People of the Three Fires

Date: 2/21/2016
Big idea and essential question(s): Native Americans are an important part of
Michigan history. The natural resources of Michigan characterized how people
survived in Michigan in the past. What were the cultures of these groups, and how
have they influenced Michigan?
Objective(s) for todays lesson: Identify three of the original groups of people in
Michigan before the settlers came and describe the culture of one of these groups.
Explain that some groups of Native Americans still live in Michigan today and
identify at least one city where they live.
Standards:
GLCE 3 H3.0.5: Use informational text and visual data to compare how American
Indians and settlers in the early history of Michigan adapted to, used, and modified
their environment.
Materials & supplies needed:
Copies of the handouts of information about the Ojibwa, Odawa, and
Potawatomi
Computer and projector to show maps of where the groups of Native
Americans lived before the settlers arrived and where reservations are currently
located
Chart paper
Procedures and approximate time allocated for each
event
Introduction to the lesson (3 minutes)
Yesterday you learned about the first people in
Michigan and one other group of Native
Americans. What do you remember about that
group of Native Americans? My students will
discuss what they remember from the previous
days lesson. If they do not mention the mounds
that the Hopewell left behind as geographical
evidence, I will guide my students to recalling
this important detail.

Today we are going to learn about the Native

Americans that lived in Michigan after the
Hopewell people were gone, but still before the
settlers came. These groups of American Indians
still lived in Michigan when the settlers arrived.
There were three big Native American groups
called the Ojibwa, the Odawa, and the
Potawatomi. If you are talking about all three
groups at once, you call them The Three Fires,
or Anishinaabeg. Say that with me.
Anishinaabeg. What is another way you can refer

Academic, Social and

Linguistic Support during
each event
The launch to this lesson is
a discussion so that my two
students that struggle with
reading have an entry point
into the lesson right from
the beginning.
I will pre-assign groups,
making sure to assign a
reading buddy to each of
my two students who
struggle with reading.
I will put a list with the
instructions on the
document camera so that
my students can refer to it
to remember what to do
next when they are in their
groups.
If my student with very

to these three groups? People of the Three Fires.

OUTLINE of key events during the lesson (30 minutes)
I will explain that the class will be splitting up into
three groups, and each group will be in charge of
learning about one of the Native American groups
of the People of the Three Fires and teaching that
information to the class.

Everyone will have their own handout. On the

back of the handout, your group may discuss the
questions together, but each of you must write the
answers to the questions on your own handout.
The information you need to find out about your
Native American group is where they lived in
Michigan, what their houses were like, what they
ate, what was special about them, what they made,
an artifact that they might have left behind that
would tell us something about their culture, and
anything else you learned about them that seems
important.

I will say one of the Native American groups,

and then call the names of the students in that
group. When you hear your name, you will go to
your assigned area and read the article silently. If
you finish before everyone is done, read it again to
make sure you are understanding as many details
as possible. When everyone is finished reading,
discuss the questions on the back of your sheet.
When you are done with the questions, assign one
person to every question. You may need to assign
two people to one of the questions because
everyone in the group needs to present to the class.
When we gather back together as a whole class,
you will be in charge of teaching the rest of the
class about that group of Native Americans.
Students will go to their assigned groups, read
independently (unless they have been assigned a
reading buddy), discuss the questions, and decide
who is presenting which part. I will monitor the
groups to make sure they stay on task.
When the groups have finished their work, I will
transition the class back to the rug. The groups will
present, and I will record the information they
have gathered and presented on a large chart on the
chart paper.
Discussion: What are the similarities and

slow fine motor skills is

having trouble keeping up
with the rest of the group, I
will scribe for her.

differences between these three groups of Native

Americans? Why might these three groups have
been called the People of the Three Fires?
I will introduce the term alliance and explain what
it meant for the People of the Three Fires and why
it was possible.
Next, I will show a map of where these groups
lived in Michigan. I will point out, There were
other Native American groups that lived in
Michigan as well. These groups were called the
Huron, the Miami, and the Menominee.

Closing summary for the lesson (2 minutes)

Does anyone have any idea when Native
Americans stopped living in Michigan? I will
give them a few seconds to think before saying,
Trick question. They still do. I will show a map
of the locations of reservations in Michigan and
point out a few cities that might be familiar to my
students. I will explain that many Native
Americans live on reservations, which is a
designated place that the early settlers forced
Native Americans to live in. Some continue to live
there, where they can live with their own culture.
Some Native Americans have now chosen to live
in cities.
Assessment
I will check each students handout to make sure they
were able to answer all of the questions for their assigned
group, I will check to make sure every student
participated in the presentations.
Exit slip: What were three groups of people that lived in
Michigan before the settlers arrived? Label one city on
the map of Michigan where Native Americans still live
today.

Academic, Social, and

Linguistic Support during
assessment
For my two students that
struggle with reading and
writing, I will only check
the work on the handout
that they were able to
complete.
I will read the question and
directions on the exit slip
out loud so that my
students that struggle with
reading can more easily
understand what they are to
do.