International Public Science Day 2001 at OMSI

Building a Community from the Ground Up
Part II: The First People

Students gain knowledge of local history, their natural environment, native cultures, and community planning.

The class has previously worked collaboratively to design and construct a three-dimensional model of a pre-history environment (Part I). The group will consider social, historical, and environmental issues as they transition their model from an uninhabited natural habitat to a modern urban community. In this lesson students will learn about the earliest peoples to settle their local environment and will add features to their model that represent the early Native American society.

This project-based curriculum represents an extended unit. It works well as a two month unit, with the class spending time each week, for one month, learning about history, watersheds, bridges, native cultures, etc. The actual model can be built over approximately three weeks if the students work one hour per day.

Alternatively, the project could be a year long experience, or condensed into a "living laboratory" intense 1 - 2 week experience.

· For younger students pre-cut paper for houses (for our area that's brown long houses), approximately 5 inches by 6 inches in size (Follow folding directions.) Note: For some areas pueblos or teepees may be more appropriate.
· Scrap paper for other details
· Tape or glue
OPTIONAL:
· colored clay or other materials for optional multimedia models, especially for older student groups

1. It may be useful to have pictures of the early Native American dwelling areas available.
2. Do some preliminary research on the native cultures indigenous to your local area. Find resources for the class. Prepare to lead the initial discussion on local native culture, or assign reading to the students so they will be prepared to inform the initial discussions.

Describe or lead a discussion on the life and dwellings of local native cultures indigenous to your local area. How did they live? What did they eat? What were their dwellings like?

Who first lived in this area?

What were their dwellings like? Why did they build their dwellings where they did?

What natural resources supported them-food, shelter, clothing?

Let the class brainstorm. Brainstorming is a shared process that validates multiple ideas. There is no right or wrong answer here.

Student teams will work together to plan and add cultural features of the earliest peoples to populate their project model.

Working as a class, or in student teams, plan the early Native American settlement for the model. Take the following into consideration:

1. Where in your scene would native peoples have first settled?

2. How many people/groups/tribes there would be?

3. What would you see of their dwelling area?

(For the Pacific Northwest, west of the Cascade Mountains, we would find longhouses with several families in each, canoes, fire circles, and totem poles. Students divide into groups and decide where they will settle, and who will build what. Five groups of 5 - 6 students each works well. Each group represents a clan with a longhouse.

4. Discuss need to remove a tree each time they build something.

1. Long houses For younger students, you can show one team at a time how to construct a three dimensional longhouse from a pattern.

2. Teams construct their clan's dwelling place (e.g., the fire circle, canoes, totem poles, etc.)

3. Place features on the scene.

4. Using a photocopy of the grid with numbers "1" through "5" and letters "A" through "D", each student creates a new map of the model with the natural environment and the native community settlements included. (For younger students, the teacher can create and photocopy a grid template for the students to use.)

5. Summarize( Attach notes for the Changing Scene

Discuss placement of community features such as the longhouses, totem poles, canoes, etc. Each group explains why they chose their site.

The following are suggestions to extend the project into various curricular areas. These can be done as a class, by student teams, or by individual students

Environmental Biology
What natural resources did the indigenous people use to meet their needs? What impact did the use of these natural resources have on the environment?

Social Studies
Add to the timeline for your local area. How long did this indigenous society last?
What was the indigenous society like?

Math
Folding of three dimensional structures, such as building the longhouses, uses measuring and geometry.

Art
Three dimensional construction is utilized to create dwellings.
Design of community features, such as canoes and totem poles, considers and employs the art forms of the indigenous cultures.
Study Native American art, weaving, dance, song, etc.
Optional: Visit to a local Native American museum

Reading
Read Native American stories, poetry, and legends..
Read nonfiction about the native societies.

Writing
Write a project activity summary.

Communicating
Small groups work together, make decisions, and design their clan community features.

Based on an activity created by Betsey Kenworthy, Hockinson Intermediate School, Brush Prairie, Washington.

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