Native Nations and Settlers: Learning About People, Places, and Stories
Big-Picture Goals
By the end of this four-week unit, the learner will be able to:
- Explain that Native Americans are many different peoples and nations, each with their own languages, traditions, and histories.
- Describe how geography helped shape the homes, food, clothing, transportation, and tools of different Native communities.
- Explain why some settlers came to North America and describe how their arrival affected Native peoples.
- Compare two historical viewpoints, such as those of a Native child and a settler child.
- Use books, maps, objects, drawings, and simple timelines to show what was learned.
- Speak and write about history respectfully, using words such as community, nation, settler, tradition, trade, and perspective.
Materials for the Unit
- Age-appropriate books about specific Native nations and early settlers
- A map of North America and a globe
- Blank paper, drawing paper, pencils, crayons, colored pencils, and markers
- Sticky notes, index cards, scissors, glue, and a notebook or folder
- String or yarn for a timeline
- Clay, blocks, craft sticks, or recycled materials for model building
- Photographs or drawings of homes, tools, clothing, food, and transportation
- Optional: library books, museum websites, short videos from reliable educational sources, and audio recordings of Native speakers or storytellers
Important Learning Note
Use the names of specific Native nations whenever possible. Explain that Native Americans are not one single group and that Native people live today. Avoid treating sacred objects, ceremonies, or clothing as costumes or crafts. Choose sources created by Native authors, educators, museums, or cultural organizations when available.
Week 1: Many Native Nations, Many Homelands
Weekly focus: Learners discover that Native peoples belong to many different nations and communities. They connect geography with daily life.
Day 1: What Does “Native American” Mean?
I do: Introduce the idea that Native Americans are the first peoples of many places in North America and that there are hundreds of different nations. Show a map and model respectful language, such as “the Diné people” or “the Haudenosaunee Confederacy,” rather than describing everyone as the same.
We do/You do: Look at photographs or book pages from several Native communities and discuss what is alike and different. The learner makes a “What I Notice and Wonder” page.
Day 2: Land and Community
I do: Demonstrate how a map shows landforms, water, climate, and regions. Explain that people use the resources around them in different ways while caring for their homeland.
We do/You do: Locate several Native homelands on a map, then choose one community to research with a book or teacher-selected source. The learner draws the land and labels two ways it may support community life.
Day 3: Homes and Shelter
I do: Show examples of different homes, such as a Haudenosaunee longhouse, a Diné hooghan, or a Pacific Northwest plank house, explaining that homes matched local materials, weather, and family life.
We do/You do: Compare two homes using a simple chart. The learner builds or draws one model and explains why its materials and shape fit its environment.
Day 4: Food, Tools, and Ingenuity
I do: Explain that Native communities developed skilled ways to gather, grow, hunt, fish, prepare, and store food. Discuss tools as examples of careful problem-solving, not as “primitive” objects.
We do/You do: Examine pictures of tools or food practices and ask, “What problem did this help solve?” The learner chooses one example and creates a labeled drawing or safe pretend tool from recycled materials.
Day 5: Native People Then and Now
I do: Share examples of Native people living, working, creating art, speaking languages, and leading communities today. Explain that history is not only about the past.
We do/You do: Make a two-part page titled “Long Ago” and “Today,” using information from the week. The learner adds one question for future learning.
Week 1 Check for Understanding
Ask the learner to point to one Native homeland on a map, name one way geography affects daily life, and explain why it is incorrect to say that all Native Americans are the same. Listen for specific examples and respectful language.
Week 2: Life in Native Communities and Early Settler Communities
Weekly focus: Learners compare daily life in a selected Native community and a selected early settler community without pretending that either group was all alike.
Day 1: A Day in a Native Community
I do: Read a first-person-style account or historical description connected to a specific Native nation, making clear whether it is a modern retelling or a historical source. Model asking, “Who made this source, and what can it teach us?”
We do/You do: Create a daily-life chart with categories such as work, family, food, learning, and play. The learner draws or writes three details supported by the source.
Day 2: A Day in a Settler Community
I do: Explain that settlers were people who moved to a place, often from another country or colony, and that settler communities differed in time, location, and purpose. Discuss why some settlers came, including work, land, trade, religion, or family reasons.
We do/You do: Read a child-friendly account of settler life and add details to the comparison chart. The learner identifies one similarity and one difference between the two communities.
Day 3: Work, Skills, and Cooperation
I do: Model how to separate facts from guesses by saying, “The source tells me…” and “I wonder…” Discuss the many jobs people did, including farming, fishing, building, cooking, caring for children, trading, and teaching.
We do/You do: Role-play a community task, such as planning how to gather food or build shelter, without pretending to perform a sacred ceremony. The learner explains how cooperation helps a community.
Day 4: Trade and Exchange
I do: Explain that trade is the exchange of goods or services and that Native nations had trade networks long before European settlers arrived. Give examples of items that might be exchanged, while noting that trade practices varied by region.
We do/You do: Use picture cards to simulate fair exchanges and discuss why people trade. The learner writes or dictates a short explanation of one trade connection.
Day 5: Comparing Without Ranking
I do: Model a respectful comparison: “Both communities valued family, but they used different materials for homes because they lived in different places.” Explain that “different” does not mean “better” or “worse.”
We do/You do: Complete a Venn diagram comparing the selected communities. The learner shares one comparison and supports it with evidence from a book, map, image, or discussion.
Week 2 Check for Understanding
Ask the learner to explain the meaning of settler, give one reason a person might move to a new place, and compare Native and settler community life using one similarity and one difference.
Week 3: First Meetings, Change, and Different Perspectives
Weekly focus: Learners study contact between Native peoples and settlers, including cooperation, trade, conflict, unfair treatment, disease, and changes to land and power.
Day 1: What Is a Perspective?
I do: Explain that perspective means the way a person understands an event based on their experiences and position. Use a simple example, such as two children seeing the same rainy day differently.
We do/You do: Read two short, age-appropriate accounts or descriptions of an early meeting. The learner names what each person might notice, want, or worry about.
Day 2: Cooperation and Knowledge
I do: Explain that some Native peoples and settlers shared knowledge, traded, formed agreements, or helped one another at particular times. Emphasize that these relationships were complex and changed over time.
We do/You do: Create a cause-and-effect chain showing one example of cooperation. The learner draws the chain and states what each person or group contributed.
Day 3: Conflict and Unfairness
I do: Introduce age-appropriate examples of broken promises, taking land, violence, forced movement, and laws that harmed Native communities. Use clear but gentle language and remind the learner that historical harm should not be hidden.
We do/You do: Sort statement cards into “fair,” “unfair,” or “needs more information,” then discuss why. The learner writes one sentence explaining why taking someone’s home or breaking an agreement causes harm.
Day 4: Disease and Population Change
I do: Explain that new diseases brought by visitors caused many Native people to become sick or die, often because they had not been exposed to those diseases before. Avoid blaming individuals and focus on the effects on families and communities.
We do/You do: Use a simple line graph or set of counters to show population change in a fictional community, clearly labeling it as a model. The learner describes what the graph shows and names one community effect.
Day 5: Reading History Carefully
I do: Model checking a source by asking who created it, when it was created, and whose voice may be missing. Explain that one book or story cannot tell the whole history.
We do/You do: Compare a textbook paragraph with a Native-created source or museum explanation. The learner identifies one fact both sources share and one detail that adds a different perspective.
Week 3 Check for Understanding
Ask the learner to define perspective, give one example of cooperation, and explain one way contact with settlers harmed Native communities. Accept spoken, drawn, or written responses supported by a specific example.
Week 4: Native Nations Today and Sharing What We Learned
Weekly focus: Learners understand that Native nations continue today and use evidence to create a respectful final project.
Day 1: Native Nations Today
I do: Share examples of contemporary Native leaders, artists, scientists, authors, athletes, educators, and language revitalization programs. Explain that Native nations have governments, communities, and cultures today.
We do/You do: Explore a reliable current source connected to one Native nation. The learner records three present-day facts and one question.
Day 2: Choosing a Focus
I do: Introduce the final project choices: a poster or booklet, a model with an explanation, a narrated timeline, or a short presentation with drawings. Model turning research notes into a clear main idea.
We do/You do: The learner chooses one specific Native nation or a carefully selected comparison topic. Together, create a planning page listing the topic, three facts, one map connection, and one source.
Day 3: Building the Project
I do: Demonstrate how to organize information into a beginning, middle, and ending: introduce the topic, explain evidence, and share why it matters. Review respectful wording and remind the learner not to copy sacred designs or use cultural items as decorations.
We do/You do: The learner creates the first draft or model. Give feedback using two prompts: “A clear part is…” and “A part that could be clearer is…”
Day 4: Revising and Practicing
I do: Model checking a project for accurate facts, readable labels, complete sentences, and a named source. Show how to practice speaking slowly and looking at the audience or camera.
We do/You do: The learner revises the project and practices a two- to five-minute explanation. If working with a group, each person may present one section; in a homeschool setting, a family member can be the audience.
Day 5: Sharing and Reflecting
I do: Review the unit’s key ideas: Native nations are diverse, geography shapes community life, settlers and Native peoples had complex relationships, and Native peoples are here today.
We do/You do: The learner presents the final project, answers one or two questions, and completes a reflection: “One thing I learned,” “One idea I want others to understand,” and “One question I still have.”
Week 4 Check for Understanding
Before the final presentation, ask the learner to explain why it is important to name a specific Native nation, give one example of Native life today, and describe how a source helped with the project.
End-of-Unit Project and Assessment
Project: “A Community, a Place, and a Story”
The learner chooses one of the following formats:
- A six- to eight-page booklet
- A labeled poster or map display
- A model of a home or community feature with an oral explanation
- A narrated digital presentation or recorded audio slideshow
The project should include:
- The name of a specific Native nation or a clearly identified comparison of two communities
- A map showing the community’s homeland or region
- At least three accurate facts about daily life, history, or culture
- One explanation of how geography influenced community life
- One explanation of how settlers affected Native people, including a balanced discussion of cooperation and harm when appropriate
- At least one fact about Native people or nations today
- A list or spoken mention of the sources used
Success Criteria
- Accuracy: The project includes correct, specific information.
- Respect: It avoids stereotypes and shows that Native peoples are diverse and living today.
- Evidence: Facts come from at least two reliable sources when possible.
- Explanation: The learner explains ideas rather than only listing facts.
- Communication: The project is organized, understandable, and shared clearly.
- Reflection: The learner can describe one new understanding and one remaining question.
Assessment and Adaptations
Assess through the weekly checks, notebook pages, discussions, source comparisons, and the final project. A learner who needs support may dictate answers, use sentence starters, select from teacher-provided sources, or present to one trusted listener. A learner ready for an extension may compare two Native nations, include a primary source, research a present-day Native leader or organization, or explain how different sources tell different parts of the story.