Corn played an important role in the settling of America. It was a lifesaver to the colonists. Let's cook three delicious recipes with this important grain.
Do you have the honor of teaching your students about the Native American Nations? It's always one of my students' favorite social studies units. Along with the honor of teaching students about indigenous people also comes a great responsibility. It's very important as educators that we are always in touch with our bias and misconceptions about different cultures when we plan and teach. In this post we will discuss what and how I teach about indigenous people of the United States. Here are a few things to consider while lesson planning: 1. Use terms like indigenous people, First Americans, Native Americans. 2. Indigenous people span a large variety of nations and areas. Discuss and explain to students that they are all vastly different and cannot be grouped together. 3. DON'T dress your students up! It's not o.k. and we should all know better by now. 4. Don't speak of Native Americans in exclusively past tense form. We always discuss our local communities and some examples of how Native Americans in the area currently live. If we have any families in the class that come from the culture of topic, they are invited in to teach us about their culture. This is a practice we use when learning about all cultures. First American nations are vastly different and diverse. Due to this, my Native American Unit is my longest social studies unit of the year. We touch on this unit during Thanksgiving when we read and learn about the true story of Thanksgiving. We discuss this during our immigration unit when we learn who the first immigrants to the United States were and we have a month long unit in the spring when we learn about some of the different regions of indigenous nations. In order to fit this unit into our packed schedule, we align the unit to our reading and writing standards. I live in Florida which has adapted common core standards. For shared reading we spend about two weeks reading about some of the different North American regions. I align the lessons to these standards: STANDARDS CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.2.1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.2.2 Identify the main topic of a multiparagraph text as well as the focus of specific paragraphs within the text. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.2.3 Describe the connection between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text. In writing we spend an entire month creating informative pieces. I align the lessons to these standards: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.2 Write informative/explanatory texts in which they introduce a topic, use facts and definitions to develop points, and provide a concluding statement or section. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.5 With guidance and support from adults and peers, focus on a topic and strengthen writing as needed by revising and editing. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.7 Participate in shared research and writing projects (e.g., read a number of books on a single topic to produce a report; record science observations). The main regions that we focus on are: REGIONS 1. Northwest 2. Northeast (Eastern Woodlands) 3. Southwest 4. Southeast 5. Plains We discuss the areas and the natural resources that each habitat had to offer the people who lived in the region. We learn the names of different groups who resided in the area. We also learn about one nation from the region. While learning about the natural resources we focus on these: AREAS TO COVER 1. Food 2. Clothing 3. Shelter 4. Practices 5. Art While reading and writing, students gather information in order to answer writing prompts that I've given them so that they can compose a book from the region of their choice. In the book, all on level and above level students write 7 paragraphs with support from me. The task is shortened for below level students according to their needs. The writing pieces have the introduction, the five areas mentioned above, each with it's own paragraph and the conclusion. Depending on the student, some of these paragraphs are shorter than others. We start the reading unit one week before we start the writing unit so that students have had a chance to learn a little about the different areas and can then make their choice of what to write about. Each student is given the opportunity to choose their region of choice because it makes them more invested in the task and they take it more serious. When students are done with their writing piece they get to choose a piece of art from their region to create. They must learn about the significance of the piece that they are making before they get to make it. Because we are on a strict budget, we use what materials we have on hand. I will show you the art below with the region. Just click on the pictures when you are done reading this post to go to a more detailed post about the art work. Southwest Rock Drawings Plains & Southeast Animal Hides Northwest Dream Catcher Northeast Jewelry This social studies unit takes a lot of resources to teach. In order to meet all of the students' needs, I wrote two different social studies units to teach with. I have a Native American Unit that includes passages from each region listed above, writing books and task cards. The passages each focus on all the information listed in the post. I also have a unit on specific Native American nations. The nations are: Cherokee, Sioux, Wampanoag, Pueblo and Comanche. You can find these units by clicking below. Feel free to leave any comments with lessons that worked for your class. We always learn and teach better together. Feel free to email me any questions that you may have. Happy teaching!
FUN, hands-on Native Americans for Kids lesson with activities, crafts, printables and more to make learning history for kids come alive! K-6th grade.
It is project time again in our classroom! Students did an absolutely FAB job this year taking their learning and applying it to our region project - I just had to share! Students worked with their original regional group to design a diorama of their cultures environment, shelter, natural resources, and any other details they could. Students reread their information on their region. Loved seeing them reviewing their unit notes about their region to help them plan their diorama. They did an absolutely amazing job and really showcased their knowledge of each region! I really could not get over the incredible amount of DETAIL they put into them! It was so exciting listening to them share what they wanted to add based off of their knowledge. So. Cool. Painted sticks for "Sugar Cane" yes, that is a brave going through the "Sun Dance" Removable roof to see inside the "Kiva" This Eastern Woodland long house has an "open top" to see inside - love. it.! Love this depiction of a whale hunt! Ice Fishing Inuksuk formation Please note this adorable bundle of wood - it is even tied together with a string :p We were also able to get our dioramas on display at our public library in town - this was really neat because it gave the kids an authentic outside of school audience to showcase their knowledge and work. Here are more activities for Native Americans:
Handy Jamestown for Kids mini book to color and learn facts about Jamestown Colony, the first permament settlement in America. K-5th.
I have always enjoyed teaching Native American Indians to my kindergarten and first-grade students. There is so much to explore and learn about the first Americans. And one week of study covers a wide variety of learning goals.One year while planning a Native American unit of study my principal asked a colleague why we were
Native American Heritage Month is in November and a great history lesson for kids. Get Native American lesson plans, American Indian arts and crafts including totem pole craft ideas and more cultural ideas for the month. We have teaching resources on history of Native Americans (American Indians history) and present-day Native American cultures. Perfect for November teaching resources for Thanksgiving, too!
The Muscogee tribe is also known as the Creek. Encourage your young reader to learn more about the history of this Native American tribe.
Raise your hand if you grew up having a Thanksgiving feast at school. Some kids dressed up as Native Americans and some dressed up as Pilgrims. You ate “delicious” (cafeteria […]
Free Early American History Curriculum - Columbus Through The Civil War - Welcome to the first post in the Free American History Curriculum ! If you've ...
Learn about the Native American people's tradition and the importance of listening. Step-by-step tutorial on how to make your own Talking Stick with your kids.
Using herbs and plants for medicinal use is nothing new. Native Americans used them for thousands of years.
I love learning about America--this land that's been the home of my ancestors for more than four hundred years--and I love studying it with my children. However, we would miss out if we confined our study to the past four centuries alone. Deeping our knowledge of this continent means we listen to
Learn more about the historical events of Native America with these kid’s books about Native American history, including chapter books for children.
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These books and activities make planning a Native American unit study about a specific tribe easy and fun. Grab the FREE Notebooking Pages to complete your study.
Make a game out of your classroom with gamification! This new trend is taking the education world by storm. Learn about it here.
Native American Heritage Month is in November and a great history lesson for kids. Get Native American lesson plans, American Indian arts and crafts including totem pole craft ideas and more cultural ideas for the month. We have teaching resources on history of Native Americans (American Indians history) and present-day Native American cultures. Perfect for November teaching resources for Thanksgiving, too!
Are you and your kids making a Native American diorama? Here are tips and step-by-step directions on how we made ours. There's no better way to combine social studies and art than making a diorama. We LOVE making dioramas!
The history of the Native American people belongs to every American. It is important to hear their stories and remember them. Enjoy this Plains Indians Unit Study and free lapbook printables with your children. You'll study geography, homes, food, and more of these Native Americans and enjoy assembling the lapbook. It's a wonderful way to learn about and honor this group of early Americans!
It's HERE! The long anticipated Playful Pioneers Volume 2 is now available! If you loved The Playful Pioneers Volume 1 or if you'd like to traverse the regions of the United States with your children this upcoming school year we would love for you to join us on this adventure! Playful Pionee
Learn about the Pacific Northwest Tribes with hands-on Native American worksheets and FREE printable activities.
Free Pilgrim Worksheets. Full Pilgrims Lesson Plans designed for first grade - fifth grade. This is a complete free pilgrims unit full of lots of information. This Pilgrims unit is complete with worksheets, calendar, and even a Mayflower project! All free for you to use with your students.
Important Native American heritage sites in the US that you should check out like Chaco Culture National Historical Park in New Mexico and the Pu’u Loa Petroglyphs in Hawaii.
Why not bring STEM to your Native American Unit in social studies? Most elementary teachers are more comfortable and knowledgeable about themes, so I have decided to create STEM challenge packs based on specific themes, like Native Americans, specifically relating to their homes! This engineering challenge activity pack is one of many that I have created to use in my classroom! I sometimes place these challenges, one per table, and the students rotate around the room in order to complete them. There are no right or wrong answers, many different solutions will work! You could also rotate these challenges through a science center. I plan to complete these as a whole class activity, one per week during the fall when we study Native American regions. I store everything in a dollar store gift bag or plastic tub! These activities are great to use any time of the school year. You can use all of them or just pick and choose! Most materials are pretty easy to find and are low in cost! There are information sheets on each type of home and nine challenges included in this pack: Build a Wigwam Challenge Build a Longhouse Challenge Build a Tipi Challenge Build a Pueblo Challenge Build a Hogan Challenge Build a Plank House Challenge Build a Chickee Challenge Build an Igloo Challenge NEWLY ADDED: Build a Wickiup These STEM engineering and design challenges will help your students show off their building and teamwork skills! Happy engineering!
Native American Activities and Lessons on Teachers Pay Teachers Subscribe to our monthly e-newsletter for more free printables and lesson ideas. Kathy Jorgensen has been an educator most of her life, starting as a peer tutor in second grade and tutoring her way through high school and college...
Native Americans of North America Printables - Print worksheets to help students learn terms, definitions, and history related to Native Americans.
Learn about the Pacific Northwest Tribes with hands-on Native American worksheets and FREE printable activities.
Are you and your kids making a Native American diorama? Here are tips and step-by-step directions on how we made ours. There's no better way to combine social studies and art than making a diorama. We LOVE making dioramas!
If you’ve been searching for Native American Heritage Month bulletin board ideas, I’ve got you covered! These bulletin board ideas really are like activities within themselves. Native American history isn’t...
