LEARN NC

10.2 North Carolina powwow

By Linda Tabor

Provided by The North Carolina Humanities Council.

Introduction

American Indians who have lived in North Carolina have contributed to and continue to contribute to the development of the state. Correcting the stereotypes found in movies & inaccurate literature is necessary for thinking skills development. Student groups will learn about powwow traditions, conduct research on individual tribes, and participate in a class meeting to share the results of their research in student-written plays.

Learning Outcomes

  • Students will research an American Indian tribe that has lived or traveled in NC, past and/or present.
  • Students will work in a group to combine research into a play.
  • Students will plan props to enhance production.
  • Students will rehearse play.
  • Students will present play for peers.

Teacher Planning

Time required for lesson

  • One class for intro and tribe selection — students should also learn about pow wow traditions during this initial session.
  • Two or three classes for research using library and internet. (All students read, take notes, but do not converse.)
  • One class to share research in groups and begin to plan.
  • One class to complete planning. (I do not require a written script.)
  • One class to practice. (I do not allow students “up” until plan is complete.)

Production

Adequate time needs to be allotted. This depends on the number of classes participating. When I had three sections of social studies, each class represented two tribes. Our team used half a day for the pow wow. When I was on the block system, each class was divided into five tribes.

Materials and Technology Resources

Pre-Activities

Each group needs to elect a group leader who will organize the play.
After research is complete, the group needs to create a list of responsibilities for members including:

  1. Who will bring which props;
  2. Who will dye fabric and which natural materials and designs will be used if the group plans to incorporate dyed materials to demonstrate the use of natural resources;
  3. Who will act in each part of the play;
  4. Who will tell the history of the tribe — its location, housing, and family structure;
  5. Who will tell about the clothing, hairstyles, and adornments used by the tribe;
  6. Who will share a legend or recite a poem from the tribe;
  7. Who will explain the flora and fauna used for food and medicine;
  8. Who will describe traditional crafts (students may wish to share images of traditional crafts made by skilled craftsmen from the tribe either in the past or more recently);
  9. Who will describe a traditional game or pastime; and
  10. Who will describe the tribe’s music and dance traditions.

The teacher may wish to make some of these elements required or optional depending on the resources available, or may wish to add to this list of possible responsibilities.

Students may wish to consider whether they would like to bring in props or create part of their performance that is inspired by what they have learned about American Indian cultural expressions. It should be made clear to students that imitating the dance regalia, dance steps, drum rhythms, or crafts of native people would not show proper respect for the cultural importance of these art forms and for the years of work that traditional dancers, musicians, and craftspeople have put into mastering their arts and perfecting their skills. However, students might apply what they have learned about the meaning of these cultural expressions to the tribe that they are studying as they create artistic expressions of their own ideas and that explore meaningful ideas from their own cultural backgrounds. For example, they might share information about the creation of the regalia of a dancer from the tribe that they are studying then share an artistic representation of an outfit that they might design for a special occasion that would have personal meaning and cultural significance for them as an individual. Similarly, students could learn about dance traditions and then create a dance that is meaningful to them instead of a dance that imitates the steps of an American Indian dance tradition.

Two lesson plans online provide useful examples of strategies teachers can use to help students learn about native cultural expressions in respectful ways by creating crafts and performances that are personally meaningful to the student, but that do not imitate the cultural expressions of the tribes they are studying. “A Wisconsin Powwow Teacher Guide” and ”Grade 4 Dance Unit Overviews” from the Education Department of the government of Saskatchewan. Teachers will probably find it helpful to read over these two plans before telling students about the requirements for their own plays.

By dividing the responsibilities of the play students can create a polished production as a group effort. The written contract of responsibilities makes evaluation easy. (I give individual & group grades in projects.)

Activities

  1. Design a performance to stress the unique characteristics of each tribe.
  2. Practice the plays for stage presence (no backs to audience, voice control).

Assessment

Each tribe needs the rubric while designing the play. Depending on the kinds of research that the teacher wants students to focus on, this rubric could be adjusted to place more or less weight on different components or to add or remove components as needed.

15 minute production (time can be adjusted as needed)20%
Information about music & dance (including any student-
created performances inspired by their research)		20%
history of tribe20%
flora & fauna: used in crafts, medicine, food10%
legend &/or poem10%
craft; demonstration10%
game; demonstration10%
Total100%

Each group evaluates the other participants. This keeps focus. I find students to be fair and thoughtful when grading.

Modification and Extensions

The dying of the fabrics using natural materials can be done in a science classroom if you have a team teaching situation. The legends or poems can be part of a language arts requirement. The internet research can be shared in a technology class. Students need to see learning as a total goal, not just a one-class grade.

Comments

Students look forward to participating in the American Indian Powwow. This learning experience is often the topic when former students return to visit.

North Carolina curriculum alignment

Social Studies (2003)

Grade 8

  • Goal 1: The learner will analyze important geographic, political, economic, and social aspects of life in the region prior to the Revolutionary Period.
    • Objective 1.02: Identify and describe American Indians who inhabited the regions that became Carolina and assess their impact on the colony.
    • Objective 1.04: Evaluate the impact of the Columbian Exchange on the cultures of American Indians, Europeans, and Africans.
    • Objective 1.07: Describe the roles and contributions of diverse groups, such as American Indians, African Americans, European immigrants, landed gentry, tradesmen, and small farmers to everyday life in colonial North Carolina, and compare them to the other colonies.