Six Native American tribes, clad in fur, leather, and feathers, lined the bustling lobby at Elm Street Elementary on Friday, November 19, each awaiting their chance to present to those in attendance at the Native American Wax Museum.
Forty-third graders put in lots of hard work and effort into a project that spanned subjects, sharpened their skills, and expanded their knowledge of Native American life as it was.
Chris White, third-grade reading/writing teacher at Elm Street, said that the project derived its original inspiration from the students’ recent social studies lessons on Native Americans; utilizing what the students were learning there allowed for the incorporation of reading, writing, and speaking skills.
“The social studies standard is where they really got to know the regional Native Americans,” explained third-grade reading and literacy teacher, Brittany Little. “Then we decided to pick a tribe within that region. So, they really got to know their tribe through their research and then they kind of branched off into different sections.”
As the students stood, in character, with their tribes, they each had a topic that they had become experts on and would present as fellow students and visiting parents approached. Each student wore a button, presenting their piece only when that button was “pushed.” They covered topics like the clothing, food, and use of weapons and tools within their tribe.
The project also coincided perfectly with the students’ recent field trip.
“Yesterday we went on a field trip to the Etowah Indian Mounds,” Little explained, “so we wanted to give them a little background before we went on that trip.”
“It really helped them put themselves into a not-so-modern mindset,” she continued. “Because we’d done the research, they really understood that the Native Americans made their own weapons, and they built their own homes; little bits of information like that.”
White said that watching the students take on the project was very rewarding as an educator.
“What was interesting through the whole process, the research, the writing, the field trips, and the guest speakers,” she said, “was that they were able to make lots of different connections between the tribe they studied and others.” White said that those connections were a great source of excitement for the students.
Alejandro Serrano, a third-grader representing the Inuit tribe, stayed in character with his knees bent, spear pointed to the sky, as he explained that his favorite part of the project was researching about his tribe and learning about their clothing, the food they ate, and the weapons they made and used. He smiled wide as he recited his presentation about his tribe’s use of bows, arrows, and spears.
White said that there was lots of collaboration among the students.
“They really worked together in learning their speeches and giving each other feedback,” she said. “They really have taken this on; they’re very serious about their roles.”
“They have done an amazing job,” Little affirmed. “They surpassed what we thought this project would be.”
Principal Laura Walley said that this event was the first time that Elm Street opened its doors to welcome parents into the building since Meet the Teacher in August.
“We thought this was a great opportunity to welcome parents and let them see what Elm Street is about, see their children in action, sharing what they’re learning. To me, it doesn’t get much better than this.”
“The teachers did an excellent job,” Walley said, “of knowing the strengths of the students, and just how much was the right amount of information to present, so that everyone feels confident today, everyone has something unique to share, and they have been completely immersed in this unit in all subject areas. They have been reading about Native Americans, writing about Native Americans, they’ve been on a field trip where they got to see what it might have looked like to live like a Native American tribe.”
She smiled as she watched the students present their tribes with pride and precision, “It just shows that really thorough planning is what provides students with meaningful learning experiences.”