Fifth graders at Andalusia Elementary have been exploring recently.

Jessica Tucker explained that the social studies curriculum is American history, and takes students from the ancient explorers through the American Civil War.

“We have been studying what the world was like in the 1400s,” she said. “We have learned about the Renaissance, the printing press, and how Marco Polo’s book opened exploration.”

Students used an interactive program similar to a PowerPoint to learn about explorers through activities that included drawing, and responding to quizzes. They also took virtual field trips to the ancient Inca and Aztec ruins.

“The lessons are presented in story form, and it is an awesome story,” Tucker said.

Students also were assigned to work groups, and each one created a life size explorer, and prepared a presentation about the explorer.

Vasco da Gama

Reagan Stacey, Kielan Davis, Hudson Forsythe, Tyler Levitzke, and Annalyn Nguyen were assigned to research Vasco da Gama.

“He was the first to sail around Africa,” Hudson Forsythe explained.

 

Marco Polo

Hailey Gunter, Landon Butler and Cameron Powell, with help from Trevor Woods (not shown) researched Marco Polo.

“Marco Polo traveled around the world to Asia,” Cameron Powell explained, adding that he was in search of silk spices and gold. The Turks’ closing of the Silk Road made it necessary to find a route to Asia by water.

A book about his trip, “The Travels of Marco Polo,” was written based on accounts of his travels shared while he was imprisoned, and inspired further exploration, he said.

Ferdinand Magellan

Nicholas Appleyard and Xavier Hourel explored the life of Ferdinand Magellan.

“Here are some facts about Ferdinand,” Nicholas Appleyard said. “He was the first to go around the world. He left with five ships, and only one ship with 18 people made it back. He died on the trip.”

His route took him east, around the coast of South American, then through the Pacific Ocean. He died in the Phillipines, but his remaining ships went through the Indian Ocean, around the tip of Africa and back to Spain.

 

Hernan Cortes

Ashton Mitchell, Marcos Yelder, Jaqualyn Bedgood, Addison Barrow and Mariyah Lawson studied Hernan Cortes.

Cortes also used the names Hernando Cortes and Fernando Cortes, Addison Barrow explained. He discovered Baja, California, and the California Gulf was originally named the Sea of Cortes.