Weekly Plans 9.16-9.19
Mr. Armstrong
Social Studies
Wednesday | September 16th
Topic/ Focus: Dawes Act 1887
AIM #9: How did the Dawes Act force assimilation upon the Native Americans?
DO NOW:
1. Please take out Friday’s HW (Homestead Act Primary Source WKSHT)
and leave it on your desk
2. Copy down tonight’s HW (Page 1 of “Little Big Horn” Packet)
3. Begin working on today’s “EBC” DO NOW WKSHT
Announcement: Westward Expansion UNIT TEST next
THURSDAY (9/24)**
Interpreting a Source: The Homestead Act
Essential Questions:
1. What year was this legislation signed and what was it called?
2. Who was eligible to partake in this government sponsored program?
3. What must those enrolled do?
4. How much did an acre of land cost under this legislation?
What is an Evidence Based Claim or “EBC”?
Claim
Evidence
An argument, statement, thought or theory
that you have on a particular topic or
question.
Something that you take from the source
provided (ex: a quote), that justifies or
supports your claim.
Analysis/
When you connect your claim with your
Explanation evidence, and either elaborate, explain or provide
further details to support your overall argument.
Dawes Act 1887
Federal Indian policy during the period from 1870 to 1900 marked a departure from earlier policies that were
dominated by removal, treaties, reservations, and even war. The new policy focused specifically on breaking up
reservations by granting land allotments to individual Native Americans. Very sincere individuals reasoned that if a
person adopted white clothing and ways, and was responsible for his own farm, he would gradually drop his Indianness and be assimilated into the population. It would then no longer be necessary for the government to oversee
Indian welfare in the paternalistic way it had been obligated to do, or provide meager annuities that seemed to keep
the Indian in a subservient and poverty-stricken position.
On February 8, 1887, Congress passed the Dawes Act, named for its author, Senator Henry Dawes of
Massachusetts. Also known as the General Allotment Act, the law allowed for the President to break up reservation
land, which was held in common by the members of a tribe, into small allotments to be parceled out to individuals.
Thus, Native Americans registering on a tribal "roll" were granted allotments of reservation land. Each head of family
would receive one-quarter of a section (120 acres); each single person over 18 or orphan child under 18 would receive
one-eighth of a section (60 acres); and other single persons under 18 would receive one-sixteenth of a section (30
acres).
Section 8 of the act specified groups that were to be exempt from the law. It stated that "the provisions of this act
shall not extend to the territory occupied by the Cherokees, Creeks, Choctaws, Chickasaws, Seminoles, and Osage,
Miamies and Peorias, and Sacs and Foxes, in the Indian Territory, nor to any of the reservations of the Seneca Nation
of New York Indians in the State of New York, nor to that strip of territory in the State of Nebraska adjoining the
Sioux Nation on the south."
Subsequent events, however, extended the act's provisions to these groups as well. In 1893 President Grover
Cleveland appointed the Dawes Commission to negotiate with the Cherokees, Creeks, Choctaws, Chickasaws, and
Seminoles, who were known as the Five Civilized Tribes. As a result of these negotiations, several acts were passed
that allotted a share of common property to members of the Five Civilized Tribes in exchange for abolishing their
tribal governments and recognizing state and Federal laws. In order to receive the allotted land, members were to
enroll with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Once enrolled, the individual's name went on the "Dawes rolls." This
process assisted the BIA and the Secretary of the Interior in determining the eligibility of individual members for land
distribution.
The purpose of the Dawes Act and the subsequent acts that extended its initial provisions was purportedly to
protect Indian property rights, particularly during the land rushes of the 1890s, but in many instances the results were
vastly different. The land allotted to the Indians included desert or near-desert lands unsuitable for farming. In
addition, the techniques of self-sufficient farming were much different from their tribal way of life. Many Indians did
not want to take up agriculture, and those who did want to farm could not afford the tools, animals, seed, and other
supplies necessary to get started. There were also problems with inheritance. Often young children inherited
allotments that they could not farm because they had been sent away to boarding schools. Multiple heirs also caused a
problem; when several people inherited an allotment, the size of the holdings became too small for efficient farming.
Guided Reading Questions:
1. What was the new policy or goal of the Dawes Act?
2. If the new policy was followed and enforced, how would Native Americans assimilate?
3. What power did the Dawes Act or the General Allotment Act, give the President?
4. According to the fourth paragraph, in order for the Five Civilized Tribes to obtain a share of common property, what did they have to do?
5. “The purpose of the Dawes Act and the subsequent acts that extended its initial provisions was purportedly to protect Indian property rights,
particularly during the land rushes of the 1890s…”
Do you think the Dawes Act was successful in achieving it’s intended goal? Why or why not?
Thursday | September 17th
Focus: Battle of Little Bighorn
AIM #10: How did the Battle of Little Bighorn reflect Native American’s resistance to
westward migration?
DO NOW:
1. Take out last night’s HW (Page 1 of Little Bighorn Packet), and leave it on
your desk
2. Copy down tonight’s HW (Finish Little Bighorn Packet)
3. Begin answering the questions on today’s DO NOW WKSHT
Announcement: Westward Expansion UNIT TEST next
THURSDAY (9/24)**
Discussion Questions:
a. What two groups appear to be represented in this picture?
a. What appears to be happening in this picture?
a. What is the overall theme of this picture? Explain.
Battle of Little Bighorn
On this day in 1876, Native American forces led by Chiefs Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull defeat the U.S. Army
troops of Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer in a bloody battle near southern Montana’s Little Bighorn
River.
Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull, leaders of the Sioux tribe on the Great Plains, strongly resisted the mid-19th-century
efforts of the U.S. government to confine their people to reservations. In 1875, after gold was discovered in South
Dakota’s Black Hills, the U.S. Army ignored previous treaty agreements and invaded the region. This betrayal led
many Sioux and Cheyenne tribesmen to leave their reservations and join Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse in Montana.
By the late spring of 1876, more than 10,000 Native Americans had gathered in a camp along the Little Bighorn
River–which they called the Greasy Grass–in defiance of a U.S. War Department order to return to their
reservations or risk being attacked.
In mid-June, three columns of U.S. soldiers lined up against the camp and prepared to march. A force of 1,200
Native Americans turned back the first column on June 17. Five days later, General Alfred Terry ordered Custer’s
7th Cavalry to scout ahead for enemy troops. On the morning of June 25, Custer drew near the camp and decided to
press on ahead rather than wait for reinforcements.
At mid-day, Custer’s 600 men entered the Little Bighorn Valley. Among the Native Americans, word quickly spread
of the impending attack. The older Sitting Bull rallied the warriors and saw to the safety of the women and children,
while Crazy Horse set off with a large force to meet the attackers head on. Despite Custer’s desperate attempts to
regroup his men, they were quickly overwhelmed. Custer and some 200 men in his battalion were attacked by as
many as 3,000 Native Americans; within an hour, Custer and every last one of his soldier were dead.
The Battle of Little Bighorn–also called Custer’s Last Stand–marked the most decisive Native American victory and
the worst U.S. Army defeat in the long Plains Indian War. The gruesome fate of Custer and his men outraged many
white Americans and confirmed their image of the Indians as wild and bloodthirsty. Meanwhile, the U.S.
government increased its efforts to subdue the tribes. Within five years, almost all of the Sioux and Cheyenne would
be confined to reservations.
What is the historical significance of the Battle of Little Bighorn?
How did many Americans view Natives from this point forward?
What ultimately happened to a majority of Native American tribes? Specifically the
Sioux and Cheyenne.
Today is Constitution Day: On this date, in the year 1787, delegates
at the Constitutional Convention signed the US Constitution.
Directions: Using your cellphone to access the internet, answer the following
questions…
1. How many times has the Constitution been amended?
2. How old do you have to be in order to be a senator?
3. In order for an amendment to be ratified, how many states must approve?
4. What was the only amendment to the Constitution to be repealed?
5. Which article of the Constitution deals with the Supreme Court?
6. Which amendment guarantees the right to a fair and speedy trial?
7. How long does a Supreme Court Justice serve?
8. What is the current number of Supreme Court Justices?
Friday | September, 18th
Focus: Westward Posters
AIM #11: How do advertisements successfully convey a message?
DO NOW:
1. Copy down this weekend’s HW (Begin Studying for UNIT 1 Test)
2. Take out last night’s HW (Finish Little Bighorn Packet) and check your
answers with a partner

The study guide can be found on my website on today’s lesson post, or
HW page. You’ll be provided a hard copy on Monday.
Announcement: Westward Expansion UNIT TEST next
THURSDAY (9/24)**
Western Frontier- Advertisements
American expansion into the frontier during the 19th century was a daunting thought. For many, the journey out west
was an opportunity for individuals to advance their political, economic and social standing in society. However, the ability
to improve one’s life often came at a great cost. As a result, a number of individuals, companies and the government used
advertisements in order to convince individuals to move to the frontier.
Task: You will create your own advertisement focusing on one (1) of the following three themes:
1. Manifest Destiny
2. Transcontinental Railroad
3. Homestead Act
After selecting one (1) theme, you will create an advertisement, which will attempt to convince Americans to move to the
frontier. Be sure to do consider the following:
a) The audience your advertisement will focus on (workers, settlers, farmers, etc…)
b) Pictures/images that are related to the message you are trying to send to the reader
c) Headlines (a few words) to grab the reader’s attention and establish the main point
d) Captions and subtext to inform the audience of important details
e) Colored pencils or markers to make the advertisement vibrant
Each advertisement will be collected and worth a total of twenty five (25) points. Components a-e (above) will be worth
5 points each. Have fun and be creative.