4 SS2

LO 10

After the White Man

Formative Assessment:

· What things do you enjoy about living in America?

· How would you feel if you were taken against your will to a country with a very different culture?

Instructional Strategies or Activities:

Explain to students that life changed drastically for the Plains Indians when the white man began to move westward in search of land and gold. Settlers killed thousands of buffalo, brought deadly diseases, and invaded Native American hunting grounds. In addition, the United States government began forcing the Native Americans to sell their land. After 36 years of wars between the white men and the united tribes, the Plains Indians were forced to live on reservations and give up their culture. The shock of being dropped into a reservation, without their buffalo or tepees, could be compared to that of a desert nomad being forced to live in an Eskimo village!

Tell students to pretend that they are being taken against their will to a country with a very different culture. They will not be allowed to eat the things they normally eat, do the things they normally do, or even dress the way they normally dress. How would they feel?

Have each child write a journal entry describing his/her feelings about being forced to give up his familiar life-style.

Summative Assessment:

Have students share their stories with the class.