This lesson introduces students to the concept of wilderness and the role that wilderness preservation has played throughout American history. Students will conduct research on different historical wilderness issues or events and analyze those events in the context of the political and cultural climate of that particular time.

Geography, environmental studies, American history, literature, writing

Standard 6: "How culture and experience influence people's perceptions of places and regions"
Standard 13: "How the forces of cooperation and conflict among people influence the division and control of Earth's surface"
Standard 14: "How human actions modify the physical environment"
Standard 18: "How to apply geography to interpret the present and plan for the future"

Three to four hours (plus homework)

• Computer with Internet access
• Overhead projector (optional)
• Poster board for "AGREE/DISAGREE" signs

Students will

• define wilderness;
• communicate varying opinions on the preservation of wilderness;
• describe key players and events in the history of wilderness preservation;
• research and analyze one historical wilderness issue or event; and
• design a newspaper from the year of their assigned wilderness event, linking it to politics, culture, and other historical events.

Begin by asking students to list words or phrases that come to their mind when they hear the word "wilderness." Divide the students into small groups and give each group a different quotation about wilderness. Ask each group to take a few minutes to discuss their quotation, trying to determine the author's perspective on wilderness. How might the author define wilderness? Does the author think preserving wilderness is important?

After each group has discussed its own quotation, conduct an Agree/Disagree activity with the whole class. Place a sign that says AGREE on one side of the room and another that says DISAGREE on the other side of the room. Have the groups read their statements or quotations about wilderness and have the rest of the students move to the place in the room that best represents their own opinion on the statement. A student who strongly agrees with a statement should walk all the way to the AGREE side, a more neutral student should stay in the middle of the room, and so on. Allow a few minutes of discussion on some of the quotations. As students' opinions change throughout the discussion, they should move toward the appropriate spot in the room.

Discuss the different ways that wilderness was represented in these quotations. What are reasons for such different perspectives on wilderness? (Answers may include the time period, the different values of the author, or the context in which it was said.) Explain that throughout American history, wilderness has meant different things to different people; there have been debates about what it is and what, if anything, should be "done" with it. Explain that each group will each research a particular moment in the history of wilderness preservation and analyze the different perspectives on the wilderness represented in the debate.

Before giving the assignment, go over some background information on wilderness. Hand out or use an overhead to display the Definition of Wilderness section of the 1964 Wilderness Act. Explain that the legal definition of wilderness is based on this law, which sets aside portions of public lands to be preserved and protected from development. Have students explore facts about wilderness and a wilderness management timeline. Briefly discuss the basics of wilderness designation.

Divide the students into small groups, providing each with one of the following newspaper headlines and its corresponding year:

• New York Voters' Approval of New Constitution Preserves Adirondack Park as "Forever Wild," 1894
• Despite Protests from Wilderness Supporters, President Wilson Signs Law Allowing a Dam to Flood Yosemite's Hetch Hetchy Valley, 1913
• Conservation Leaders Establish New Organization called The Wilderness Society; Forester Bob Marshall Takes Command, 1935
• Sierra Club Director, David Brower, Leads Successful Opposition to Development at Dinosaur National Monument, 1955
• President Lyndon Johnson Signs Landmark Wilderness Legislation, 1964
• President Carter Signs Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA), Adding 56 Million Acres to the National Wilderness Preservation System, 1980
• California Desert Protection Act Brings the National Wilderness Preservation System Up to 104.7 Million Acres, 1994

Have each group of students create a newspaper or front page of a newspaper that includes their assigned headline. They should research other events that took place during that year and can include in their paper other news stories, editorials, advertisements, cartoons, and so on—as long as they are all historically accurate. The article corresponding to their assigned headline should be an analysis of that wilderness event that

• provides basic factual information about the event or issue;
• describes any debate that led to this event, including the main arguments of those supporting this action and those opposing it;
• links the event to other events occurring in the United States at the time; and
• explains what, if any, influence the current political climate had on their wilderness event.

Have each group give an oral presentation about its newspaper to the rest of the class. One option is to present a skit in which a group of people or a family reads their newspaper and discusses the day's news with each other. They could also present a news "broadcast" that highlights the day's events.

Give the students copies of all of the groups' newspapers. Using the newspapers as the main resource, have each student write an essay on historical trends in wilderness preservation and on how wilderness preservation has been linked to other events and political issues throughout American history.

• Have students research the current debate about drilling for oil in the Artic National Wildlife Refuge. As a class, make predictions about how this issue will be resolved in the future, and then have the students design a newspaper front page covering this story for a day in the year 2007.
  
  
• Have the students imagine that Congress has proposed a new holiday to honor or commemorate American wilderness. Working in small groups, students can decide what the holiday should be like. Should it be a happy celebration? A somber memorial? How should the history of American wilderness be represented? Each group should submit its design proposal, including sketches, maps, or whatever it needs to make its proposal compelling.

National Geographic: Xpeditions Activity—Take Action! Steward Our Land
Texins Outdoor Club
The Wilderness Society
Wilderness Information Network