Digging into Native American Legends

Introduction | Task | Resources | Process | Evaluation | Conclusion  | Lesson Plan


Introduction

Your stomach aches with hunger; your feet and head are drenched in sweat. Your only hope for survival: one good long day of rain to quench the crops that provide your only food source. According to a popular legend, Native Americans in Texas faced this grim prospect and responded by sacrificing their most prized possessions to their gods. As a result, rain fell, squelching the drought and famine that made food scarce and living almost unbearable. Blue flowers subsequently carpeted the hills where they lived, flowers we know as bluebonnets.

You will be a member of a team of anthropologists seeking more information about the culture of Native Americans through the study of native folktales and history. Your mission: decide how these stories contributed to ethnic culture and alleviated the hardships native people faced.

The Task

You will be one member of a team of "anthropologists." Your team will "dig" through online and off-line resources for a Native American folktale, analyze it, and communicate the tale's role in educating us about this culture.

Each member of the team will choose a role:

  • Chief Researcher - checks provided net links and library resources, then selects an appropriate folktale or legend for the entire group to study. Then oversees project and works with a team member to analyze and evaluate components in the tale: plot, characters and conflict resolution in a concept-webbing map produced with Inspiration software.
  • Research Assistant - checks provided net links and library resources relevant to the selected tale. Then works with a team member to analyze and evaluate components in the tale: plot, characters and conflict resolution in a concept-webbing map produced with Inspiration software.
  • Multimedia Specialist -  checks provided net links and library resources relevant to the selected tale. Then oversees and works with a team member to develop a multimedia presentation that presents the folktale's main plot, purpose of the tale and explains the relevance of the tale to Native American culture.
  • Multimedia Assistant - checks provided net links and library resources relevant to the selected tale. Then works with a team member to develop a multimedia presentation that presents the folktale's main plot, purpose of the tale and explains the relevance of the tale to Native American culture.

  Resources

Online Legends:


Legend of  the Bluebonnet                                                            
http://magic.usi.edu/blockies/214lunch/s5/main.html

Favorite Cherokee Boyhood Legend
http://www.stc.net/~fordd/story.htm

Cherokee Rose Legend
http://hometown.aol.com/PrttyMoon/index.html

Cherokee Hunting Folktale
http://hometown.aol.com/RuninFox/index.html

White Buffalo Calf Woman and Sacred Pipe Legends
http://members.xoom.com/Wolf_/wbuffalo.htm

More Native American Mythology and Tales
http://www.Powersource.com/cocinc/articles/default.htm

Stories explaining Native American Religion and Ethics
http://www.iwchildren.org/Story/itbegan.htm

More Folktale Links
http://www.mcrel.org/resources/plus/index.asp?

http://www.mcrel.org/resources/plus/myth.asp
 

Online Native American Photos:

http://www.Powersource.com/cocinc/articles/default.htm

http://hometown.aol.com/RuninFox/index.html

Sioux photos
http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/Hall/9626/NativeAmericans.html

Online Native American Songs:

http://www.canyonrecords.com/cr6160.htm

The Process

  • First you will be assigned to a group of four and given a role to play on your team of "anthropologists": Chief Researcher, Research Assistant, Multimedia Specialist or Multimedia Assistant.

    • Then the group will need to agree upon one folktale or legend to study, with the Chief Researcher's direction and guidance, using either the provided online resources or off-line resources in the school library. You will have one class period to decide on a folktale.
    • Once you have decided on a folktale, each "anthropologist" will analyze and synthesize the information in your tale. List on paper or a word processor the central characters and each character's purpose and role in the tale. Summarize the tale in a paragraph to explain the plot. In addition, study the conflict or problem presented in the tale and explain how the conflict or problem is resolved. Compare and discuss your work with your partner in the team: either the research partner or multimedia partner. You will have two class periods to do this.
    • Next, each mini-group, the research group and the multimedia group, will discuss the parts of the tale that reveal beliefs, customs and culture and explain the tale's purpose in the Native American culture (on paper or on a word processor) at least two paragraphs explaining their results. Hint: many times the conflict resolution or the way the problem is solved explains something the culture needs to have resolved, such as unexplained events in nature. You will have two class periods to do this.
    • Now that you have all of your information gathered, you can begin developing your projects on the computer. The research group will need to create a concept map using Inspiration, a mind-mapping software, to cover the information the group has developed in the last four class periods. It will need to adequately explain the characters, plot and conflict resolution. In addition, it will need to conclude with the details unearthed about the native culture.  Two class period will be allowed for this activity.   One class period will be designated for oral presentation.
    • The multimedia group will need to develop a 6-slide presentation:  An introduction slide, a summary slide, a character slide, a conflict resolution slide and two slides explaining the cultural details and facts discovered through study of this tale.  Two class periods will be allowed for this activity.  One class period will be designated for oral presentation.

     
     

    Evaluation

    The group will receive one grade comprised of:
    33%  for the Concept Mapping
    32%  for the Multimedia Presentation
    35%  for participation.
     

    Conclusion

    You have uncovered many facts and developed a better understanding of Native American cultures from your study of folktales. This information has been shared with others to enlighten them about the beliefs and customs of our country's native people.  Perhaps now you can develop your own folktale that many years from now may be shared with your future generations.

    Here are some links you may want to check out.

    Why Folktales  http://www.oz.net/~davfilms/neh.html

    Aesop's Fables http://www.umass.edu/acco/projects/aesop/

    Summary of various culture's folktales
    http://www.pantheon.org/cgi-bin/wwwwais/wwwwais.cgi

    Folklore http://virtual.park.uga.edu/~clandrum/folklore.html
     

     Source Credits

    DESTINY MUSIC. [online wav file] available http://www.canyonrecords. com/cr6160.htm

    FEATHERSHIELD [online image] available http://www.ipl.org/ref/native/index.html 06-11-99

    HEADBEAD [online image] http://www.ipl.org/ref/native/thanks.html 06-11-99

    SQUAREBUTTONS [online image] http://www.ipl.org/ref/native/aboutus.html 06-11-99

    SPACER AND ARROW [online image] http://personal.lig.bellsouth.net/lig/w/a/wahya/speak.html 06-11-99

    SPACER2 [online image] http://personal.lig.bellsouth.net/lig/w/a/wahya/contents.html 06-11-99

    SPACER3 [online image] http://www.texasindians.com/mex.htm 06-11-99

    CHOCTAW LEGENDS [online image] http://www.toners.com/choctaw/clayton.htm 06-11-99

    FEATHERLEFT, FEATHERRIGHT [online image] http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Olympus/7394/chief.html 06-11-99

    TEEPEE2 [online image] http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Olympus/7394/choctaw.html 06-11-99

    TRAILOFTEARS [online image] http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Olympus/7394/choctaw.html 06-11-99