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Grade 5  
Unit 2: Building Bridges
John Henry, a tall tale
by Julius Lester
Internet Connection Activity
Transportation    Cross Curricular
Garrett A. Morgan's Transportation Wonderland
Connect to this link:
http://education.dot.gov/k5/gamk5.htm


  1. Click on What Is Transportation? and then on Early Forms of Transportation.

  2. Read the page and look at the photographs. What trouble came from the increasing popularity of automobiles?

  3. When you have finished reading the page, click on Quiz at the bottom of the page.

  4. Take the quiz and click Check Your Answers at the bottom of the page. Report your score to your teacher.

Smithsonian: Transportation History
Connect to this link:
http://www.si.edu/resource/faq/nmah/transportation.htm


  1. Click Maritime Enterprise. Discover the importance of boats in U.S. history.

  2. Click Back arrow and Railroad Hall. Read about early locomotives.

  3. Return to the main page and click Road Transportation to explore American road travel.

Internet Connection Activity
Early Railroads    Find Out More
The Transcontinental Railroad
Connect to this link:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/tcrr/index.html


  1. Click The Film and More on the left navigation bar. Read the introduction and click on Film Description.

  2. When you have finished reading the page, click Gallery on the left navigation bar. Look at pictures taken around the time that The Transcontinental Railroad was built.

  3. On a separate sheet of paper, write about why you think The Transcontinental Railroad was important. How did it affect the United States?

Central Pacific Railroad Photographic History Museum
Connect to this link:
http://cprr.org/


  1. Look carefully at the opening photograph and read its caption.

  2. Scroll down to learn about the first transcontinental railroad.

  3. Click smaller images to enlarge them.

Internet Connection Activity
Trains    Leveled Books
Amtrak
Connect to this link:
http://amtrak.com/destinations/index.html


  1. On the map of the United States, click on Northeast.

  2. Click on Cardinal/Hoosier State. Read the information on the page. What might you see if you rode this train?

  3. Click the Back button and click Acela Express. What two cities does this train travel between? How fast does it go?

  4. Have you ever ridden on a train? Write a short piece about what your train ride was like. If you have never ridden a train, imagine what it might be like. Describe what you see and hear during the trip.

Special Trains
Connect to this link:
http://www.nlc-bnc.ca/trains/kids/


  1. Click on English. Then click Special Trains on the left navigation bar to learn about the interesting roles trains have played in Canada.

  2. Click on School Trains. What were they?

  3. Click on the Back button and then on Passenger Trains. What was a colonist car?

  4. Click on the Back button and then on Soldier Trains. When you have finished reading the page, create a chart with the name and use of each of these three special trains.