Credits for
This Adventure

Tell us What You Think!
Students
Teachers

Use your imagination and your research to think about what life might have been like for you if you had been living in 1864.

Remember that you'll write your narrative from the point of view of your character: the Navajo boy or girl, the emigrant from the Eastern United States, the Spanish-speaking child, or the American soldier.

You may need to do more research to find out more about what everyday life would have been like for a person of your culture.

Here are some questions to consider. Remember to base your answers on the identity you have chosen.

1. In what sort of community do you live? What do people do for a living?
2. What is your home like? What do you eat? What work do you have to do?
3. What kind of education do you have?
4. Where is your family from originally? What languages do you and your family speak?
5. How do you dress? Are there any special foods, celebrations or beliefs (including community and religious) which are unique to your family or community?
6. What do you think or feel about the relocation of the Navajos?

• Write a draft narrative using your imagination and research.
• In your narrative, describe yourself, your family and what your life is like.
• Make sure your work is at least two (2) pages long.
• Include information you found from your resources and the questions you answered.
• Concentrate on vivid descriptions which will help your reader feel what it was like to live in 1864 from the viewpoint of your character.

Be sure to visit the Resources page for tips on how to use vivid descriptions to enhance your writing.

When you are finished drafting your narrative, get back together with your group and give each other feedback using the Digging Deeper questions as a guide.