This book is different then others I have read. For the format is in Diary setting. Though I understood the story behind it. This was great read. It told more of the history of the Trail. It about a girl that goes though the some hardships and adjustments.

Florrie and her family travel from Arrow Rock, Missouri to Santa Fe, New Mexico. Florrie and her brother Jem need to adjust to having a stepfather named Mr. Ryder. You learn a lot about the daily life of being on the Santa Fe Trail back in 1848.

Most of this dairy tell you the History of America during that time. Most of the dairy is down on the trail of The Santa Fe Trail. Though that like to learn about America History, this is good for young readers. ( )

This entire series is a wonderful way to learn history or teach it to adolescents. I find today's generations seem to recall more when they learn through other people (pop songs, celebrity gossip, etc.), so what better way to teach history than through someone else's perspective? Yes, "authentic" diaries would be "better", but would the language really hold the modern student's attention? Did the diary writer know what WOULD be important in the context of history? Probably not. ( )

This book is different then others I have read. For the format is in Diary setting. Though I understood the story behind it. This was great read. It told more of the history of the Trail. It about a girl that goes though the some hardships and adjustments.

Florrie and her family travel from Arrow Rock, Missouri to Santa Fe, New Mexico. Florrie and her brother Jem need to adjust to having a stepfather named Mr. Ryder. You learn a lot about the daily life of being on the Santa Fe Trail back in 1848.

Most of this dairy tell you the History of America during that time. Most of the dairy is down on the trail of The Santa Fe Trail. Though that like to learn about America History, this is good for young readers. ( )

This is the story of Florrie Mack Ryder and her jouney along the Santa Fe Trail in 1848. Her family left Missouri to travel to Santa Fe, New Mexico, in a covered wagon. This book is written as her journal. She tells of the hardships they face crossing rivers, going over mountains, and seeing Indians.
I enjoyed reading about Florrie and her family in their covered wagon adventure. My daughter has all of the Dear America books. She loved them when she was in the fourth through sixth grades.These books will have a special place on my future classroom bookcase.I think the students would love reading about children their own age and what life was like for them growing up.
In the classroom, I would have the students make a list of things they would put in their wagon for their trip to a new place. Then I would have them pick one special thing that they could carry with them and write down why that is what they would take. They would then get up in front of the class and tell us about it. ( )

Twelve-year-old Florrie barely remembers her father, who died when she was very young. Now her mother has remarried, and Florrie's new stepfather, who is a trader, has decided to take his new family to Santa Fe, where he is part owner of a store. Florrie begins her diary as she, her younger brother, mother, and stepfather set out from Missouri on the Santa Fe trail. She describes the hardships they face crossing rivers, mountains, and deserts, but also the joys, as she makes new friends and experiences the wonders of the beautiful wilderness. This wasn't one of the very best Dear America books, but it was still very good, and a solid addition to the series. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys the series. I particularly enjoyed that it covered a subject not written about that much in historical fiction. ( )