Native American Traditions Lesson Plan- Human-Environment Interaction: Place, Regions, and Cultures

Grade Levels: 3-5, 6-8

*Click to open and customize your own copy of the Native American Traditions Lesson Plan. 

This lesson accompanies the BrainPOP topic, Native American Traditions, and supports the standard of explaining how culture influences the way people modify and adapt to their environments. Students demonstrate understanding through a variety of projects.

Step 1: ACTIVATE PRIOR KNOWLEDGE

Ask students, “How is your culture similar to and different from a friend’s culture?” Prompt them to share examples from their experiences.

Step 2: BUILD KNOWLEDGE

  • Read aloud the description below the Native American Traditions topic page.
  • Play the Movie, pausing to check for understanding.
  • Assign Related Reading. Have students read one of the following articles:  “Laws and Customs” or “Famous Faces”. Partner them with someone who read a different article to share what they learned with each other.

Step 3: APPLY and ASSESS 

Assign the Native American Traditions Quiz, prompting students to apply essential literacy skills while demonstrating what they learned about this topic.

Step 4: DEEPEN and EXTEND

Students express what they learned about Native American traditions while practicing essential literacy skills with one or more of the following activities. Differentiate by assigning ones that meet individual student needs. 

  • Make-a-Movie: Create a movie that answers this question: What are some regional differences between Native American cultures and traditions?
  • Make-a-Map: Make a concept map that compares and contrasts elements of Native American cultures in different regions of North America. 
  • Creative Coding: Code a museum with artifacts that symbolize different Native American cultural traditions. 

More to Explore

Time Zone X: Native Americans: Place historical events in chronological order in this interactive timeline game.

Related BrainPOP Topics: Deepen understanding of Native American history, culture, and contributions, with these topics: Pocahontas, Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy, Reservations, and Navajo Code Talkers.

Teacher Support Resources:

 

 

 

Lesson Plan Common Core State Standards Alignments

Related:

    Filed as:  3-5, 6-8, BrainPOP, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.2, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.7, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.3, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.4, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.7, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.3, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.4