U NIT P LAN O VERV IEW

Unit Title: Native Americans

Unit Topic: Native American cultures Designed By: Lauren Dunnavant
Subject Area(s): History, geography Grade Level(s): 2nd

Brief Summary of Unit (Including information about the class/students, what the unit is about, length
of the unit, why the unit is important within the context of the curriculum and for your students, and
how the content relates to students lives)

In this unit, we will be studying the Powhatan, Pueblo and Lakota Native American cultures over a 7
week span, every other school day. This unit will be following the maps and globes unit and will
enforce the idea that we can use maps and geography to learn about American history, such as the
Native Americans. This unit will take place near the beginning of the year, so that students can have
foundational knowledge on what a culture is and how its affected. It is important for the students to
learn about Native Americans because they were the first Americans and their distinct cultures can
teach us a lot about how the environment affects culture and their contributions. This second grade
class in particular is diverse, including students from Africa, Israel, Korea and more. When students
learn that culture is an important part of who we are and where we come from, they can begin to
apply this concept to themselves and develop their own cultural identity.

S T A G E 1: I DE N T IF Y D E S IR E D R E S U L T S

Established Goals (VSOLs and/or CCSSs/Standards)

2.1 The student will demonstrate skills for historical thinking, geographical analysis, economic decision
making, and responsible citizenship by
a) identifying artifacts and primary and secondary sources to understand events in American history;
b) using basic map skills to locate places on maps and globes to support an understanding of
American history;
e) comparing and contrasting people, places, or events in American history;
g) making connections between past and present

2.3 The student will compare the lives and contributions of three Native American cultures of the past
and present, with emphasis on
a) the Powhatan of the Eastern Woodlands;
b) the Lakota of the Plains; and
c) the Pueblo peoples of the Southwest.

2.7 The student will locate and describe the relationship between the environment and culture of
a) the Powhatan of the Eastern Woodlands;
b) the Lakota of the Plains; and
c) the Pueblo Indians of the Southwest.
Unit Learning Goals (KUDs) & Essential Questions

Meaning
Students will explore these ESSENTIAL
Students will Understand THAT
QUESTIONS
- How can we use maps and artifacts to
- Students will understand that different
help us understand American history?
regions and environments lead to the
- How does environment affect the culture
development of distinct cultures (U1)
of a group of people?
- Students will understand the distinct
- How did Native Americans contribute to
cultures of the Lakota, Powhatan and
society in the past and the present?
Pueblo (U2)
- Students will understand that the Lakota,
Powhatan and Pueblo people contributed
to American history and continue to
shape our history today (U3)

Acquisition
Students will Know Students will be skilled at (Do)
- Students will be able to locate the
- Students will know the Lakota lived in the
Lakota/Plains, Powhatan/Eastern
plains, the Powhatan lived in the eastern
Woodlands and the Pueblo/Southwest on
woodlands and Pueblo lived in the
a US map (D1)
southwest (K1)
- Students will be able to compare and
- Students will know the characteristics of
contrast the characteristics of the Lakota,
each region (Eastern Woodlands:
Powhatan and Pueblo people (D2)
wooded, rivers, temperate, Plains: flat,
- Students will be able to analyze artifacts
fields, dry), and Southwest: dry, hot)
to learn more about Native American
including climate and land (K2)
culture (D3)
- Students will know the occupations,
housing and transportation of the Lakota
(teepees, hunters/horseman,
walked/horses), Powhatan (wood homes,
huters/fisherman/farmers,
canoed/walked) and Pueblo (multi-story
adobe, farmers/hunters, walked) people
(K3)
- Students will know the past and present
contributions of the Lakota, Powhatan
and Pueblo people including art, farming,
and environment protection (K4)
- Students will know the definition of
culture, which is the beliefs, customs, and
way of life of a group of people (K5)
- Students will know the definition of
region, which is places that have common
or the same characteristics (K6)
 - Students will know the definition of
environment, which is surroundings (K7)

**Note: After each learning goal, please provide a parenthetical label (i.e., U1, U2, K1, K2, D1, D2, etc.)

Assessment
Summative Assessment: Include a full description of the summative assessment including an
implementation and feedback plan. Sample questions/prompts should be included.

- Summative Assessment: students will be tested on the location, characteristics, and

contributions of the Lakota, Powhatan and Pueblo people through a multiple choice/short
answer/map test
- Implementation and Feedback: Students will have the entire block to take the test, which will be
administered on paper. When grading the test, multiple choice questions will receive all credit or
no credit, and the right answer will be given. On the short answers, students can get full, partial
or no credit, along with an explanation as to what was missing from their answer. On the map
section, students will either get full or no credit based on whether or not they correctly located
where each Native American group lived.
- Sample questions (multiple choice):
o The Lakota people lived in a) Longhouses b) clay multi-story structures c) teepees d) log
cabins
o Which of the following is NOT a contribution of Native Americans in the past? a) arts such
as pottery and weaving b) knowledge of the environment c) domesticating animals d)
farming of corn and tobacco
- Sample questions (short answer):
o In a complete sentence, describe a contribution of Native Americans in the present.
o In a complete sentence, describe one way that location affects a group of peoples
culture.

Alignment with
Formative Assessment Description
KUDs (List U3, K1,
(including sample questions/prompts and an implementation & feedback plan)
D4, etc.)

Informal assessment: In this assessment, I will assess the students ability to

accurately depict the three locations on their map. I will do this by having the
students fill in their own US map with the three locations and label the Native
American tribes. If students are struggling to locate where each tribe lived, I will K1, D1
ask them questions to help guide them toward the right place such as What did
we say the Eastern Woodlands was like? Use context clues in the name to help
you.
Informal assessment: I will assess the students ability to recognize the factors and
features of environment and culture. We will brainstorm what our own culture is
like and what we believe each tribes environment and culture was like. From this, I
K5, K7, D2
can gauge which students understand what each of those terms means. If students
are not understanding these terms, I will ask questions such as what surrounds
these tribes that might affect how they live?

Informal assessment: We will have a discussion following our artifact activity where
we will talk about the artifacts we looked at and why each one might be
considered a contribution. I will be assessing the ability of students to describe the
significance of the artifacts that we have talked about and gauge whether or not K4, K5, D3, U3
they understand how these artifacts are part of culture. Questions I will ask
students include what does this artifact tell us about this group of people? and
why might this be considered a contribution to society?
Formal assessment: Students will create a 3D diorama depicting one of the three
tribes (their choice). Their dioramas will include houses, food, surrounding terrain
and any other representations they want to include. They will have two full class
periods to do their diorama, as well as any down time throughout the day. I will be
K2, K3
monitoring them working on their dioramas, and feedback questions can include
what does that part of your diorama mean? Why was this an important part of this
tribe? And what else can you include that tells us more about how these people
lived?

Unit Outline
Assessment
Learning Experiences Connections IF
Content Focus
(models and/or strategies and/or APPLICABLE
(topics, skills, KUDs
Day approaches (formative
Can list parenthetical labels
to be used, activities for opportunities,
such as U1, K2, D2, etc.)
students) preparation or work
for summative)
Introduction to Native - Review what students - Preparation for
American unit learned about maps and final summative
- Locate the Eastern globes in the past unit (how assessment
Woodlands, Plains we can use them to explore - Formatively
and Southwest (K1, the past) assess: the
D1) - Locate with students with ability of the
- Who are Native different areas relevant to students to
1
Americans? Where do the unit (Eastern accurately
they live? Woodlands/James River, depict the three
- Lakota, Pueblo, Plains/Mississippi River, locations on
Powhatan Southwest/Rocky their map
Mountains)
- Read The Very First
Americans by Cara Ashrose
 - Introduce Native
Americans: Who are they?
Where do they live? Tell
students you will be
exploring more about
Native Americans this unit
- Introduce Lakota, Pueblo
and Powhatan
- Have students fill in their
own US map with the three
locations and label Native
American tribes (to be used
in a later class)
Native American - Read Greet the Dawn: The - Preparation for
environment Lakota Way by S.D. Nelson final summative
- Introduce theme of - Have students brainstorm assessment
culture (U1) aspects of their own lives - Formatively
- Native American around them and bring assess: the
tribes lived in distinct discussion to the definition ability of
environments that of culture students to
helped shape their - Have each student create define their
culture (K2) their own small poster with environment
pictures of what they and culture
believe to be their culture
- Show them video of child
from entirely different
environment/culture and
ask students to compare
him to our culture
2 - Review the three Native
American tribes and
locations on their maps
they made
- Define region and
environment and tell them
it is an important part of
culture
- Tell students that the three
tribes developed different
cultures because of their
different regions and
environments
- For each tribe, brainstorm
what they think their
environment was like
(create a chart)
 Native American - Review the climate and land - Preparation for
characteristics of each tribes region in final summative
- Compare and chart assessment
contrast the different - Brainstorm the - Students will be
characteristics of occupations, housing and given a study
each tribe (D2) transportation that each guide chart with
3
- Native American tribe used (show pictures) all the
housing was part of - Students will create their important
their distinct culture own Native American characteristics
(K3) housing (either a
- longhouse, teepee or adobe
clay house)
Native American - Read The Legend of the - Preparation for
contributions Indian Paintbrush by Tomie summative
- Native Americans dePaola assessment
contributed to - View different Native - Formatively
American history (U3, American artifacts in assess: the
4
K4) stations ability of
- Have a discussion about students to
each one and why it might describe the
be considered a significance of
contribution the artifacts
Native American - Stations about the - Preparation for
contributions continued contributions of Native summative
Americans (with picture assessment
examples at each)
- Introduce each station with
pictures and description of
the contribution
- Art station (either weaving,
painting pottery or carving
5
soap arrowheads)
- Farming station (coloring
pictures of corn and
tobacco plants)
- Nature station (Making Rain
Makers)
- Reading station (provides
books about Native
American culture)
Native Americans today - Begin discussion with the - Preparation for
- Native American decline of the Native summative
culture continues to American population when assessment
shape America today Christopher Columbus
6 (U3, K4) landed in the New World
bringing diseases and death
- Discuss with students
whether or not they think
that Native American
 culture has changed at all
since then
- Native Americans today
webquest: students will use
computers to complete
webquest with provided
worksheet
- Tell students how Native
Americans work to preserve
their culture and
environment, discuss how
this compares to Native
Americans in the past
Diorama project - Students will have two full
class periods to create a 3D
diorama depicting one of
the three tribes (their
7 choice). Their dioramas will
include houses, food,
surrounding terrain and any
other representations they
want to include.
Diorama project - Project work day

Summative Assessment:
students will be tested
on the location,
characteristics, and
contributions of the
9 Unit test day - Test day
Lakota, Powhatan and
Pueblo people through
a multiple choice
test/short answer/map
test