Standards
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.7
Interpret information presented visually, orally, or quantitatively (e.g., in charts, graphs, diagrams, time lines, animations, or interactive elements on Web pages) and explain how the information contributes to an understanding of the text in which it appears.
NCSS Theme 3 – Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of people, places, and environments.
Technology required
Device with a browser for students to access crop-it activity. Teacher should have a computer with projector to give slides presentation, but if this is not available, students can see slides on their own device.
Time
40 – 50 minutes
Lesson Summary
Students watch a video or play through the introduction of the You are Here game, including the levels on Lewis and/ or Clark. The teacher gives a presentation introducing the crop-it tool and students complete an assignment that requires answering questions using the map provided.
What is crop-it and how to use it
It’s a fun tool that lets your students zoom in on a section of a primary source. You have three options:
- Use a crop-it activity from the gallery
- Print out resources and do the activity using paper
- Create your own crop-it
Lesson
Begin with watching the video “Why study Lewis & Clark?” (Note: In summer, 2025, we will be releasing a new game, You are Here: STEM on the Lewis & Clark Trail.)
Next, do a crop-it activity.
In this lesson, we’ll go with Option 3. Because we’re not sure as of this writing if the government is going to shut down and whether the Library of Congress will be available, I uploaded a map to the Growing Math site. While the image below is only 600 pixels in width, the image I uploaded for this exercise is 20 times this size.
Zoom in or Crop the Map
Here is the link of the crop-it I created for the map Lewis and Clark made that went as far as the area they named Cape Disappointment.
Here is a Google slides presentation showing your students step by step how to crop an image, add notes, save notes, zoom in and create a PDF showing their responses.
Differentiation
On the crop-it site, you can design your own crop-it activity with fewer questions or simpler images.
For a simpler crop-it, you can use this photo of a Hidatsa bull boat on the river.
