In the years before 1890, people streamed into the West to settle the untamed frontier. The promise of opportunity was met with hardship. The harsh natural environment, demands of hard physical labor, and isolation of frontier life created challenges for families. Each man, woman, and child had to do his or her part if the family was to survive.

You will be assigned topics that reflect the issues surrounding the challenges faced by frontier families. Assuming the perspective of one family member, use what you have learned to write a diary entry in which you describe your daily life. To prepare for your diary entry, you will research the environmental, social, economic, and living conditions that characterized life on the frontier.

Look at the photograph below. Answer the following questions on a separate sheet of paper.

Custer County, Nebraska, 1892: A frontier family is shown in their dugout house. Built into an embankment, its front wall was made of layers of sod.

• Why might settlers have built this type of house? What advantages or challenges might this have presented?
• What does this tell you about the specific challenges faced by frontier families?

Use the Daily Life through History articles listed on the right to research the experiences of settlers on the frontier. Examine the Timeline. As you read, keep your topic and point of view in mind. Remember that your narrative will have to include specific details about frontier life and the roles of family members. Along with your diary entry, you may wish to include pieces of dialogue, songs, or sketches that illustrate your subject.

Use the Concept Map to organize your information. In the center oval, write your topic, such as daily life of children. In the radiating ovals, write related aspects, such as chores and work.

Remember to use first-person point of view for your diary entry. Include facts and sensory details that evoke the hardships of frontier life, including information about climate and geography, social relationships, and physical labor.

Your teacher may ask you to read your diary entry to the class.

Your teacher will use these questions to assess your performance:

• Did your diary entry include specific facts and historical details from the research?
• Did you use first-person point of view, incorporating the experiences of one specific character?
• Did you use elements of setting, as well as sensory details?