Teacher s Guide to accompany A Year in the Life of Alexander Henry The informational text and activities in the book integrate history and geography content with reading and math skills. The worksheets included in this guide contain the same questions and directions as the pages in the book (see reference at the end of each worksheet). Some are full pages, and some are half-pages. They can be reproduced individually and used along with the book and/or the PowerPoint. There are three additional pages containing more Common Core activities. The book, this Teacher s Guide, and a PowerPoint Presentation of the book are downloadable from the Michigan Geographic Alliance website: Cst.cmich.edu/mga/ This project was funded in part by a grant from the National Geographic Education Foundation Copyright 2015, Michigan Geographic Alliance cst.cmich.edu/mga/ Teachers may copy for use in their classrooms. Contact mga@cmich.edu regarding permission for any other use.
A Year in the Life of Alexander Henry Michigan Content Expectations 3 H3.0.2 Explain how historians use primary and secondary sources to answer questions about the past. 3 H3.0.4 Draw upon traditional stories of American Indians who lived in Michigan in order to make generalizations about their beliefs. 3 G1.0.1 Use cardinal directions (north, south, east, west) to describe the relative location of significant places in the immediate environment. 3 G5.0.2 Describe how people adapt to, use, and modify the natural resources of Michigan. (H) College, Career and Civic Life (C3) Dimension 2: Applying disciplinary concepts and tools Geography Grades 3-5 8. Explain how human settlements and movements relate to the locations and use of various natural resources. Common Core Reading Standards for Informational Text (Grade 3) 1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers 2. Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea. 7. Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text. Common Core Writing Standards for Grade 3 2. Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly. Vocabulary Development: (see glossary in book) Places and People Alexander Henry Fort Michilimackinac L Arbre Croche Ludington Ojibwa Ottawa Sault Ste. Marie St. Martin Island Wawatam Other vocabulary words: Autumn bushel compass rose credit slip felt fur trader honored landed lodge maize mouth sap scaffold scale spout sturgeon venison wampum
Color the picture using information from the diary. Adapted from Alexander s Diary: Wawatam s family cut off my long hair and shaved most of my head. They left a small patch of hair at the top where they would put feathers. They painted my face with red and black colors. The family gave me a shirt that was painted with vermillion (reddish orange) color that was mixed with grease. They loaned me large silver bands to wear above each elbow and smaller bands for my wrists. Around my neck, I wore a wampum collar made of beads. On my legs, I wore leggings made of scarlet (red) cloth. The three women of the family thought I looked much better in my Indian clothes. They thought I was handsome. A wampum necklace is made of beads or shells and sometimes was used as money. Write two comparison sentences: How did Alexander dress like me? How did Alexander look different from me? Pages 6-7
St. Martin Island is in which Great Lake? What two directions did Alexander travel to get to St. Martin Island? (Use the compass rose) About how far did he have to paddle? (Use the scale.) About 5 miles About 15 miles About 40 miles Page 8 If one bushel of corn weighs 56 pounds, how much would 2 bushels weigh? How much would 4 bushels weigh? Do you weigh more or less than a bushel of corn? What do we use today that is like the credit slip? Page 10
Fort Michilimackinac is in between what two Great Lakes? About how many miles do the canoes travel between the fort and L Arbre Croche? (Use the scale.) Less than 10 About 15 More than 30 Page 11 Discussion Question: Discuss in your group. Write your answer below. Why do you think the family moved away from the coast of Lake Michigan to make their fall camp? Page 12
Which two directions did they travel when they walked from their fall camp to the winter camp? (Use the compass rose.) Why did the family need to have a winter camp that was in a different place than the fall camp? Discussion Question: Discuss in your group. Write your answer below. What might be some dangers when you live in the woods in the winter? Pages 14-15
The bear weighed more than 500 pounds! About how many classmates would it take to weigh as much as the bear? Less than 3 About 5-7 More than 8 Pages 16-17 Why did they put bundles of dried meat on top of the scaffold? Page 18
Adapted from Alexander s Diary: Many sugar maple trees and white birch trees grew at the sugar camp. Both kinds of trees were important. The women first gathered strips of bark from white birch trees. From the birch bark, they made cups that would hold the sweet sap (juice) from maple trees. To get the sap, the women made small cuts into the maple trees and put a spout into each cut. They hung a bark cup under each spout, so the cup would catch the sap that flowed out of the cut. The women watched for cups that were full of sap, and they emptied the cups into bigger buckets. They poured their buckets into big bags made out of moose-skin. The bags held the thin sap before it was cooked. How did the women cook the sap? They used strong metal pots (boilers) hung over fires. A big pot could hold twenty gallons of sap. The fires made the sap boil slowly so the sweet juice turned into maple sugar. Fires kept sap boiling day and night. While the women collected the sap, boiled it, and made the sugar, the men were busy cutting wood, making fires, and hunting and fishing. Making Maple Sugar In two paragraphs, explain in your own words how Native Americans made maple sugar. In the first paragraph tell how they collected the sap. In the second paragraph, explain how the women made maple sugar from the sap. Each paragraph should include the main idea and details. Use Alexander s diary and the illustrations (pages 20-21) Pages 20-21
Sweet Math: Alexander Henry wrote about a group of families who made 36 gallons of maple syrup and 1600 pounds of maple sugar. The facts: It takes almost 50 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of syrup. One gallon of syrup weighs about 11 pounds. It takes one cord of wood to make 24 gallons of syrup. (A cord of wood is a stack 4 feet high, 4 foot wide and 8 feet high.) It takes 1 gallon of maple syrup to make 8 pounds of maple sugar. One tablespoon of maple syrup contains 50 calories. (One tablespoon of corn syrup contains 60 calories.) http://www.morsefarm.com/history About how much sap did they collect for 36 gallons of syrup? o 180 gallons o 1800 gallons o 18,000 gallons How many cords of wood did they use? o 1-2 o 2-3 o 3-4 How many gallons of maple syrup did it take to make 1600 pounds of maple sugar? o 100 o 200 o 400 Have you ever tasted maple syrup, maple sugar candy, or maple flavoring in food? Write about a time you enjoyed this Native American food!
Retell Alexander s Story! The map shows six of the places that Alexander visited during his year with the Ojibwa. The box shows names for places that he visited (starting in the north). s. On the map, label each symbol with a name. t. In the box, number the places in the order Alexander visited them. Hints: He started at Fort Michilimackinac and visited it two more times, so there are 3 numbers on its line. His year-long journey ended at Sault Ste. Marie. 9 Sault Ste. Marie St. Martin s Island 1, 3, 8 Fort Michilimackinac L Arbre Croche Winter Camp Fall Camp Spring Camp (Same as Fall Camp)
Teacher Guide Answer Sheet Page 8: St. Martin Island is in which Great Lake? Lake Huron What two directions did Alexander travel to get to St. Martin Island? (Use the compass rose.) North and East How far did he have to paddle? (Use the scale) About15 miles Page 10 If one bushel of corn weighs 56 pounds, how much would 2 bushels weigh? 112 pounds How much would 4 bushels weigh? 224 pounds Do you weigh more or less than a bushel of corn? Answers may vary What do we use today that is like the credit slip? Credit card or charge card Page 11 Fort Michilimackinac is in between what two Great Lakes? Lake Michigan and Lake Huron About how many miles does the canoe travel between the fort and L Arbre Croche? More than 30 Page 12 (Discussion) Why do you think the family moved away from the coast of Lake Michigan to make their camp? Answers may vary possible answers: for better hunting; to hunt animals instead of fishing Page 15 Which two directions did they travel when they walked from their fall hunting camp to the winter camp? East and North Why did the family need to have a winter camp that was in a different place than the fall camp? To find more animals to hunt What might be some dangers when you live in the woods in the winter? Answers will vary possible answers: weather, wild animals, loneliness Page 18 Why did they put bundles of dried meat on top of the scaffold? To keep it away from wild animals like wolves Page 20-21 Common Core Writing Rubric for paragraph W.3.2.a: Introduce a topic W.3.2.b: Develop the topic with facts, definitions, details. W.3.2.d: Provide a concluding statement or section. Sweet Math: About how much sap did they collect for 36 gallons of syrup? 1800 gallons How many cords of wood did they use? 1-2 How many gallons of maple syrup did it take to make 1600 pounds of maple sugar? 200 Retelling the story: 9 Sault Ste. Marie 2 St. Martin s Island 1, 3, 8 Fort Michilimackinac 4 L Arbre Croche 6 Winter Camp 5 Fall Camp 7 Spring Camp (Same as Fall Camp)
The story is based on a primary document the diary of Alexander Henry who lived with an Ojibwa Indian family from June of 1763 to May of 1764. The activities in the book and in this Teacher s Guide encourage students to think about the survival skills of the Native Americans who lived 250 years ago in Michigan and the Great Lakes region. Comments are welcome. Contact: Marty Mater mater1ml@cmich.edu Carol Gersmehl carol.gersmehl@gmail.com Clare Friend cfriendhea.cf@gmail.com