Potlatch - TEC580Practicum

Transcription

autrynationalcenter.org
Pre-Visit lan
Lesson P
Northwest Coast Indians:
Winter Celebrations
Potlatch
Basket Hat (Haida), 1907. Plain twine, feathered wool, down, cotton, flannel, thread, spruce root, cedar bark, skin thong, paint. Homer E. Sargent Collection.
Southwest Museum of the American Indian Collection, Autry National Center. 742.G.100
Introduction
This lesson plan is designed to support learning experiences
about the history and culture of Northwest Coast Indians
both in the classroom and as preparation for an in-depth
visit to the Southwest Museum of the American Indian.
These materials focus on shared aspects of daily life among
Northwest Coast Indian tribal groups (including Chinook,
Haida, Kwakiutl, Makah, Nootka, Squamish, Tlingit, and
Tsimshian) prior to their first contact with non-Indian
peoples in the late 1700s.
By learning more about the cultural and social importance
of the widely practiced potlatch ceremony among
Northwest Coast Indians, students plan and give their own
potlatch incorporating activities and the creation of gifts.
Objectives
Students will:
• Respond to and discuss information about the importance of the potlatch as a
key aspect of Northwest Coast Indians social custom
• Express their understandings and interpretations of the information discussed
through the planning of a contemporary potlatch in the classroom, including the
selection of a reason for the potlatch
• Express their understandings and interpretations of the information discussed
through the creation of appropriate gifts and costumes, as well as role-playing
hosts and attendants
Learners
This unit is designed for upper-elementary grade students although they can be
adapted for students in lower or higher grades. Pertinent academic content standards for third through fifth grade are listed in the California Academic Content
Standards section below. The subject matter has the strongest links to the areas of
Visual Arts and History-Social Studies.
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Autry National Center | Northwest Coast Indians: Winter Celebrations Potlatch
Materials
• A variety of art materials will be needed for students to use in creating gifts for
the potlatch and whatever kids of costumes are needed (this depends on what
role they are playing at the potlatch, i.e. a host will need something more elaborate
than others).
• Large brown grocery bags. (These can be fashioned into “vests” for students by
cutting front openings, neck and armholes, and then decorating to reflect the
student’s role.) These can also be used to create traditional-looking conical hats
for students
• A selection of small to medium-sized cardboard boxes that can be decorated to
represent carved cedar boxes to be given as gifts
• A selection of fabric scraps, colored construction paper, yarn, white/colored
plastic grocery bags cut into strips, or any natural elements (long grasses, etc.)
that can be used in simple weavings (to be given as gifts)
• 18 x 12” pieces of cardstock (or poster board cut in half) to be used as warp
for weavings (Prepare these by orienting the pieces horizontally, then cutting slits
about an inch apart, beginning an inch from the top and stopping an inch from
the bottom. This will create the warp needed to weave materials in and out of.)
• Washable tempera paints (traditional colors include: black, red, blue-green and
sometimes red, white, and yellow)
• Washable markers or crayons
• Brushes (a variety of sizes)
• Colored construction paper
• Scissors
• Glue sticks (These are less messy, but regular glue will also work – it will just
need additional drying time.)
• Glue guns (These would be for adult use only – but come in handy when a
student needs something to stay in place in a hurry.)
Approximate Length of Time Needed
to Complete Unit: 5 – 6 class periods
• Describing the potlatch tradition and its importance, reading an appropriate
book about preparing for and attending a potlatch, discussion: one to two class
periods (assuming each class period is approximately 50 minutes)
• Planning for the potlatch, assignment of roles: one class period
• Small groups work on development of costumes and creation of gifts:
two class periods
• Potlatch: one class period
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Content Standards
Visual Arts
3.1.0 — Students perceive and respond to works of art, objects in nature, events,
and the environment. They also use the vocabulary of the visual arts to express their
observations.
3.3.0 — Students analyze the role and development of the visual arts in past and
present cultures throughout the world, noting human diversity as it relates to the
visual arts and artists.
3.4.0 — Students analyze, assess, and derive meaning from works of art,
including their own, according to the elements of art, the principles of design, and
aesthetic qualities.
3.5.0 — Students apply what they learned in the visual arts across subject areas.
They develop competencies and creative skills in problem solving,
communication, and management of time and resources that contribute to
lifelong learning and career skills. They also learn about careers in and related
to the visual arts.
observations.
visual arts and artists
to the visual arts.
observations.
visual arts and artists.
to the visual arts.
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History-Social Science
3.3.2 — Students describe the American Indian nations in their local region long
ago and in the recent past.
5.5.1 — Students describe the major pre-Columbian settlements, including the cliff
dwellers and pueblo people of the desert Southwest, the American Indians of the
Pacific Northwest, the nomadic nations of the Great Plains, and the woodland peoples east of the Mississippi River.
5.5.3 — Students describe the cooperation and conflict that existed among the
American Indians and between the Indian nations and the new settlers.
English-Language Arts
Grade 3
1.0 — Writing Strategies
Students write clear and coherent sentences and paragraphs that develop a
central idea. Their writing shows they consider the audience and purpose. Students
progress through the stages of the writing process (e.g., prewriting, drafting, revising,
editing successive versions).
1.0 — Listening and Speaking Strategies
Students listen critically and respond appropriately to oral communication.
They speak in a manner that guides the listener to understand important ideas by
using proper phrasing, pitch, and modulation.
Grade 4
Students write clear, coherent sentences and paragraphs that develop a central idea.
Students listen critically and respond appropriately to oral communication.
They speak in a manner that guides the listener to understand important ideas by
using proper phrasing, pitch, and modulation.
Grade 5
Students write clear, coherent, and focused essays.
The writing exhibits the students' awareness of the audience and purpose. Essays
contain formal introductions, supporting evidence, and conclusions. Students
progress through the stages of the writing process as needed.
Students deliver focused, coherent presentations that convey ideas clearly and relate
to the background and interests of the audience. They evaluate the content of oral
communication.
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Preparation
• Become familiar with the Overview of the Northwest Coast Indians and the
Background Information for Winter Celebrations Potlatch Activity, provided
at the end of this lesson plan.
• Read through the activity below and think about how to integrate it into the
schedule. The activities can be completed in consecutive class periods or on
alternating days, for example.
• Check the school or public libraries for books written for children and/or from
children’s perspectives about potlatch celebrations, such as Potlatch: A Tsimshian
Celebration (see full reference below in Resources). Another useful description of
what happens at a potlatch may be found in Native Americans of the Northwest
Coast (see full reference below in Credits & References).
• Consider how to tie the activities to existing curriculum units.
• Once a schedule has been determined, consider where and when the help of
teacher assistants or parents will be needed. Make the necessary arrangements.
• Prepare selected art materials as described above in Materials section.
Procedure
Sessions 1-2: Learning about the Potlatch
• Describe the overall unit and activity to students, including how many class
periods will be devoted to the project.
• Using some of the books gathered about Northwest Coast Indians, share
introductory information with students about the Northwest Coast, its location,
Native peoples, and climate. Also share information about the importance of
the potlatch as an important social custom.
• Discuss with students what they may already know about the Northwest Coast,
and discover what information is new.
• Read Potlatch: A Tsimshian Celebration together and discuss. The potlatch was a
unique practice among tribal groups living in the Northwest Coast area. Review
and discuss: Why would a family give a potlatch? Who would be invited? What did
the family have to do to prepare for a potlatch? How is the potlatch described here
similar to or different from celebrations your family has? Talk about the aspect of
giving away valuable objects to prove one’s wealth and social position. Ask
students: What the possible benefits and drawbacks of doing this might be?
• Read about the potlatch in Native Americans of the Northwest Coast (see full
reference below in Credits & References). For instance, many potlatches included
raising a totem pole as part of the ceremony.
• Explain to students that they’ll be hosting a potlatch in their classroom. Some of
the students will be members of the hosting family and some will be attending
families. Another classroom, or parents, the principal, etc. may also be invited.
• Students should begin thinking about what role they’d like to have and spend
some time leafing through books in pairs to look at general images and
examples of Northwest Coast potlatch gifts, totem poles and costume.
• Preview the upcoming sessions by encouraging students to think about what the
reason for their potlatch will be.
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Session 3: Planning the Potlatch
• Review information about the potlatch, and ask students what they think
the reason for their potlatch should be. Students could either have a more
contemporary reason for the potlatch (using a key event in the life of one of the
students, such as an upcoming birthday, etc.) or create a reason that reflects
Northwest Coast Indian tradition such as the ascension of a new chief.
• Once the students have selected their reason, help them to create a list of what
will happen during the potlatch. (Preparing gifts to give away, raising a new
totem pole, dances, storytelling, feasting, etc.)
• Have students decide what their roles will be. Who will be the hosting family?
Who will attend? What is the relationship between the hosts and guests? Friendly?
Strained? Divide the class into these two main groups and encourage them to
continue planning separately so their interactions together at the potlatch can
reflect their roles and social positions. [Note: You may need to have more
students involved in hosting than attending, as there will be more work involved
in the former.] Each group should develop a “to do” list for the next sessions.
• Preview the upcoming sessions by encouraging students to think about how they
will need to work together in order to accomplish their tasks.
Sessions 4-5: Preparing Gifts and Costumes
• Once all the roles are assigned and everyone has responsibilities, the class can
get to work preparing for the potlatch.
• Everyone will be responsible for creating their own costume. Use materials listed
above, plus any other kinds of materials that are needed and/or appropriate.
• The hosting family will need to create gifts such as decorated boxes, weavings,
etc., or other ideas students have. (Encourage students to reference the books
available for ideas and traditional design elements.)
• The attending family can work on creating dances to perform at the potlatch,
masks to wear, and instruments (drums, rattles, cymbals, etc.) created from
recycled materials. They can also create invitations to send to another class, the
principle, parents, etc. The hosting family (or a group of designated students)
can also work on creating a totem pole to be unveiled at the potlatch.
Note: it may be useful to have a separate teacher’s assistant or parent volunteer
assist with this project if undertaken.
• Be sure to allot enough time for this process – it is a synergistic expression of the
students’ collective and individual understanding of the play and its meaning!
• One of the last activities should be for the class to create a “program,” or order
of events, for the potlatch so everyone knows who is doing what, and when.
This should be typed up and distributed to everyone before the potlatch begins,
or written on the chalkboard so everyone can see it.
• Take some time to discuss with each “head of family” what they will say to
officially welcome guests to the potlatch and begin festivities. The attending
head of family will need to think about his/her response.
• The next session will be the potlatch! Discuss briefly what this means, and
encourage students to think in advance about what they will need to do to
prepare themselves (i.e. practice their lines at home, etc.)
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Note: Ask a parent or another teacher to video tape and/or take pictures of the
potlatch. Students would enjoy being able to view it together as a class at a later
point. It’s also useful to have something like this to show parents unable to
attend, or to share on parent-teacher conference days, etc.
Session 6: The Potlatch
• Write the potlatch program on the blackboard, or distribute programs to invited
guests (those who are not students) as they arrive.
• Consider trying to segregate an area of the classroom to use as a dressing room, or
a preparatory area. If this isn’t possible, the hallway can be used. Ideally, there
should be some procession of guests (the guests played by students) arriving
while host family is already situated to officially receive them in the classroom.
• Have the head of the host family welcome everyone and briefly explain what will
happen at the potlatch.
• Begin the festivities!
• The teacher or another adult might be the Master of Ceremonies, or narrator,
whichever is more appropriate.
• At the conclusion of the potlatch, if time allows, students can field questions
from guests.
• After everyone has left, congratulate the students and have the class reflect on
the experience. (Reflection could occur at a later time also.) Did the potlatch
turn out the way you anticipated it would? Why or why not? What were you most
surprised by? What was your favorite moment? What did you find most challenging? How did you address this challenge? Ask additional questions that reflect the
learning goals described above.
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Extensions
Alter the activities described above as needed. These can be streamlined or
extended according to educational goals and time available.
Divide class into “family” groups of four, and recreate the tradition of rotating the
duties of potlatch hosting. With a class size of twenty-four, six different (and smaller
scale) potlatch events could take place over several weeks. This would allow for
more in-depth planning to take place with regard to identification (and creation)
of appropriate “gifts,” and for each student to experience the responsibilities and
roles of both hosting and attending.
Evaluation
Integrate these activities into your overarching class plan for the year, and in doing
so, merge these experiences and results into each student’s growing portfolio.
The success of these materials can be measured by 1) the teacher’s opinion of the
effectiveness and use-ability of the lesson plan and 2) their students’ achievements
and demonstrations of the learning goals identified. Learning goals are based
on academic content standards as well as indications of individual and group
collaboration/cooperation, problem solving, and critical thinking.
Students excel when given opportunity and reason to do so. These materials have
been designed to provide educators with ways to connect their students to
opportunities and reasons by exploring aspects of cultural information with which
they may not be familiar. Learning more about Northwest Coast Indians, or any
group of people unfamiliar to students, is a rich and rewarding endeavor that can
help them understand the importance of cultural diversity and the uniqueness
of their own learning style. The classroom is clearly an important place for this kind
of process to occur, and it can be an effective springboard for an eventual visit to
a museum where students can come face to face with authentic pieces of cultural
history. Research has shown that true learning takes place when the learner can
make connections between intellectual, emotional and tactile facets of a subject.
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Resources
• The Autry National Center – schedule a field trip for the class to learn more about
the collection of Northwest Coast Indian objects. Call the Education Department
at 323.667.2000, ext. 336 for more information.
• Native American History/Culture DVDs designed for classroom use (and appropriate hardware – if not in classroom, perhaps in the library/media center).
• Beal, Nancy. The Art of Teaching Art to Children in School and at Home.
New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2001. [Chapters on Collage and
Construction might be particularly useful.]
• Hoyt-Goldsmith, Diane. Potlatch: A Tsimshian Celebration. New York: Holiday
House, 1997. (Can be found used and inexpensively at www.amazon.com)
• McDermott, Gerald. Raven: A Trickster Tale from the Pacific Northwest.
New York: Viking Press, 1993.
• McNutt, Nan. The Cedar Plank Mask. Seattle: Sasquatch Books, 1997.
(Book contains background information from a child’s point of view, as well as
several mask-making activities and reproducible pages.)
• Stewart, Hillary. Looking at Indian Art of the Northwest Coast. Seattle: University
of Washington Press, 1979.
• Library of Congress Website
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/award98/wauhtml/aipnhome.html
• EDSITEment is the best of the Humanities on the Web from the National
Endowment for the Humanities in partnership with the National Trust for the
Humanities, and the Marco Polo Education Foundation.
http://edsitement.neh.gov/view_lesson_plan.asp?id=324
• ArtsConnectEd is the product of a partnership between The Minneapolis Institute
of Arts and the Walker Art Center.
www.artsconnected.org/index.cfm
Credits & References
The following publications and internet sites were used in the preparation and
development of these materials. They may be useful for teachers as well as students
as background resources.
• ArtsConnectEd (see Resources above)
http://www.ArtsConnectEd.org/index.cfm
• Boyd Jones, Veda. Native Americans of the Northwest Coast: Indigenous Peoples
of North America. San Diego: Lucent Books, 2001.
• Murdoch, David. North American Indian: Eyewitness Books. New York: Knopf, 1995.
• Press, Petra. Indians of the Northwest: Traditions, History, Legends and Life.
Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Gareth Stevens Publishing, 2000.
• Waldman, Carl. Encyclopedia of Native American Tribes. New York: Checkmark
Books, 1999.
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Overview of the Northwest Coast Indians
The region defined as the Northwest Coast Culture Area is elongated, extending from
north to south about 2,000 miles, but from east to west only about 150 miles at its
widest. At its northern limits, it touches on territory that is now southern Alaska. At its
southern limits, it touches on northern California. In between, it includes the western
parts of British Columbia, Washington, and Oregon. A large part of the Northwest Coast
Culture Area consists of islands, including Vancouver Island, the Queen Charlotte
Islands, and the Alexander Archipelago, plus numerous smaller chains.1
By the 14th century, the Northwest Coast had between sixty thousand and seventy
thousand inhabitants, making it the most densely populated area in North America
at that time. There were several main language groups, but because many villages
became isolated, a number of tribes within those groups developed their own
dialects. While almost all shared certain beliefs and ways of living, each also had its
own distinctive myths and ways of dressing, socializing, and waging war.2
The climate of the Northwest Coast is surprisingly warm for the northern latitudes
because an ocean current warms the ocean as well as winds blowing inland. The
westerly winds also carry abundant moisture. The mountains block the moisture,
which turns to rainfall, as much as 100 inches or more a year, more than in any
other part of North America. Abundant springs and streams run from the mountains
to the ocean.
Travel over the mountains was difficult. Northwest Coast peoples moved about by
sea, traveling up and down the coast in giant dugout canoes for purposes of trade
and hunting. They usually lived right at the ocean’s edge on narrow sand and gravel
beaches, situating their houses to face the sea. These houses were normally built of
cedar – a key natural resource for these people – with giant timbers for the frame
and hand-split planks lashed together for the walls. Giant totem poles were often
erected outside their homes featuring faces dictated by shamans (men with special
spiritual powers to diagnose and heal the sick, among other important abilities) and
members of secret societies.3
1: Waldman, Carl. Encyclopedia of
Native American Tribes. New York:
Checkmark Books, 1999, 169.
2: Press, Petra. Indians of the
Northwest: Traditions, History,
Legends and Life. Milwaukee,
Wisconsin: Gareth Stevens
Publishing, 2000, 10.
3: Waldman, Carl. Encyclopedia of
Native American Tribes. New York:
Checkmark Books, 1999, 169.
11
Summer was the season during which people of the Northwest Coast caught and
collected most of the year’s food. They left their villages on the narrow beaches
and traveled in small family groups to fishing spots along rivers and at river mouths.
Fishing was so important to Northwest Coast peoples that other tribes that
occasionally came into contact with them called them the “Fish-Eaters.” They fished
for herring, halibut, cod, smelt, trout, perch, and sturgeon, but by far their most
important catch was salmon.4
In late autumn, when the rains began, villagers pulled the roof mats off their
summer shelters, or unlashed the wall planks from the summer frameworks, and
started packing their stores of food for the canoe ride back home, where they would
spend the winter in their large, cedar plank houses. Families stockpiled such a
tremendous amount of dried food and fish oil over the summer that they would not
have to leave the house in winter for weeks or even months at a time. They spent
enjoyable winter days gathered around their blazing indoor fires telling stories,
feasting, and creating art. While the women wove baskets and cloth, men carved
wood and bone tools, utensils, and boxes. Families and sometimes whole villages,
had time in winter to throw potlatches, elaborate parties where the host gave
presents to all his guests.5
As described in Indians of the Northwest: Traditions, History, Legends and Life by
Petra Press, the Northwest Coast Cultures are considered extraordinary for several
reasons.
• First, they produced a high culture equal to or surpassing that of the Pueblo
peoples of the Southwest and the Mound Builders of the Northeast Woodlands –
though they had neither agriculture nor pottery, two features usually associated
with higher cultures. The tremendous abundance of available food meant that
Northwest Coast people never had to learn to farm. Moreover, it gave them much
more leisure time than any other early American culture had. By gathering and
storing their food supply in summer, they had their entire winter free to hold
elaborate dances and ceremonials, through huge, weeklong parties, build houses, carve out canoes, tell stories, wage war, and create wonderful works of art.
• Second, instead of being influenced by cultures from the area now known as
Mexico, as many North American cultures were before the arrival of Europeans,
many anthropologists believe that the people of the Northwest Coast may have
interacted with inhabitants of Northeast Asia. According to those anthropologists,
there are many similarities between the mythology and art of the two areas that
tend to substantiate the theory.
• Third, Northwest Coast peoples were among the few New World cultures to
place value on the acquisition of property. Wealth meant social status, and a
person’s social status, in turn, determined his – and his family’s – worth. Unlike
most other Native American cultures, the tribes of the Northwest Coast had
complex social class systems that divided village populations into various levels
of nobility and commoners. Slavery was also common.6
Publishing, 2000, 12-13.
12
Background Information for Winter Celebrations
Potlatch Activity
The potlatch was a feast given to celebrate any sort of occasion such as marriage,
the naming of children, coming of age, announcements of people acquiring titles of
nobility, or the death of one chief and the ascension of his replacement. The host of
a potlatch distributed extravagant gifts to his guests to demonstrate his own wealth
and prestige. By giving away valuable property, he proved that he was worthy of his
particular social position. While ordinary men with moderate amounts of wealth
gave smaller potlatches, chiefs gave huge ones, inviting both friends and enemies
from villages so distant that the guests had to travel days by canoe. Hosting a
potlatch guaranteed future invitations to other potlatches that would be hosted by
those in attendance.
Families often worked and saved for years in order to throw a potlatch, making
baskets, weaving blankets, collecting skins, and carving masks, utensils, and other
costly possessions to give away. Because a family’s status was based on wealth,
it was not uncommon for people to give potlatches they could not afford, just so
people would think they had more money than they really did.
The word potlatch comes from the Chinook word patshatl, meaning “to give away.”
Items traditionally given away included everything from blankets, baskets, and furs,
to carved chests, plates, spoons, weapons, and even slaves. Filled with feasting,
singing, dancing, and games, potlatches could last five or more days. On the last
day, the gifts were given out by the village speaker on behalf of the host. The kind
of gift a guest received was determined by his status; the wealthier the guest, the
more extravagant the gift. Enemies received especially luxurious presents.
This particular custom of gift giving to enemies was not as strange as it might seem.
First, a lavish party impressed everyone with the host’s wealth. Second, every
present given to a guest would be paid back some day with a present that was just
a little bit nicer. And third, the host proved he was superior to his enemy because he
was wealthy enough to give him such an expensive gift. The enemy would then in
turn have to invite him to an even more extravagant potlatch and give him an even
more expensive gift. It was possible to bankrupt one’s enemies this way,
thereby achieving a great victory.7
Publishing, 2000, 12-13.
13

Potlatch - TEC580Practicum

Transcription

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