Interpret, synthesize, and analyze what you are seeing on the map

Specifically for this assignment we will use an interactive map of westward expansion from 1860 to 1890. You can access it at this URL: http://www.pbslearningmedia.org/asset/akh10_int_expansion/  (The interactive map will often not work with Google Chrome). Once you have the map open, click on the boxes for Major Cities, Railroad Networks, Improved Agricultural Land, and States and Territories. At the bottom of the map, you will notice the decades 1860, 1870, 1880, and 1890. Click on each of these decades in succession and you will see the ways in which the country changed.

You will make a well-organized argument, support that through research, and then write a conclusion for your findings.

Analysis is the process whereby the researcher separates something into its component parts. In an analytical essay, the writer examines a subject relative to its own terms, and explains the problem by studying the individual parts. In contrast, synthesis requires that the researcher examine individual unrelated parts in an effort to discover something new. A good essay will utilize both analysis and synthesis. Instead of examining the simple facts of a problem, the writer will go beyond the obvious, making connections between different pieces of evidence to discover something new.