Preview Of Main Ideas
The first travelers to Alaska were hunters and fishermen traveling over the snow with sleds drawn by dogs. They made boats from animal skins. Whalers and trappers came by ship. Prospectors tried to get to the gold fields of the Yukon on steep trails like the Chilkoat on foot or with mules. Building a railroad along this same route proved a challenging and dangerous feat. A railroad was built to connect the main cities of Anchorage and Fairbanks but many lived in remote bush towns or islands. Pilots who are skilled at landing on dirt runways or on frozen lakes bring food, medicine, mail, and contact with the outside world. Today two highways lead to Alaska, one by land and one by sea. The land route is the 1,520 mile Alaska Highway linking Fairbanks with Dawson Creek, Canada. The sea route is the Alaska Marine Highway where you can ride by ferry through the scenic wonders of the Inside Passage. This route is also a favorite for tourists viewing glaciers and stopping at interesting ports of call.

Getting to places in Alaska has always been an adventure at the whim of the harsh climate and remarkable geography. Students will take the transportation challenge as they work through this lesson.

Connection With Curriculum
Geography, Math, Language Arts, and Art will be addressed.

Teaching Level: Grades 4 to 6.

Objective #1: Investigate transportation needs used in Alaska determined by landforms, climate, and mileage between cities.

Essential Element: Environment and Society.

Standard #15: How physical systems affect human systems.

Knowledge Statement #1: How variations within the physical environment produce spatial patterns that affect human adaptation.

Skill Set #5: Answering geographic questions.

Skill #2: Use methods of geographic inquiry to acquire geographic information, draw conclusions, and make generalizations.

Theme: Place and Movement.

Objective #2: Create maps that will show how to travel through Alaska using, other maps as resources.

Essential Element: The World in Spatial Terms.

Standard #1: How to use maps and other geographic representations, tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and report information from a spatial perspective.

Knowledge Statement #1: The locations of places within the local community and in nearby communities.

Skill Set #3: Organizing geographic information.

Skill #1: Prepare maps to display geographic information.

Theme: Location and Movement.

Materials
Atlases, road maps, books on Alaska, and art supplies.

Procedure

1. Background information should be discussed on the history, topography, and climate of Alaska using references available.

2. Divide class into small groups to report on the different kinds of transportation available in Alaska. Find out how, where, and why they are used in different regions of Alaska. Include any historical backgrounds or comparisons to modern day usage. Topics could include:

Alaskan highway
Railroad
Dog sled
Snowmobile
Airplane and bush planes, sea planes
Boat (fishing and cruise ship)
Ferry

3.  Students report back to the class on their findings. Pictures could be shown or drawn to illustrate their reports.

4.  Have students find and list ten Alaskan place names. Discuss the relative location of Anchorage to the places they have selected. Tell if the place is north, south, east, or west of Anchorage, and if one can travel there by road.

5. Using a blank, enlarged map of Alaska, along with a landform and climate map as resources, create a transportation map of Alaska. Make a key that includes symbols for all the types of transportation studied.

Plan an imaginary trip through Alaska indicating your preferred route and deciding on which type of transportation will be needed (include with different colored symbols and matching colored can route lines.)

Questions: What physical features should be avoided? How will the time of year affect your travel decisions?

1. Make a collage of different kinds of transportation from magazine pictures.
2. Write a journal about your imaginary trip through Alaska.
3. Use transportation costs as ideas for problem solving.
4. Create a game board in the shape of the state of Alaska with various opportunities and dangers that could be encountered in traveling.
5. Make a list of supplies that would be needed on a long trip through Alaska.

1. Written reports and oral presentations.
2. Evaluation of maps showing all requirements.
3. Classroom discussions.

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