The drum is the heartbeat of the Arapaho Tribe. In the accompanying lesson plan (found in the Support Materials) students will learn that the drum represents thunder and the drumsticks represent lightning. Our old people would make songs for the family. If some person was going to war, we would make songs. Traditionally women wore blankets or a shawl. The drums were for the singers to use. When a woman took off her shawl, they would sing a song for a style of dance. But it has changed, now it's the other way around the women put on their shawls. Today we call it round dance, participation dance, or social friendship to get everybody together. The drum was very important and was considered sacred. It still is.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Students will learn how to make a Native American Drum from beginning to end.
Students will learn the Art of weaving/looping the raw hide straps when lacing up the straps/raw hide drum.

Tribal Government on the Wind River Reservation is in a state of flux. In the accompanying lessons plans (found in the Support Materials), learn how the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho tribes govern their people, what is the relationship between Tribal, State, and Federal government?

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Students will demonstrate an understanding of the workings of tribal government on the Wind River Reservation by creating a written report.
Students will understand the differences and similarities between state, tribal and federal governments and their functions, structures, and powers.

'Lived History' documents the making of the Wind River Virtual Museum, a high definition archive of Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho ancestral artifacts. In the accompanying lesson plan (found in the Support Materials) students will learn from the time when Europeans first traveled in North America, they took collectors' interest in the arts, weaponry and attire of Native Americans. Sometimes they purchased artifacts, sometimes they stole them, and sometimes they killed for them. Over the years, pipes, war bonnets, cradle boards and parfleches accumulated in museums. The method of acquisition was often forgotten; exact historical documentation was often difficult. Many of the artifacts have perished or deteriorated over time. Many ancient artifacts remain in the vaults and display cases of museums far from their place of origin or the people who might best explain and appreciate them.

"Lived History" documents the creation of the 'Wind River Virtual Museum'—an archive of high definition images of ancestral artifacts created with guidance from Wind River tribal elders. Items like nineteenth century amulets, bags, drums, ceremonial headdresses and robes, everyday clothing, medicine related objects, hunting apparel, moccasins, and other meaningful objects were brought out of storage and displayed for the elders. Their commentary becomes part of the precarious and precious transmission of oral culture that the people of Wind River strive to honor and preserve, for future generations.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Students will learn about different artifacts of the Shoshone and the Arapaho people and their significance/use.
Students will gain a deeper appreciation for the resiliency of people and the importance of cultural preservation.
Students will explore their own cultural identity and understand that culture is a system of beliefs, values, and assumptions about life that guide behavior and are shared by a group of people.
Students will name three objects identified in the Lived History video and gain an understanding of their uses and cultural significance.
Students will dentify some of the resources used to make traditional items and locate areas in which these resources are found.

The Miss Indian America Pageant was launched by Sheridan residents in the 1950's to combat discrimination. In the accompanying lesson plan (found in the Support Materials) students will view the story told through the eyes of Miss Indian America title holders who held a reunion in 2013, serving as grand marshals in the Sheridan, WY Rodeo parade and commemorating a legacy of bridging cultures.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Students will identify the reason why the town of Sheridan, WY started the Miss Indian America Pageant.
Students will define the given vocabulary words.

Art has always played an important role throughout the civilized world. Based on the WyomingPBS documentary "Painting the Falls of Yellowstone" the waterfalls of Yellowstone National Park have long captured the imagination of visitors and artists alike. Artists Thomas Moran and Albert Bierstadt first captured the magnificence and mystique of a few falls in the 1870s which helped establish the park. Over the last several decades, over 250 named and unnamed waterfalls and cascades have been discovered in accessible and backcountry areas of the Park. Their discovery prompted Cody-based and internationally renowned artist M.C. "Mike" Poulsen to try and capture these waterfalls on canvas. His work depicts not only the beauty of the falls but incorporates Native American history and spiritual themes, wildlife and the settlement history of the area. WyomingPBS followed Poulsen over two years providing insight into his vision and creative process. Archaeologists have used art as an indicator for classifying wealth, status, or prominence of individuals, cities, and civilizations. In today's world it does much the same but it can also bring about change as well as persuasion and preservation of ideas and culture. This can be seen in How Art Saved Yellowstone.

Learn what the futures of the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho tribes are, and how the tribes will retain their culture and tradition while preparing to move into the future? In the accompanying lesson plan (found in the Support Materials) students will understand the importance of education and perservation of the culture.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Students will demonstrate an understanding about the importance of education and preservation of the language and culture among the Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone Tribe from the past, present, and future.
Students will learn about the Federal Indian Policy to civilize Native Americans through the establishment of Native American Boarding Schools incorporating key vocabulary words.
Students will learn about how the practice of forced assimilation contributed to the diminished use of the Shoshone and Arapaho people’s lifestyle, languages, and traditions.
Students will discuss the development of Indian boarding schools in the United States and Wyoming.
Students will analyze the differences between the early educational experiences of the Native American and non-native students.
Students will examine the importance of education as a value that the Shoshone, Arapaho, and non-native communities share.
Students will consider how Native American students and non-native students can learn from each other to dispel the myths and stereotypes that exist in contemporary society.
Students will learn why oral traditions are important.
Students will understand why respect for elders is important in the tribe.
Students will gain an awareness of why traditional dancing and singing is important to traditions and culture.
Students will explore the significance of the buffalo to the Shoshone people living on the Wind River Reservation.
Students will learn that through traditional concepts of understanding, the Shoshone people, as well as many other Plains tribes, were able to survive through their sustenance on the buffalo.
Students will discuss the relationship that Native American people have with the buffalo (i.e., spiritual, sustenance, etc.) and how oral traditions play a critical role in the preservation of Native ways of knowing.

In this lesson, students will watch video #6 - "Preserving the Ways: Culture & Tradition." In the
previous videos, students were introduced and learned about the establishment of the Wind
River Reservation, why Native American History should be taught, the Northern Arapaho Tribe,
the Eastern Shoshone Tribe, and tribal government. This next video focuses on the importance
of education amongst the two tribes yet realizing the need to stay connected to their culture and
traditions. After viewing the video, students will create an arts and craft project (dreamcatcher),
write a"I am" poem, and participate in one of many social dances amongst all tribes across the
Nation.

Since 1885 the Shoshone people have been without buffalo on their land. After decades of effort beginning in the 1990’s a coalition of individuals and organizations have taken the first step in returning the North American Bison to their native lands. In the accompanying lesson plan (found in the Support Materials) students will understand that nowhere is this action more culturally and ecologically significant than on the Wind River Indian Reservation in central Wyoming.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Students will explore the significance of the buffalo to the Shoshone people living on the Wind River Reservation.
Students will learn that through traditional concepts of understanding, the Shoshone people, as well as many other Plains tribes, were able to survive using the buffalo.
Students will research the controversial issue surrounding the return of the buffalo to the Wind River Reservation and understand how arguments against returning them almost derailed efforts by the Shoshone tribe.

A drum like this is made from thinned deer hide or rawhide. It is fancy and has lacing which was placed on the drum when wet. This drum has a bird on it that could be a crane with a snake in its mouth. There are two basic colors: sky colors and grass colors. In the accompanying lesson plan (found in the Support Materials) students will understand how everything on this drum seems to talk about life as described by the bird and the florals in front.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Students will identify a variety of traditional uses for plants.
Students will make predictions about plant pigments.
Students will understand the traditional use of plants through viewing the video and will be able to demonstrate how the materials provided by nature and animals allowed the Shoshone to create items used in everyday life.

In the accompanying lesson plan (found in the Support Materials) students will gain an understanding of the Shoshone tribe while learning about the Shoshone Parfleche from the WyomingPBS video.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

students will write 3-4 sentences stating/explaining how the Shoshone Parfleche is used.
Students will create an individual parfleche, designed with a line of symmetry, the use of a meter stick for specific measurements and the ability to use creativity to choose their own designs.

Learn how the long life of Chief Washakie bridged a century of change in the American west—from the time of nomadic tribes following buffalo herds, to the period when tribes relinquished their claims to vast tracts of land in the West. That's when the Eastern Shoshone settled on the Wind River Indian Reservation. In the accompanying lesson plan (found in the Support Materials) students will understand the character traits of Chief Washakie.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Students will write and deliver a speech pretending to be Chief Washakie talking to the people of the 21st Century.
Students will learn character traits and qualities and describe every individual and determine life choices for all.
Students will practice identifying “cause and effect” with historical events based on character qualities.

Learn how and when the Eastern Shoshone came to Wyoming, what are the Shoshone values, and what are the people of the Eastern Shoshone like? In the accompanying lessons plans (found in the Support Materials), students will gain an understanding of the Fort Bridger Treaty of 1868 including its importance to the state of Wyoming and the Eastern Shoshone Tribe in 1868 and today. The American Bison, or Buffalo as preferred by most tribes, has a significant existence among the Native American people. For thousands of years, the great American Buffalo roamed the Great Plains, migrating from north to south, searching for areas on which to thrive. The Shoshone people depended on the buffalo for many things that included food, clothing, and shelter. Every part of the buffalo was used and provided for the people.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Students will study (Highlight, paraphrase and report) the Treaty of 1868 between the Eastern Shoshone Tribe and the United States Government.
Students will learn about the Eastern Shoshone people through the use of research and technology.
Students will understand that the history of the Shoshone people in the Wind River Mountains dates back thousands of years.
Students will understand that the circle of life continues in a perpetual cycle and is passed on through oral tradition. These stories often taught a lesson to young people.
Students will understand the indigenous perspective of interconnectedness. Students will understand how bison populations were devastated by western expansion.
Students will learn how to construct, read, compare and analyze different population graphs.
Students will understand how the diets of the Shoshone people varied depending on the areas in which they lived.
Students will acquire knowledge of the Wind River Reservation communities and be able to identify these locations on a map.
Students will be able to further describe how their culture has shaped them.
Students will be able to define the concept of culture.
Students will be able to explain some of the attributes of culture.

Students will gain an understanding of the Northern Arapaho people located on the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming. In the accompanying lessons plans (found in the Support Materials), students will learn how the Northern Arapaho come to Wyoming, what are the Arapaho values, and why were Arapaho tribal names changed?

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Students will be able to evaluate what geographical places were used by the Arapaho people and understand how historical events changed the future for the Arapaho people.
Students will compare and contrast between their social and ceremonial structures.
Students will understand the hierarchy of the Arapaho Tribe.
Students will analyze how their social and ceremonial structures contribute to their cultural identity.

Learn about the treaty that estbalished the Wind River Reservation and the two tribes that inhabit it, the Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone.

In the accompanying lesson plans (found in the Support Materials), students will watch a video about the Wind River Reservation and learn how the reservation came to exist, How the two tribes, the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho, come to share the reservation, and what are the people on the reservation like?

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Students will demonstrate an understanding about the 1868 Fort Bridger Treaty.
Students will create a map of the sacred sites fo the Shoshone and Araphaho Tribes.
Students will analyze the different pre and post reservation events for the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho tribes and evaluate why it is important for Wyoming state citizens to learn the history of the people of the Wind River Reservation
Students will gain an understanding of three spiritual sites in Wyoming.

The Wind River Reservation contains some of the most unique features in Wyoming. Visitors to the reservation usually tour burial sights of Chief Washakie and Sacagawea. However, the significant contributions of these historical figures are sometimes overlooked.

In the accompanying lessons plans (found in the Support Materials), contributions of Washakie and Sacajawea will be highlighted, and stress the importance of teaching and learning about the unique history, culture, and contemporary contributions of Wyoming’s tribes on the Wind River Reservation in a culturally responsive manner.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Students will identify leadership traits.
Students will obtain an understanding of the purpose behind learning about the Arpahoho and Shoshone people.
Students will analyze how people create and change structures of power, authority, and governance to understand the continuing evolution of governments and to demonstatre civic responsibility.