School Resources

These resources listed here are suitable for learners of all ages, but some are specifically designed for elementary and middle school students.

8th Grade Curriculum

2024 BYU-OCTA Essay Contest

This year BYU is partnering with the Oregon-California Trails Association to sponsor an essay contest focused on pioneer history in the 1800s.

Prompt: Write a 4-5 page essay about an important historical person or event related to pioneer history in the Western United States during the 1800s.

Submissions Open: March 1st
Submissions Close: April 15th

Prizes:

1st Place – $500
2nd Place – $300
3rd Place – $100

Additionally, the first-place winner will be given the opportunity to publish their essay in one of OCTA’s publications, with editing and revision help from the chief editor. They will also receive funding to fly out for OCTA’s Convention in Pendleton, Oregon in July of 2024 to present their paper at the conference. This is made possible because of the generous donations of BYU’s Charles Redd Center for Western Studies and BYU’s History Department.

Winners will be announced in early May.

Additional Requirements for the Essay:
The essay must be written in 12-pt Times New Roman font, double-spaced. Each submission must contain proper citations throughout the essay, which can be cited as either footnotes or endnotes. It must also include a bibliography. Any submissions that do not include citations will NOT be accepted. For any further questions, please contact Ciara Galbraith at ciara@octa-trails.org

Ciara Galbraith
Western Regional Representative

In Pursuit of a Dream

This multiple award-winning film shows modern teenagers learning firsthand what it was like to be an emigrant traveling West on a wagon train.

What would it be like to go back in time (with no cell phones, IM’ing, Twitter and Facebook or running water for that matter) and travel across the country just like the pioneers did. That’s what 24 kids from across the US, (some who had never been out of their home town EVER), did for their summer vacation. Led by three amazing teachers these new age “emigrants” trekked through Wyoming and north to Oregon on a once-in-a-lifetime journey that challenged even the toughest in the group.

They traded their modern conveniences for long dresses and overalls, loaded their wagons and took off for adventure on the Oregon and California Trails. Along the way they met gold seekers, scoundrels and natives. And while they learned about what made us a great nation as we moved west, they also learned about themselves and how the decisions they made could have serious and unexpected consequences for their group. Some made it, others did not. Join these kids in this 83 minute-long drama as they are challenged to find the right direction, “In Pursuit of a Dream”.

Study Guide: In Pursuit of a Dream

silhouette of a young boy reading a book at sunset

Buy Now: In Pursuit of a Dream DVD

Official Site: In Pursuit of a Dream

a young girl and boy in pioneer clothing stand near stream in open landscape

Activity Books

America's westward march has been captured in OCTA's four educational Activity Books. They are appropriate for use at the middle and high school level, and parts may be adapted for use in lower levels.

Reading, Writing and Riding Along the Oregon-California Trails (An Educational Activity Book), by William E. Hill

Finding the Right Place: The Story of the Mormon Trail (An Educational Activity Book), by William E. Hill

Following Lewis and Clark's Track: The Story of the Corps of Discovery (An Educational Activity Book), by William E. Hill

Here Comes the Pony: The Story of the Pony Express (An Educational Activity Book), by William E. Hill

Lesson Plans & Units

Selecting Gear and Starting Out

detailed drawing of emigrant covered wagon

Written by Lethene Parks - This is a Pathfinder, which by definition is a guide to a specific topic; it is not designed to be a complete reference, but rather to provide some ideas to start you thinking and to give you some resources and strategies for starting your own research.

Encounters Between Native Americans and Oregon-California Trail Pioneers, Including Emigrants from Ohio

painting of group of mountain men standing with plains Indian men in a mountain landscape

Written by Cathy Sato - This is an Inquiry Lesson, which poses a question and asks students to find answers through their own reading and research, and then to share what they have learned with others, such as classmates, parents, or community members.

Who Were the Buckeye Rovers?

freight wagons pulled by many teams of mules in an open desert landscape

Written by Cathy Sato - People from every state in the Union went across the overland trails to Oregon and California. Often, their leaving, their return, letters, and other information were reported in local newspapers or later recounted in county histories.