis & Clark Expedition. This third edition of the classic guidebook features accessible text that combines the historical sites and color maps that merge the past and present in a user-friendly and entertaining way.
In this epic graphic novel, follow the dramatic story of the Lewis and Clark expedition. In 1804, these two explorers, along with their "Corps of Discovery," traversed the unmapped American West, leading to scientific discoveries, interactions with Native nations, and route to the Pacific Ocean. Dramatic illustrations and fast-paced text provide a "you-are-there" experience. With extensive back matter, including a bibliography, extended reading list, glossary, and further Internet sources, young readers will gobble up this action-packed comic book about one of history's most compelling moments.
In The Oregon Trail: The Journey Across the Country from Lewis and Clark to the Transcontinental Railroad, readers ages 9 to 12 can delve into the explorations of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark and other explorers. They can learn about the more than half a million people who followed during the nineteenth century. What challenges did these pioneers face on the 2,170-mile journey? How were Native American tribes and nations affected by this mass migration? Primary sources allow readers to feel like a part of the Oregon Trail experience while biographical sidebars will introduce the compelling people who were part of this time in U.S. history. Investigative, hands-on projects and critical thinking activities such as writing a treaty and researching artistic impressions of the Oregon Trail invite readers to further their understanding of life on the trail, early towns and forts, and the Transcontinental Railroad that followed the wagons into new lands and territories that would eventually become states.
A trade paperback edition of the award-winning tale of the journey of Lewis and Clark. When Seaman, a Newfoundland dog, met his new master in August of 1803, he didn't know that he would spend the next three years on an adventure of more than 8,000 miles to the Pacific Ocean and back. Seaman's Journal is based on actual entries in Meriwether Lewis s journal describing Seaman, and it presents an account of the Lewis and Clark expedition as seen from the viewpoint of Lewis s dog. Join Seaman before the trip as preparations take place. Meet the Native American guides and friends they encountered along the way. And read of Seaman s love for Sacajawea, the Shoshone woman whose husband acted as interpreter and guide. Ages 5-8.
Describes the expedition led by Lewis and Clark to explore the unknown western regions of America at the beginning of the nineteenth century.
Following Meriwether Lewis and William Clark’s Corps of Discovery as they navigate the muddy Missouri River and begin a great adventure, this activity book is set against the background of the vast North American continent. It takes children from President Jefferson’s vision of an exploratory mission across a continent full of unique plants and animals through their dangerous and challenging journey into the unknown to the expedition’s triumphant return to the frontier town of St. Louis. Twenty-one activities bring to life the Native American tribes they encountered, the plants and animals they discovered, and the camping and navigating techniques they used. A glossary of terms and listings of Lewis and Clark sites, museums, and related websites round out this comprehensive activity book.
Sacajawea was a brilliant, multilingual Shoshone girl who was torn from her home at a young age. In 1804, she set out with the Lewis and Clark Expedition, acting as an interpreter and guide across hundreds of miles of unmapped land to reach the Pacific Ocean. Almost 200 years later, she became the first Indigenous woman to appear on a US coin. This is her story.
Also, look at these other Lewis and Clark activities.
MORE LEWIS AND CLARK ACTIVITIES
- Spectacular Lewis And Clark Plants Drawings | 7 Quick Botany Art Lessons
- What Plants And Animals Did Lewis And Clark Discover on their Famous Trek & Bitterroot Craft
- 7 Fun Sacagawea Facts For Kids | How To Make Lewis & Clark & Sacagawea Peg Dolls
- Fun Homeschool Unit Study Ideas | Lewis and Clark Exploration Lapbook
- Lewis and Clark Expedition Botany 1 and 2 Interactive Minibooks
- 22 Free Lewis & Clark Activity Posters (You Don’t Want to Miss These)
- Lewis & Clark – Mighty Mississippi book & Sediment Activity
- Lewis and Clark:Cooking on the Trail
- Lewis and Clark Expedition – The Ultimate Guide
- Lewis and Clark Louisiana Purchase Edible Map
- Reliving The Past: Lewis And Clark’s Hands-on Experience With Simple Char Cloth
Finally, look at how to make this easy map for a visual of the area Lewis and Clark trekked.
LEWIS AND CLARK MAP ACTIVITY USING PUSHPINS
First, look at this easy list of supplies.
- Large U.S. outline map printed on cardstock (grab this by adding your email at the bottom and you’ll get it instantly)
- Cork board
- Push pins
- String or thin twine
- Tape (optional, for securing the map to the cork board)
Prepare the Map: Place the U.S. outline map on top of the cork board. Use tape at the corners if you want it to stay in place while the kids work.
Mark the Starting Point: Find St. Louis, Missouri, on the map.
Place the first push pin there to mark the beginning of Lewis and Clark’s journey.
Map the Route: Look at a reference map of Lewis and Clark’s expedition.
Add push pins along the path they traveled as they made their way northwest across the country.
Connect the Path: Tie a slip knot at the end of string and place around the first pin in St. Louis.
Then stretch the string from pin to pin, wrapping it around each push pin as kids trace the route all the way to the Pacific Ocean.
Review the Journey: Once the route is complete, have kids point out major stops or areas they recognize, and talk about how long and challenging the journey would have been.
LEWIS & MAP IDEAS FOR OLDER LEARNERS
So the outline of the states is an easy enough activity to introduce young history buffs to because it gives them the shape of the U.S.
Plus you can introduce easy cardinal directions.
However, you can expand this activity and use the maps in several ways.
Use the blank map to have your child label the states and also research some landmarks along the way.
For example, Pompeys’ Pillar and Fort Clatsop. And mark rivers and oceans. It gives your older learner a deeper appreciating of the area they explored when they can see how many states were covered.
BENEFITS OF AN EASY LEWIS AND CLARK MAP
Problem-Solving: Following a historical route encourages kids to compare maps, estimate distances, and make logical decisions about where to place pins.
Hands-On Geography: Kids learn U.S. geography in a tactile way by placing pins and following landmarks across the map.
History Connections: Mapping the route helps kids visualize Lewis and Clark’s expedition and understand how far they traveled.
Spatial Awareness: Kids get practice reading maps, understanding direction, and seeing how different regions connect.
HOW TO GET THE TWO FREE PRINTABLE MAPS
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