The following five lessons present information about pre-European contact and lifestyles of western Oregon Indians; tell students about the European contact era and how trade and resources were affected; contain information about the treaty and reservation era with lessons focusing on writing, research and computer skills; use stories to illustrate techniques of oral and written literature; and encourage research using technology and library skills to learn about Oregon tribes.

These lessons include activities to enhance literature, writing, speaking and listening, and reading standards.

Lesson 1: Before the Coming of the Europeans
Lesson 2: Contact with a New Culture
Lesson 3: The Treaties and the Reservation Experience
Lesson 4: Stories as a Learning Tool
Lesson 5: Learning More about Western Oregon Indian Tribes
Extending the lesson/References

GUIDING QUESTIONS

Why are historic journals and photos important to learning about the history of Oregon Indians?

What information can be incorporated into social studies sessions?

What information is new (and amazing) about Oregon Indians?

Why is research important instead of using information that is available?

PREPARING TO TEACH THIS LESSON

Much of the background information for the lessons can be found on the Wisdom of the Elders Radio program, Series 3, Program 7, Grand Ronde.

The “references” section of this lesson contains web site addresses for downloading a variety of information. Download the historical feature of each of the tribes referenced.

Have available materials for each student to make a journal. Each should be supplied with a heavy paper for the cover and sufficient paper for a minimum of 10 pages. Punch holes in the edge of the papers and use twine to tie the pages together.

Have available several sheets of large poster-size paper for Lesson 1.

Become familiar with the selection of words in each lesson from a variety of Oregon tribes.

Invite a member of the Grand Ronde tribal community to speak to the class about the history and present day activities of the tribe. Contact information can be found on the Grand Ronde website,  HYPERLINK “http://www.grandronde.org/” http://www.grandronde.org/.

Copy the attached pictures. Use the guide to encourage students’ analytical thinking about the photos. Display the pictures in the classroom.

Begin Lessons

The following five lessons begin with storytelling as a basis for “how things came to be” and include lesson plans for classroom storytelling; provide information about the historical landscape; include storytelling analysis and language; provide a historical description of the western Oregon people and ultimately, the contact with European cultures; provide information for students to create their own stories that reflect the culture clash; explore how individuals impacted tribal and personal lives since the coming of the Europeans and how the stories were important to the Indian people; and conclude with contemporary information.

Classroom storytelling performance is presented; lessons encourage students to do critical thinking about how storytelling has preserved traditions, and include activities to enhance literature, writing, speaking and listening, and reading standards.

Lesson 1: Stories as History and Tradition
Lesson 2: Historical Landscape
Lesson 3: Tribal Groups and the Reservation Experience
Lesson 4: Historical Figures and their Impact
Lesson 5: Stories of Today
Extending the lesson/References

GUIDING QUESTIONS

Why are stories told?
Who tells the stories?
Why are they important?
What kinds of stories were told before the coming of the Europeans?
What kinds of stories remain and are being preserved?
Why is preservation of the art of storytelling important to Native people?

PREPARING TO TEACH THIS LESSON

Make copies of the attached stories from the Kalapuya tribe. These may be used in reading sessions.

Set aside a time for the class to visit the computer lab (online access is required) to listen to the Kalapuya Creation Story at  HYPERLINK “http://archaeologychannel.com/” http://archaeologychannel.com/.  Click on “Kalapuya Creation Story” on the left under the heading of “Audio.”

Download and print a copy of the Kalapuya calendar at  HYPERLINK “http://www.grandronde.org/pr/past_articles/2002/1115/indian_calendar.html” http://www.grandronde.org/pr/past_articles/2002/1115/indian_calendar.html.

Make available supplies to make paper masks for acting out a story. (Thick paper, crayons/paints, hole punch, string, glue.)

Set aside some time each day for the following project. It is suggested that this activity may overlap into writing/language arts/spelling/reading activities. The project should be completed by the end of Lesson 5.

Divide the class into five groups. Assign a research project to each group to find as much information as they can about any of the following tribal groups who are represented on the Grand Ronde reservation:

Kalapuya
Umpqua
Molalla
Chasta
Rogue River

Sources could be the school library, public library, computer (if school has internet access) or community members who are knowledgeable about one of the tribal groups.

Begin Lessons

The following five lessons will include activities to enhance the standards of literature, writing, speaking, listening and reading.

Lesson 1: What is storytelling and how it is used to remember traditions
Lesson 2: Stories of the Land (and how it shapes people’s lives)
Lesson 3: European Contact and the Stories of that Era
Lesson 4: Individuals Who Had an Impact on the Tribal Way of Life
Lesson 5: Contemporary stories and why they are important

GUIDING QUESTIONS

Who tells stories?
Why are stories important?
Why are stories told?
Why should stories be preserved?
What is the difference between family stories and tribal stories?

PREPARING TO TEACH THIS LESSON

Have on hand supplies to make paper masks to act out a story (paper, glue, string, hole punch, paints, decorations)
Go to  HYPERLINK “http://www.nwrel.org/indianed/indianreading/1/book01.pdf” http://www.nwrel.org/indianed/indianreading/1/book01.pdf to download the Warm Springs story, Coyote and the Stars
ASK THE WARM SPRINGS REVIEW GROUP TO SUGGEST RESOURCES OTHER THAN NWREL IF NEEDED
Make available pictures of Warm Springs baskets
OBTAIN PICTURES FROM THE WARM SPRINGS REVIEW GROUP
Listen to the Turtle Island Storytellers segment of Wisdom of the Elders Series 3, Program 6

Begin Lessons

Overview

Overview
The following five lessons will include activities to enhance the standards of literature, writing, speaking, listening and reading.
Lesson 1: What is storytelling and how it is used to remember traditionsLesson 2: Stories of the Land (and how it shapes people’s lives)Lesson 3: European Contact and the Stories of that Era Lesson 4: Individuals Who Had an Impact on the Tribal Way of LifeLesson 5: Contemporary stories and why they are important

Overview

This lesson plan is comprised of five lessons which include activities to enhance the standards of literature, writing, speaking, listening and reading.

Lesson 1: The Importance of the Land
Lesson 2: Trade among the Columbia River People
Lesson 3: European Contact and the Impact on Tribal Life
Lesson 4: Retaining Traditions
Lesson 5: Remembering the Ancestors

Overview
Lesson 1: Introduction to Relationships between Humans and the Environment
Lesson 2: Forest Succession (Primary)
Lesson 3: Native Americans and Berries
Lesson 4: Native Americans and Science
Lesson 5: Dangers to Wild Berries; Responsibility of People

Overview

Lesson 1: The Importance of the Land
Lesson 2: Trade among the Columbia River People
Lesson 3: European Contact and the Impact on Tribal Life
Lesson 4: Retaining Traditions
Lesson 5: Remembering the Ancestors.

HONORING THE UMATILLA NATIONS

Lesson plan written by Wren Christopher, Eastern-Band Cherokee Heritage.

SUBJECT AREAS

Arts and culture

Petroglyphs

Rock art

SKILLS

National Standards for Arts Education – Visual Arts Standards

Choosing and evaluating a range of subject matter, symbols and ideas

Understanding the visual arts in relation to history and culture

Oregon Common Curriculum Goals – Benchmark 2 for the Arts

Aesthetics and art criticism

Historical and cultural perspectives

Student will create, present and/or perform

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

After completing the lessons in this unit, students will be able to:

• Younger students will correctly label by tracing the names of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla on a map.  Teacher note: download a map of the tribal homeland of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla and write in the names for the students to trace correctly. Make sure to add other important information such as the Columbia River. Have students use the maps to draw in their favorite petroglyph designs and write/draw important information as the lesson progresses.
• Older students will be able to identify the different names and locations of the original homeland of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla and what reservation they live on today (go to “Our History” at http://www.umatilla.nsn.us for maps and tribal history of the three tribes)
• Describe the difference between a petroglyph and a pictograph

INTRODUCTION

“It is characteristic of Native people to artfully embellish the mundane, transforming everyday items into objects of beauty. Today, some Native people are given to learning an array of tribal skills, to help sustain their living culture.”

Arlie Neskahi (Dine)

Overview

This lesson provides information about the three peoples that make up the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Reservation of Oregon: The Walla Walla, The Cayuse and The Umatilla. (http://www.umatilla.nsn.us)

By listening to Umatilla artist, Thomas Morning Owl, students will be introduced to what is a traditional artist and a contemporary artist, and will learn about petroglyphs and rock art.

Students will also be introduced to the history and the geographic areas of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla and the importance of ancient rock art along the Columbia River areas of Oregon and Washington.

The lesson will provide students k to 4^th grades with art activities, such as painting a rock, printing either a card, a shirt or book bag with petroglyph designs reminiscent of the rock art created long ago in the Columbia River Region.

Lesson 1: Introduction to the Cultural History of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla

Lesson 2: Identify Petroglyphs and Pictographs in the Columbia River Region

Lesson 3: Print a Card with a Petroglyph Design

Lesson 4: Explore Key Questions

GUIDING QUESTIONS

Before presenting the lessons the teacher will create a KWL learning poster (K is for what we know, W is for what we want to learn and L is for what we have learned) for the classroom:

·       K—What does homeland mean? Where were the Walla Walla, the Cayuse, and the Umatilla Nations original homeland?

·       K—What is a reservation? Where do these three tribes live today?

·       K—What do we know about rock art called petroglyphs?  What is a pictograph?

KWL questions and answers are generated daily by students and are written by an older student and/or teacher.

Younger students can use their map to add information, also.

More questions to ask after listening to the radio segment:

• W—is for what the students want to learn about the petroglyphs of the Columbia River Region. How old are they? How were they made? What was used use for paint? What do the petroglyphs represent?
• W—why do the petroglyphs inspire contemporary and traditional Umatilla artist, Thomas Morning Owl? Would ancient drawings from your ancestors inspire you to create something of beauty?
• L is for what the students have learned about ancient rock art and about traditional and contemporary Native artist, Thomas Morning Owl. 

Revisit these questions after the lessons using a different colored pen to answer the original questions. Allow students to write down second go-around answers to the questions asked in class.

PREPARING TO TEACH THIS LESSON

• Writing and drawing paper, pencils, erasers, paint brushes, tempera paints and permanent markers in brown, red, white and black, cookie sheets, colored pencils, brayers (art roller with a handle for rolling paints), pencils, popsicle sticks, tooth picks, scissors, fabric crayons, iron and everyday items made of synthetic materials such as book bags and shirts; also, card-size tan or white art paper, newspaper, small smooth rocks, poster board and materials for KWL board, card-sized art paper, CD player, CD of traditional flute music, dictionary.
• If time permits, conclude each lesson with a “Talking Circle” (see glossary for definition).

SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES

Lesson 1: Introduction to the Cultural History of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla

Standards

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS

• EL.04.RE.03—Listen to, read, and understand a wide variety of informational and narrative text.

CD Segments to Play

For this topic, go to Wisdom of the Elders Radio Series 3, Program 5, Track 11 (with traditional artist Thomas Morning Owl).

Background

Suggested Strategies

• Obtain and display pictures of petroglyphs along the Columbia River from the websites listed in the references at the end of this lesson.

Activities

1.  Read

Have a variety of books on Native rock art for students to look at and use. Create a comfortable working library for the students to quietly sit and draw ideas and to use as a reference station for KWL questions.

2.  Listen

Have a CD player with head-phones and the Thomas Morning Owl segment available as well as a computer with internet and the websites listed for older students.

Lesson 2: Identify Petroglyphs and Pictographs in the Columbia River Region

Standards

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS

• EL.04.RE.05—Demonstrate listening comprehension of more complex text through class and/or small group interpretive discussions across the subject areas.
• EL.04.RE.18—Find information in specialized materials.
• EL.04.SL.07—Ask thoughtful questions and respond orally to questions with appropriate discussion.

CD Segments to Play

For this topic, go to Sacred Landscape (features Judy BlueHorse-Skelton, who shares a story about the Columbia River petroglyph known as “She Who Watches”).

Background

Suggested Strategies

• The teacher could play some traditional flute music for the students during their research time. Music is a nice way to open and close class time and during the studio time, also.

Activities

1.  Discuss

After listening to this segment, ask students to find out if “She Who Watches” was a petroglyph or a pictograph, could it have been both?

2.  Research

Older students can use internet access, if available, to do research either working independently or in teams. Use the websites listed in the references, students will need to access the teacher created resource library and audio center for the Thomas Morning Owl radio segment and the Yakama Program.

Younger students: need printed materials on petroglyphs and pictographs already downloaded from the websites listed in the references. The students could choose an easy- to- read articles and picture cards to share with a partner and in the Talking Circle.

3.  Talking Circle

At the end of the student research period, allow time to go to the Talking Circle to share their findings. Have students sitting in a circle with a student or teacher scribe recording the students’ findings on what is a petroglyph and pictograph on the KWL board.

Lesson 3: Print a Card with a Petroglyph Design

Standards

THE ARTS

• AR.03.CP.02—Explore aspects of the creative process and the effect of different choices on one’s work.
• AR.03.CP.03—Create, present, and/or perform a work of art that demonstrates an idea, mood, or feeling.

CD Segments to Play

Background

Research what is a mono print technique at http://www.kinderart.com/printmaking/mono.shtml.

Suggested Strategies

• Have on hand tempera paints, brayers, cookies sheets, white drawing paper cut to fit a cookie sheet, tools to draw in the wet paint—pencils, toothpicks, popsicle sticks

Activities

1.  Art project

Students will use lesson number two and pictures of rock art to design and print a card.   The teacher will prep the student studio and demonstrate a mono print card.

• Squeeze a small amount of tempera paint onto the cookie sheet.
• Quickly, roll the brayer through the paint creating a smooth even layer of paint across the cookie sheet.
• Using different “tools” such as the toothpick, pencil, and/or popsicle stick, scratch away a petroglyph design. Remind the students that their artwork will print reversed from what they are drawing.
• Wash and dry hands! Carefully place a piece of art paper over the wet drawing on the cookie sheet. Do not wiggle the paper! Firmly, yet gently, rub with the flat of the hand across the entire paper.
• Lift the paper up and peel carefully away from the cookie tray. The design has transferred to the paper. Place the paper in a safe place to dry. Repeat the process.

Lesson 4: Explore Key Questions

Standards

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS

• EL.04.RE.05—Demonstrate listening comprehension of more complex text through class and/or small group interpretive discussions across the subject areas.
• EL.04.SL.07—Ask thoughtful questions and respond orally to questions with appropriate discussion.

CD Segments to Play

Background

Suggested Strategies

Activities

1.  Discuss

What did the radio announcer mean in his introduction by stating that, “It is characteristic of Native people to artfully embellish the mundane, transforming everyday items into objects of beauty?”

The teacher should ask the question, What does “mundane and transforming” mean?

For older students, the teacher should ask two students to use the dictionary and read aloud the definitions to the class.

For younger students, the teacher should read aloud the definitions.

Make a list of what everyday items that traditional Native artists embellished and transformed into an item of beauty.

Next, have the students make a list of everyday items that could be artistically embellished, such as school notebooks, sneakers, a cloth bookbag, etc.

Students will paint and/or draw with a permanent marker on a rock a traditional rock art design using brown, red, white and/or black colors.

The student will use the same design and fabric crayons on a cloth item such as a shirt, book bag, a piece of fabric that can be made into a banner, etc.

For information, adaptive ideas and lesson plans with Crayola Fabric Crayons go to http://www.crayola.com/art_education.

EXTENDING THE LESSON/REFERENCES

Books

Buan, Carolyn M. and Lewis, Richard, Editors.  The First Oregonians.  Portland, Oregon: Oregon Council for the Humanities,; 1991

Guilliford, Andrew

Sacred Objects and Sacred Places: Preserving Tribal Traditions. University Press Colorado; 2000.

La Pierre, Yvette

Native American Rock Art, Messages from the Past. Thomasson-Grant; 1994.

Loendorf, Lawrence, Chippindale, Christopher, Whitley,David

Discovering North American Rock Art. University of Arizona Press; 2005.

Moore, Sabra

Petroglyphs, Ancient Language/Sacred Art. Clear Light Publishers; 2003.

CDs

Wisdom of the Elders Radio Shows:

Honoring the Umatilla Nation, Series 3, Program 5, Track 11: Artists Circle with Thomas Morning Owl.

Honoring the Yakama Nation, Series 3, Program 4, Track 7: Sacred Landscape with Judy BlueHorse-Skelton.

Websites

For contemporary artists:

Contemporary, Wasco Indian, Lillian Pitt, website with Art Based on Columbia Gorge Petroglyphs at: http://www.lillianpitt.com then go to art based on petroglyphs

Contemporary photograph of and information on a petroglyph of a “River Devil,” Columbia River Gorge, Washington at:

http://www.dmcphoto.com/PetroglyphCRG.html

Crayola fabric ideas on printing techniques and other related lesson plans can be found at: http://www.crayola.com/art_education

Cultural history and map of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indians of Oregon:

http://www.umatilla.nsn.us

Dictionary of Native American Art Symbols (Replicas of Native American, Hawaiian and Indian Rock Art) at: http://www.rarepetroglyphs.com

Mono printing techniques can be found at: http://www.kinderart.com/printmaking/mono.shtml

For petroglyph photograph:

http://www.trailtribes.org/umatilla/content/umaancientstoneuosaylor.jpg

Rock art of the Columbia River Gorge site explains the differences between petroglyphs and pictographs with additional resources at:

http://co.essortment.com/rockartcolumbi_rouf.htm

Traditional and Contemporary Native Culture and artist of the Umatilla, Walla Walla, and Cayuse can be found at:

http://www.trailtribes.org

Note, click on tribes and continue to cultural and artist menu.

Information on Thomas Morning Owl for the older student and teacher can be found at the Oral History Archive, Umatilla, Oregon. This site has written transcripts of interviews for the Umatilla Community History Project, including Thomas Morning Owl’s: http://www.ccrh.org/comm/umatilla/oralarc.htm

Attachment

Glossary

Glossary

Ancestor A deceased family and/or tribal member from beyond living memory.

Artist A person who creates something using different types of materials called media, such as watercolors or clay, etc. Usually, the item created is not for everyday use, but is valued for its own sake.

Traditional Artist A person who has learned the proper way to gather the materials of the object to be created. An example of the proper way would be to know the correct season, songs and prayers when gathering the materials. Usually, traditional artists make the utilitarian item  beautiful as an embellishment rather than  as “art for arts sake.”

Petroglyph A carved design and/or picture on a rock, sometimes called rock art.

Pictograph Also, sometimes called rock art, a painted design and/or picture on a rock. The paint was made with minerals, volcanic ashes, plants, animal blood, etc.

Reservation Land upon which Indians were restricted, relocated, or otherwise confined apart from or much reduced from their original homelands. Today, reservations are thought of as pieces of land in the U.S. where Native Peoples established their Nations through treaties with the U.S. government.

Talking Circle Traditionally used as a speaking forum by tribal members seated in a circle. The speaker holds a talking stick or feather when addressing the other members who listen without interrupting until the stick or feather is passed to the next person seated to the left.

Venn Diagram A drawing of two circles that overlap. The student can compare and contrast two subjects using the spaces inside the two circles.

HONORING WARM SPRINGS

Lesson plan written by Wren Christopher, Eastern-Band Cherokee Heritage.

SUBJECT AREAS

Arts and Culture

SKILLS

National Standards for Arts Education – Visual Arts Standards

Choosing and evaluating a range of subject matter, symbols and ideas

Understanding the visual arts in relation to history and culture

Oregon Common Curriculum Goals – Benchmark 2 for the Arts

Aesthetics and art criticism

Historical and cultural perspectives

Student will create, present and/or perform

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

After completing the lessons in this unit, students will be able to:

• Identify, by labeling on a Oregon map, the name and location of the original homeland of the Wasco Nation and the reservation they live on today
• As a class, the students will make a chart with the five different design elements of the 1805 Wasco basket that Lewis and Clark brought back with them and that Pat Gold held at the Peabody Museum (consult Radio Series Three, Program Six for Gold account).
• Design and draw a traditional cylinder-style pattern for a Wasco basket that Lewis and Clark might have seen along the Columbia River. Weave a paper basket with the designs on it.

INTRODUCTION

This lesson provides information about the Wasco Nation of the Columbia River Area during the contact time of Lewis and Clark (1805). It will discuss why baskets were made and their many uses.   It will also provide students K to 4^th grades with an art activity to design a Wasco basket using traditional motifs extant at the time.

Students will be introduced to the Wasco Nation of Oregon through listening to traditional basket weaver, Pat Gold.

Pat Courtney Gold grew up on the Warm Springs Reservation in Eastern Oregon. The Wasco Nation’s original homeland was along the Columbia River near present-day The Dalles, Oregon. The tribe was forced to move in the late1800’s to the Warm Springs Reservation. Members of the Northern Paiute and a number of other local tribes were also relocated to Warm Springs. www.warmsprings.com

The Wasco Nation was a fishing people. Each family had their own fishing platform along the Columbia River near Celilo Falls, Oregon. Salmon were caught and dried during the fishing season. Baskets were made of local grasses, hemp and other fibers to store the dried and pounded salmon, which was a popular item of trade. Many Native nations traveled to The Dalles, Oregon just to trade. These baskets filled with dried, pounded salmon could weigh up to 100 pounds and could be traded for many things, even a horse! They were like money to the Wasco. The Wasco cylinder basket that Lewis and Clark acquired in 1805 and brought back to St. Louis was probably filled with dried salmon or other food. This famous Wasco basket is now in the Peabody Museum. The museum has it labeled as a “Round Twined – root gathering Bag” Wasco-Wishram: late 18^th –to early 19^th Century (www.peabody.harvard.edu). It was woven of indigenous plant fibers using the full–turn twining technique, which allows for maximum flexibility in creating intricate designs. The 1994 book by Mary Dodds Schlick, Columbia River Basketry, Gift of the Ancestors, Gift of the Earth (University of Washington Press), is an excellent reference book for both teachers and students.

Overview

Lesson 1: Introduction to the Wasco Nation—Traditional Baskets

Lesson 2: Research and Create a Wasco Basket Pattern Sheet

Lesson 3: Create a Design for a Wasco Cylinder Basket

GUIDING QUESTIONS

Before presenting the lessons the teacher will create a KWL learning poster (K is for what we know, W is for what we want to learn and L is for what we have learned) for the classroom.  KWL questions generated by the students are written on a large poster by a student scribe.

• K—What does homeland mean? What was the Wasco people’s homeland?
• K—What is a reservation?  Where do the Wasco live today?
• K—What do we know about baskets used in the past by Wasco Native people and used for today?

W is what do we want to learn about Wasco baskets of the past and of today.

• W—What symbols and motifs are on a Wasco basket? What do they represent?

L is for what the student learned about Wasco people and where they lived historically and live today.

• L—Why are their baskets important to them today?
• L—Are the designs the same or different from those of the past?

Revisit these questions after the lessons and use a different colored pen to answer the original questions. Allow students to write down second go-around answers to the questions asked in class and what they have learned on the Wasco Basket chart. If time permits, conclude each lesson with a “Talking Circle.”

PREPARING TO TEACH THIS LESSON

• Have available a map of Oregon from http://www.warmsprings.com.
• Post class-generated Wasco Basket Pattern Sheet on drawing paper.
• Get writing and drawing paper, light tan construction paper 9”x12”, pencils, erasers, stapler, tape, scissors, rulers, craft glue and/or glue sticks, and poster board and colored pens.
• Print out enough copies of the 1805 Lewis and Clark Basket to share with students from http://www.peabody.harvard.edu.
• Have available research books and a computer with web access.
• Put out a CD player and WOTE Series 3, Program 6.
• Play traditional flute music (e.g. a CD by Charles Littleleaf, Warms Springs tribal member).

SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES

Lesson 1: Introduction to the Wasco Nation—Traditional Baskets

Standards

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS

• EL.04.RE.03—Listen to, read, and understand a wide variety of informational and narrative text.
• EL.04.RE.05—Demonstrate listening comprehension of more complex text through class and/or small group interpretive discussions across the subject areas.
• EL.04.RE.18—Find information in specialized materials.
• EL.04.SL.07—Ask thoughtful questions and respond orally to questions with appropriate discussion.

GEOGRAPHY

• SS.03.GE.01—View and draw simple maps and pictures to locate, describe, and show movement among places.

CD Segments to Play

For this topic, go to Wisdom of the Elders Radio Series 3, Program 6 (with contemporary Wasco artist Courtney Gold).

Background

Suggested Strategies

• Obtain and display pictures of Wasco traditional baskets from the Peabody Museum website.
• Print out a map of Oregon for students to identify the Wasco homeland at The Dalles and the Warm Springs Reservation.
• Have a variety of books on Columbia River Traditional Basket Weavers for students to read and use for reference (Suggested authors: Schlick, Lobb and Jensen; see Reference Page).

Activities

1.  Listen

Listen to the Courtney Gold segment.

2.  Discuss

Add the following questions and answers to the KWL poster board.

• What was the importance of weaving baskets? Why were they needed?
• For younger students, ask them if they have ever gone grocery shopping with their parents. What does the checker use to bag their groceries?
• Brainstorm how many different containers (plastic and paper bags, Tupperware, cardboard, etc.) are used to hold food.
• What local types of indigenous plant fibers did the Wasco Weavers use to make their baskets? Use the reference books listed below and search on-line (if computers are available in the classroom).
• Who is Pat Courtney Gold? From what two Nations does she descend and where did she grow up? How did she become a basket maker? How did she feel when she held a Wasco Basket that was 200 years old?
• What is a reservation?

3.  Research

Students can work in teams with one book and/or website and report back, as a group, to the class. For older students, ask them to create a time-line of plant fibers used from the early 1800’s to present day.  Example question: About what year were cornhusks used in Wasco Baskets?

4.  Mapping exercise

Pass out the Oregon map and pencils. The student will mark the locations of The Dalles and Warm Springs Reservation.

Lesson 2: Research and Create a Wasco Basket Pattern Sheet

Standards

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS

• EL.04.RE.03—Listen to, read, and understand a wide variety of informational and narrative text.
• EL.04.RE.05—Demonstrate listening comprehension of more complex text through class and/or small group interpretive discussions across the subject areas.
• EL.04.RE.18—Find information in specialized materials.

CD Segments to Play

Background

Suggested Strategies

• Pass out drawing paper to create a Wasco Basket Pattern Sheet and spend time with the research books, Wasco basket print-out pictures and websites (depending on age of students) for researching and illustrating the worksheet. At the end of the lesson, come together in a talking circle and share designs and thoughts on what the student has learned.

Activities

1.  Research

Use the reference books and website for pictures of the 1805 basket and other Wasco style baskets around the same date. What design elements do they have in common? Most cylinder baskets have one or more framing lines at the top and the bottom of the basket.

2.  Vocabulary

Write the following words on the board for students to discuss and research:

• Petroglyph
• Pictograph
• Ancestors
• Animals of the Columbia River
• “X-ray” style of drawing

·       Patterns

·       Geometric Shapes

·       Fishnets

·       Framing Lines

For older students who can write, students will write the vocabulary words on a sheet of paper and illustrate what the words represent. The teacher will write the words and illustrate the vocabulary for the younger students as a hand-out.

3.  Reflect

Next, write the following five design elements on the board:

• geometric pattern of
• ancestor-face in a
• fishnet with
• animals (dogs) and
• framing line(s)

Pass out a piece of paper and ask the students to sketch the 1805 Wasco Basket using the five design elements and label them. Remind the students that this is a sketch to exercise their memories of the five important design elements.

Teachers: Do not give the students more than 15 minutes to sketch and label the baskets. You might want to play some traditional flute music as a start and stop signal. Remember to sit in a talking circle at the end of each lesson and write using a different colored pen on the KWL poster

Lesson 3: Create a Design for a Wasco Cylinder Basket

Standards

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS

• EL.04.SL.07—Ask thoughtful questions and respond orally to questions with appropriate discussion.

THE ARTS

• AR.03.CP.01—Use experiences, imagination, essential elements, and organizational principles to achieve a desired effect when creating, presenting, and/or performing works of art.
• AR.03.CP.03—Create, present, and/or perform a work of art that demonstrates an idea, mood, or feeling.

CD Segments to Play

Background

Suggested Strategies

Activities

1.  Art project

Pass out a 9”x12”, construction paper to students and ask them to use the five design elements to create a traditional design for a Wasco Cylinder Basket using pencil. Next:

• Fold the student’s sheet of paper in half lengthwise.
• Draw lines widthwise at least 1” apart. Have student carefully cut the marked lines, starting from the folded side up to ½” form the other edge.
• Teacher will have pre-cut a 9”x12” sheet of paper into 1”x 12” strips, 9 strips for each student.
• The student will weave 8 strips over/under the designed cut paper. Make sure to use a small amount of glue/glue stick to secure the edges.
• When the paper weaving is dry, roll into a cylinder shape and staple, glue or clear-tape together at top and bottom.
• Older students may want to add a paper bottom by tracing a circle and cutting a piece of tan construction paper to tape or glue into the bottom of their “cylinder basket.”

2.  Share

Display students’ work with photographs of traditional Wasco Baskets. Talking Circle time!

3.  Talking Circle

Sitting in a circle, holding their woven cylinder baskets, students will share their basket images and create a story about their designs, with one another. In closing, time permitting, the teacher may want to replay the part of the radio program of Pat Gold talking about first time she held the Wasco Cylinder Basket at the Peabody Museum and how it inspired her on her journey of life.

EXTENDING THE LESSON/REFERENCES

Books

Buan, Carolyn M. and Lewis, Richard (editors).  The First Oregonians. Portland, Oregon: Oregon Council for the Humanities, 1991.

Gilman, Carolyn.  Lewis and Clark Across the Divide.  Smithsonian Books, 2003.

Gunther, Erna.  Ethnobotany of Western Washington: The Knowledge and Use of Indigenous Plants by Native Americans.  Washington Press, 1974.

Mercer, Bill.  People of the River: Native Arts of the Oregon Territory.  Portland, Oregon: Portland Art Museum, 2005.

Schlick, Mary D.  Columbia River Basketry: Gift of the Ancestors, Gift of the Earth. Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press, 1994.

Publications, Websites, etc.

Wasco baskets

http://www.peabody.harvard.edu

Wasco culture

http://www.warmsprings.com

National Standards for Arts Education

http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/teach/standards.cfm

Pat Courtney Gold video interview

http://www.researchchannel.org

“Baskets of the Northwest People, Gifts from the Grandmothers” video

Mimbres Fever, Los Angeles, CA; 1995.

Attachment

Glossary

Glossary

Ancestor A family member from your past such as a grandmother or great-grandfather, who is no longer living.

Ancestor Face A hexagonal-shaped head (six-sided) design.

Framing Lines Horizontal lines on a cylinder basket.

Fishnet Pattern Repeated stylized designs representing a fishnet around a group of hexagons.

Geometric Shapes Shapes that use lines.

Pattern A repeated motif or design

Petroglyph Sometimes called rock art, a design or picture that is carved or line drawn onto a rock.

Reservation Piece of land in the U.S. where Native people established their Nations through a treaty with the U.S. government.

Talking Circle Traditionally used as a speaking forum by tribal members seated in a circle. The speaker holds a talking stick or feather when addressing the other members who listen without interrupting until the stick or feather is passed to the next person to their left.

Twining A basket weaving method of twisting horizontal (wefts) fibers around vertical (warps) fibers.