Academic Challenge
Laura Tabachnick
ANCIENT NATIVE AMERICANS
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Learning Objectives:
Background: The unit will be called HUMANS. It will be a study about who, how and
why various groups of human beings came to America. We will have
already covered Paleo-Indians and their journey on foot to America. This
challenge will deal with the ancient tribes that followed, some being direct
descendents of the Paleo-Indians. These ancient Native Americans are
grouped by researchers into culture areas, the geographic locations that
influenced their societies.
Content:
The influence of the environment on ancient Native American Tribes
The characteristics and traits of ancient Native American Tribes
Skill:
Problem Solving
Collaboration
Time management
Grade Level: 8
Student Groupings: This challenge will be given at the beginning of the year just after the first
few weeks. During these weeks the community classroom rules will be developed, along with
multiple ice breaking activities, individual “get to know you” projects, many team building
exercises and minilessons on the characteristics of a good collaboration. This team of seventh
graders will have looped together so many of the children will already know one another in the
class. Children will be asked to form their own groups with at least one person whom they didn’t
hang out with during the summer or didn’t work with for our recent group discussions about the
Paleo-Indians.
CHALLENGE
Introduction: Scientists believe the first human beings to arrive in America came around 50,000
and 10,000 B.C. Around 8,000 B.C. the Ice Age ended. This caused a huge temperature shift
and caused America to become an environmentally diverse place. As you know, these people
became known as Paleo-Indians. They adapted well and their survival was dependent, in part,
upon these adaptations. As time went on, ancient Native American tribes emerged, some being
direct descendents of the Paleo-Indians, and lived in various parts of America. Each tribe had a
close relationship with the earth, yet each was very different. These Native American tribes are
grouped by culture areas, the geographic locations that influenced their societies.
Product: Your challenge is for each group to become representatives from a different culture
area in North America. You will need to exhibit two things:
1. As a group, you will present to the class a clear and colorful visual aid that shows the
geographic location of the area you are representing. The audience should have a sense
of which tribes lived where in this area and geographically, what it was like there.
2. As a group, you will also present to the class the influence the environment has had on
your way of life as well as traits that are inherit to the tribes that you’re representing.
Your presentation should display in a creative way, what it’s like to live a day in the life
of someone in your chosen area. Think of the little things that we take for granted today.
Compare and contrast the different ways of life within the tribes of North America and
discuss opinions on why your group feels these similarities and differences exist. Create
props and at least one visual aid to make your presentation interesting and strong.
Process: You need to get yourselves into groups of four or five. Include at least one person you
weren’t in a content discussion group with earlier this year or that you didn’t hang out with this
summer. Research the ancient Native American tribes in North America. You can begin by
using the first chapter of your textbook, section two. You are encouraged to seek out other
resources for your research. You can use the internet, other trade books in the room, or any other
resources you can get your hands on.
First decide on the elements that distinguish culture areas/groups from one another. Be prepared
to present a graphic organizer that details elements distinguishing geographic areas/groups
from one another by the end of Day 2. At that time, you will be asked to commit to a culture
area from which you will become representatives. Hopefully, many of the areas will be
represented.
Your group can use one visual aid to show your chosen geographic region, but to help support
your individual part of the creative “day in the life” presentation, each representative needs their
own visual aid/prop to describe what life in their civilization/society is like. Be prepared to
answer additional questions about similarities/differences amongst the geographic regions/groups
as well as your opinions about their way of life. The whole class will develop a scoring rubric on
which the presentation will be scored.
We will come together on Day 5 to present our representations to the class. Make sure to
contribute ideas, act respectfully, do your share and remember the characteristics of good
collaboration!
At the end of the challenge you will be expected to have written a couple of paragraphs in your
THINKING LOG that chronicle your thoughts about the essential question (Prior knowledge is
great support for your reflections!):
How does environment influence the way of life for a group of people over time?
ASSESSMENT
Some form or combination of a checklist/scoring rubric will be developed with the students (see
NOTES below) using the three critical areas with the following amendable set of criteria:
Understanding
Environment affects:
Transportation
Housing
Food
Traits:
Spirituality
Hierarchy/Stature within the tribe
Wealth
Death/Burial
Art
Map:
Geographic accuracy
Use of mapping skills (key, compass rose, etc.)
Labeling of tribes
Key to show what it was like in these geographic locations
Thinking Log:
Reflection
Process
Completed graphic organizer on day two
Group Dynamics (possibly peer review at end of challenge or teacher observation during challenge)
Product
Visual aid about geographic region
Clear
Colorful
Accurate
Labeled with tribes
Displays environmental qualities
Presentation
Environmental influences
Traits
Day in the life
Compare and Contrast
Opinions
Everyone playing a part
Creativity
Visual aids for Representation
Props - appropriate
Individual visual aid
NOTES
A quick Q & A will be available directly after the introduction of the challenge. A discussion
will take place at the end of day one of the challenge. If necessary, we will quickly brainstorm
ways that tribes could be different or similar. My hope is that through initial research, they will
discover that transportation, houses and food (what kinds and how to get it) are not the only
differences/similarities among regions. There are also displays of wealth and social standing,
views on death/burial, different forms of art as well as spiritual or religious beliefs. At the end of
day one, as we touch base as a whole group, if they did not move into wealth, spiritual beliefs,
etc. I will prompt them so that their graphic organizers will include those comparisons also.
Each whole group’s progress will determine the amount of guidance I will provide. At the
beginning of day 2 we will review the challenge again and create a scoring rubric together
focusing on the three essential areas with criteria areas mentioned above. I will also bring in
some resources from the public library and schedule computer lab and library time.