Back in March, a student came to me with the suggestion that we should do a unit related to Native American culture. It was one of the few suggestions this student has made this year, so I jumped at the opportunity. (It worked out well, since we typically change units every three weeks. As long as I can find material for them to read and respond to, and as long as I pull in the standards to engage with those materials, we can study just about everything.)
Fortunately, we have an amazing wealth of resources in our building-- especially when it comes to incorporating Native American lessons and activities. For starters, Lisa Turgeon’s monthly newsletters are filled with excellent lessons, units, and resources. I have been able to lean heavily on her newsletters for videos, readings, and activities. Equally as amazing has been our cultural liaison for Native American students, Jorja Valandra. Before I started planning the unit, I sat down with Jorja to get some ideas for what I should-- and should not-- do as I created the lessons.
In talking with Jorja, she mentioned that there were two key elements to keep in mind: keep it positive and keep it present. She discussed a number of thoughts and ideas for a unit, and as she began to come up with ideas, we decided that a unit on Native American Art would be a great vehicle for exploring all sorts of relevant themes and issues. She helped me generate a list of topics that we could explore.
From there, I used the general structure I would normally use for an inquiry unit. Here was the list of the outline.
13 Days
Materials / Activities
*3 non-fiction articles
* 1-2 poems
* 2-3 videos (documentary series-- Pow Wow Trail, As Long as We Dance)
*Visual Art Activity (Visit online museum)
*Art Activity (Responding to an art piece in writing)
*Short story or passage from book-- There, There
* Guest Speaker
* Google Slideshow Project
Then once I had that, I began to outline the days. They looked like this.
Day One: Overview of Unit & Overview of Minnesota Native American Communities / Tribes
Day Two: Article I Activity
Day Three: Video
Day Four: Poem Activity
Day Five: Introduce Project, Begin Working,
Day Six: Visual Art (Online art museum)
Day Seven: Article II Activity
Day Eight: Guest Speaker
Day Nine: Work Day on Project
Day Ten: Short story
Day Eleven: Article III and Work Day
Day Twelve: Work Day
Day Thirteen: Project share-out or presentations
In the end, Jorja was able to secure two guest speakers for class. So we made arrangements for Mr. Emil Her Many Horses to zoom in from Washington D.C. where he serves as the curator of Native American art at the Smithsonian! And then on another day, we zoomed in Dr. Eric Tippeconnic of California State University San Marcus. Dr. Eric is both a highly respected visual artist and a professor of history. These two visits were some of the most memorable experiences of the year!
As I made my way through the unit, each day was a bit of a scramble. Some lessons and activities were certainly better than others, but on the whole, I believe that students were engaged in the material. They were reading, writing, discussing and thinking. And as an additional benefit, I was excited about the classes. It felt new and meaningful and fun. It felt like a positive experience for everyone involved.
If you are interested in learning more about how to structure student chosen inquiry units or about the Native American Art unit we created for class, please feel free to let me know.
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