Native American Plant Use Lesson Outline Grades: 3-6 Time: 45-60 minutes Required Materials: Plant photos or plant photos PowerPoint (USB) Student note taking sheet Artifacts/plant samples for 8 plants: Western Red Cedar, Oregon Grape, cattail, hazelnut, huckleberry, nettle, and wapato. Plant matching activity packets Field guides (optional) Learning Objectives: 1. Students will be able to identify key ways Native American s utilized plants: food, shelter, medicine, tools, and dye. 2. Students will understand the benefits of native plants. 3. Students will analyze their own use of plants. 4. Students will practice reading non-fiction and taking notes. Vocabulary: native plant, observation Introduction and background discussion (15 min): What is a native plant? How have the ways we use plants changed over time? Do we rely on plants more now or several hundred years ago? Are there plants you can identify?
Activity (25 min.): Plant Use Information Students will learn about 6-8 plants used for medicine, food, shelter, clothing, dye, and tools and record observations/drawings/ information on the provided note taking sheet. Plants include Western Red Cedar, Oregon Grape, cattail, hazelnut, huckleberry, nettle, and wapato. Younger students can take notes on 1-2 plants, older students more. Show photos, tell stories, and give information on 3-4 plants. Plant information sheet provided. Have several students share their plant notes or drawings. Pass around artifacts for the plants discussed allowing for approximately 10 seconds per student for each item. Repeat the process for 3-4 more plants, passing around the correlating artifacts after the discussion. Plant Matching Activity Break students into 6-7 small groups and distribute small manila envelopes, each with a series of clues and plant photos. Students work in groups to match clues with corresponding plants. Wrap-up (10-15 min.): Did anything surprise you? Do you think you could identify any of these plants in the wild? How could you be sure? Why are native plants so important for humans? Extension: Go outside and try to find some of the plants from the class. Oregon Grape and Nootka Rose are often used as a landscaping plant. Have students create their own field guide for plants found in the schoolyard. Lesson on EP website. Make or read a Native American legend about a NW plant. http://www.firstpeople.us/fp-html-legends/whywildroseshavethorns-salteaux.html
Native American Plant Use Background Information Western Red Cedar Considered the tree of life by many PNW tribes Women collected bark in spring by cutting large strips off tree. Never took too much! Cedar is rot resistant and waterproof Used for baskets, homes, canoes, paddles, tools, clothes (diapers!), and medicine The power of the red cedar was said to be so strong a person could receive strength by standing with his/her back to the tree. Oregon Grape Cattail State flower of Oregon Edible blue berries are very tart but tasty when mixed with other berries Bright yellow dye from roots are used for baskets and trade Bark and berries used for stomach and mouth ailments Roots are used for food and eaten raw or steamed- taste like asparagus Leaves used to make mats, baskets, temporary shelters, and kneeling pads Seed fluff used for pillows, beds, diapers, and wound dressing Huckleberry Delicious berries are eaten fresh or dried for winter Berries used for purple dye Very important winter food source Nootka Rose Red fruits (after the flower falls off) called hips have 20x the vitamin C of oranges Leaves brewed into a healthy tea Leave and roots mashed and used as an eye wash for sore eyes Hazelnut Eaten raw or roasted Same hazelnuts we buy at the store today Kids were largely responsible for gathering nuts and would often watch squirrels and then raid their stash Flexible new roots twisted into rope
Stinging Nettle Wapato Dried stems twisted into rope for fishing Leaves will sting when fresh, but are edible when cooked or made into tea Tastes like spinach but even more healthy! Medicine from the tea can be used for allergies, asthma, and arthritis This wild potato is an underground tuber and main food staple for local tribes Leaves are shaped like an arrow and grows around the edges of rivers and wetlands Wapato was collected in the fall by women with their feet (tubers float to the surface) and placed into canoes or floating baskets Women stayed warm by covering their bodies with fish oil for extra warmth (think blubber) Wapato was eaten fresh, baked, or dried and ground into flour Very important trade item Lewis and Clark wrote in journals that they ate elk meat and wapato bulbs purchased from the Indians while in Oregon
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