Nov.26th - 30th  and Dec. 3rd - 7th
        This week and the next we will be continuing our study of Native Americans.  Geographically we will be studying the Tlingit and Timishian tribes of the Pacific Northwest with the K-2 and 4th and 5th grades.  The 3rd grades will be studying the Hopi tribe of the Southwest.

The totem poles are abstract animal/human-like figures that represent their ancestors.  The carver of the totem pole would pick animals that had qualities similar to their ancestor.  In this way the totem pole served as a way to pass on their culture by telling the story of their family tree; therefore the totem pole is NARRATIVE in purpose. Almost all totem poles include an eagle or Thunderbird at the top to signify the importance of the eagle as a mediator between them and the Great Spirit.  At the bottom of the totem pole they would often include a totem that is holding the "speaking stick".  This totem represented the most important person in the tribe, the leader or speaker for the tribe.

The students will place the totem pole in the foreground making it the focal point of the drawing.  To show the abundance of cedar trees, just one of the many natural resources that were available to these tribes, the students will place them in the mid-ground.  The background will be colored in a cloudy fashion to represent the rainy climate in the Pacific Northwest.

This is a photo of an actual totem pole.

        The 3rd graders will be studying the CEREMONIAL purpose of the Kachinas of the Hope tribe of the Southwest.  The climate of this region is a desert, making wooden objects very rare.  Most of their things were made of mud, like the pueblos that were their dwellings.  The Kachinas were were the Hopi's special protectors. They were not gods but powerful spirits who, the Hopi believed came to their village every year to help them.  If the Hopi had performed the religious ceremony well and had good  hearts, the Kachina would bring rain and a good harvest.  There are over 200 different kinds of Kachina.  At Kachina ceremonies, men dressed as Kachina spirits.  They wore masks that covered their heads and sang and danced in the sacred ceremonies.  The Hopi believed that when the men performed these rituals, their human spirits were replaced by the actual spirits of the Kachinas.
They believed in the powers of the Kachinas and at special ceremony the men of the tribe would dress up in a ceremonial costume that represented Kachinas that would bring various

The students will place the Kachina  in the foreground.  In the mid-ground they will draw a pueblo. The background and surrounding area will show the desert climate and vegetation that grows there.