Provide a metaview, lifting students into a wider view of the concept. Use another medium (not reading or writing) to connect students' personal knowing to the concept (i.e. visual arts, music, movement, metaphor, etc.) Involve learners in reflective production that blends the emotional and the cognitive.

Diverse activities for introducing each tribe

Objective: to provide the students with stimulating experiences that lead them into an understanding of the Indian tribes they will be studying

Personal Note: Study each tribe in a mini-wheel that follows this sequence: 2R - 2L - 3L - 3R. Then repeat the cycle with the next tribe. The following activities are the 2R pieces to these mini-wheels.

Activities
Prehistoric Indians: Simulate an archaelogical experience through the use of fantasy. Pretend you have packed your car and you are driving southwest of San Antonio, Texas to some cave shelters along the lower Pecos River. As you carefully dig for archeological evidence, pretend to find items such as: animal teeth, pottery shards, charred wood, flint points, etc...
Karankawa Indians: Tell the story of Cabeza de Vaca and his rescue by the Karankawa Indians. A good source of information for this is the book, Texas Sketchbook (see the bibliography).
Coahuiltecan Indians: Simulate a rabbit hunt on the playground using the cooperative "surround" technique. Choose three students to be "rabbits" and five students to be the "hunters." The rest of the class forms a horseshoe around the rabbits. The "hunters" are waiting to ambush the "rabbits" in the open end of the horseshoe. The "tribe" pretends to beat the bushes and begins to close in on the "rabbits." The "rabbits" run to the open end of the horseshoe and are "hunted" by being tagged. Make sure everyone knows their roles before you begin.
Jumanos Indians: Show pictures of Anasazi Indian ruins, pueblos, pottery, and sand painting. Read aloud the children's book, Arrow to the Sun.
Caddo Indians: Show the pictures on pages 6-14 in the book, Indians Who Lived In Texas .
Plains Indians: Show short, appropriate sections of the popular movie, Dances With Wolves. I like to show the scenes when the soldier is coming into the Indian village for the first time and when the tribe is moving to hunt the buffalo. Read aloud the children's book, Gift of the Sacred Dogs, by Paul Goble. I like to read aloud books by Paul Goble each day that we study the Plains Indians.

Assessment: student participation, student interest generated by the activities