Lewis and Clark

Manage an expedition across the North American continent and collect information about the inhabitants and nature.

Short description

The Lewis and Clark Expedition, which was commissioned in 1803 and ended in 1806, was the first party of men that went through the North American continent, then returned. During these three years, the leaders Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, along with Sergeant Gass and Sergeant Ordway, wrote page after page about their trip, describing the new plants and animals species they discovered and drawing the maps of unknown areas.

In Discoveries, you play one of the Expedition members: Lewis, Clark, Gass or Ordway. Your goal is to compile as much knowledge as possible in your journal, and in this way advance science thanks to your discoveries. (Source: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/171669/discoveries-the-journals-of-lewis-and-clark)

Educational Value

• In the rulebook you’ll find the instructions of president Jefferson and you’ll find parts of the journals of the expedition members.
• There is information about the four best known expedition leaders.
• Each cards of an American Indian tribe has the name of the tribe on it.

Recommendation for use

This game can be played both as a regular board game and deployed as a historical lesson. The game has a game mechanic that players must first learn. Take time for that and discuss the historical component later.

You can use the American Indian tribes cards separately to talk about this topic. You can also use the texts from the explorers’ accounts as a starting point for your lesson.