The First Turn, 1680-1720
Lesson 2: Early Indian Inhabitants of Deerfield

The on-line activity can be used to replace Activities 1 and 2 or to supplement them.

on-line activity

Activity 1
A . Field work - Native American artifacts at Memorial Hall Museum

1. Travel by bus to Memorial Hall in Old Deerfield along Routes 5 &10, noting significant landscape elements and views en route, such as the Pocumtuck Range, the Berkshire hills, the farmland on the flood plains, the wetlands at the north end of town that form what was the oxbow lake beneath the terrace of Main Street. Drive down Old Albany Road to see the evidence of the terrace at the end of the road. Mention that this was an Indian Road, extending as far as Albany, New York.
2. In the Indian Room at Memorial Hall, PVMA staff introduces the Stone Age time period and has students look at, and in some cases handle (where curatorially appropriate), the following Indian artifacts found in Deerfield or in the near vicinity. Ask students to speculate on and discuss: what the object might have been; of what material it was made; and what it might have been used for.

a. Large stone pot - found in South Hadley Falls - 3,000 years old - notice the blackened bottom indicating fire
b. Steatite vessel (soapstone bowl)
c. Pounding tool
d. Projectile point
e. Scraper
f. Awl
g. Beaver skin

3. Instruct students to take notes on these artifacts (their material and use) and make drawings of the objects.
4. Lead a discussion about what these objects "say" about the lives of the Indians. Think about what daily life might have been like and the role these objects might have played. In addition, note the following:

a. Many of these objects were found through archaeological research (study of evidence in the ground).
b. Much of what we know about Native Americans comes from archaeological evidence.
c. Only the more durable objects survived to the present so we can only learn a certain amount from archaeological finds.
d. Native peoples did not leave a written record to help us understand their lives and work. However, they had (and still have) a rich oral tradition which researchers sometime study to get a fuller understanding of Native American lifeways.

5. Visit the other exhibits in the room (or use the web site), reading the labels and observing the progression of tools, materials, and decorations, as the time periods get closer to the present. Note, for example, that clay objects from 2000 years ago and evidence of the beginning of farming, especially of the three "sister crops" of corn, squash, and beans, are grouped. Shells and beaded objects and metal decorations showing the influence of the Europeans are found in other sections.
6. Return to school, driving along Main Street, down the hill to Mill Village Road to note the southern end of the terrace, the twenty foot drop to the flood plain, and the farms along the route, relating this to Lesson 1.

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Artifacts:

a. Large stone pot
b. Steatite vessel (soapstone bowl)
c. Pounding tool
d. Projectile point
e. Scraper
f. Awl
g. Beaver skin

student notebooks

drawing paper

Activity 2
B. Learning About Native Americans

1. Distribute "Background Sheet: A Lifeways Time Line."

a. Note that "B.P." means "before present," and that "contact" means the time when the Native Americans and Europeans made contact, approximately 500 years B.P.
b. Instruct students to examine these sheets, noting the various categories (date, people, social patterns, climate, vegetation, food, weapons, tools).
c. Ask students which one of these categories determines everything else. (Climate is the most significant category on which everything else depends.) Discuss why.
d. Ask students to notice the social patterns. How did they change, and why did they change? Be certain to include the following points:

i. As the climate changed and evolved, food sources changed.
ii. Food sources also varied seasonally.
iii. Social patterns evolved. People moved around as necessary in order to find good food sources, water, and shelter, and adapted their eating habits to accommodate the food supply.
iv. Increasing use of food cultivation (farming) and storage techniques influenced the social patterns by making it less necessary to move around.

e. Note that in the area in which Deerfield is situated, we have evidence of Native American life starting with the Late Archaic and especially the Woodland Periods.
f. Ask students to use what they have learned about the Native American peoples in the region to make some "educated guesses" about Native Americans ideas about land ownership. [See key content ideas and teacher background, above, for information about Native Americans and land ownership.] Explain or expand if necessary. Compare Native American ideas about land ownership and land use rights with our modern-day beliefs and practices.
g. Notice the weapons and tools listed in the periods of the "late settlers" and the "farmers." Compare these to the artifacts seen in the Indian Room at Memorial Hall.

2. Native American Tools

a. Distribute "Background Sheet: Native American Tools: Late Archaic Period" (pp. 36-38 of the Native American Sourcebook), and instruct students to examine the pages.
b. Paraphrase the first three paragraphs for students, clarifying such terms as radio-carbon dating.
c. Ask students to match any tools they saw in the Indian Room collection with examples on the Background Sheet, using their drawings and descriptions of artifacts from the Memorial Hall Museum as a guide.
d. Notice any other tools on the Background Sheet, and note the time period in which they were used.

3. Homework - complete the worksheet on page 35 of the Native American Sourcebook.

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"Background Sheet: A Lifeways Time Line"

"Background Sheet: Native American Tools (Late Archaic Period)"

Activity 3
C. Re-constructing a life

1. Instruct students to write a narrative, using their notes and drawings, from the point of view of a Native American person living in the stone age culture. Ask students to incorporate into their story artifacts seen and handled during their visit. The narrative should include a description of the person's life and surroundings. This work will be continued for homework.

[Note: We suggest that teachers create a rubric explaining all the elements which should be included in the narrative. Share the rubric with students before they begin work on the project.]

2. Form a committee to construct a timeline from 4000 B.P. to the present.
3. Instruct students to make a drawing of their person and artifacts and attach them to the time line. (This may be done during general work time or for homework).

 

 

roll of paper for time line