1. Europeans Explore Texas

2. Raise your hand if you have been to or have heard of the amusement park called . . .

3. The amusement park pays tribute to the true six flags that have flown over Texas. Do you know what those flags are?
_____
______
______
________ of Texas
Texas in the ___________
Texas in the ______ , present

4. Let’s take a closer look at exploring
the Americas!
So… who was the first explorer in the Americas? What was he looking for? When and where did he look? Why (what motivated him)? And how did he go about finding “IT”?
Create a diagram on page 10
of your binder.
Brainstorm with your group (10 min.)
Share with class 4

5. Do you remember the last time you packed for a trip
Do you remember the last time you packed for a trip? Just packing a suitcase may not be so hard, but imagine you are mom or dad and have to organize the entire trip. Car, gas, hotel, food, etc. Depending on where you are going (camping?) you may need even more provisions. This takes some planning and organizing… and money!
Imagine… you are Christopher Columbus and you want to plan an expedition.
You want to set off into the unknown in order to find Asia. How can you best plan for this expedition?
It’s time for some more brainstorming with your group. Try to think about all the provisions needed to not only survive, but to make your voyage successful. Choose a scribe for your group to record your answers. Each group member needs to contribute at least 5 items. You have 10 minutes… then we will share and discuss answers. 5

6. ZOOM OUT ZOOM IN Replicas of Columbus’ ships
Pinta and Nina. Do you know the name of the 3rd ship?

7. Sailing with Christopher Columbus
Imagine that you have the opportunity to sail with Christopher Columbus on one of his voyages. You are sailing off into the unknown and do not know if and when you will return. Life aboard ship is hard; food and water tend to spoil, and ships often wreck in storms. Nevertheless, the promise of fame and fortune has led thousands to risk their lives at sea.
COPY ONLY THE UNDERLINED SENTENCES:
Knowing the risks as well as the potential for wealth and fame, would you sign on as a crew member for a voyage with Christopher Columbus to the unknown? Why or why not?
Write one paragraph (min. 8 complete sentences) on the back of your web. Then we will share our answers with the class. 7

8. Just the facts
The following slides will provide you with a list of significant explorers and their contributions to Texas.
So… does that mean they all came to Texas?
Pay close attention as you read about each explorer.

9. Explorer: Columbus (1492) 9 Year He Discovered the West Indies
Known for West Indies/New World
Why in Texas? He wasn’t!!!
Impact of Failure – he didn’t discover a faster Expedition route to India
Success – he opened up the “New World” to Europe
Impact Started Spanish exploration on Texas in North America (Texas) 9

10. Explorer: Cortes (1521) 10 Year He Conquered the Aztecs
Known for Mexico/Aztecs
Why in Texas? He wasn’t!!! BUT his purpose for exploring
was to get GOLD, GLORY and GOD for Spain
Impact of Expedition: Success - conquered the Aztecs and became the first “governor” of New Spain (Mexico)
Impact Inspired others to explore more
territory in North America (including Texas) 10

11. Columbus
Cortes
The two explorers that we just talked about were NEVER IN TEXAS!!!!
Pineda
De Vaca
Coronado
Moscoso
Onate
La Salle
All of the rest of the explorers WERE in Texas at some point!!! 11

12. Explorer: Pineda (1519)
Year TX History began (the year he mapped our coast)
Known for MAP
Why in Texas? The governor of Jamaica ordered Pineda to explore this new area in order to find a route to the Pacific
Impact of Expedition: Success (he mapped the coast) Failure (no route to the Pacific)
Impact on Texas 1st to observe and map the Texas Coast 12

13. Explorer: Cabeza de Vaca (1528-1536)
Years he was stranded in North America Known for SHIPWRECK
Why in Texas? Oops… it was an accident… shipwrecked (looking for GOLD in FL, Narvaez was killed)
Impact of Failure – no GOLD, no GLORY… but he did… Expedition meet the Karwankawas, Texas’ 1st explorer, st surgeon, 1st author with Relacion which recalls his years in Texas
Impact on Texas Told tales of cities of gold – led to more exploration
Click on “Prehistoric”
Choose “South Texas Plains”
Click on “Kids Activities”
Choose the “Journey with an Explorer” 13

14. Explorer: Coronado (1540-1542)
Years he explored the Great Plains PANHANDLE
Why in Texas? Looking for the 7 cities of GOLD (Quiviera & Cibola)
Impact of Expedition: Failure – No gold, no settlements
crossed the “Sea of Grass” (TX Panhandle)
Impact on Texas Told about buffalo, villages, mapped
TX LAND in the Panhandle 14

15. Hernan de Soto
Explorer: Moscoso ( )
Years he was in charge of the expedition
Known for EAST TX
Why in Texas? Hernan de Soto was looking for GOLD, when he died, Moscoso took over and took the expedition to East TX
Impact of Failure – no gold Expedition
Impact on 1st European in East TX Texas 15

16. Explorer: Onate (1598) ~ 16 Year he was exploring the El Paso area
Known for El Paso
Why in Texas? Looking for gold that Coronado had failed to find
Impact of Failure – no gold Expedition
Impact on 1st Thanksgiving in North America? Explored the El Paso Texas area and gave it the name “El Paso” 16

17. Explorer: La Salle (1685-1687) Years Fort St. Louis was in Texas
Known for French
Why in Texas? He was LOST!! Looking for the Mississippi River
Impact of Fort St. Louis (settlement) – claimed TX for the Expedition French for two years – murdered by his own crew
Impact on Made the Spanish paranoid – the Spanish got Texas more serious about settling TX and not just exploring it