Suggested Time:
3-4 hours over 3 days

Building Background:
Review John Muir's efforts to preserve California's natural resources in the Yosemite Valley. Explain to students that during the late 1800s he wrote articles and letters to government officials encouraging the preservation of the land, water, plants, and animals. Largely through his efforts, Yosemite became the United States' first national park. You might direct students to the map on page 19 of their textbooks or an atlas to locate Yosemite National Park. Tell students that they will be reading a section of John Muir's journal and learning more about what he saw and felt after seeing Yosemite for the first time.

What To Do:

1. Pass out the John Muir and California's Resources worksheet. Have students read the passage silently, then you read the passage aloud. Define any words that might be unclear to students. Then have students work on their own to fill out the worksheet.

2. When they finish, have students share their answers. Keep a list of their responses to each question on the board. Ask students to name of other natural resources not referred to in Muir's journal.

3. Instruct students to look through library picture books showing California's natural resources. Tell them to look both for images showing resources that Muir mentioned in his writings, and resources that he didn't mention in the entry. Have them work in small groups to find at least three images showing different natural resources from around the state.

• Check out the Unit 1 Bibliography for books, videos, and software students might consult for information.
• If you have Internet access, you and your students can explore these sites for information:

  John Muir Exhibit
  http://www.sierraclub.org/john_muir_exhibit/
  Check out this site from the Sierra Club detailing John Muir's life and accomplishments. It includes a special student page with essays, timelines, student work, and information on contests for kids.

  Visit the National Parks by State
  http://www.nps.gov/parklists/pickstates.html
  This National Park Service site offers a clickable map to lead students to information about national parks within a chosen state.

  Yosemite National Park
  http://www.nps.gov/yose/yo_visit.htm
  Learn more about the place that inspired John Muir. This site has photos, descriptions, facts, and animated waterfalls!

  Pictures of Yellowstone National Park
  Check out this popular photo gallery of beautiful sites at Yellowstone from the University of Montana's School of Forestry.
  http://www.forestry.umt.edu/kiosk/photos/yellowstone/default.htm

  Grand Canyon
  This site from the National Geographic Society provides images, an interactive map, and facts about the Canyon.
  http://www.nationalgeographic.com/media/books/grandcanyon/index.html

  Grand Canyon Explorer
  This site offers in-depth information on the Grand Canyon, including descriptions of its geology and dimensions, as well as images and maps. The link to John Wesley Powell provides details of his 1869 expedition through the Canyon.
  http://www.kaibab.org/misc/gc_gen.htm

4. Students should copy the images they find. Once each team has collected three images each, have them work together to set up a bulletin board display of their images. Groups should plan the arrangement of the images, then design and create labels which identify the resources their images are showing. Have the class vote on a title for the bulletin board display and make a title banner.

Wrap-Up:
Discuss with students the impact of one man — John Muir — on the state of California. Ask students to describe California's natural environment today if Muir had never seen Yosemite or moved to the state, or worked so hard to preserve what he loved.

Extension:

• Have students work in pairs to find another short piece of Muir's writing (a journal entry, a letter, or a short article), analyze it, and present both the original writing and their interpretations.