Virtual Tour of Hoover Dam

AUTHOR: Tracey Lewis

HISTORICAL TOPIC/ERA: 1930s -present

GRADE LEVEL(S): 3-5

TIME REQUIRED: One 45- minute class period.

INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND:

In the early 1900s, the Bureau of Reclamation decided that damming the Colorado River would create a year-round water supply for the Southwest. In 1928, Congress passed and President Calvin Coolidge signed the Swing-Johnson bill (Boulder Canyon Project Act). The project provided thousands of jobs and attracted thousands of people to the state. Boulder City was built to house the workers at Hoover Dam. The total cost of the project was $175 million. The dam required 6.6 million tons of concrete.

NEVADA STANDARDS:

Nevada History Standard 8.5.5 Identify the major events of the Great
Depression, such as the Hoover Dam.

Nevada Writing Standard 5.4.3

Write a narrative or story that moves through a logical sequence of events and includes

details to develop the plot, characters, and setting, beginning with familiar subjects and

expanding to other areas.

STUDENT LEARNING GOALS/OBJECTIVES:

Students will write a narrative about an imaginary field trip to the Hoover Dam. The narratives will move through a logical sequence of events including detail to develop the setting.

MATERIALS/SPECIAL ARRANGEMENTS:

Online Nevada Encyclopedia (ONE) www.onlinenevada.org

Graphic Organizer (included at the end of this document)

Scavenger Hunt Questions (included at the end of this document)

ACTIVITIES/STRATEGIES:

1. Students will work individually or in pairs to search for objects listed on the scavenger hunt list. Students may be paired based on reading ability.

2. Students will use 1 45-minute computer lab session to find the objects listed on the scavenger hunt. Students will find their information on the ONE website www.onlinenevada.org.

3. Students may use remaining time to draw pictures viewed on the ONE website.

4. Students will use “What Did I Do/What Did I See?” graphic organizer to write details about what they did and saw on the “field trip.”

5. Students will then use the graphic organizer to write a narrative about the “filed trip.” Students may use their illustrations with their narratives.

EVALUATION OF STUDENT LEARNING:

The student narratives should include details about setting and actions during the field trip. Narratives should be written using sequential order.

Hoover Dam Scavenger Hunt

1. What color is the chair on the “Hoover Dam Observation Deck”?

2. What does the writing on the top of the wall say on the “Hoover Dam

Lake Overview”? ____________________________________________

3. Look at the bottom of the “Hoover Dam Lake Overview.” How many cars

do you see parked at the bottom of the dam? _________________________

4. Go to the view of the “Hoover Dam Downstream.” What is the blue

object in the bottom of the canyon? ______________________________

5. Can you give the name (proper noun) of the blue object at the bottom of

the canyon? _________________________________________________

6. On the “Hoover Dam Downstream” view, find the road with cars

driving on it. What two states does this road connect? __________________

_____________________________________________________________

7. How many of the large red turbines do you count on the “Hoover Dam

Turbine Level” view? _________________________________________

8. What do you think is in the large red turbines? _____________________

_____________________________________________________________

9. Find the view that has railroad tracks in concrete. What is the name of that

view? _______________________________________________________

10. Look at the “Hoover Dam State Line” view. What two states are named

on the ground? _________________________________________________