Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Lesson 9: The Lakota Today

The Lakota Today.

Many American Indian stereotypes exist in America today. This lesson introduces students to American Indians, particularly the Lakota Nation. Students will explore the lives of Lakota children and their families in the modern world. This is the first lesson in a series of two lessons. The next day’s lesson will introduce students to the Lakota language and words used to describe family. In both lessons students will recognize that Native Americans inhabited the area that is now Winona before settlers moved in. Students will also recognize that Native Americans live to today and often live lives similar to their own.

Materials and Resources

Chart Paper
Felt tip Marker
Map of the Midwest
Chalkboard/maker board
Magnets to hold map and chart paper to board
Children of Native America Today By Yvonne Wakim, Dennis and Arlene Hirschefelder
Writing paper for each student
Artifacts- Newspaper articles

Goal(s) for Lesson

- Students will be aware of the Lakota Indian Nation and compare modern Lakota families’ lives to their own.

Objectives for Lesson

- The student will recognize that Lakota Indians are still alive today and living lives similar to their own.

- Students will compare their family and daily life to that of Lakota children’s family and daily lives, and find at least three similarities.

Procedure

Introductory Experience (8-10 minutes, depending upon student responses)

- Ask students, “What do you know about the Lakota Indians?” Record students’ responses on chart paper. Do not correct stereotypes or make any statements about students’ responses at this time.
- Read the list developed by the class. Explain to the class that you will re-visit this list at the end of the lesson and see if any of their ideas have changed.
- Pass around newspaper artifacts. Explain to students that these articles describe Native Americans that used to live in the Winona and Minnesota area. Explain that these people were not treated very nicely at all (forced to move, forced to stop their way of life, forced to stop their traditions, families separated).
- Ask students how they think these people felt.
- Explain to students that Native Americans still live today and some Native Americans still live in the Winona area. Ask students if they know any Native Americans. If students do talk about those people. What does that person do for work? Where do they live? How do they get from place to place? Help students see that Native Americans living today are very similar to themselves.

Developmental Experience (30 minutes)

1. Gather students around in the reading corner. Read about the Lakota (pg. 30-32) in the book Children of Native America Today. While reading the story ask students about how the Lakota children are similar and different to themselves. (5-8 minutes)
2. After the story is complete post three pieces of chart paper on the board. Title the chart paper: Who are the Lakota? Where do they live? What do they do? Read these titles to students. Ask students to think about the book you just read and the three questions on the chart paper. Allow students time to think. (2 minutes)
3. Start with the first question: Who are the Lakota? Ask students for their responses to this question. Make sure students answers are correct. If a student’s response presents a stereotype, then discuss that stereotype with the class. Record correct responses on the chart paper. Some possibly answers: People like you and me, Native American Indian Tribe. (4 minutes)
4. Repeat for the second question: Where do they live? Make sure students recognize that some Lakota live on Indian Reservations and others live in towns, cities, and neighbors just like their own. Use the map of the Midwest to point out Indian Reservation where some of the Lakota live. (4 minutes)
5. Repeat for the third question: What do they do? Possibly answers: play games with siblings, play sports with friends, eat dinner with their family, may also include traditions, etc. (5 minutes)
6. After students have developed answers to the three questions and discussed stereotypes that came up in their answers, send students back to their desks. Ask students to take out their pencils. Distribute a sheet of loose-leaf notebook paper to each student. (2 minutes)
7. Tell students that they will write at least three sentences telling how they or their life/family life is similar to the lives of Lakota children and families. Before students begin writing, model writing a sentence about the topic with the class. Write this sentence on the board for students to reference. Also, write the word Lakota, similar, and family on the board for students to see. (10 minutes)
8. Ask for a volunteer to share a similarity. Have several volunteers share their ideas. (3 minutes)

Culminating Experience (5 minutes)

- Read the list that students generated at the beginning of the lesson about what they know about Lakota Indians.
- Ask students, “Is there anything on our list that is not correct?”
- As students find flaws in their original statements ask them why the statement is not correct. Talk about it as a class. If the class decides the statement is not correct cross it off the list.
- Review the other three pieces of chart paper with students’ responses about who the Lakota are, where they live, and what they do.
- Explain to the class that today they talked about Lakota people that are living today, and that tomorrow we look at Lakota people who lived in the past.

Assessment

Students' responses to the chart paper questions will identify if students recognize characteristics of modern Lakota Indians.

Students' written responses comparing their life to Lakota children’s lives will identify that students recognize similarities between the Lakota culture and their own.


Lesson 10: The Lakota People's Language

The Lakota People’s language

This lesson will introduce students to the Lakota language spoken by the Lakota/Dakota people. Students will learn and work with words of the Lakota language for grandpa, grandma, mom, dad, son, daughter, and children.

Materials and Resources

- All Families Are Special By Norma Simon with Lakota word additions (3 copies)
Write the Lakota family word on yellow painters tape. Place the Lakota family word over the English family word in
the book. Then when you record the book on tape read the Lakota family word instead of the English word.
- All Families Are Special By Norma Simon with Lakota word additions recorded on tape/CD (3 copies)
- Yellow painter tape
- Tape/CD player (3)
- Lakota Family Word Cards
- Lakota Family Word Matching Game (3 copies)
- My Lakota Dictionary for each student
- Crayons
- Pencils
- Four artifact photographs from WHS
12x9-inch size
Original size

Goal(s) for Lesson

Students will learn family words of the Lakota language. At the end of this lesson students will have learned the Lakota words for grandma, grandpa, mom, dad, son, daughter, and children.

Objectives for Lesson

1. After viewing Lakota Indian Artifacts, the student will recognize that Lakota Indians lived in the area that is now Winona, Minnesota.
2. The student will produce a dictionary that illustrates Lakota family words.
3. The student will match Lakota family words with English family words in the matching game.
4. The student will listen to and look at the book All Families Are Special and translate the Lakota family word to the English family word.

Procedure

Introductory Experience (5 Minutes)

- Post artifact pictures of Lakota Indians on the board at the reading corner.
- Gather students on the floor around the reading corner.
- Review what students learned yesterday.
Where do Lakota Indians live? (reservations, towns, cities, neighbors, etc.)
What do they do? (traditions, celebrations, play with friends, go to school, eat dinner with their families, etc.)
Who are the Lakota Indians? (Native American Indian tribe, people)
- Explain to students that the pictures on the board are of Lakota Indians that used to live in the Winona area or would have know Lakota Indians that lived in Winona area. Pass original size pictures around. Allow time for students to view the pictures.
- Tell students that today they are going to learn some words from the Lakota language. Explain that the people in these pictures used this language to speak to one another everyday. Explain that some people still speak Lakota, but most people also speak English.

Developmental Experience

1. Send students back to their desks and have them take out their crayons. As students go back to their desks pass a Lakota Dictionary out to each student. Post Lakota family words on the front board. Have students place their name on the front of the dictionary. Read through the words on each page and point to the word on the board. Say the Lakota word and have students repeat the word, then read the English equivalent. (4 minutes)

2. Explain that students will create illustrations to help them remember the words on each page. Example: for the Lakota word unc’i (which means grandma) students may draw a picture of their grandma doing something she enjoys doing. Explain that students will do this for each page. (15-20 minutes)

3. As students finish their dictionaries, have them clean up their desk and then send them to the reading centers in groups of 3 or 4. Each reading center should include a copy of All Families Are Special with Lakota word additions and recording of book on tape/CD. Have students listen to the book in their small group. (5-10 minutes)

4. Once students have finished listening to All Families Are Special have their group move to the floor to play Lakota-English matching game. Students will match the Lakota family word with the English family word. Encourage students to say the word on the cards they flip over. Students may bring their dictionary to this activity if they desire. Also, the matching cards will have illustrations to assist students. (5-10 minutes)

(Note: Students will move through the 3 activities at different rates. Some students may be completing the dictionary while others are listening to the book, and perhaps others may be starting to play the matching game.)

5. Have students put away their matching game and come back to the reading corner (2 minutes)

Culminating Experience (4 minutes)

- Take down the Lakota family word cards from the front board and bring to the reading corner.
- Ask students what they have learned today.
Possible answers: The Lakota Indians spoke another language, some people still speak the Lakota language, the
different words that they learned.
- Hold up each Lakota family word card. Say the word, have students repeat the word, and say the English equivalent.
- Remind students that the people in the pictures posted in the reading corner spoke this language everyday and that some people still speak it, but most also speak English or another language.

Assessment

Students completed the Lakota dictionary and created illustrations appropriate for each page.