Delaney Bartlett, Julia Balke, Sarah Garcia

Lesson Title: Analyzing Tribal Reservations Then and Now

Grade: 4th grade
Lesson Topic: Analyzing Treaty Timelines and Regional Placement of Tribes

Social Studies Major Content Area(s):

How are you connecting the lesson to any combination of these…

History:
https://guides.lib.uw.edu/law/indian-tribal/treaties
The state of Washington has a history of making many treaties with local tribes regarding how
much land is granted towards tribal reservations. In these treaties, they outline specific
boundaries for each tribe in the state of Washington, however, the boundaries look much
different today than when the treaties were created.

Geography:
https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/gispublic/DataDownload/map_TribalReservation_statewide.pdf
https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/gispublic/DataDownload/map_TribalReservationTreatyCeded_statew
ide.pdf
These maps show the amount of land that was originally given to tribes at the time that the
various treaties were made versus the amount of land that tribes have now.

Economics:
In the Treaty of Medicine Creek, the tribe was granted all of the Puget Sound at their region on
December 26, 1854. However, today they only have a section of the city of Puyallup which has
limited their access to the Puget Sound. In this region, the tribes major source of food was fish,
so limiting their access to the Puget Sound has affected their food source.

Civic:
The government must create an environment where children can grow, thrive, and reach their
potential, yet children won’t have a stable environment if their land is constantly changing. Kids
also have a right to learn about their local tribes and the history of the land they are on, which is
what this lesson will help give them.

Community Partner(s):
Depending on the local existing tribes, we could have tribal members come in as guest speakers
to our classroom to share their experiences and knowledge of the tribe. We could also take a field
trip to a local tribal museum or tribal area that would help students to better understand the
context of the lesson and understand the real-life authentic relation to the area.
Standards:

4.4.1 Understand that significant historical events in the United States have implications for
current decisions and influence the future.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.7
Interpret information presented visually, orally, or quantitatively (e.g., in charts, graphs,
diagrams, time lines, animations, or interactive elements on Web pages) and explain how the
information contributes to an understanding of the text in which it appears.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.3
Explain events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text,
including what happened and why, based on specific information in the text

Performance Standard (VA:Cr2.3.5) Identify, describe, and visually document places and/or
objects of personal significance.

Performance Standard (VA:Re7.2.5) Identify and analyze cultural associations suggested by

visual imagery.

Objectives/Big Ideas
Students/community members will…

Know/Understand:
● Identify the names and locations of tribes in their area
● Identify the dates of treaties and the impact they have on tribes today
● Understand how the outlined eight treaties connect with one another and the order in
which they were made
● Understand the drastic amount of land that Native Americans have lost over time

Be Able to Do:
What skills and habits of mind will this lesson help develop?
SWBAT identify the geographical region of tribes that the treaty created.
SWBAT Identify the names of treaties
SWBAT explain to a friend how the geographical areas have changed.
SWBAT explain to a friend the impact the change of geography had on the individuals in tribes.

Eco-Citizenship Focus Area(s):

 ● Human Rights (Children’s Rights)
● Food Security/Sovereignty
● Land

Children’s Right(s) Emphasized

Article 4

The government has a responsibility to make sure your rights are protected. They must help your
family to protect your rights and create an environment where you can grow and reach your
potential.

Article 13

You have the right to find out things and share what you think with others, by talking, drawing,
writing or in any other way unless it harms or offends other people.

Essential Question

How have Washington state tribes and treaties changed over time?

Sub-essential Questions

● How do the resources available in the area impact local tribe sustainability?
● Identify the eight treaties discussed and how they have been established over time
● How do the eight treaties discussed connect with each other and impact our society
today?
● How do your human rights relate to the treaties discussed?

Connection between School/Community EQ and Classroom/Lesson(s) Sub-EQs:

The EQ is the overall idea of the lesson and the big picture of what we want students to learn
while the Sub-EQs go more in depth and ask the students to think about specific treaties and
what their changes look like and how they impact the Native American community.

Materials Needed:
Butcher paper
Markers
Access to technology to research about tribes and treaties
Group Worksheet (shown below)
For teachers - maps attached to this document showing the loss of land due to treaties
Tracing paper
Pencils

Activities/Procedures:

Intro: Discuss the importance of why we are learning about Native American treaties and that it
is important that we realize how much land originally belonged to Native Americans. We will
then give an overview to students on what they will be doing.

Groups: Students will be placed into eight groups, each one will be given a treaty to research. In
these groups, students will have the responsibility of filling out their guided research worksheet.
There will also be a big map of Washington State with tracing paper and students will label the
map with the land the treaty had promised and the land they have now.

Treaty of Medicine Creek

Treaty of Neah Bay

Treaty of Quinault River

Treaty of Point Elliott

Treaty of Point No Point

Nez Perce Treaty of Camp Stevens Walla Walla Treaty of Camp Stevens Yakima Treaty of
Camp Stevens

Timeline: Students will place their worksheets on a large timeline so that they can see what order
the treaties were made in. Students will share what they have found with the class before placing
their worksheet on the timeline.

Washington State Map: Students will add the land outlined in the treaty and the land the tribe has
now to the map.

Assessment/Evaluation
How will I know what students have learned?
I will know the students have learned by their research worksheet and what they share with the
class. I will also see what students have learned by their contribution to the Washington State
map. Students will also share what they have learned through class discussion.

Support

What do I need to teach this lesson? What might students need to learn within the lesson?

Curriculum/Instructional Coaching: This lesson is based on the big five questions and the STI
curriculum.

Community Partner support: We would love to have support from a member of a local tribe to
come speak to our class about how the treaty impacted their tribe. We also think it would be an
awesome experience to go to a local Native American museum.

Other Support:

Notes/ Next Steps

In the future, as a continuation of this lesson we would encourage students to make connections to the
treaties throughout our learning in other subject topics. We would encourage students to relate the treaties
to their own lives and encourage them to create authentic relations that they can refer to outside of the
classroom. We would also likely recommend books available in our classroom/school library that
students can check out for further research if they are interested in the topic.

Worksheet for students to complete in groups: