Well, I have had an absolutely wonderful time traveling around the Midwest with my little buccaneers. They seemed to have learned so much, and I have too!
Max and I discovered that the Great Lakes were carved out by glaciers, and that they house 21% of the world's fresh water. Aubrey and I looked at the Old Cowtown museum, and were able to look at a real life historical example of how farming was important to the history dof the Midwest. After reading Kathleen's journal on the Midwest, I learned that Chicago has so many different names, and I learned from Maddie that Gateway Arch is the tallest national monument in the world!!
I think that, overall, I learned that farming is extremely important to the Midwest. I can see examples of this in most of the places that I visit. For instance, Old Cowtown shows how a small town needs farming for money and food. Farming of the Midwest is also dependent on the fresh water that the Great Lakes and Mississippi River provide. There are some sites, such as Fort Dearborn, the Badlands, and the Gateway Arch that do not necessarily show this. However, these sites do contribute to the rich history that the Midwest has to offer. For instance, Fort Dearborn helps to show the conflict between white settlers and Native Americans; the Badlands show diverse landscapes as well as more Native American history; the Gateway Arch even symbolizes the westward expansion of the United States in the 1800s, an extremely important part of our nation's history.
Let's be honest, I learned a lot, and everyone contributed to my learning. I wish they would comment on my journal a bit more, though!
I'm so excited to venture out into the Wiiiiild Wiiiild West (that is to be pronounced like a cowboy). I can't wait for my cowboys and cowgirls to find more out about the importance of the Gold Rush as well as the different types of resources and people. It should be a fun few days!!
Yeeeeeehaw!
