You keep a journal of your daily life on the river. The Steamer Yellow-Stone, on the 19th April 1833. This work shows many examples of European goods traded with the Native Americans. Ornamental beads, colored scarves, European styled hats, and guns are a few items worn or carried by the Minatarre men greeting Maximilian and Bodmer just outside of Fort Clark. Four Bears was a great warrior who was highly respected by the Mandan people for his many war exploits.
Students can create their own journal with illustrations.
Explain to students that Maximilian was a scientific explorer who, along with Bodmer, recorded the plants, animals, and native peoples on their expedition across America. Then ask them to go outside and describe what they see, smell, and hear, recording their observations in the journal. As they write about the area, students can pretend they are from another part of the world or from another planet and they are visiting the area for the first time. Today we would use a camera, but in 1832 when Maximilian and Bodmer came to America there were no cameras. Maximilian had to rely on Bodmer's skills as an artist to accurately record what the two men saw.