On November 15, 1805, explorers and surveyors Meriwether Lewis and William Clark reached the Pacific Ocean after a long journey across North America. The pair, leading the Corps of Discovery, were commissioned to map and document the American West. President Thomas Jefferson enlisted the team to explore the newly-acquired Louisiana Purchase and to find a water route to the Pacific Ocean.
The Lewis & Clark story is fundamentally geographic. Students can follow the expedition's route and investigate why particular waterways, mountain passes, and geographic features mattered. To celebrate this historic expedition, students will be tasked to map out their route. Students will trace the expedition route and identify rivers, mountains, regions, and relative locations.
Ready to take the lesson beyond the textbook? Put the expedition on the map! Download this free reproducible map of the United States region. Then, do some research into Lewis & Clark’s expedition to complete the following activity.
Map the Expedition
1. Find the Mississippi River.
2. Trace the expedition westward.
3. Identify major physical features along the route.
4. Have students describe how geography influenced the expedition.
5. Ask students to identify the Five Themes of Geography (location, place, human & environmental interactions, movement, regions) they can see in the journey.
Our mapping resources help students build essential map-reading skills through printable, student-friendly activities. Get to know all about the North American continent using the Five Themes of Geography. Explore our printable geography resources to find more classroom activities that help students develop mapping skills and understand the world around them.