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Prehistoric Indians
Carole Camp
There were four Prehistoric Native American tribes in Georgia. They were the Paleo, the Archaic, the Woodland, and the Mississippian. The Paleo were hunters and gatherers and nomadic, kept constantly on the move searching for food. The Archaic were still hunters and gathers, but were beginning to develop more sophisticated weapons and were able to have a wider range of food sources. They, too, were nomadic, but were beginning to move less often. They hunted smaller animals, and caught fish. They were the beginning of horticulture. The Woodland were more advanced still, forming villages and tribes. They began using the bow and arrow and this made hunting easier. They also began planting food which made their settlements more permanent. The most advanced of the prehistoric tribes were the Mississippians. They lived in villages, farmed and were very religious. This lesson will explore the differences among the tribes and trace how they developed from time period to time period.
1. Reference materials on the Paleo, Archaic, Woodland, and Mississippian Prehistoric Indians. Print material from a media center or information from the Internet may be used. If the teacher is in Georgia, a current textbook would be a great resource. Paintings based on archaeological findings can be seen by going to ask.com and typing "Prehistoric Indians". Then click on the Images icon. Reference sources can also be found by going to ask.com and typing "Prehistoric Indians". Many sites will be available and the search can be narrowed to the particular group being researched, such as Paleo or Archaic, etc.
2. Poster boards--four per class period.
3.(Optional materials for dividing groups) Small rocks, small sticks (from a yard), small feathers (can be purchased inexpensively from Wal-Mart or a craft store), and large beads (can also be bought from Wal-Mart or a craft store). The number of each will be determined by the number of students taught.
4. Different art mediums such as colored pencils, colored sand, beads of different sizes, glitter glue, scrap pieces of leather like and fur like fabric, glue, different kinds of dried beans and peas, and anything else the teacher thinks will make the lesson more interesting and fun.
5. A picture of one or more prehistoric tribes.
one 90 minute class period
5Y3
How did the prehistoric Native American tribes develop and progress from period to period?
Did you ever play "cowboys and Indians" when you were younger? Were you a cowboy or an Indian? If you were an Indian, how did you think you should dress? What kind of home did you think you should live in? Did you ride horses? Why do you think you enjoyed playing the game so much?
When you hear the word "prehistoric", what do you think of? Students should brainstorm this as a group and the teacher should write responses on the board. After a few minutes, discuss each response to determine if it really could describe prehistoric. Then the teacher should explain what prehistoric means and lead into the four prehistoric tribes by using some of the words the students brainstormed. The teacher might have to list some words that the students didn't think of, or if the students had no idea what prehistoric meant.
1. Divide the class into four groups. There are lots of ways to do this. A fun way would be to use small sticks, small feathers, small rocks, and large beads. Put the appropriate number of items for each group in a brown paper bag. For example, if there are 24 students in the class, there should be six small sticks, six small feathers, six small rocks, and six large beads in the paper bag. Each student will, without looking, pull an object from the bag. It would be good if each student kept the object they drew concealed until all have chosen. The students need to find all the others who have the same object they do, and they will sort themselves into groups.
2. Each group will be assigned one of the four prehistoric Indian tribes. The group will research their group and then present their findings in a creative way. The students should each prepare a poster. They must follow these guidelines as they prepare their information: 1) must describe type of food (such as mammoths for the Paleo tribe), 2) weapons used to hunt (for example, spears or fish hooks), 3) type of clothing worn, 4) type of shelter, and 5) how they were organized (for example, were they single families, were they in groups of 25 or so, did they live in villages, etc.).
3. Posters should be used as a means of displaying different mediums to present the information. Students may use colored pencils to illustrate one fact and scraps of cloth to illustrate another, such as clothing. Glitter glue could be used, as could sand paintings. Each of the five guidelines should be presented using a different medium. Sticks could be glued on the poster to illustrate shelter, beads and feathers could be used to decorate clothing, if appropriate.
4. After the groups finish their posters, they should show them to the rest of the class and explain them.
5. After each group has presented their poster, display them where the class can see them together, beginning with the oldest tribe.As a group, discuss the changes that can be seen from tribe to tribe. The teacher should lead the students to look at such things as food sources, weapons, shelter, whether they are nomadic or have formed settlements, etc.
6. As the students list changes, the teacher should list these on the board. Discuss as a group how these changes might have happened.
When you think of these prehistoric tribes, would you like to be an Indian living in that time period? How would it be different from the way you used to picture Indians when you were younger? List two things you learned about each of the other tribes you didn't do research on and how they developed into a more advanced tribe.
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