Considered one of the greatest technological achievements of the nineteenth century, the First Transcontinental Railroad joined together the eastern and western halves of the United States.  The WiloStar3D virtual world Transcontinental Railroad homeschooling unit  is based on the following pieces of literature: Death of the Iron Horse, The Transcontinental Railroad.

In this unit students will:

• read an overview of the history of First Transcontinental Railroad
• read a short biography of Theodore Judah
• learn about the four famous men that financed the project
• recreate a 3D virtual world based on the route of the transcontinental lines by the 1880’s
• explore the “Golden Spike”
•  look at an early train schedule, hear first-hand accounts of the work and first trip across country,
• create a 3D interactive account of the railroad
• create a 3D virtual world game called  the “Great Railroad Race” and work on a variety of railroad related projects.