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Daniel Boone was the first settler of Kentucky. He knew all about living in the woods. He knew how to hunt the wild animals. He knew how to fight Indians, and how to get away from them.

Nearly all the men that came with him to Kentucky the first time were killed. One was eaten by wolves. Some of them were killed by Indians. Some of them went into the woods and never came back. Nobody knows what killed them.

Only Boone and his brother were left alive. They needed some powder and some bullets. They wanted some horses. Boone's brother went back across the mountains to get these things. Boone stayed in his little cabin all alone.

Once a mother bear tried to kill him. He fired his gun at her, but the bullet did not kill her. The bear ran at him. He held his long knife out in his hand. The bear ran against it and was killed.

He made long journeys alone in the woods. One day he looked back through the trees and saw four Indians. They were following Boone's tracks. They did not see him. He turned this way and that. But the Indians still followed his tracks.

He went over a little hill. Here he found a wild grapevine. It was a very long vine, reaching to the top of a high tree. There are many such vines in the Southern woods. Children cut such vines off near the roots. Then they use them for swings.

Boone had swung on grapevines when he was a boy. He now thought of a way to break his tracks. He cut the wild grapevine off near the root. Then he took hold of it. He sprang out into the air with all his might. The great swing carried him far out as it swung. Then he let go. He fell to the ground, and then he ran away in a different direction from that in which he had been going.

When the Indians came to the place, they could not find his tracks. They could not tell which way he had gone. He got to his cabin in safety.

Boone had now been alone for many months. His brother did not get back at the time he had set for coming. Boone thought that his brother might have been killed. Boone had not tasted anything but meat since he left home. He had to get his food by shooting animals in the woods. By this time, he had hardly any powder or bullets left.

One evening he sat by his cabin. He heard someone coming. He thought that it might be Indians. He heard the steps of horses. He looked through the trees. He saw his brother riding on one horse, and leading another. The other horse was loaded with powder and bullets and clothes, and other things that Boone needed.

Directions

Study the lesson for one week.

Over the week:

  • Read the story multiple times.
  • Review the synopsis.
  • Study the vocabulary words.
  • Learn the concepts.
  • Complete the enrichment activities.
  • Study the review questions.

Synopsis

Daniel Boone, the first settler of Kentucky, knew how to hunt and how to fight. His brother left Boone alone in a cabin in the wilderness to buy bullets, gunpowder, and other supplies. One day, as Boone walked through the woods, he noticed four American Indians tracking him. To evade the Indians, Boone devised a way to stop making tracks. He cut a wild grape-vine and swung through the air on it. When he landed on the ground, he went in a new direction. The Indians could not tell where he had gone. Boone had been alone for many months and was running out of bullets and powder. He had nothing to eat but meat. His brother returned, bringing two horses, bullets, gunpowder, clothes, and other supplies.

Vocabulary

Kentucky: A state in the eastern south-central region of the United States
Gunpowder: An explosive that used to be used to fire bullets from guns.
Bullet: A metal projectile fired from a gun.
Cabin: A small shelter or house, made of wood and situated in a wild or remote area.
Grapevine: A plant with very long, woody stems that often bears fruit (grapes).

Concepts

In the story, Boone is tracked by American Indians.

Tracks are like clues showing where someone went.

  1. People leave tracks, which are typically footprints, wherever they go.
  2. People leave tracks outside in dirt, sand, gravel, pine needles, snow, and even on linoleum, carpet, concrete, or hardwood in a house.
  3. People sometimes leave tracks when climbing over logs or big rocks.
  4. When tracking someone, trackers also look for broken branches or other signs someone has passed through.

Enrichment

Activity 1: Narrate the Story

  • After reading or listening to the story, narrate the story events aloud using your own words.

Activity 2: Color the Story   

  • Click the crayon above, and complete page 28 of 'History Coloring Pages for First Grade.'

Activity 3: Model the Story

Make your own tracks.

  • Get a plastic garbage bag, a large sheet of paper, a large paintbrush, and some washable tempura paint.
  • Have your instructor cut the plastic garbage bag open and lay it down to protect the floor from paint.
  • Put the paper, the paints, and paintbrush on the plastic.
  • Remove one shoe and sock.
  • Put the paper, the paints, and paintbrush on the plastic.
  • Use the paintbrush to apply paint to your foot.
  • Make a footprint on the paper. You have made a track like Boone in the woods. Make more footprints on paper if you wish.

Activity 4: Study the Story Picture

  • Study the picture below of Daniel Boone.
  • What is Daniel Boone doing in the picture? (Swinging on a grapevine.)
  • What is Daniel Boone holding? (A gun.)
  • What is tucked inside Boone's belt? (A knife.)

Activity 5: Map the Story

  • Daniel Boone was the first settler of Kentucky (KY). Zoom in to find the state on the map below.

Review

Question 1

How did Boone survive in the wilderness?
1 / 3

Answer 1

He knew how to hunt and fight. He hunted animals for food.
1 / 3

Question 2

How did the American Indians follow Boone?
2 / 3

Answer 2

They followed Boone's tracks.
2 / 3

Question 3

How did Boone stop making tracks long enough to keep the Indians from following him?
3 / 3

Answer 3

He swung on a grape vine to stop making tracks. When he landed, he changed his direction.
3 / 3

  1. How did Boone survive in the wilderness? He knew how to hunt and fight. He hunted animals for food.
  2. How did the American Indians follow Boone? They followed Boone's tracks.
  3. How did Boone stop making tracks long enough to keep the Indians from following him? He swung on a grape vine to stop making tracks. When he landed, he changed his direction.

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