Outdoor Education Grades 2-4 |
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Our Native American Life & Culture unit is a great experiential learning opportunity for students in 2nd through 4th grade. A series of unique, fascinating, and fun activities add depth and complexity to California Content Standards already under investigation in your classroom. Nature HikeJoin our naturalist leader on a hike deep into Kenter Canyon, exploring what life would have been like as a Chumash or Tongva three hundred years ago. We discuss ethnobiology, the use of plants and animals by Native Americans. Learn what wood is best for a plank canoe, where to find the sweetest berries, and how to hide yourself on a hunt for deer. Exploring Native ArtifactsStudents learn to think like archeologists with a discussion of several examples of Chumash material culture. Using clues from the content of the artifacts and the way they were produced, students investigate possible meanings and purposes for everything from abalone shell jewelry to pounding stones. After the discussion, students use their hands to explore and create with Chumash toys, jewelry making, and acorn grinding. Chumash Sports & GamesWhat did the Chumash and Tongva do for fun, and why? Students play several traditional Chumash games on our shady ballfield for a taste of young native life. Afterward, they draw connections between these fun activities and the skills needed to survive in Native American times. Students also get a turn at our ever-popular archery range, guided by trained instructors, improving their aim just as Tongva children did centuries ago. |
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