Cartographic Resources at Stanford
Stanford has an exceptional collection of cartographic resources for use in scholarship. This lesson plan is designed to give you a straight-forward way of talking about the collection and why this series of maps was developed in the first place.
Before We Start
What is the Northwest Passage?
From the late 16th century, European explorers aimed to find a 'Northwest Passage', or a sailing route that would allow them to shorten the journey from the Atlantic to the Pacific by finding an open sea passage above North America. This module is designed to demonstrate the efforts made by explorers to guess where this passage may be, and to assert its existence, ultimately illustrating how uncertainty regarding the geography of this hard-to-navigate region is mapped.
Can I use this lesson plan in my classroom, or do we need to come to the David Rumsey Map Center?
This module is organised to allow instructors to teach this material in their classrooms. While we regularly welcome classes to the DRMC, we realise that visiting the center in person may not always be possible. As such, we have digital copies of all the class materials available on this site! If you need help finding maps, you can reach out to us for assistance.
How do I see a map in person at the Library?
You can request maps from the David Rumsey Map Center for viewing in the reading room. [More information on how to request maps.]
Branner Library is an open stack collection, meaning you can browse the collection in person. [More information on visiting Branner Library.]
Learning Outcomes
This module aims to:
- Inform students about the search for the Northwest Passage. (Common Core Standard Identifier: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.2)
- Encourage students to think critically about the accuracy of primary sources. (Common Core Standard Identifier: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.8)
- Prompt students to ask questions about what purpose maps have been created for, consider how explorers decided to map this uncertainty, and think about the cultural context in which they emerged. (Common Core Standard Identifier: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.6)
- Engage in intersectional forms of inquiry by combining their knowledge from different disciplines, considering others’ interpretations of material, and bringing their own independent perspectives into group discussions. (Common Core Standard Identifier: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.9)
- Increase students’ confidence in using primary sources for academic purposes (Common Core Curriculum Standard Identifier: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.7).
Introduction to the Northwest Passage
The dream of a shorter route to the lucrative markets of Asia inspired European explorers as early as the sixteenth century to look for a Northwest sailing passage to the East. They hoped to shorten the route from the Atlantic to the Pacific by finding an open sea passage above North America. Many early Europeans believed in the existence of such a strait, called the ‘Strait of Anian’, lying somewhere on the Northwest coast of America. But there was just one problem with finding the fabled entrance: no-one could survive long enough to get there. This story tells the tale of the search for the Strait of Anian and a Northwest Passage, charting the long period of speculation about the strait, inter-imperial rivalry, wishful thinking, and of course, mutiny!
Class Structure
The class is structured to combine a range of activities, group discussions, and lecture-style content. Each of the following activities are designed to teach students the lecture content in an engaging way, while also developing their abilities to think critically about primary sources.
Preparing Materials
The materials needed for this class include:
- The template of the Northwest Passage for the solo activity (Step 2)
- The Northwest Passage Slide Deck (Step 3)
- Copies of the topic cards (Step 5)
- Printed copies of the Northwest Passage map selection (Step 5)
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| 1596, Magini, Tartariae Imperium | 1802 Espinosa y Tello |
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| 1625 Briggs, The North part of America conteyning Newfoundland | 1660 Walton, A New, Plaine, and Exact Map of AMERICA |
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| 1666, Pieter Goos, Paskaerte van NOVA GRANADA | 1677, Duvall, CARTE VNIVERSELLE du MONDE |
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| 1700, Scherer, IDEA NATVRALIS AMERICÆ | 1709, Mortier, CARTE GENERALE DE TOUTES LES COSTES DU MONDE |
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| 1719, Moll, North America | 1727, Mendoza, Mappa dela Obscurasion dela Tierra Inel Eclypse de Sol |
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| 1775, Jefferys, The Russian discoveries from the map published by the Imperial Academy of St. Petersburg | 1798, Vancouver, Voyage of discovery to the North Pacific Ocean |
Lesson Plan
Step 1. Brief Introduction
When starting this module on the Northwest Passage, give students a quick overview of what the topic is about.
Aim: Here, the aim is to peak students’ interest in the topic by telling them that from about the 16th until the 18th century, explorers aimed to find a sea route connecting the Pacific Northwest to the Northeast - however, no-one knew just where this passage was. As such, many map-makers in this period made guesses as to what the Northwest really looked like!
Activity: Give students a brief description of the Pacific Northwest, and ask the class why they think explorers tried to find this passage for so long. Conclude this section by telling students that today, they will be exploring what these efforts to explore the unexplorable and map uncertainty looked like.
Step 2. Solo Activity: Drawing the Northwest
Before delving into the story of Northwest exploration, ask each student to think about what the Northwest looks like.
Aim: The aim of this activity is to get students thinking critically about what their image of the Northwest is. This works well as a solo activity, as it prompts students to think about their personal understanding of the area.
Activity: Give each student a copy of the print-out maps which are linked under the ‘Preparing Materials’ section. Ask students to take 3 minutes to try to fill in what the Northwest looks like, without using their phones or looking at maps/globes in the room! Finally, ask students to compare their maps. Use this exercise to demonstrate the difficulty in imagining and mapping geography, even today.
[Option 1: To spend more time on this activity, you can ask students to get into groups of two, compare maps, and then re-draw what they now think the Northwest looks like.]
Step 3. Lecture Content
Tell students the story of explorations of the Northwest and the search to find the Strait of Anian using the powerpoint slides above to supplement the lesson.
Aim: To inform students about the exploration of the Pacific Northwest and the search for the Strait of Anian.
Activity: Download the lecture slides (number 2 under ‘Preparing Materials’) and follow the speaker notes. Don’t feel bound by this activity - feel free to create your own presentation, adapt the slide deck, or present the story in a way you feel will be most engaging to your students. The sky is the limit!
Step 4. Group Activity: Inductive Inquiry [Optional]
Prompt students to search for primary source material.
Aim: The aim of this activity is to increase students’ comfort with using primary source materials. Specifically, it seeks to encourage students to identify potential research materials and improve their confidence in naming unusual or interesting representations and perspectives in source materials.
Activity: Break students into small groups (3-5 students), ideally with the same group members from Step 2. Using a timer, give students 3 minutes to work alone and find a map in the collection that catches their attention, looking for interesting or unexpected things on maps. If your class is in the David Rumsey Map Center, students may choose to wander around the room and identify interesting materials in-person. After 3 minutes, ask them to come back to their group to share what they have found and why it interested them.
[Note: This activity is optional, and is designed to be easily removed from the lesson plan.]
Step 5. Group Activity: Deductive Inquiry
Ask students to critically analyse pre-selected maps in the collection.
Aim: To encourage students to critically engage with primary source material.
Activity: Ask students to stand up, move around the room, and look at the wider collection of maps. This requires the instructor to print out the copies of maps and topic cards (numbers 3 and 4 in the ‘Preparing Materials’ section) and place these maps around the room in advance of the activity. Allow students to self-select groups of about 4-5 students, ideally different groups to the prior activities. Ask each group to pick a topic card (‘Preparing Materials’ number 3) and discuss the prompts. After giving students time to wander between the maps (recommend 10 minutes, but this will vary depending on the length of the lesson), choose a map you believe has had a lot of engagement and open a class-wide discussion, led by the prompts. This gives space for students to engage in ways they are comfortable with - allowing quieter students space to contribute to smaller discussions, and encouraging those who are comfortable to contribute to the class-wide discussion.
Note: If the class is held in the David Rumsey Map Center, these materials will be prepared by the center in advance of the class. The DRMC will provide the original maps for students to examine in-person at the center where possible.
Step 6. Conclusion
Reinforce the idea that stories and historical context can be identified by critically examining visual data such as maps.
Aim: Encourage students to use primary sources in future research.