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A segment of Sequoia’s Cherokee alphabet
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Subject Areas |
Art and Culture
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Anthropology |
Foreign Language
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Other |
History and Social Studies
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U.S. History - Native American |
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U.S. History - The West |
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Time Required |
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Lesson 1: 2 class periods
Lesson 2: 2 class periods
Lesson 3: 2 class periods
Lesson 4: 2 class periods
Lesson 5: 1 class period |
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Skills |
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Communication
Foreign word identification and pronunciation
Data analysis
Sound-letter correspondence
Information gathering
Problem solving
Using technology
Word identification
Written representation of information |
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Traditions and Languages of Three Native Cultures: Tlingit, Lakota, & Cherokee
Introduction:
Long before the Europeans settled in North America,
the natives living there had established a diversity of rich cultures and spoke
over 2,000 language dialects. (Of these, about 300 are known today.) As the newcomers
moved in, the Native Americans were gradually pushed off their lands into reservations
and forced to assimilate into European cultures. In recent years, attitudes have
changed, and Native Americans are now encouraged to maintain aspects of their
own cultures and languages. In this lesson, students will learn about three distinct
tribes and discover the importance of preserving their legacies.
An opening
activity in Lesson 1 will introduce the concept of traditions. In the second lesson,
students will learn about the environment and lifestyle of the Tlingit of the
Pacific Northwest. They will hear a story based upon Tlingit folklore and make
a list of words closely related to Tlingit culture. Then, by accessing an online
dictionary, they will learn how to say the words in the language of the Tlingit.
In the third lesson, students will learn about the Lakota of the Great Plains
and hear a story about this native culture. They will access an online dictionary
of Lakota words and find the translations of a list of key English words, which
they will record on a chart. They will then work together to make up their own
sentences in Lakota.
The fourth lesson focuses upon the Cherokee of the
Southeast Woodlands. After learning about this culture and hearing a story relating
to it, the students will access an online dictionary of Cherokee words. They will
add the Cherokee equivalents of the English and Lakota words to their charts.
They will then learn about Sequoyia, the inventer of the Cherokee alphabet. In
the final lesson, the students will compare the three native cultures they have
studied and discuss why it is important to maintain their traditions and languages.
For
a related EDSITEment lesson on American Indians for grades K-2, see Native
American Cultures Across the U.S..
Learning Objectives:
After completing
the activities in this lesson plan, students will - Understand the meaning
of a tradition and know how it is maintained
- Have a general knowledge
of the environment, history and culture of the Tlingit, Lakota, and Cherokee
- Be
able to say a few words in the languages of these three tribes
- Be aware
of differences and similarities between the three tribal cultures
- Understand
the importance of maintaining the traditions and languages of native cultures
Guiding Questions:
What are
some of the traditions of the Lakota, Tlingit, and Cherokee? How is a people's
language tied to its traditions? Why is it important to preserve the traditions
and languages of native cultures?
Preparing
To Teach This Lesson:
This lesson requires you to access web pages through
EDSITEment-reviewed websites. You may share these pages with your students at
individual computer stations, assign small groups to share several computers,
display computer-projected images on a large screen to the whole class, or print
out the pages and distribute copies to the students.
- In preparing
the lesson, you should access and become familiar with all web pages referred
to in the activities that follow. For additional background information on the
Tlingit and Lakota cultures, refer to Native
Visions of the Natural World. Click "north" for Tlingit and "west" for Lakota.
For data on the Cherokee culture, go to Cherokee
Indians. Supplementary information about Sequoyah and the Cherokee alphabet
is available at Sequoyah,
Inventor of the Cherokee Alphabet, "Sequoyah's
Talking Leaves", and "Sequoyah".
As you visit these EDSITEment-reviewed websites, take notes that can be used when
you present an overview of the cultures of the three tribes to your students.
- For the Tlingit Matching Game you will need 20 4 x 6 note cards, markers
or pencils, a paper bag, and two rolls of masking tape.
- Download and
make copies for the students and yourself of the "English to Tlingit Word Chart"
in Lesson 1 and of the "English to Lakota and Cherokee Word Chart" in Lesson 2.
Access Lakota Translation, available through the EDSITEment-reviewed resource NativeWeb, and copy down the Lakota translations of the English
words on your copy of the "English to Lakota and Cherokee" word chart. Now access
the English-Cherokee dictionary, available
through the EDSITEment-reviewed resource NativeWeb,
and add the Cherokee translations to your chart.
Suggested Activities:
Lesson
1: Generation-to-Generation Show-and-Tell
Lesson
2: Traditions and Language of the Tlingit
Lesson
3: Traditions and Language of the Lakota
Lesson
4: Traditions and Language of the Cherokee
Lesson
5: Making Connections
Lesson
1: Generation-to-Generation Show-and-Tell
The word
"tradition" can be defined as the handing down of certain beliefs, customs, and
legends from generation to generation, usually by word of mouth. Ask the students
if they know the meaning of the word. Brainstorm with them until they come up
with a short list of descriptive phrases. Write these on the chalkboard. Explain
that every family has a few traditions of its own. These can include religious
beliefs and practices and the celebration of particular holidays. Invite them
to think about traditions they have in their own families. Instruct them to ask
their parents, grandparents, or other relatives about these traditions and to
bring to school something from home connected with it. For example, if they celebrate
certain holidays unique to their culture or religion, they could bring in an object
or picture connected with it. Or if they speak a second language at home, they
should write out certain words and their translations to share with the class.
- In part 2 of this lesson, have the students share what they have
learned at home about their traditions with their classmates in a "show and tell."
After the sharing, ask them how their traditions will continue through the years
or why they might not. Help them recognize that, for these to continue, they (the
students) must pass them down to their own or their relatives' children and grandchildren.
- Now tell the students that when Christopher Columbus came to America,
the native peoples living here had their own customs and spoke many different
languages. Point out that these customs and languages, like the family traditions
of the students, were passed down from generation to generation. Explain that
when Europeans began settling in America, many of the natives were forced to move
off their lands and that, eventually, their descendants were told to give up their
customs and languages. Ask the students how they would feel if they had to give
up their language or their family traditions or celebrations. Invite them to express
their views about how the Native Americans might have felt in this situation.
After a brief discussion, explain that in more recent times the United States
government has changed its policies and now encourages Native Americans to continue
and maintain their traditions and languages.
- Tell the students that they
will be learning about the traditions and languages of three Native American tribes
- the Tlingit, the Lakota, and the Cherokee. Access the "Tribes" page at the First
Americans Website, available
through the EDSITEment-reviewed resource NativeWeb.
A map indicates where the Tlingit and Lakota once lived. The Cherokee inhabited
the region just north of that assigned to the Creek on the map. Click on to "History"
to see another map which shows the regions of the Northwest Coast (Tlingit), Great
Plains (Lakota), and Southeast Woodlands (Cherokee).
Lesson
2: Traditions and Language of the Tlingit
The Tlingit
lived in villages along the northwest coast. Their houses were made of cedar planks
and faced the sea. Beside many of the dwellings stood tall wooden totem poles,
carved with the faces of animals representing certain human characteristics and
telling the family history. The Tlingit wove together strips of cedar to make
clothing and multi-patterned blankets. Much of their food came from local rivers
and the sea, most notably salmon, seals, and otters. The Tlingit also hunted whales
in their large cedar canoes. The mischievous raven and a race of salmon people
figured prominently in Tlingit folklore. Today, many Tlingit continue to live
in coastal villages. - After sharing this information and the other data
gathered during your preparation for this lesson with your students, access "Tlingit"
at the First Americans Website,
available through the EDSITEment-reviewed resource NativeWeb.
Read aloud the description of the environment of the Tlingit villages, and have
a student describe the accompanying photograph. Then click onto each of the other
topics. Read aloud the descriptions on each page or call upon students to read
aloud specific paragraphs. Discuss the material and the photographs as you proceed.
After answering any questions that are posed about the Tlingit lifestyle, read
aloud How Raven Stole the Sun by Maria Williams. Let the students see the colorful
illustrations as you proceed. Point out the various aspects of Tlingit life that
are alluded to in the story. This book is from a series produced by the Smithsonian's
National Museum of the American Indian by Indian artists and writers. At the back
you will find a description of Tlingit society, a glossary of Tlingit words, and
period photographs of the Tlingit people.
- Now that the students have
a general idea of the traditional lifestyle of the Tlingit, ask them to suggest
words (nouns) that describe it. Examples would be "salmon," "ocean," and "cedar."
Make a list of 15 of these on the chalkboard. Hand out copies of the chart English
to Tlingit Word Chart, provided in pdf format, and have the students fill in the
15 words in the column titled "English Word." While they are doing this, write
each word on a 4 x 6 note card, fold it in half, and drop it in a paper bag. (Use
15 words for a class of 30. If you have a smaller class, use fewer words, or half
the number of the class.)
- Tell the students that they will now find out how to say these
words in the language of the Tlingit. Access English to Tlingit,
available through the EDSITEment-reviewed resource NativeWeb.
On the right side of the screen, type in each of the English words listed on the chart
and find the Tlingit translation. Write the Tlingit words on the board next to
their English equivalents. Have the students write the words in the right column
(under "Tlingit Translation") of their charts opposite the appropriate English
words. While they are completing this task, copy each of the 15 Tlingit words
on a 4 x 6 note card, fold it in half, and put it in the paper bag with the English
word cards.
- After a short break, play the Tlingit Matching Game. Take
the paper bag filled with the note cards. Have each student reach into the bag
and grab one folded note card. After they unfold the note cards, have them attach
them to their shirts with masking tape. Using their "English to Tlingit" chart
as a guide, have each student find his or her match. Once all partners have connected,
have them assemble in the front of the classroom. After one partner says his or
her word in English, the other says it in Tlingit. When the lesson is done, collect
the "English to Tlingit" charts for future use.
Lesson
3: Traditions and Language of the Lakota
The Lakota
(also known as the Sioux) once roamed the Great Plains. They hunted buffalo and
used the hides to make clothing, tipis, and traveling bags. Buffalo meat was the
staple of their diet. After Spanish explorers brought the horse to America, the
Lakota found the animal invaluable for hunting, travel, and warfare. The tribe
worshiped an omnipotent spirit called Waka Tanka. An important tradition was smoking
the peace pipe. According to legend, the first pipe was brought to the Lakota
ancestors by a mysterious woman (White Buffalo Woman). Today, many Lakota live
on reservations in North and South Dakota. - Introduce your students
to the Lakota by sharing the above information and the other materials you gathered
while preparing this lesson. Then visit "Lakota (Sioux)" at the First Americans
Website, available through
the EDSITEment-reviewed resource NativeWeb. Read aloud
the text describing the environment of the Great Plains. Then click on to the
other pages, which describe various aspects of Lakota culture. Within the pages
is a description of the origin of the peace pipe. Call upon students to read aloud
portions of the text on each page. Draw their attention to the accompanying photographs,
and have them describe what they see. After discussing these materials, read aloud
The Gift Horse: A Lakota Story by S.D. Nelson. Show the illustrations on each
page as you proceed. When you finish the story, discuss the importance of the
vision quest in Lakota society. Point out other aspects of Lakota culture that
were highlighted in the story.
- Tell the students that they will now learn
about the language of the Lakota.
Access Lakota Translation, available through the EDSITEment-reviewed resource
NativeWeb. Click on "Lakota Hear It" and
listen to the sounds of the language. Click on "A Lakota Story" to find a native
folktale written in English and Lakota. If you have time, read the English text
aloud. Then return to "Lakota Translation." At the bottom of the screen is an
alphabetized list of English words followed by Lakota translations. Hand out copies
of the From English to Lakota and Cherokee chart, provided in pdf format. Have
a student read aloud the 25 English words in the first column of the chart. Point
out to older students that this list includes nouns, verbs, and prepositions.
Then, working together in twos, have the students look up the words in the Lakota
dictionary and fill in the column under "Lakota Word" on the chart. With younger
students this activity should be done as a class, one word accessed and written
down at a time.
- When the second column has been filled in, have the partners work
together to make up five sentences in Lakota. When they are ready, have them read
their sentences aloud very slowly. Instruct the other students to raise their
hands when they think they can translate a sentence. The student reading a sentence
should call on a classmate to translate. With younger children, the class can
make up sentences as a group. These can be written on the board. Once there are
several sentences on the board, call on students to translate them.
Lesson
4: Traditions and Language of the Cherokee
The Cherokee
(also called the Tsalagi) originally lived in the woodlands of the southeastern
United States. They hunted deer, fished in the local rivers, and grew corn. They
made their homes from saplings and wore clothes made from buckskin. The Cherokee
worshiped many nature spirits as well as a powerful god named Yowa. In the early
19th century, the Cherokee were forced to leave their homes and move to a reservation
in Oklahoma. The long trek to their new home is known as the Trail of Tears because
so many natives died from starvation and the cold along the way. - Introduce
the students to the Cherokee by indicating their southeastern woodlands habitat
on the map at First
Americans, available through the EDSITEment-reviewed resource NativeWeb.
Share the information above with them as well as other material you gathered while
preparing for this lesson. Read aloud The First Strawberries - A Cherokee Story
by Joseph Bruchac, discussing the various aspects of Cherokee culture that are
mentioned and sharing the illustrations as you go along.
- Tell the students
that they will now learn about the Cherokee language. Explain that the Cherokee
people have their own unique alphabet made up of 85 symbols. Each symbol stands
for a syllable, which is why this type of alphabet is called a syllabary. Go to
Cherokee
Syllabary, available through the EDSITEment-reviewed resource NativeWeb.
(This website can also be accessed by going to Native
Languages of the Americas Cherokee
(Tsalagi) page and scrolling down to its listing.) Read aloud the text about
the syllabary. Then go to "A Small Lexicon of Tsalagi Words" and explore the word
list. Now access English-Cherokee
Dictionary, available through the EDSITEment-reviewed resource NativeWeb.
Have the students, working in groups of two or three, find the Cherokee translations
for the English words listed on the From English to Lakota and Cherokee Word Chart,
provided in pdf format, by typing in the English word and clicking "go." With
younger students, the words can be accessed one at a time as a group activity.
- The Cherokee alphabet was invented by an American Indian known as Sequoyah.
Access Sequoyah, available through the EDSITEment-reviewed resource NativeWeb.
Read the text aloud and discuss the significance of Sequoyah's invention with
the students. Point out that the written word is even more effective than an oral
tradition for maintaining cultural traditions.
Lesson
5: Making Connections
In this lesson students will
review what they have learned and compare the three tribal cultures. Write the
three names - Tlingit, Lakota, and Cherokee - on the chalkboard. Divide the class
into three groups. Assign to each group the name of one of the tribes. Give each
group the following list of topics: 1.) Habitat; 2) Clothing; 3) Homes; 4) Food;
5) Beliefs; and 6) Unique Feature. Have the groups meet together for about five
minutes to discuss their tribes in terms of these six categories. Reassemble the
class. Ask for individual members of the Tlingit group to present information
about each category. While they do so, write the key words on the board under
the Tlingit heading. Do the same for the other two groups. Using the words on
the board as a guide, call upon students to describe the major differences among
the tribes. Then ask for similarities. One similarity would be that the lifestyle
of each tribe was dependent upon the natural environment. After several similarities
have been mentioned, point out that each culture survived for a long time because
its traditions and way of life were passed down from one generation to another.
Now
place two charts - an "English to Tlingit Word Chart" made by one of the students
and your copy of "From English to Lakota and Cherokee" - in view of the students
in the front of the room. Explain that they come from three language families
(Salishan, Siouan, and Iroquoian). Point out that although the languages are quite
different, they clearly expressed the ideas of the natives who used them. Suggest
that maintaining the language is one way to keep the native culture alive. Extending
the Lesson- Play a memory game in which students create a set of matching
cards using words from the Tlingit, Lakota, or Cherokee languages. To do this,
they should write an English word (or draw an illustration of the word) on one
card and, on the matching card, write the translation of the word in one of the
three Native American languages. When the set of cards is complete, they should
be placed face down on a table. Each student turns over one card and then another.
If the cards match, the student keeps them. If they don't match, they are turned
face down again. Everyone tries to remember what the cards are. The play continues
until all the cards have been picked up. Whoever makes the most matches wins the
game.
- Make Bingo boards with words the students have learned from the
Tlingit, Lakota and Cherokee languages. Then call out definitions, such as "It
means butterfly in Cherokee." Students who have that word mark it with a plastic
disk or other convenient marker. The first to mark all the words in a row - up
and down, across, or on a diagonal - wins the game.
- Select from the following
books for a read-aloud. The Story of the Milky Way (a Cherokee story) by Joseph
Bruchac and Gayle Ross, If You Lived With The Cherokee by Anne Kamma and Connie
Roop, If You Lived With The Sioux by Ann McGovern, Grandchildren of the Lakota
by Lavera Rose, How the Turtle's Back Was Cracked (a Cherokee story) by Gayle
Ross, The Lakota Sioux by Andrew Saniella, and The Wave and the Sea Wolf (a Tlingit
story) by David Wisniewski.
- Older students can do research projects
on particular aspects of the cultures of the three tribes studied. Suggested topics
are the Trail of Tears, the life of Sequoyah, the totem poles of the Tlingit,
and the uses of the buffalo.
Selected EDSITEment Web Sites
Other Information
Standards Alignment
- ACTFL-1.1
Engage in conversations, provide and obtain information, express feelings and emotions, and exchange opinions more
- ACTFL-1.2
Understand and interpret written and spoken language on a variety of topics more
- ACTFL-1.3
Present information, concepts, and ideas to an audience of listeners or readers on a variety of topics more
- ACTFL-4.1
Demonstrate understanding of the nature of language through comparisons of the language studied and one's own more
- NCSS-1
Culture and cultural diversity. more
- NCSS-2
Time, continuity, and change. The ways human beings view themselves in and over time. more
- NCSS-3
People, places, and environments. more
- NCTE/IRA-1
Students read a wide range of print and nonprint texts to build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the cultures of the United States and the world; to acquire new information; to respond to the needs and demands of society and the workplace; and for personal fulfillment. Among these texts are fiction and nonfiction, classic and contemporary works. more
- NCTE/IRA-12
Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information). more
- NCTE/IRA-6
Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and nonprint texts. more
- NCTE/IRA-8
Students use a variety of technological and information resources (e.g., libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge. more
- NCTE/IRA-9
Students develop an understanding of and respect for diversity in language use, patterns, and dialects across cultures, ethnic groups, geographic regions, and social roles.
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