Overview
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
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS
EL.06.RE.06—Listen to, read, and understand a wide variety of informational and narrative text.
EL.06.RE.09—Understand, learn, and use new vocabulary that is introduced and taught directly through informational text, literary text, and instruction across the subject areas.
EL.06.RE.20—Clarify understanding of informational texts by creating simple outlines, graphic organizers, diagrams, logical notes, or summaries.
EL.06.WR.30—Use a variety of resource materials to gather information for research topics (e.g. books, magazines, newspapers, dictionaries, schedules, journals, phone directories, web resources).
THE ARTS
AR.05.HC.03—Describe how works of art from various historic periods reflect the artist’s environment, society, and culture.
CD Segments to Play
Background
Before the coming of the European settlement, the Kalapuya were the largest American Indian group in western Oregon. It is estimated that the people numbered 15,000 at the time of European contact. The traditional territory of the Kalapuya encompassed the majority of the Willamette Valley southward to the Upper Umpqua Valley near present-day Yoncalla. Thirteen distinct groups of people lived in the traditional territory, speaking three dialects of the Kalapuya language.
Contrary to most beliefs, the Kalapuya were not nomadic, but rather lived in permanent villages throughout the valley. Wooden plank/frame houses were used as the primary dwellings and shelters of wood and brush were constructed in temporary fishing and hunting sites. Long dugout canoes were used to navigate the inland streams and waterways as a means of transportation and food gathering.
The Kalapuya were hunters of large and small game, subsisting on deer and elk supplemented by a variety of fish. Of primary importance were gathering techniques for plants that provided a balanced diet for the people. Camas was a vital food item for the Kalapuya, who roasted the bulb in stone-lined ovens and made pressed cakes for winter use and also as a trade item.
The neighbors of the Kalapuya to the south were the Cow Creek Umpqua Indians, Chasta (Shasta), Takelma and those of the Upper Rogue River. Coastal tribes such as the Siuslaw, Coos, Lower Umpqua, Alsea, Tillamook, and Nehalem were also neighbors and often traded with the people of the inland valleys.
Each tribal group was rich in the traditions of storytelling and history and each also had their great leaders who were well respected.
Suggested Strategies
Activities
Journal
Have each student construct a journal. Each student then becomes a historical researcher who will discover information about Oregon tribes. Have each student answer the following questions as a journal entry.
Journal entry #1: What do I already know about Oregon tribes? (4 things) What do I want to know about Oregon tribes? (4 things)
Read
Read from the downloaded Oregon Indian information. All or a selection of tribes may be used.
Draw
Each child selects a tribal group and draws a picture in the journal based on the information.
Analyze
Point out the historic photos and assign a group to each photo to analyze the subject. Discuss the findings. The chart below may be helpful in discussing the photos.
| Observation | Knowledge | Interpretation |
| Describe exactly what you see in the photo.
What people and objects are shown? How are they arranged? What is the physical setting? What other details can you see? |
Summarize what you already know about the situation and time period shown, and the people and objects that appear. | Say what you conclude from what you see.
What’s going on in the picture? Who are the people & what are they doing? What might be the function of the objects? What can we conclude about the time period? |
| Further Research What questions has the photo raised? What are some sources I can use to find answers? | ||
5. Vocabulary
Students will write each word and its definition in the journal
researcher tradition
culture gathering
nomadic
