Connie Graves photo courtesy of the Oregon Historical Society

Overview

This lesson will explore the traditional cone-shaped burden basket and why it was made and the three types of plant fibers that were used in the past as well as in present-day for traditional basket making. (See  HYPERLINK http://americanindian.si.edu/exhibitions/baskets/subpage.cfm?subpage=burden http://americanindian.si.edu/exhibitions/baskets/subpage.cfm?subpage=burden.)

The lesson will provide students K to 4^th grades with art activities, such as constructing a traditional cone-shaped burden basket and decorating it with the student’s personal designs and embellishments. Also, students will create a deck of plant identification playing cards of the three types of Oregon basket-making materials (juncus, cedar, and willow).

Lesson 1: Introduction to the Grand Ronde Nations Traditional Burden Basket
Lesson 2: Design and Create a Burden Basket with a Strap
Lesson 3: Research and Make a Poster of the Three Types of Basket Materials
Extending the lesson/References

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 was the Kalapuya and Umpqua Nation’s original homeland?

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

K—What do we know about baskets used in the past by the Grand Ronde people?

KWL questions and answers are generated daily by students and are recorded by student and/or teacher scribe.

More questions after listening to the radio segment:

Connie Graves mentions another country besides the United States (the Northwest and the Appalachian Mountain area) that also makes baskets. What country is it? (China)

For an extension for older students: bring from home baskets made in China and compare and contrast shapes, materials, designs and construction to Native baskets. Use photographs and/ or visit a local museum with Northwest and Appalachian baskets.  The optimum experience is to invite a local basket weaver into the classroom by contacting the educational department of an historical museum or a local tribe, and/or searching the internet for basket weaving associations in your state.

W—is for what the students want to learn about the Grand Ronde Tribes and basket making of the past and present. What is a designer? How are inspiration, knowledge and materials important to a basket maker?

L—is for what the students have learned about the people of the Grand Ronde Tribes, their basketry, history and the answers to the questions listed above. Make a list of how Connie Graves is keeping a tradition of tribal basketry alive.

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 posed in class.

If time permits, conclude each lesson with a “Talking Circle” (see glossary for definition).

PREPARING TO TEACH THIS LESSON

Have available a CD player and Wisdom of the Elders Series 3, Program 7.

Collect writing and drawing paper, drawing and colored pencils, erasers, stapler, tape, scissors, rulers, craft glue, hole punch, small paper cutter, brown postal wrapping paper and/or any other stiff paper that can be folded into a cone shape cut into approximately 2’x 3’ size (can vary if student wants to make a smaller or larger basket), and poster board and colored markers for KWL board.

Ask students to bring items to decorate a basket: pony beads, old jewelry, small bells, and strips of leather, old belts, raffia, and yarn to tie objects and make a basket carrying strap called a tumpline.

Bring in traditional flute music (i.e. a CD by Jan Reibach, Grand Ronde tribal member).

Begin Lessons

Connie Graves photo courtesy of the Oregon Historical Society

Overview

This lesson will explore the traditional cone-shaped burden basket and why it was made and the three types of plant fibers that were used for traditional basket making in the past as well as in the present-day.      HYPERLINK http://americanindian.si.edu/exhibitions/baskets/subpage.cfm?subpage=burden http://americanindian.si.edu/exhibitions/baskets/subpage.cfm?subpage=burden

The lesson will provide students in grades 5 to 8 with art activities, such as constructing a traditional cone-shaped burden basket and decorating it with the student’s personal designs and embellishments. Also, students will create a deck of plant identification playing cards of the three types of Oregon basket-making materials (juncus, cedar, and willow).

Lesson 1: Introduction to the Grand Ronde Nations Traditional Burden Basket
Lesson 2: Design and Create a Burden Basket with a Strap
Lesson 3: Research and Make a Poster of the Three Types of Basket Materials
Lesson 4: Make a Set of Plant Identification Playing Cards
Lesson 5: Explore Key Questions
Extending the lesson/References

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 Kalapuya and Umpqua Nations’ original homeland?
K—What is a reservation? Where do these tribes live today?
K—What do we know about baskets used in the past by the Grand Ronde people?
KWL questions and answers are generated daily by students and are recorded by student and/or teacher scribe.

More questions after listening to the radio segment:

Connie Graves mentions another country besides the United States (the Northwest and the Appalachian Mountain area) that also makes baskets. What country is it? (China).

For an extension for older students: from home, bring in baskets made in China. Compare the shapes, materials, designs and construction with Native baskets. Use photographs and/or visit a local museum with Northwest and Appalachian baskets.  The optimum experience is to invite a local basket weaver into the classroom by contacting the educational department of an historical museum, a local tribe, and/or search the internet for basket weaving associations in your state.

W—is for what the students want to learn about the Grand Ronde Tribes and basket making of the past and present. What is a designer? How are inspiration, knowledge and materials important to a basket maker?

L—is for what the students have learned about the people of the Grand Ronde Tribes, their basketry, history and the answers to the questions listed above. Make a list of how Connie Graves is keeping a tradition of tribal basketry alive.

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 posed in class.

PREPARING TO TEACH THIS LESSON

Have available a CD player and Wisdom of the Elders Series 3, Program 7.

Collect writing and drawing paper, drawing and colored pencils, erasers, stapler, tape, scissors, rulers, craft glue, hole punch, small paper cutter, brown postal wrapping paper and/or any other stiff paper that can be folded into a cone shape cut into approximately 2’x 3’ size (can vary if student wants to make a smaller or larger basket), and poster board and colored markers for KWL board.

Ask students to bring items to decorate a basket: Pony beads, old jewelry, small bells, and strips of leather, old belts, raffia, and yarn to tie objects and make a basket carrying strap called a tumpline.

Bring in traditional flute music (i.e. a CD by Jan Reibach, Grand Ronde tribal member).

Begin Lessons

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.

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:

• 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)
• Research a class poster using a Venn diagram: Define what is a traditional artist and a contemporary artist, what is different about each and what do each share in common (see glossary for definition of a Venn diagram; download a copy of a Venn diagram at  http://www.eduplace.com)
• Describe the difference between a petroglyph and a pictograph
• Name a favorite petroglyph with its location along the Columbia River Area and, if available, the tribal homeland in which it is located

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 learn to distinguish between a traditional artist and a contemporary artist, and will be introduced to petroglyphs and rock art.

Students with computer internet access will research the history of the geographic areas of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla and the history and importance of ancient rock art along the Columbia River areas of Oregon and Washington.

The lesson will provide students 5^th to 9^th grades with art activities, such as designing a banner reminiscent of the rock art created long ago in the Columbia River Region.

Design and print art cards with the location and tribal region of a petroglyph. Create a personal petroglyph and story. Draw a traditional and/or a contemporary petroglyph design on fabric, such as a shirt or book bag.

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

Lesson 2: Venn Diagram the Definitions of Traditional and Contemporary Artists

Lesson 3: Define Petroglyph and Pictograph

Lesson 4: Print a Card with a Petroglyph Design

Lesson 5: Research 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 is a traditional artist? What is a contemporary artist? Can a person be both?

·       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 a student and/or teacher.

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—is 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

• Have on hand the following supplies: writing and drawing paper, pencils, erasers, paint brushes; tempera paints in brown, red, white and black, cookie sheets, colored pencils, brayers (art roller with a handle for rolling paints), pencils, popsicle sticks, tooth picks, synthetic fabric cut in banner sizes, wooden dowels, scissors, fabric crayons, iron and everyday items made of synthetic materials such as book bags and shirts; also, 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.
• EL.04.RE.05—Demonstrate listening comprehension of more complex text through class and/or small group interpretive discussions across the subject areas.

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.
• 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.
• 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.
• The teacher should make copies for each student of a tribal map of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Reservation of Oregon at http://www.umatilla.nsn.us.  This site also has other related information to support student research and for teacher reference. Older students can continue to research the history and the geographic areas of the three different tribes as extra credit and/or a homework assignment.

Activities

1.  Discuss

After listening to the Thomas Morning Owl segment, discuss the following questions:

• Who is Thomas Morning Owl?
• From what Oregon tribes does he descend?
• From what Canadian tribe?
• On what reservation was he raised?

Lesson 2: Venn Diagram the Definitions of Traditional and Contemporary Artists

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.

THE ARTS

• AR.03.CP.02—Explore aspects of the creative process and the effect of different choices on one’s work.

CD Segments to Play

Background

Suggested Strategies

Activities

1.  Discuss

• Who taught Thomas Morning Owl how to make traditional objects?
• What is a traditional artist?
• What is a contemporary artist?
• What do both of these types of artists have in common?
• What makes both of these artists different?

2.  Share

Teacher will write the students’ answers in a Venn diagram template for younger students to copy and append answers.  Older students can work in teams to create their own group Venn diagram of answers.

3.  Talking Circle

The groups can share their answers in a talking circle at the end of the lesson. Remember to add new answers and/or write new questions on the KWL board. Post all student work/group work Venn diagrams in the library research area for students to use as a resource.

4.  Research

The teacher will facilitate the class to synthesize the students’ research into a final poster using the Venn diagram format.

Lesson 3: Define Petroglyph and Pictograph

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.

CD Segments to Play

For this topic, go to Sacred Landscape (features Judy BlueHorse-Skelton sharing a story on 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. Students will: 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.

Activities

1.  Read

Teacher will have printed articles and reading materials on petroglyphs already downloaded from the websites listed in the references. The students could choose an article to read and highlight the important points to share with a partner or with the group at the Talking Circle.

2.  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 4: Print a Card with a Petroglyph Design

Standards

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS

• EL.04.RE.18—Find information in specialized materials.

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.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.  Research

The teacher will prep the student studio and demonstrate a mono print card.  Students will use lesson number three and the information for this lesson as well as using the resource library and web-sites to continue to research and choose a favorite petroglyph. If the information is available, the student will write on their card the location of the petroglyph and the ancestral tribe that lived at the location of the petroglyph.

2.  Art project

• 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 5: Research Key Questions

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.

THE ARTS

• 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.  Research

The teacher will allow students to access the websites on traditional and contemporary Native artists.  The teacher will download the information from the websites and highlight the important points for the students to read. Students will report back to the class in a talking circle.

The teacher will create a Venn Diagram poster with the student’s findings on the contemporary Native artist and the traditional Native artist, as well as what is different about them and what they both have in common.

2.  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?

The teacher should ask two students to use the dictionary and read aloud the definitions to the class.

The class will 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 book bag, etc.

3.  Art project

Print an everyday item with a contemporary rock art design using the Lesson 4 mono print technique. Teacher note: Another technique to create designs on cloth is to use fabric crayons,

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 Richard Lewis (eds.). 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, Christopher Chippindale, and David Whitley.  Discovering North American Rock Art. University of Arizona Press, 2005.

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

Websites

Contemporary, Wasco Indian, Lillian Pitt, website with Art Based on Columbia Gorge Petroglyphs

http://www.lillianpitt.com (go to art based on petroglyphs)

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

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

Crayola fabric ideas on printing techniques and other related lesson plans

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)

http://www.rarepetroglyphs.com

Mono printing techniques

http://www.kinderart.com/printmaking/mono.shtml

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 and contains additional resources)

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

Traditional and Contemporary Native culture and artists of the Umatilla, Walla Walla, and Cayuse

http://www.trailtribes.org (click on tribes and continue to cultural and artist menu)

Information on Thomas Morning Owl for older students and teachers 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

Venn diagrams

http://www.eduplace.com (click on Graphic Organizers, then Venn Diagram)

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.

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

The 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 the name and location of the original homeland of the Wasco Nation and the reservation they live on today.
• Name 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).
• Describe, analyze one’s own art and the art of others in a talking circle
• Explain how a work of art reflects the artist’s personal experience in a society or culture
• Express ideas and feelings using artistic elements
• Design a traditional cylinder-style pattern for a Wasco basket that Lewis and Clark might have seen along the Columbia River

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 5^th to 8^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, speak.

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

Lesson 4: Create a Contemporary Basket Design

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 student-generated Wasco Basket Pattern Sheet on drawing paper.
• Get writing and drawing paper, pencils, erasers, stapler, tape, scissors, rulers, craft glue.
• Have on hand graph paper in different sizes from http://www.incompetech.com printed on stiff, light tan colored paper and different colors of paper.
• 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).
• Poster board and colored pens

SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES

Lesson 1: Introduction to the Wasco Nation—Traditional Baskets

Standards

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS

• EL.08.RE.02—Listen to, read, and understand a wide variety of informational and narrative text.
• EL.08.RE.04—Demonstrate listening comprehension of more complex text through class and/or small group interpretive discussions across the subject areas.

CD Segments to Play

Background

Suggested Strategies

Activities

1.  Listen

To introduce the Wasco Nation and traditional baskets play Wisdom of the Elders Radio Series 3, Program 6 featuring contemporary Wasco artist, Pat Courtney Gold.

2.  Research

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).

3.  Discuss

After listening to the Pat Gold segment, discuss the following questions and add answers to the KWL poster board.

• Who is Pat Courtney Gold?
• From what two Nations does she descend and where did she grow up?
• What is a reservation?
• How did she become a basket maker?
• How did she feel when she held a Wasco Basket that was 200 years old?
• What was the importance of weaving baskets?
• Why were they needed?
• (For younger students)  Have you ever gone grocery shopping with your parents?
• What does the checker use to bag their groceries?
• 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).

Brainstorm how many different containers (plastic and paper bags, Tupperware, cardboard, etc.) are used to hold food.

4.  Research

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

Students can also 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?

Lesson 2: Research and Create a Wasco Basket Pattern Sheet

Standards

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS

• EL.08.RE.08—Understand, learn, and use new vocabulary that is introduced and taught directly through informational text, literary text, and instruction across the subject areas.
• EL.08.RE.18—Clarify understanding of informational texts by creating detailed outlines, graphic organizers, diagrams, logical notes, or summaries.

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.

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

THE ARTS

• AR.08.CP.01—Select and combine essential elements and organizational principles to achieve a desired effect when creating, presenting, and/or performing works of art for a variety of purposes.
• AR.08.CP.03—Create, present, and/or perform a work of art by controlling essential elements and organizational principles and describe how well the work expresses an intended idea, mood, or feeling.

CD Segments to Play

Background

Suggested Strategies

Activities

1.  Art project

Pass out grid paper to students, use a larger grid for younger students, and ask them to use the five design elements to create a traditional design for a Wasco Cylinder Basket using pencil. To finish, tape the paper together and cut 7 – 9 tabs ½” at bottom of paper. Fold and glue to center to form basket bottom. Younger students may need help.

2.  Demonstrate

Display with photographs of traditional Wasco Baskets.

3.  Talking Circle

Talking Circle time!

Lesson 4: Create a Contemporary Basket Design

Standards

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS

• EL.08.RE.02—Listen to, read, and understand a wide variety of informational and narrative text.
• EL.08.RE.04—Demonstrate listening comprehension of more complex text through class and/or small group interpretive discussions across the subject areas.
• EL.08.RE.08—Understand, learn, and use new vocabulary that is introduced and taught directly through informational text, literary text, and instruction across the subject areas.

CD Segments to Play

Background

Suggested Strategies

Activities

1.  Reflect

• Play traditional flute music and pass out paper and pencils.
• Ask students to take five minutes to draw “pictures from the heart,” thumbnail size images that have deep personal meaning.
• Stop the music and ask them to circle 4 or 5 of their favorite images.
• Using these personal favorite images, the student will use pencil and differently colored grid paper to design a contemporary Wasco style basket design. To complete, follow Lesson 3.

2.  Homework

If time the teacher and (older) students can research online traditional twining and weaving a pouch. An excellent art and project book with teaching how to twine a pouch (page 100 and 101) is by Ann Sayre Wiseman called, “The Best of Making Things, A Handbook of Creative Discovery. Remind the students that the Lewis and Clark Wasco basket wasn’t made of yarn or paper but from local grasses, hemp and other natural fibers.

3.  Talking Circle

Sitting in a circle, holding their cylinder basket designs, students will share their stories, images and feelings 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.

Wiseman, Sawyer Ann.  The Best of Making Things, A Handbook of Creative Discovery. Hand Print Press, Oregon; revised 1997.

Publications, Websites, etc.

Hexagram graph paper

http://www.incompetech.com

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.