Gabby Trofa

Day 5
EGP335
1.0 Lesson Plan Details
Lesson Title, Day Number, Authors, Grade
Level
A Day in the Life of a Cherokee Indian
Day 5
4th Grade
45 minutes
Concepts:
Cherokee Indians
Vocabulary:
Prolific farmers- farmers who produce food in large quantities
Matrilineal society- individuals belong to the same descent group of their
mother (in Cherokee society this means a child is born and raised in mothers
clan)
Sequoyah- member of the Red Paint clan who invented the written language
of the Cherokee nation
Skills:
Reading
Writing
Map skills
1.1 Integration of Learning Outcomes/Objectives
Students will write a journal entry describing a day in the life of a member of
one of the Cherokee Indian clans.
1.2 Standards PA Civics, History, Economics, Geography &
NCSS Themes I - X with subthemes
8.3.4.A: Differentiate common characteristics of the social, political, cultural
and economic groups in United States history.
8.3.4.D: Distinguish between conflict and cooperation among groups and
organization that impacted the history and development of the United States
NCSS.1.1.e: Ask learners to give examples and describe the importance of
cultural unity and diversity within and across groups
NCSS.1.3.f: Ask learners to describe how people create places that reflect
culture, human needs, current values and ideals, and government policies
NCSS.1.4.b: Help learners to identify, describe, and express appreciation for
the influences of various historical and contemporary cultures on an
individuals daily life
1.3 Anticipatory Set
Good morning 4th graders! Today we are going to continue our unit on the Southeast
region of the United States. Yesterday we talked about the Inland South states and
finished completing our maps of the Southeast. Can everyone take out their maps?
Review all of the states in the Southeast and ask students to explain which states
are considered Atlantic Coast states, which are Gulf Coast states, and which are

Inland South states. Now that we reviewed the geography of the Southeast, its
time to learn about the history. Today we are going to learn about the Cherokee
Indians who were the first settlers of the Southeast region. Raise your hand if you
have heard of the Cherokee Indians before. (Students respond) Can anyone tell me
anything they know about the Cherokee people? (Students respond) Great! We are
going to learn so much more about the Cherokee tribe in the book we are reading
today called The Cherokee by Catherine Petrini. Before we begin reading, we are
going to add something to our maps. Have students take out maps and give each
student 9 stickers. Explain that 8 of the stickers will be used to represent the 8
states where the Cherokee lived. The last sticker will be added to their map legend
and labeled State where the Cherokee lived. Point out the 8 states to the students
and have them add stickers to their maps (walk around and check to make sure
students are placing stickers in the appropriate states). After the students have
placed all of the stickers on the map and added one to the legend, make predictions
about why the Cherokee may have chosen to inhabit these states and write them on
the white board. After reading the book, review the predictions to see which were
accurate.
1.4 Procedures
1. Alright class, now its time to take out your copies of The Cherokee by
Catherine Petrini. Bring your book and map of the Southeast Region over to
the rug and find a seat.
2. After every student is seated, ask them to look at the cover of the book and
make predictions about the life of the Cherokee people. (Ask what do you
think they eat? What do you think they wear? What are their houses like?
What do they do for fun?)
3. Thank you all for sharing and using what you see on the cover to make
predictions about the reading. Now I need everyone to turn to page 6 or the
beginning of Chapter 1 in the text, and follow along as I read.
4. (stop at the bottom of page 8) Alright lets stop here and talk about what we
just read. Would anyone like to summarize these last two pages for the class?
(student response) Great! We read about where the Cherokee tribe lived in
the United States. Can everyone take out their maps that we have been
filling in the last few days? Find on our maps where we placed the stickers
representing where the Cherokee people lived. We can see that all of the
states mentioned in the text can be found in the Southeast Region on our
maps. Based on what we already learned this week about the geography of
the Southeast, can anyone predict what the Cherokee houses might be like,
or what type of clothing the Cherokee might wear? (students respond)
5. I like how you all took what we learned about the climate of the Southeast
and used it to make predictions. Now we are going to put our maps on the
floor and turn our books to page 9. These next four pages are going to tell us
all about the Cherokee villages and the people so it is very important that
you are following along. Lets continue reading.
6. (stop at the top of page 13 right above A Sense of Place) Okay class, lets
stop here and discuss what we just read. After we are finished reading you
are going to a write journal entry on the day in the life of a Cherokee so it is
important that you understand what we are reading. If you have any
questions, about what we read so far, please ask them now. (students

respond) Thank you for asking questions. Im sure that there are many other
students who were thinking the same thing.
7. Discuss the roles of men and women and how this affected the Cherokee.
Have students talk about what a matrilineal society is and why this was so
important. Lets continue reading to learn about the seven clans of the
Cherokee tribe.
8. (stop at the bottom of page 19) Now lets talk about the seven clans that we
just learned about. Who can tell me one of them? (student response)
Another? (student response)
9. Discuss each of the seven clans and what is significant about each one. Make
sure to mention the specific roles they played in society and how all of the
clans had to work together as a community in order for the Cherokee tribe to
survive.
10.Open your books back up and lets finish the chapter. We only have two
pages left so this should not take long. (stop at the end of the chapter)
11.Alright class, I need everyone to return to their seats with their books and
maps. Look at the white board and read over the predictions we made before
we read.
12.Review the predictions with the students and have a discussion about which
were correct and why some of them may have been incorrect. Based on the
reading, discuss with students why the Cherokee chose to live in these
places.
13.Remind students that as they continue learning about the Southeast Region
of the United States to hold onto their maps and think about how the first
settlers, the Cherokee, were similar and different to the people living in the
Southeast today.
14.Explain that everyone is going to receive an index card with a picture on it.
There are seven cards to represent the seven different clans. Hold up each
card and explain that the picture represents the clan name. (Example: picture
of deer is the deer clan; picture of the blue dot is the blue clan, etc.)
15.Once everyone has received their card, have students sit in groups with their
respective clans. (desks should already be arranged into seven group and in
the center of each group of desks should be one of the seven cards) Students
must sit at the group of desks where their corresponding clan card is placed.
16.Now that we are placed in our groups, lets review the role of each clan.
Discuss the importance of your clan with your group mates. Have a class
discussion and one member from each group will share what their clan does
and why they are important to the Cherokee society.
17.Alright class, now that we know all about our clans and why the Cherokee
needed each of the seven clans, lets review what we learned about the
entire Cherokee tribe. Have each group make a list of five facts that they
learned about the Cherokee. (Walk around the room asking students
questions and making sure they are staying on track)
18.Once each group has written their list of 5 facts, choose a member from each
group to write the facts on the white board. Allow each group to read their
facts to the class and discuss anything else they remembered from the book.
(Ask for any other questions)
19.Alright fourth graders, I think we have a very good understanding of what life
was like for a Cherokee Indian and why they were so important in the

Southeast Region. Now it is time to show me your understanding by writing a

journal entry.
20.Pass out a sheet of lined paper to each student. Explain that they must write
a journal entry describing a day in the life of a Cherokee tribe member in
their clan.
21.Explain that the journal entry must have the date on the top right corner and
begin with the phrase, Dear journal.
22.Tell students that their journal entries must have at least 10 sentences and
include at least seven facts from the text. They must include what clan they
are a member of and how that affected their role in society.
23.Explain that students will have 20 minutes to write their journal entry using
proper spelling and grammar. As they write, walk around the room and
answer any questions the students must have. (If a student looks frustrated,
remind them to look at the facts on the white board as a resource)
24.After 20 minutes, check in with the students and see how many have finished
writing their journal. Collect the completed journal entries and decide if more
time may be needed for certain students. Explain that students worked very
hard on their journals and they will be added into their Southeast Portfolios.
1.5 Differentiation
Struggling Readers/Writers: Students who are struggling in reading and writing
would be placed in a homogeneous group during the group and individual work
times. I would predetermine which Cherokee clan would be used for this group
and when it was time for them to work as a group and list their 5 facts; I would
work with this group. I would have a stack of post-it-notes and with these
students, flip through the book and place post-it-notes on important facts they
could use in their list. During the independent practice, these students would
only be required to write eight sentences in their journal entries, rather than ten.
If necessary, they would also be given additional time to complete the
assignment if 20 minutes was not enough time.
Gifted Readers/Writers: Students who are gifted in reading and writing would
write a story, rather than a journal entry. Similar to the other students, the story
would still require the use of seven facts from the text and proper spelling and
grammar. Unlike the standard assignment, the story would have to include
information about two of the Cherokee clans and describe how these clans
worked together. The story would be fictional, but based on the facts they gained
from reading The Cherokee. These students would be given extra time to
complete the assignment, as well as the opportunity to read their stories to the
class.
1.6 Closure
Excellent work today 4th graders! I enjoyed seeing you work together in your groups
and I look forward to reading your journal entries. Your journal entries will help me
see if you really understood what we talked about today and if you can apply our
class discussions to your writing. Would anyone like to share something they wrote
about in their journal? (Students respond) These all sound like wonderful ideas and I
cant wait to read what other people wrote. These journals are significant because
they contain facts that are very important to the history of not only the Cherokee
people, but the entire Southeast region of the United States. The Cherokee people
are remembered for being a civilized group of Indians who left a lasting impact on

the United States. Tomorrow, we will learn about another person who left a lasting
impact on the Southeast, and his name is Dr. Martin Luther King. Similar to the Long
Hair clan of the Cherokee tribe, Martin Luther King was a peacemaker who believed
in making peace with the world and having good relations with everyone. Tomorrow
we will learn all about his influence on the Southeast and connect that to the
Cherokee influence on the Southeast.
1.7 Formative/Summative Assessment of Students (P-12)
Formative Assessment: Throughout the guided practice and independent
practice, I will walk around the classroom and monitor the students. When
they are working in their groups to create the list of facts, I will make sure
that all students are participating in the discussion. When they are writing
their journal entries, I will make sure that all students are writing and not
distracting themselves or others. I will answer any questions the students
might have and ask questions to further their thinking while they are working.
Summative Assessment: I will grade the journal entries using a rubric. The
rubric will be used to determine if the students included seven facts from the
text, at least ten sentences, and proper mechanics. It will also include
whether or not the student mentioned what clan they are a member of and
how this would have affected their life.
1.8 Materials/Equipment
A. STUDENT MATERIALS/ READING RESOURCES:
The Cherokee by Catherine Petrini
Southeast Region map (filled in during lessons from day 2-4)
Stickers
Index cards (with pictures of deer, bird, blue dot, red dot, long hair, potato,
and wolf)
Lined paper/pencils
B. TEACHER MATERIALS/RESOURCES FOR LESSON DESIGN:
White board/markers
Englar, M. (2006). The Cherokee and Their History (pp. 9-24). Minneapolis,
Minnesota: Compass Point Books.
Petrini, C. (2004). The Mountaineers. The Cherokee (pp. 6-19). San Diego,
California: Kidhaven Press.
Rumford, J. (2004). Sequoyah (pp. 6-27). New York, New York: Houghton
Mifflin Company.
http://www.cherokee.org/AboutTheNation/History/Facts/OurHistory.aspx
http://mrnussbaum.com/nativeamericans/cherokee/
http://www.learner.org/interactives/historymap/indians6.html
D. Attach teacher content notes sheet, making sure to CITE REFERENCES used
1.9 Technology
N/A
Rubric for Journal Entry:

CATEGORY
Facts from
the Text

The journal
The journal
The journal
The journal
entry contains entry contains 6 entry contains entry contains
at least 7 facts facts from the
5 facts from
less than 5
from the text.
text.
the text.
facts from the
text.

Sentences

The journal
entry has at
least 10
complete
sentences.

Mechanics

The journal
entry contains
no spelling or
grammatical
mistakes.

Requirements

The journal
entry has 9
complete
sentences.

The journal
entry has 8
complete
sentences.

The journal
entry has less
than 8
complete
sentences.

The journal
The journal
The journal
entry contains entry contains entry contains
no more than 2 no more than 5 more than 5
spelling or
spelling or
spelling or
grammatical
grammatical
grammatical
mistakes.
mistakes.
mistakes.

The student
The student
includes what
includes what
clan (he /she) is clan (he /she) is
a member of
a member of
and accurately and somewhat
explains how
explains how
this affects their this affects their
daily life.
daily life.

The student
The student
includes what
does not
clan (he /she)
include what
is a member of clan (he /she)
but does not
is a member
explain how
of, or explain
this affects
how this
their daily life.
affects their
daily life.

Content Outline
I.

II.

History of the Cherokee Tribe

A. Meaning behind Cherokee
1. Comes from the word atsila meaning People of fire
2. Called themselves aniyvwiya meaning The Real People
B. Cherokee Flag
1. Adopted by the Cherokee National Council in 1871
2. Seven-pointed star represents the seven clans
a) Long Hair, Blue, Wolf, Wild Potato, Deer, Bird, and Red Paint
3. Wreath of oak represents the sacred fire
Cherokee Home
A. Where they lived
1. Appalachian Highlands- Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina,
Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Virginia, and West Virginia
2. Most people had two homes: winter and summer
a) Winter home- small round mud house with a cone-shaped roof

b) Summer home- rectangular house with clay walls and a thatched

roof
3. Known to other tribes as the Mountaineers because of their close

III.

ties with the mountains

B. Cherokee Villages
1. Villages were made up of 30 to 60 homes and one council house
2. Each village was comprised of 400 to 500 people
3. Red and White Villages
a) Red-warring village
b) White- peaceful village
Cherokee People
A. Seven Clans
1. Wolf Clan- warriors
2. Deer Clan- hunters
3. Bird Clan- messengers
4. Red Paint Clan- made medicine
5. Blue Clan- used a blue plant called sahoni to make medicine for
children
6. Wild Potato Clan- gathered potatoes along the rivers and swamps
7. Long Hair Clan- peace chiefs who taught the tribes traditions and
history
B. What they ate
1. The Three Sisters referred to their staple foods of corn, beans,
and squash
2. Corn was the main food and used to make corn dumplings, soup,
and mush
3. Deer, turkey, potatoes, pumpkins, fish, soup, cornbread
C. Hunters and Farmers
1. Prolific farmers that grew corn, beans, squash, pumpkins,
sunflowers, tobacco
2. Used bows and arrows to kill deer and bears
3. Used blowguns to kill turkeys, rabbits, and squirrels
D. Gender Roles
1. Women owned the home and were in charge of the
home/property/family
a) Matrilineal society so all children were born into their mothers

IV.

clan and remained in that clan for life

2. Men were in charge of war, hunting, and diplomatic relations
3. Men and women from the same clan could not be married
War
A. War Parties
1. Made up of ten warriors
2. Made quick, violent raids rather than full-blown battles
B. Reasons for war
1. Avenging a murder (war between clans)
2. Hunting rights and land disputes (usually against other tribes)

V.

Cherokee Culture
A. Festivals and Sacred Ceremonies
1. Six festivals throughout the year to honor the gods, nature, and
friends
2. Green Corn Ceremony was the most important ceremony
a) honored the Cherokee Corn mother who provided them with corn
b) During the ceremony the Cherokee fasted and then washed
themselves to get rid of impurities or bad deeds and start a new
life
3. Rituals included stomp dances, feather dances, and buffalo dances
B. Skilled craftsmen
1. Women made baskets, pottery, and rattles
2. Famous for booger masks which resembled the faces of their

VI.

enemies and were worn during ceremonies to scare off evil spirits
Sequoyah
A. Background
1. Born in eastern Tennessee in the 1760s
2. Member of the Red Paint Clan
3. Could not read or write
4. At age 50, he decided to capture his peoples voices in writing
B. Significance
1. In 1809 he began working on a writing system for the Cherokee
language
a) Drew hundreds of symbols to represent words
2. In 1821 he presented his ideas for a syllabary to the Cherokee
Nation
3. His system of symbols became the written language of the
Cherokee

4. First person to create a written language by himself for an entire

society