Jennifer Knerr

Unit: People Move From Place to Place

Lesson Title: Pony Express Math
Grade: 3rd
Background Information
Students will learn about the Pony Express, the riders, and its importance in
communication through a short video and discussion. The students will also learn about
the Pony Express route and practice solving multiplication and division word problems
while working in small groups.
Expected Duration: 45 Minutes
Concepts
Communication
East to West
The Pony Express
Solving Word Problems
U.S. States
Vocabulary
route: a path that takes you from one place to another
relay: passing something on from one person to another
station: a location for getting fresh horses
Mochila: Spanish word for backpack, leather saddle bag used by the riders to
carry the mail. It had four pockets, one in each corner, for carrying mail and fit
right on top of the saddle.
Skills

Solving word problems

Identifying
Interacting effectively with others
Active Listening
Processing and describing information

1.1. Integration of Learning Outcomes

Students will describe the Pony Express and its importance in communication
Students will identify the route of the Pony Express
Students will solve word problems involving multiplication and division of whole
numbers
1.2 Standards
PA Standards
Geography 7.1.3.B: Identify and locate places and regions as defined by
physical and human features.
CC Math M03.B-O.1.2.1: Use multiplication and/or division (limit dividends
through 50 and limit divisors and quotients through 10) to solve word problems in
situations involving equal groups, arrays, and/or measurement quantities.
History 8.3.3.B: Identify and describe historical documents, artifacts, and places
critical to United States history.

NCSS
Standard 3: People, Places, and Environment
NCSS.1.3.a ...enable learners to construct, use and refine mental maps of
locales, regions, and the world that demonstrates their understanding of relative
location, direction, size, and shape;
Standard 4: Individual Development and Identity
NCSS.1.4.h ...assist learners as they work independently and
cooperatively within groups and institutions to accomplish goals;
1.3 Anticipatory Set
To start the teacher will say, Boys and girls, we just learned about Communication in the
1800s. You learned that people first depended on ships and stagecoaches for news. Then
another form of communication started, the Pony Express.
The teacher will say Today we are going to talk more about the Pony Express. As we
talked about, the Pony Express was a relay system of horse riders which was set up so
riders could carry mail to the west coast faster than ships, wagon trains, and
stagecoaches. The teacher will then show a quick video of a story from a Pony Express
rider to engage students.
1.4 Procedures
After the video, the teacher will ask the class what they found interesting about
the video. The teacher will then lead a discussion to talk more about the Pony
Express and why it was so important for communication.
After the discussion, the teacher will ask Who is ready to be a rider for the Pony
Express?
The teacher will then place the student riders in groups by counting off in fours.
The teacher will go over the activity.
o Today you will be riding the route of The Pony Express. You will each
start off in St. Joseph, Missouri and I will hand each group a word
problem to solve for that state. Each group has to correctly solve the
problem in order to make it to the next state on the trail. You will have
eight separate word problems to solve. One for each state.
o The teacher will then go over the specifics of the activity.
o In each group, each student will work to get the answer. Once the group
has decided on the correct answer, they will show the teacher.
o After confirmation of the correct answer, each group will also tell the
teacher the next state (in the correct order) of the route.
o To help identify the next state on the route, the teacher will hand out a
picture of the route of the Pony Express. The teacher will go over the
route. The route was from the east to the west, from Missouri to
California. It passed through the eight states listed on the map.
o If the students have the correct answer for the world problem and for the
next state, then I will give you the next word problem.
When your group has made it all the way to San Francisco, California I will give
each group a special message to answer.
1.5 Differentiation
For struggling students: For students who need more support, the teacher will chunk the
amount of work by having a group of struggling students complete fewer word problems.

The teacher may also modify the word problems to make them more appropriate for these
students.
For gifted students: For students who need more of a challenge, teachers can modify the
problems to make them more challenging and/or give them two problems to solve to
reach the next state.
1.6 Closure
Once the students have finished the word problems and have made it to California, each
student will get a message from the teacher. The message will ask the students to write
one interesting fact about a Pony Express rider or the Pony Express in general along with
one fact about its importance in communication. To end the lesson, the teacher will say
Boys and girls, it was so wonderful to have all of you as Pony Express riders. I enjoyed
watching you work respectfully in groups to solve word problems to ride the route of the
Pony Express. We learned so much about the route, the riders, the pay, the stations, the
costs of the messages, and all about the importance of the communication of the Pony
Express. Tomorrow we will explore why the Pony Express ended and what new form of
communication was developed!
1.7 Formative/Summative Assessment
Formative assessment: This will occur throughout the lesson through teacher observation.
The teacher will observe the students identifying the route of the Pony Express when
locating each state and naming them to the teacher during the math activity. The teacher
will also observe the students solving word problems of whole numbers when collecting
their paper with their work on it. (Learning outcome 2 and 3) The teacher will collect the
closure message which will allow the teacher to check for understanding of being able to
describe the Pony Express and its importance in communication. (Learning outcome 1)
Summative Assessment: N/A
1.8 Materials/Equipment/Resources
A. Student Materials/Reading Resources:
Anticipatory Set Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3UmYfJEoEo

Math Word Problems (Multiplication and Division)

St. Joseph, Missouri- The rider Buffalo Bill Cody changed horses
every 10 miles. How many horses does he ride to carry a message 220
miles?
Nebraska- The man who managed the Pony Express, Alexander
Majors, had 400 horses but only used half of them to run the route.
How many horses did Alexander Majors use to run the route?
Colorado- If a Pony Express rider makes $25 a week, how much
money will they make in a four weeks?
Wyoming- If a rider changes horses every 10 miles, how many horses
does a Pony Express rider need to carry a message 200 miles?

Utah- If a rider changes horses every 15 miles, how many horses does
a Pony Express rider need to carry a message 60 miles?
Nevada- It cost $2 to send a letter weighing 1 ounce to California.
How much would it cost to send a letter weighing 3 ounces?
San Francisco, California- If it took the rider Frank Webner 8 days
to deliver 1 message, how many messages could he deliver in 40
days?

Route of the Pony Express Picture:

Closure Message:

Name:
After learning more about the Pony Express, write one sentence about the most interesting fac
you learned today along with one additional sentence of how important the Pony Express was
communicating.
1

___________________________________________________________________________________________
_________

___________________________________________________________________________________________
________
2

___________________________________________________________________________________________
________

___________________________________________________________________________________________
________

Websites
o http://www2.lhric.org/pocantico/ponyexpress/ponyexpress.htm
o http://www.american-historama.org/1850-1860-secession-era/ponyexpress.htm
o http://www.nps.gov/poex/planyourvisit/placestogo.htm
o http://www.xphomestation.com/school.html

B. Teacher Materials/ Resources for Lesson Design

Information read to class in anticipatory set to help build background (The Pony
Express), and I also used this information to create my math word problemshttp://www.eduplace.com/activity/pdf/pony1.pdf

Websites for building content knowledge

o http://ponyexpress.org/history/- Website with historical timeline, Video
tour of the Pony Express National Museum, and tons of information on the
riders to share with class
o http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/ponyexpress.htm- Website with
additional information and stories that happened with riders on the trail
o http://www.historytoday.com/richard-cavendish/first-pony-expressWebsite with short article with general information and a picture of Pony
Express Stamp from 1860
o http://www2.lhric.org/pocantico/ponyexpress/april31860-1.htm- An
interactive website with an a timeline story to share with the class

1.9 Technology
A technology resource that could be used as an extension to this lesson to support student
learning would be to use a smartboard to have students create and add onto an oral story
of the Pony Express. The teacher should start the story by setting the stage, and then ask
each student in turn to add a few more details. Students should use their article/maps to
help them incorporate specific information.
Another Technology resource that could be used as an extension would be to use the
smartboard to show all of the different flyers/advertisements to sign up as a Pony Express
Rider, and then have each student make their own flyer. Teachers should ask students to
think about certain questions: What would make someone interested in taking this
important yet dangerous job? What kinds of riders would you want to hire?
2.1 Reflection on Planning
Overall, planning this lesson was fun but it took a lot of time to research information and
organize my ideas to figure out how to integrate math. Eventually as I continued to plan, I
found more useful information which helped to better organize my ideas.
A concern I have for this lesson is that the groups on students may get the math word
problems done at different times, leaving them with nothing to do. Depending on time
and how quick students get done, I should have a short extension activity set up. Another
concern I have for this lesson is that one student may be doing all the work when solving
the word problems. To fix this issue, I will have each student show their work while also
walking around observing to make sure each student is contributing.
Content Outline
1. Communication in the 1800s
a. A Telegraph helped people get information quickly
b. How does a telegraph work? A machine that sends signals by electricity

c. Who invented the telegraph? Samuel Morse helped create it

d. The Pony Express group carried the mail on horseback to people
i. Pony Express Math Lesson
ii. Anticipatory Set
1. Prior knowledge
a. Trains and telegraphs made life easier in the East
b. However, transportation and communication were
slower in the West
c. People depended on stagecoaches and ships for news
d. Then came the Pony Express
2. Introduction
a. Pony Express was a relay system of horse riders which
was set up so riders could carry mail to the west
b. The Pony Express
i. The very first rider left St. Joseph, Missouri, on
April 3, 1860.
ii. Stations where the speeding riders could stop
were about 10 to 15 miles apart
iii. At certain stations, a rider could get a fresh
horse
iv. Each rider had to ride about 75 miles before the
mail was passed on to the next rider
v. The schedule allowed eight days for a mail
pouch to be carried from Missouri to California
vi. The route was much faster than carrying
messages by ship, wagon train, or stagecoach
vii. At first it cost $5 to send a letter weighing 1/2
an ounce to California, later it cost $1 per half
ounce
viii. One of the most famous riders was Buffalo Bill
Cody
iii. Procedures
1. Pony Express Flyer
a. Wanted flyers were posted around town to hire certain
riders
b. Riders were usually lightweight young men
c. For that reason, the flyer read
i. "Wanted. Young, skinny, wiry fellows not over
18. Must be expert riders, willing to risk death
daily. Orphans preferred.
d. Most of the riders were around 20
e. Before they would be hired, they were required to
make this oath to owner, Alexander Majors
f. The Oath read
i. "While I am the employ of A. Majors, I agree
not use profane language, not to get drunk, not
to gamble, not to treat animals cruelly and not to
do anything else that is incompatible with the
conduct of a gentleman. And I agree, if I violate
any of the above conditions, to accept my
discharge without any pay for my services."
2. Route of The Pony Express/Map

a. The route was about 2,000 miles from the East to the
West
b. The route started at St. Joseph, Missouri and ended at
San Francisco, California
c. The riders passed through eight states: Missouri,
Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada,
and California