Lesson Plan #: CC-0067

Lesson 3: How Did the Cattle Industry Influence Life in the West? Settlers?


Objectives: The student will be able to:

1. understand what function cowboys served in western states such as Texas after the Civil War.

2. identify ways life was changing in the West.


Description of lesson/activity:

1. Students should read about the lives of cowboys in Texas. Good resources for student use are _Cowboys of the West_, by Russell Freedman;_Cowboys_, by Ubet Tomb; and _Cowboy: An Album_, by Linda Granfield. The teacher may supplement these with other available sources.

2. The teacher should lead a class discussion on the role of the cowboy in changing lifestyles in the west. The following ideas are key:

The importance of cattle for food as well as for their hides placed heavy demand for cattle all over the U.S.

Cattle needed to be driven north to the railroads for shipping.

A certain type of person (cowboy) was needed to transport the cattle to the railroads.


Resources for Lesson 3:

Freedman, Russell. Cowboys of the Wild West. (New York: Scholastic Inc,1985) (ISBN 0590475657).

Granfield, Linda. Cowboy: An Album. (New York: Ticknor and Fields,1994) (ISBN 0395684307).

Tomb, Ubet. Cowboys. (Santa Barbara, CA: Bellerophon Books, 1994) (ISBN0883881144).