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Anasazi Basket Weaving
The Anasazi Indians of Mesa Verde are the focus of this art and social studies lesson. Working in pairs or groups of three, students utilize computers and go online to search for websites about the Anasazi. Students will choose two or...
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Buffalo-Hide Parfleche
Students research historic and contemporary information about the cultures of Native American Plains Indians such as Sioux or Blackfoot. They investigate patterns used on parfleches or rawhide. They choose a pattern to duplicate. They...
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Writing Exercise: The Encounter and Columbian Exchange
Examine the effects and interrelationships that came about because of the Columbian Exchange. Learners answer three short essay questions to improve their expository writing skills and understanding of early globalization.
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Elders Predict Snow
Students interview Native Indians to learn their ways for predicting and measuring snowfall. For this weather measurement lesson, students invite a Native Elder to their classroom to tell them about how they predicted weather. Students...
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History & Civics Lesson for Grades 5-7
Students become aware of the culture, lifestyles and attitudes of Native American kids living on the Crow, Navajo and Nez Perce; reservations.
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What's in a name?
Young scholars learn the history of their name, and create a biopoem. Students learn the pronunciation of native language names, cultural identify and pride in home language and culture.
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Comparative Folktales
Students analyze Mongolian and Native American folktales and compare the two types. They discuss the importance of storytelling in nomadic cultures and read a story in small groups. Following the story, they answer questions and...
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Reader Response: Keith Gilyard and Mourning Dove
Students respond to Mourning Dove's Coyote Stories by discovering Native American storytelling. They create a traditional lodge and write their own stories.
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Could You Make an Oak Basket?
Middle schoolers listen to an interview with Lucreaty Clark, a White Oak Native American basket maker. They analyze the interview and record their observations on a worksheet. Students consider information that can be gleaned from an...
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Black Hawk and the Black Hawk Trail
Fourth graders investigate the American Indian tribe of Black Hawk and its trail. They use computers and a variety of technology resources to find information and put together a multimedia presentation. The end result is a storyboard...
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Alaska Natives and Health
Students explore the Maniilaq web site to explore how one organization in Alaska has created a health care system following the 1975 American Indian Self-Determination Act.
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Cinderella Trilogy
Young scholars look at three different versions of the Cinderella story. In this comparative literature lesson plan, students read the Chinese version "Yeh-Shen", the Egyptian version "Rhodopis," and the Native American version "The...
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Mapping Colonial New England: Looking at the Landscape of New England
Students understand the similarities and differences between English and Native American conceptions of the land and town settlement. They understand how the colony of Massachusetts developed and expanded. Students understand the...
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Migration and Immigration in the United States: Three Case Studies
Students examine the early migration of Native Americans, African Americans, and the British Colonists. They conduct Internet research, complete a timeline, label maps, compare/contrast the three groups' experiences, and write an essay.
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Tapokadooa: How the Dawes Act Affected Northern Paiute Children's Lives
Young scholars investigate the Dawes Act and understand its effects on the Paiute Indians. In this Paiute lesson, students recognize that many Native Americans lost their land and money after the Dawes Act. Young scholars dissect a...
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Inference By Analogy
Students infer the use or meaning of items recovered from a North Carolina Native American site based on 17th-century European settlers' accounts and illustration.
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Emotion Masks
Students analyze and discuss masks of different cultures as an art form to evoke emotion. This lesson culminates in the creation of individual mask designs and self-directed assessment (included).
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Exploring Pottery Techniques
Students examine Native American pottery. In this visual arts instructional activity, students analyze burnished and glazed clay pots. Students study how to create pots from online sources and respond to questions about the process....
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Mosaic America on Film: Fact Versus Fiction
Seventh graders define race, ethnic group, and culture. They identify the ways in which words are used in political cartoons and examine the way visual elements in a cartoon determine the meaning of words and enhance their impact. They...
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To Your Health
Young scholars focus on how storks and other cultural icons, in both Bulgarian and American customs, are believed to encourage and bring good health. They list three natural phenomena in their region prominently associated with the...
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Talking Rocks
Third graders explain the difference between Petroglyphs and Pictographs from Ancient Native American peoples. They create symbols that are representative of a story about their world.
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Traditional Tribal Homelands of Washington's Plateau Nations
Students investigate the Plateau tribes. In this Native American activity, students use a political map of Washington state to identify the location of the Plateau tribes. Students brainstorm the needs and wants of the tribes and use an...
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The Early Peoples
Students, after studying The Early Peoples, explain and give examples of how Native Americans and Europeans adapted to living in certain environments. They give examples of early cultures and settlements that existed in North America...
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Gathering, Traditions, and Nutrition of Our Food
Students gain a better understanding of what it means to eat seasonally through learning about traditional hunting, gathering, and food preparation methods of Athabascan tribes. By interacting with Native American Elders and...