Overview
Lesson 1: Introduction to Relationships between Humans and the Environment
Lesson 2: Berries in the Ecosystem
Lesson 3: Traditional Ecological Knowledge
Lesson 4: Historic versus Contemporary Landscapes
Lesson 5: Responsibility of Society
Lesson 5, Day 1
Standards
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS
- EL.CM.RE.02—Listen to, read, and understand a wide variety of informational and narrative text.
- EL.CM.RE.04—Demonstrate listening comprehension of more complex text through class and/or small group interpretive discussions across the subject areas.
- EL.CM.RE.35—Extend ideas presented in primary or secondary sources through original analysis, evaluation, and elaboration.
- EL.CM.WR.02—Discuss ideas for writing with classmates, teachers, and other writers, and develop drafts alone and collaboratively.
- EL.CM.WR.23—Write analytical essays and research reports.
CD Segments to Play
Background
To the native people back east, these 3 plants were cultivated together. In addition to the nutrients provided to the people, the manner in which they cultivated them illustrates very well how plants and interdependent upon each other. These 3-sisters were planted together in the same mounds, in doing so they worked together: the corn provided a stalk for the beans to grow around, the beans provided nutrients to the soil and the squash provided a natural insecticide. The people knew these things through their body of Traditional Ecological Knowledge. These three sisters have been widely studied and stories about them are common, particularly back east. Unlike these three-sisters, the raspberries, blackberries and huckleberries are not bound together in the same way; however, to the people of the Pacific Northwest they are very much as important.
Suggested Strategies
Activities
1. Discuss
Ask: What are some of the threats to The Three Sisters of the Pacific Northwest?
2. Listen
Re-listen to Sacred Landscape segment, Wisdom of the Elders Radio: Series 3, Program 6, Warm Springs.
Ask: Does anyone know the significance of the 3-sisters, corn, beans and squash?
Ask: What are some of the threats that berries are faced with today? Make a list of the answers on the board, and have the students also make their own list.
Threats:
- Clearcutting (logging an area of all the harvestable lumber and removing all the “nuisance” species is a threat. While a clearcut does take an area backwards to secondary succession and allows shrubs, like the berries, the ability to come back, non-native (exotic) species are easily able to overpopulate an area. Clearcutting also subjects an area to erosion. Clearcutting removes all biodiversity from an area by removing native habitat, it has also been linked to global warming.
- Invasive species, as mentioned above out-competes and overpopulates a natural ecosystem and replaces native plants such as berries.
- Commercial harvesting destroys natural habitats. Some public lands have outlawed the use of mechanical pickers, which go along an area and destroy the plants to the degree that they cannot complete its lifecycle, which decreases the number of fruit-producing plants.
- Overharvesting, even when commercial harvesters use manual labor to pick berries, they do not have the inherent respect to the plants. Commercial harvesting is driven by quantity, thought for the plant or for the other people and wildlife dependent upon the berries is not considered.
- Tourists often hike in areas where native plants grow; some tourist trample these natural habitats, garbage is left in the areas and ultimately the habitat is no longer able to support the native species
3. Research
Break the students into their research groups. Based upon their research topic, have each group choose one of the reasons listed on the board and/or the reasons listed above. Give them time to reach a solution for their chosen reason. As a group, have them write a one-page solution. Allow them to photocopy their one-page solution so they may each add to their Berry Portfolio.
Lesson 5, Days 2, 3, 4
Standards
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS
- EL.CM.RE.35—Extend ideas presented in primary or secondary sources through original analysis, evaluation, and elaboration.
- EL.CM.SL.05—Analyze the occasion and the interests of the audience, and choose effective verbal techniques and language.
CD Segments to Play
Background
Suggested Strategies
Activities
1. Share
Berry Portfolios are turned in. Have each group present their findings to the class with a 30-minute time limit. Have each group include:
- Introduction of berries and their connection to the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs;
- Their Research topic and findings;
- Their combined food webs, encourage the students to creatively show their food web.
- One thing they will do to help the berries (and how their solution will help the berries).
2. Listen
Wrap-up the Berry Curriculum by re-listening to the Sacred Landscape segment. Give time for students to express changes in what they have listened to since they first heard it.
By the completion of this series, the students should be able to discuss the importance of berries to people; to the food web and the environment, as well as the cultural importance that these berries have to the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs.
