The simple PowerPoint presents students with an image which has six separate panels for them to investigate. Only by exploring each in turn can the true meaning of the document be established. Groups of three or four work on each and either annotate their own version electronically or, more likely, come to the front to annotate and explain to the rest of the class. Once all the six presentations have been completed, ask the class to predict the likely date and provenance of the source, prior to writing an interesting and definitive caption.

Resources

Lesson or enquiryHistorical focus
Teaching American West at Key Stage 4Overview and planning
Opening up the Western frontier by the railroads: a history mysteryRailroads and westward expansion
Why were mining towns such lawless places?Explaining lawlessness in mining towns
The likely impact of the railroad: de Bono’s thinking hats and creative productsConsequences of railroad expansion
Was the life of a cowboy really so adventurous?Cowboy life and popular perceptions
Who went west and why?Migration and motivation
What was the impact of the Californian Gold Rush, 1848–49?Consequences of the Gold Rush
Attitudes of the US government to Native Americans: milking an image for meaningAnalysing images and government attitudes
Why did Native Americans lose control of the Great Plains? I want that for my essayExplaining loss of control
Mountain Men: myth and realityComparing representations and reality
Phases of Native American life on the Plains, 1840–1890: what patterns can you see?Change and continuity
Manifest Destiny: beat the textbook/expert captionInterpreting images of westward expansion
How can we explain the rise and boom in the cattle industry?Explaining economic growth
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