Hello. We recently finished one of my favorite units to cover in our 8th grade American History curriculum - Manifest Destiny and Western Expansion. As we study the Oregon Trail we discuss the fate of the Donner Party. The Donner Party captures the attention of my students and allows us to discuss a variety of topics. For years I have shown my students "The Donner Party" from PBS, part of The American Experience series. Several years ago I used the role of Lansford Hastings in the tragedy and have a debate to try and decide if he or the Donner Party are more to blame for the loss of life. My students then do a short debate, which this year we taped with a Flip video camera. Listen to the podcast to learn about how we use this resource in our classroom.
PDF copy of the worksheet we use while watching the video "The Donner Party" from PBS and the American Experience
If you have any ideas or thoughts on teaching about The Donner Party please leave a comment on this blog. I would enjoy learning how other classes teach about this interesting historical event.
Direct link to Podcast #181 - Teaching the Donner Party as a Debate