Native American Homes, Past And Present
Have you and your students ever wondered why the tipis, igloos, and pueblos
have come to represent the sum of stereotypical Native American homes? What
is the significance of these dwelling types, and what other types of housing
exist?
You now have the chance to understand the cultural and spiritual meanings of
native tribal homes. Your students' task is the following:
Explore several Web sites and determine what type of homes you might have
seen crossing this country as a non-native individual. Why did the native
people live in this type of home? Why was it constructed of the chosen material?
Was it transported and how? Did the Native Americans have different dwellings
at different times of the year? Are their spiritual beliefs connected to the
dwelling, materials, or even how the dwelling is entered? Presently, are there
occasions in which tribal members still use these types of homes? What are
the present housing conditions on many of the reservations today?
After you have explored these Web sites, pick a dwelling type and prepare
a short report that answers the questions above. Finally, draw an illustration,
build a model, or include a photo that depicts that dwelling type. Try to
be as accurate as possible. If you build a representation of a home, try to
use similar materials if possible. If you can't, explain what materials would
have been used. Display both visual representation and report together.
Here are some links to help your students get started:
Buffalo Ranchers, Native Americans, and Environmentalists in Yellowstone
Ask students if they have ever been to Yellowstone National Park. If they have,
ask them if they have seen the buffalo. If they have not, refer to the Web sites
below for information to build a historical background and learn about the cultural
significance of the buffalo.
The buffalo in the Yellowstone herd are the last remaining descendants of wild
herds that used to roam North America. Today, buffalo are safe to roam within
the boundaries of Yellowstone National Park. Here they are protected. If they
roam outside the park and into the state of Montana, they are killed. Here is
the problem: buffalo have been known to carry a disease that causes their calves
to be stillborn. It is called Brucellosis.
Brucellosis is a bacterial disease that causes miscarriages in cattle. Though
scientists have never documented a case in which the bison have transmitted
Brucellosis to cattle on ranches adjoining the park, ranchers are allowed to
kill any bison that leave the park each winter in search of food. In the winter
of 1996, the practice became the subject of international protests when stockmen
killed more than 1,000 bison -- over a quarter of the total herd at that time.
Environmentalists and Native American tribes oppose the killing, saying alternatives
exist. Ranchers in Montana maintain that the buffalo could transmit that disease
to their cattle, regardless of the fact that there is no scientific proof of
this. The state of Montana has been certified as a Brucellosis-free state, making
their cattle more desirable economically than states that are not certified.
Tell students that the upcoming winter forecasts predict harsh conditions.
Remind them it is during harsh winters that the buffalo will leave the confines
of the park to seek food. Using the Web sites below, research the different
attitudes and positions that these groups take with regard to the buffalo.
Ask or assign students to take the position of a Montana cattle rancher, Yellowstone
Park Ranger, Native American, or take a personal position on the issue. Ask
each student to make a poster representing the unique concerns of that group.
If students want to represent themselves have them design a poster that shows
what plan of action they think should be taken this winter.
How do they think the buffalo should be kept in the park? What type of barriers
will be built to keep the animals safe, secure, and away from leaving the park?
Should park rangers feed the buffalo or should nature just take its course?
Each student should draw his plan and present this plan to the class. Students
should answer the questions raised above, and add any other facts they found
interesting while researching their position. Use the following sites to help
begin the research:
Who Owns The Past? http://pbs.org/wotp/
See how the chance discovery of a human skeleton on the banks of the Columbia
River in Central Washington in 1996 led to a federal court case between the
Umatilla Indians and scientists.
Homeland http://pbs.org/homeland/
Among poverty, homelessness, poor health and alcoholism - the harsh conditions
of reservation life - families strive to create a better future for their children
and the generations to come. Four Lakota families open their hearts and homes
in HOMELAND, an inspirational portrait of reservation life.
In Search of the Oregon Trail http://pbs.org/opb/oregontrail/teacher/index.html/
IN SEARCH OF THE OREGON TRAIL is more than the remarkable story of several hundred
thousand emigrants crossing the American West looking for a new life. It's also
the story of the native peoples they found there and the terrible consequences
of diseases brought by the pioneers and the settlers' pursuit for land.
Lewis and Clark http://pbs.org/lewisandclark/
While Lewis and Clark were the first Americans to see much of what would become
the western United States, those same lands had long been occupied by native peoples.
Over the course of the expedition, the Corps of Discovery came into contact with
nearly 50 Native American tribes.
NOVA: Mystery of the First Americans http://pbs.org/wgbh/nova/first/
This site documents the discovery and ensuing controversy over the Kennewick
Man, a well-preserved, 9,000-year-old human skeleton found in Washington State
in 1996.
Warrior in Two Worlds http://pbs.org/warrior/noflash/index.html
Ely Parker was a Seneca chief, a legal scholar, an engineer, a Civil War hero,
and a Cabinet-level commissioner -- all by the age of 40.
The West http://pbs.org/weta/thewest/
The story of the American West is at once the story of a unique part of the country
and a metaphor for the country as a whole. With all its heroism and inequity,
exploitation and adventure, sober realities and bright myths, it is the story
of all of us, no matter where on the continent we happen to live, no matter how
recently our ancestors arrived on its shores.
American Masters: Edward Curtis http://pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/database/curtis_e.html
Edward Sheriff Curtis, or the "Shadow Catcher" as he was later called by some
of the tribes, took over 40,000 images and recorded rare ethnographic information
from over eighty American Indian tribal groups, ranging from the Eskimo or Inuit
people of the far north to the Hopi people of the Southwest.
PBS Programs
Don't miss this program airing in November! Check your local
listings for the most accurate air date and time.
AMERICAN ROOTS MUSIC
This series concludes with an episode titled "All My Children of the Sun." The
final episode explores how the influences of different ethnic groups came to
make up "American roots music." It looks at Cajun culture, Tejano music and
Native American music.
HOMELAND
Recording four Lakota families over three years, HOMELAND explores what it takes
for the Lakota community to build a better future in the face of tribal and government
corruption, scarce housing, unemployment and alcoholism. Intimate interviews with
a spiritual leader, a grandmother, an artist and a community activist from South
Dakota's Pine Ridge Indian Reservation reveal how each survives with help from
family ties, cultural tradition, humor and a palpable yearning for self-reliance
and personal freedom.
SECRETS OF THE DEAD “Cannibalism in the Canyon”
For 1000 years, the Anasazi, as the ancient Pueblo people are commonly called
-- flourished in what is now New Mexico. A democratic people with rich achievements
in architecture, agriculture, astronomy and art, the Anasazi were, in the eyes
of many anthropologists, a model society. Yet around 1200 A.D., something brought
their utopia to a sudden and mysterious end. Was it drought, disease, famine?
Or was it something much more radical? In the shadow of a debate that's both
scientific and political, huge questions remain. Did the Anasazi culture become
cannibalistic, or did cannibals from afar stumble across the perfect victims?
BUFFALO WARS
THE BUFFALO WAR is the moving story of the Native Americans, ranchers and radical
environmentalists clashing over the killing of America's last wild buffalo herd.
Each winter, Montana livestock officials who claim to be protecting cattle from
the disease brucellosis kill bison that migrate out of Yellowstone National Park.
The program examines the controversial killing by weaving the stories of a 500-mile
Native American march for the buffalo, the travails of a family trying to keep
their cattle ranch and the daring tactics of a band of environmental activists.
THE MYSTERY OF CHACO CANYON
Chaco Canyon, located in northwest New Mexico, is perhaps the only site in the
world constructed in an elaborate pattern that mirrors the yearly cycle of the
sun and the 19-year cycle of the moon. How did an ancient civilization, with no
known written language, arrange its buildings into a virtual celestial calendar,
spanning an area roughly the size of Ireland? Why did this society, ancestors
of today's Pueblo Indians, choose to establish the center of their world in the
middle of such an arid, barren land? And why, after constructing buildings the
size of the Roman Coliseum, did these same people deliberately seal them and abruptly
leave?
LOST BIRD OF WOUNDED KNEE
Lost Bird of Wounded Knee tells the story of a survivor of the Wounded Knee massacre
of 1891. Zintkala Nuni was only six months old when she was found alive underneath
her dead mother, four days after the massacre. She was adopted by General Leonard
Colby, the leader of the Nebraska National Guard, and his wife Clara, a prominent
suffragist. The story follows Zintkala Nuni's life as an Indian child living among
whites, and her life-long search for her roots and the struggles she endures.
ROBERT MIRABAL – MUSIC FROM A PAINTED CAVE
Native American flutist Robert Mirabal performs his own powerful, evocative music
that is, at once, both ancient and modern. His melodies spring from the lively
and haunting chants of his Native American ancestors, but are spun and painted
with a contemporary brush. Nationally known drumming legend, Ken Arnoff, friend
and one of Mirabal's influences, is a guest musician. The costumes, dancing and
chanting add a spectacular and colorful visual look to accompany the music.
KEEPING THE SPIRIT ALIVE
Throughout Native American history, attempts have been made to stifle the artistic
spirit that is an inherent part of Native American culture. Years of disruption,
settlers and missionaries took a toll on their creative arts, which were forbidden
amongst many of the tribes. This program examines the people of the Pacific Northwest
who have dedicated themselves to preserving their heritage through artistic expression
both traditional and contemporary.
SINGING OUR STORIES
Upon first glance, much of Native American history seems to have been carved by
men. However, women were a key element to the success of Native American tribes.
Many sat on councils, were healers and tribe leaders--who, for thousands of years,
used song to keep the religious and social structure within their tribe. This
program celebrates the traditional songs and dances of Native American women and
those who are preserving them for future generations.
WARRIOR IN TWO WORLDS
WARRIOR OF TWO WORLDS is a documentary about the tragic story of Seneca chief
and US Army general Ely Parker. Historians and Native American advisors give insight
on his accomplishments, the barriers that Ely Parker was faced with and the choices
he was forced to make. Ely Parker was a Federal Engineer, Civil War Secretary
to Ulysses S. Grant and the first American Indian to serve as Commissioner of
Indian Affairs, a man who became prominent among his people as well as in the
white man's world.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Tell
a friend about this page
