How did the Plains Indians create and use their shields? Design a realistic replica of a Crow or Kiowa circular shield.

• 1.

  What do you think about when you study North American Plains Indians? Is it bows and arrows? Shields were just as important to these Native Americans. Find pictures of these artifacts. Some shields were made from rawhide. This buckskin might have come from antelopes. They were more abundant than bison on the Plains at one time.

• 2.

  Some shields were 3 feet (.9 m) in diameter. These big shields were placed side by side on the ground to form a protective barrier behind which Native American warriors could hide and fight.

• 3.

  The Crow and Kiowa also created small circular shields. They were usually made of buffalo skins and painted with a design that the shield's creator dreamed. Warriors held ceremonies to make their shields. Shields were adorned with feathers, beads, bells, and dyed quills. Often shields were passed down through a family, because they were believed to protect people.

• 4.

  Study what qualities specific animals have in Native American symbolism. Pick an animal that is important to you.

• 5.

  Cover your art area with newspaper. Tear and crumple a circle of recycled brown paper grocery bag. Paint your shield with Crayola® Washable Multicultural Paint and a Paint Brush to make it look like tanned leather. Air dry flat.

• 6.

  Spritz construction paper with water. Draw your protective animal with Crayola Washable Markers on the wet paper. Make the colors bold and strong. Air dry flat.

• 7.

  Tear out your animal drawing around its edges if you like, or cut it with Crayola Scissors. Attach your animal to the shield with Crayola School Glue. Air dry flat.

• 8.

  Punch holes in the shield. Tie on feathers, beads, and other decorative items with yarn.

Standards

• LA: Read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grade level text complexity band independently and proficiently.
• LA: Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher led) with diverse partners on grade level topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.
• LA: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.
• LA: Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace.
• MATH: Convert like measurement units within a given measurement system.
• MATH: Classify two-dimensional figures into categories based on their properties.
• SS: Describe ways in which language, stories, folktales, music, and artistic creations serve as expressions of culture and influence behavior of people living in a particular culture.
• SS: Give examples of and explain group and institutional influences such as religious beliefs, laws, and peer pressure, on people, events, and elements of culture.
• SS: Examine the interaction of human beings and their physical environment, the use of land, building of cities, and ecosystem changes in selected locales and regions.
• SS: Identify and use various sources for reconstructing the past, such as documents, letters, diaries, maps, textbooks, photos, and others.
• VA: Intentionally take advantage of the qualities and characteristics of art media, techniques, and processes to enhance communication of experiences and ideas.
• VA: Use subjects, themes, and symbols that demonstrate knowledge of contexts, values, and aesthetics that communicate intended meaning in artworks.

Adaptations

• Possible classroom resources include: Plains Indians (First Nations of North America) by Andrew Santella; If You Lived With The Sioux Indians by Ann McGovern; How Would You Survive as an American Indian? by Scott Steedman; Daily Life in a Plains Indian Village 1868 by Michael Terry
• Students work in small groups to identify distinct tribes that are considered Plains Indians. Where did they originally live? How were they unique? Study the tribes' interrelationships before the arrival of the Europeans and how that event changed their way of life.
• Students investigate how skins are tanned to become leather. Compare the tanning process used by the Plains Indians and the Europeans.
• Where do the descendants of the Plains Indians live today? How are they attempting to preserve their history and culture?
• Students compose summary paragraphs to accompany their shields. In the paragraph, students explain their choice of symbols included in their shields.