Comparing the Experience of Indigenous Peoples in the Eastern Woodlands with Tribes on the Plains as Europeans Invaded and Colonized These Regions

Lesson Plan Outline

Introduction:  During the course of this unit students will receive instruction in and practice taking notes, summarizing, comparing and contrasting, and working together in cooperative learning groups. Students will also have numerous opportunities to represent the subject matter using multiliteracies (i.e. not just through reading and writing).

  • Monday   
    1. Entry questions:
      • Define culture.
      • Why and how should we respect other cultures?
      • What cultures in the United States existed before, during, and after the time of European exploration and colonization of this hemisphere?
    2. KWLH Activity Sheet
    3. Teacher Led Discussion with a PPT on Native American Cultures
    4. Video:  Eastern Woodlands, People of the Forest
    5. Vocabulary sheet
  • Tuesday
    1. Cooperative Student Groups for Research.  (Compare & Contrast)
    2. Use Research Listings to complete the following topics by accessing Internet sites:
  • Wednesday
    1. Continuation of Cooperative Student Groups for Research.  (Compare & Contrast)
    2. Use Research Listings (see the document called “Native American Research Activity Sheet”)to complete the following topics by accessing Internet sites:
  • Thursday 
    1. Completion of Student Research:  ( Compare & Contrast)
  • Friday 
    1. Students will critique photography/art about Native Americans. Photograph and Art Analysis Sheet We will look at representations of Native peoples made by Bodmer, Catlin, and other material found in the National Archives under the theme of Native American heritage.
    2. Students will visit websites provided and complete an activity sheet.
  • Monday
    1. Students will study Native American Tribal Maps.  (Original lands vs where they are today). Map Activity 
  • Tuesday

Teacher has the option of designing and administering an assessment.

 

This Unit Meets the Following Common Core Goals and Standards: 

  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.1
    Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.2
    Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.4
    Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including vocabulary specific to domains related to history/social studies.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.6
    Identify aspects of a text that reveal an author’s point of view or purpose (e.g., loaded language, inclusion or avoidance of particular facts)
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.7
    Integrate visual information (e.g., in charts, graphs, photographs, videos, or maps) with other information in print and digital texts.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.8
    Distinguish among fact, opinion, and reasoned judgment in a text.

Standards:

Standard 1: Demonstrate an understanding of the development of South Carolina during the settlement and colonization of North America in the period of 1500– 1756.

  • 8.1.CO Compare the three British North American colonial regions economically, politically, socially, and in regard to labor development. This indicator was developed to encourage inquiry into how the three British colonial regions developed in terms of their culture, economies, geography, and labor. The indicator was also developed to encourage inquiry into the unique story of the development of South Carolina.
  • 8.1.CC Analyze the changes and continuities of the Native Americans’ experiences prior to and as a result of settlement and colonization. This indicator was developed to encourage inquiry into Native American civilizations and cultures prior to European contact and their interactions with Europeans during the period of settlement and colonization, including their efforts to preserve their cultures.

Standard 3: Demonstrate an understanding of conflict and compromise in South Carolina, the Southern region, and the United States as a result of sectionalism between the period 1816–1865.

  • 8.3.CO Compare the debates between South Carolina and the federal government regarding slavery, federalism, and the Constitution. This indicator was developed to encourage inquiry into the debates, heightened by Westward Expansion, over federal and state power concerning slavery, and the government’s role in protecting and securing natural rights.
  • 8.3.CX Evaluate the economic significance of agriculture on South Carolina, the U.S., and the world. This indicator was designed to encourage inquiry into the economic implications of the expansion of the rice and cotton industries. This indicator was also developed to promote inquiry into Westward Expansion, the mutually beneficial impact of cotton on Northern factories and Southern plantations, and the emerging national and international markets.
  • 8.3.CC Analyze debates and efforts to recognize the natural rights of marginalized groups during the period of expansion and sectionalism. This indicator was designed to encourage inquiry into the continuities and changes of the experiences of marginalized groups such as African Americans, Native Americans and women, as the U.S. expanded westward and grappled with the development of new states.

Standard 4: Demonstrate an understanding of South Carolina’s role in and response to the dynamic economic, political, and social developments in the United States and around the world during the period 1862–1929.

  • 8.4.CX Evaluate South Carolinians’ struggle to create an understanding of their post-Civil War position within the state, the country, and the world. This indicator was developed to encourage inquiry into how the former planter class, African Americans, women, and others adjusted to, gained, lost, and/or regained position and status during Reconstruction. This indicator was also written to foster inquiry into how South Carolina worked with a stronger federal government and expanding international markets.
  • 8.4.E Utilize a variety of primary and secondary sources to analyze multiple perspectives of the challenges and changes within South Carolina and the nation that allowed the U.S. to emerge as a global power during the time period 1862–1929.

Standard 5: Demonstrate an understanding of the impact of world events on South Carolina and the United States from 1929 to present.

  • 8.5.CC Analyze the continuities and changes in South Carolina’s identity resulting from the civic participation of different individuals and groups of South Carolinians. This indicator was developed to encourage inquiry into civic engagement, such as military service, public demonstrations, and political activism, to shape the identity of modern South Carolina. This indicator was also written to encourage inquiry into South Carolinians’ use of the court system and legislation to affect South Carolina’s post-World War II identity.

Enduring Understandings Relating to South Carolina’s History:

  • Essential Question: How and why did the Native American population inhabit the land and survive in South Carolina?
  • Enduring Understanding:  The Carolina colony was composed of indigenous, immigrant, and enslaved populations. Various factors across North America and the Carolina colony facilitated the eventual emergence of an American national identity. Throughout this time period, Native peoples and colonists interacted, oftentimes presenting a disadvantage for the tribes. The Catawba and Cherokee tribes, each unique in their cultural practices, experienced change with the foundation of British colonies, which encroached upon native-held land. Trade between the tribes and European settlers provided some benefits initially but became a tool of power as the presence of settlers increased and Native peoples became dependent on European goods. The Yamasee War, as well as the increase in the importation of Africans, minimized the need for colonial and Native cooperation and the enslavement of indigenous people. Increased tensions, including concepts of land ownership, unfair trade practices, and enslavement of the Native population were some of the causes of this war. Ultimately, the growing conflicts diminished the perceived usefulness of the Native population, which led to increased warfare to take control of Native-held territories.
  • Enduring Understanding: As the nation expanded, regional differences were exacerbated creating sectionalism threatening South Carolina’s identity and American unity. South Carolina struggled to maintain its unique culture and economy throughout the Reconstruction Era.
  • Enduring Understanding: Beginning with Reconstruction, South Carolina searched for ways to revitalize its economy and determine the social and political status of its population. Later in the period, South Carolina both contributed to World War I and grappled with economic depression.
  • Enduring Understanding: As a result of new perspectives on national security following World War I, South Carolina continues to benefit from and contribute to national and global communities. Additionally, civic participation and social change altered South Carolina’s social standing and political alignment.
  • Enduring Understanding: The Lewis and Clark expedition traveled through the entirety of the Louisiana Territory. It came in contact with many Native American peoples such as the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nations. Lewis and Clark traveled to the Pacific Ocean but their observations of the Native Americans Nations were an important value in information gathering. One focal point of their travels was that of how they successfully interacted with the Native Americans living on the Plains.
  • Enduring Understanding: When Thomas Jefferson purchased the Louisiana Territory, the United States doubled in size. Jefferson selected Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to explore the territory. They were actually a military auxiliary (Corps of Discovery) sent to observe Native Americans who occupied the territory, especially Native Americans in the Plains.

Enduring Understandings about Plains Indians’ Experiences with Colonization:

  • Enduring Understanding: The Lewis and Clark expedition traveled through the entirety of the Louisiana Territory. It came in contact with many Native American peoples such as the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nations. Lewis and Clark traveled to the Pacific Ocean and back to the East. Their observations of the Native Americans nations held an important value in information gathering requested by the President of the United States, who had a clear intention about westward expansion. One focal point of their travels was that of how they successfully interacted with the Native Americans living on the Plains.
  • Enduring Understanding: When Thomas Jefferson purchased the Louisiana Territory, the United States doubled in size. Jefferson selected Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to explore the territory. They were actually a military auxiliary (Corps of Discovery) sent to observe Native Americans who occupied the territory, especially Native Americans in the Plains. They were prepared for war, but fortunately no war broke out.  On the contrary, many tribes contributed to their survival over the harsh winters. Still, the information this expedition provided about the peoples and the lay of the land, paved the way for the massive emigration into the region by Europeans and Americans from the Eastern Seaboard, and many wars would result from that invasion and lasting occupation in territories occupied by peoples who did not recognize the legality of the Louisiana Purchase.

Entry Questions

  1. What cultures existed during the time of the Lewis and Clark’s Expedition (1804–1806) to the West Coast?
  2. How did Native American nations on the Plains affect the Lewis and Clark expedition?
  3. How were these cultures on the Plains affected by the Lewis and Clark expedition?

Learning Objectives

The student will…

  1. Identify the local Native American tribes of South Carolina.
  2. Compare and contrast South Carolina tribal nations with tribes on the Plains.
  3. Analyze primary and secondary sources (art forms, political, social, and economic materials) pertaining to Native American tribes.
  4. Understand the extent of  tribal lands prior to European exploration and colonization.
  5. Compare and contrast South Carolina tribes and Plains Indians with regard to how they fared with colonization.
  • Enduring Understanding:  Native Americans living on the Great Plains were semi-sedentary, moving around within a well-recognized territory. They depended on the buffalo as a principal food source (and some had agriculture). They built teepees out of buffalo hides and utilized every part of the buffalo including waste material (buffalo chips). They adapted to the harsh lifestyle of the Plains. Native Americans in the Eastern Woodlands region developed an entirely different lifestyle. They built wigwams out of tree bark and deerskins. They made permanent settlements along water sources, rivers, lakes, and ocean. They had a more diverse selection of natural resources to use for their survival. However, these two diverse groups of Native Americans had similar outcomes when Europeans invaded their territories. The Cherokees had the Trail of Tears and the tribal nations of the Great Plains fought the U.S. Cavalry with devastating results. In a sense, the first wave of Europeans engulfed the East Coast of what is now the United States. The next phase of engulfment, called “Western Expansion,” pushed the Native Americans to the peripheries (or even farther off) of their original territories and confined them to Reservations. In a sense, the Louisiana Purchase cost the United States only $15 million dollars but to the Native Americans in that territory, it cost them so much more that was held very dear (culture, loss of identity, and ancestral homeland), even if these culture groups still exist and are recuperating.

Materials & Resources

  • Student-Designed Graphic Organizer, Characteristics of Native American Tribes
  • Map of Tribal Lands prior to European exploration and colonization
  • Teacher-developed worksheets when appropriate
  • PowerPoint slide presentation(s)
  • Various video resources
  • Timeline

Differentiated Instruction for Diverse Students

All units will be developed according to the principles of diversity and learning. Teachers will design activities that are appropriate for students that have IEPs, 504 plans, as well as the general student population.  Teachers will maintain student portfolios within the classroom to measure the effectiveness of student learning. General education teachers will also meet with special education teachers when necessary.  Differentiated texts will be used in the classroom and all units.

Summative Assessment of Learning Outcomes

  • Informal Assessment will be addressed in reteach/review activities.
  • Other Assessments will be teacher-developed.

Closure: 

Whenever we become aware of how others live and interact with their environment, we can appreciate the many things that other groups have to offer to humanity. We can learn and grow from what we discover about others who are different from ourselves. The more you interact with different cultural groups, the more you value and respect them. Learning about the culture of others can be the cornerstone that ushers in peace and wellbeing to all involved.