Regions
Great Plains homes made from buffalo hides were called these
Tepees
This food was especially important to many Native peoples of the Pacific Northwest.
Salmon
This group believed people were part of the land and the land was part of them.
Native Americans
This 1862 law encouraged settlers to move west and claim land.
Homestead Act of 1862
These Native American Marines used their language to help create a military code during World War II.
Navajo Code Talkers
The buffalo provided Great Plains tribes with food, clothing, tools, paint, and even this source of heat.
These objects used symbols and figures to represent families, ancestors, stories, or important events.
Totems / Totem Poles
This group believed individuals could own land and prove their ownership with a deed.
Europeans / Settlers
This policy attempted to make Native Americans adopt the language and customs of white American society.
Assimilation
What lesson does Raven Steals the Light teach about greed and sharing resources?
Resources should be shared; greed can harm others.
People in this region gathered nuts and berries, hunted animals such as deer, and also grew crops for food.
Northeast
Canoes were important to Native peoples in California for more than transportation. Name two ways canoes helped people use the resources around them.
fishing, gathering resources, traveling by water, or transporting people or goods.
Luther Standing Bear experienced both traditional Lakota life and the Carlisle Indian School. Why does that make his perspective especially important when studying assimilation?
He personally experienced Native culture as well as an attempt to replace Native language and culture through assimilation, giving him firsthand experience of its effects.
The government wanted Native peoples placed on designated lands rather than living throughout their traditional territories. Which law from the unit best matches this goal?
Indian Appropriations Act of 1851
Navajo itself was difficult for enemy forces to understand, so why did the Code Talkers need to create an additional code instead of simply speaking Navajo?
They needed a fast, consistent way to communicate military terms and information while making the messages even more secure.
People in this region lived in an area with plateaus and a much drier climate. They adapted by developing ways to grow crops with limited water.
Southwestern Plateaus
Totems and potlatches served different purposes in Pacific Northwest cultures. Explain one important purpose of each.
Totems represented things such as family, ancestry, stories, or important events. Potlatches were gatherings involving feasting and gift-giving.
Richard Henry Pratt and Luther Standing Bear were both connected to Carlisle, but they viewed assimilation differently. Explain the difference.
Pratt promoted assimilation and wanted Native students to adopt white American language and culture, while Standing Bear experienced assimilation and described its effects on Native culture and identity.
What is the important difference between the Homestead Act and the Dawes Act, even though both involved land?
The Homestead Act encouraged settlers to claim western land, while the Dawes Act divided Native tribal lands into individual allotments.
Imagine a Code Talker needed to communicate information about a military weapon or vehicle that had no traditional Navajo word. How did the code solve this problem?
The Code Talkers assigned Navajo words or coded terms to represent specific military words, equipment, letters, or ideas.
Identify the region: Salmon and other fish were major resources, forests provided materials for homes and canoes, and waterways were an important part of everyday life.
Pacific Northwest
Explorers, missionaries, miners, and settlers arrived in California for different reasons. Explain two different ways their arrival affected Native peoples.
loss or change of land/resources, disruption of traditional ways of life, or pressure to change culture or religion.
A European settler says, “I have a deed, so this land belongs to me.” Explain why a Native American might disagree using the different perspectives about land studied in the Unit.
Europeans viewed land as property that individuals could own and prove ownership of with documents, while Native peoples viewed themselves as part of the land rather than seeing land simply as individually owned property
Create a cause-and-effect chain using these ideas: westward settlement → government policies → changes to Native lands and ways of life. Include at least two specific laws or policies
increased western settlement with at least two policies such as the Homestead Act, Indian Appropriations Act, Dawes Act, or assimilation and explain their effects on Native lands or ways of life.
The Navajo Code Talkers' success depended on both their Navajo language and their military training. Explain why removing either one would have made the system less effective.
Navajo helped keep communications secure, while military/code training allowed them to communicate military information accurately and quickly. Both were necessary.