Explorer's Journal

Dear 4B Parents~

Enclosed is a detailed explanation of our upcoming
exciting Explorer's Unit project.
The 4B students have been studying life in California
up through the 15th century. We have begun
contrasting the lives of California Native Americans
with life in Europe. Students will know why
explorers began sailing from Europe and what some of
them hoped to find and what they did find.

I will make available data and stories about Sir
Frances Drake, Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo and Sebastian
Viscaino. Students will imagine themselves as a
member of the crew aboard the ship of on one of these
explorers. They will collect information about that
particular voyage and keep track of it on a gathering
grid. The who, when, where, why, what, and how of the
voyage will be recorded. This factual information
will be infused into a sailor's journal.

With a little imagination, the students will create
their own character and then use the factual
information they recorded to create a semi-factual
series of journal entries. Their character will be
fictitious, but the information they record will be
about actual events that really did take place. For
instance, if a student picked Drake to sail with, they
could imagine what it was like when Drake encountered
and took over the Spanish sailing ship, the Nuestra
Senora de la Conception. They can choose to be a
first mate, a sailor, a cook, or an apprentice. They
will need to write at least 6 separate journal
entries. The final drafts of these entries will be on
'aged' paper.

Most of the work will be done in class. Important
dates will be announced.
Thanks.
-Steve