Learning Experiences

Living Our Cultures,

Sharing Our Heritage:

The First Peoples of Alaska
Geographic Study of the Peoples of the North 1

Natural Resources and How They Are Used 2

Seasonal Knowledge, Yearly Cycles 3

Living From the Land and Sea 4

Traveling 5

Northern Clothing: Designed for Extremes 6

Children in Northern Cultures 7

Whaling Traditions 8

Northwest Coast Ceremonial Art 9

Ceremonies 10

Division of Labor by Gender 11

What Is the Nature of the Universe? 12

Non-Human Beings 13

Learning Experiences

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures
LEARNING EXPERIENCE 1

Geographic Study of the Peoples of the North

The following Learning Experience – one of thirteen – is designed 

for middle and high school students and will deepen and enrich 

their understanding of the peoples of the Far North through a series of 

classroom and research activities. It is written for teachers, 

but all students and life-long learners should feel free to undertake 

the investigations on their own or as part of an independent study. 

Each section utilizes the Sharing Knowledge website (http://alaska.si.edu) 

plus additional online resources and includes references to the exhibition 

catalog Living Our Cultures, Sharing Our Heritage: The First Peoples of Alaska, 

an additional recommended resource (available for purchase online and from 

the Anchorage Museum). 

Each Learning Experience leads to an exploration of the cultural knowledge, 

beauty and ingenuity that are made tangible through the Smithsonian 

collections. Together, the thirteen sections, covering thirteen different 

themes, cut across cultures and historic periods.

The Learning Experiences can be used for independent teaching 

and learning in the classroom or at home and used as a complement 

to a class or personal visit to the exhibition at the Anchorage Museum, 

offering both pre-visit orientation activities and post-visit 

explorations and classroom activities.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures http://alaska.si.edu 
GRADE LEVELS

ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES

CULTURAL REGIONS

TIME NEEDED

MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL

GEOGRAPHY, ANTHROPOLOGY, LANGUAGE ARTS

ALL 

1 CLASS PERIOD

LEARNING EXPERIENCE 1:

Geographic Study of the Peoples of the North

LESSON SUMMARY:

Students examine the cultural map on the website. They prepare a visual display that shows 

the linguistic and cultural relationships among the various peoples, then choose one cultural 

group, read its accompanying essay, and report on it to the rest of the class.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS CONSIDERED IN THE LESSON:

 1. Who are the indigenous peoples of the north?

 2. How are the various indigenous peoples of the north related to each other?

ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS APPROACHED THROUGH THE LESSON:

 1. The Far North is a huge and hugely diverse region.

STUDENT OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES:

 1. Students will learn the locations of the homelands of the indigenous peoples of the north.

 2. Students will explore the geography of one cultural region in detail.

 3. Students will present brief introductions for the indigenous peoples of the north.

PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE OR SKILLS:

 • Ability to follow multiple-step instructions.

 • Ability to read and summarize a short essay.

Lesson 1.1

VOCABULARY:

Language family: a group of languages that are related to each other; a group of languages that 

 derived from the same parent language.

Names of the indigenous groups of Alaska and eastern Siberia:

 • Iñupiaq

 • St. Lawrence Island Yupik (Siberian Yupik)

 • Yup’ik

 • Unangax (also called Aleut) 

 • Sugpiaq (also called Alutiiq)

 • Athabascan

 • Eyak

 • Tlingit

 • Haida

 • Tsimshian

 • Chukchi

 • Koryak

 • Even

Note: The name Unangan was used on 

the website map, but this name has been 

updated in this guide to Unangax 

(pronounced “oonung’gakh”), which is 

correct for the indigenous peoples of 

both the eastern and western Aleutian 

Islands. For a more detailed explanation, 

go to the Alaska Native Language 

Center website at 

http://www.uaf.edu/anlc/langs/al.html. 

For more information about how names 

for Alaska Native languages and peoples 

have changed over time, see the 

“Mapping Alaska's Native Languages” 

entry on the website.

^ ^
GEOGRAPHIC STUDY OF THE PEOPLES OF THE NORTH

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 1.2

TEACHING STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITY IDEAS:

 1. Go to the website’s map page http://alaska.si.edu/cultures.asp and project the map so all 

 students can tsee it. Help students pronounce the language names, as follows:

 a. “Tlingit” is often pronounced “Klinkit” when speaking English, but its correct

 pronunciation begins not with a “kl” or even “tl” sound, but with a voiceless “L”. 

 To make this sound, place your tongue in a position as if you are going to say “L”. 

 Then, without using your vocal chords, blow out. The accent is on the second 

 syllable, “git,” which has a tone that is slightly higher than the “Lin” syllable.

 b. Sugpiaq: The “Q” sound is similar to a “K”, except that it is made further back in 

 the mouth by the uvula. This sound does not occur in English.

 c. “Haida” is pronounced “Hi’ de”, with a long “I”.

 d. The “ñ” in Iñupiaq is a “nye” sound.

 e. The initial sound of “Tsimshian” is the same as the final sound in words such as “hits.”

 2. Look at your wall map of Alaska Native languages (optional) or go to the Internet site of the 

 Alaska Native Language Center (www.uaf.edu/anlc/) and project the map. Point out the 

 colors on the map and explain that groups in the same color family are related to each 

 other linguistically. Students can undertake additional research on the Alaska Native 

 languages by delving further into the site.

 3. Whether you use the Alaska Native Language Center map or the map on this website, 

 talk about what it means to be part of the same language family. Talk about how 

 languages might diverge or evolve from an ancient antecedent, and how one language 

 could differentiate into many over centuries through a process of isolation or 

 interactions with neighbors who speak a different language. If you are looking at an 

 ANLC map, ask students to identify the number of Alaska Native language families they 

 see, based on the colors on the map. If you do not have access to the map, explain that 

 there are two indigenous language families in Alaska and two language isolates, which 

 do not appear to be related to any other languages in the world:

MATERIALS NEEDED OUTSIDE OF THE WEBSITE:

 Computers and projector

 Student Handout “Background on the Native Languages of Alaska and Eastern Siberia”

 Wall map: Native Peoples and Languages of Alaska produced by the Alaska Native Language 

 Center (optional) 

 Art supplies for visual representations

REFERENCED URL ADDRESS:

 www.uaf.edu/anlc/

EXHIBITION CATALOG REFERENCES (Living Our Cultures):

 “Introduction” by Aron Crowell (pps. 15-18)
GEOGRAPHIC STUDY OF THE PEOPLES OF THE NORTH

 a. Esk-Aleut

 b. Na-Dene, which includes the Athabascan languages, Eyak and Tlingit 

 c. Haida, an isolate

 d. Tsimshian, an isolate 

 4. Explain that only one Siberian language is part of an Alaska Native language family 

 (Siberian Yupik), and that all the other eastern Siberian languages are from other 

 language families.

 5. Distribute the student handout “Background on the Native Languages of Alaska and 

 Eastern Siberia” and the assignment rubric.

 6. Each student will read the handout and make a visual representation that shows the 

 relationships between and among the peoples of the north. Brainstorm ways linguistic 

 relationships can be shown visually. Ideas might be graphs and charts of various kinds 

 (stress aesthetic presentation), drawings, color wheels, etc.

 7. Write the names of ten of the eleven Native groups (omit Eyak, since there are only a 

 few objects on the site from that culture; note that the eastern Siberian groups are 

 treated collectively) on separate slips of paper. Make enough slips so that each student 

 can choose one. Explain the two parts of the assignment.

 a. The students’ first task is to link one or more objects to specific villages in the Far 

 North. To do so, follow these procedures:

 

 i. Each student will go to the page for his or her culture, click on the “Map – 

 View Region” icon beneath the first picture on the page, and use the zoom 

 features on the map to examine the cultural region in detail. 

 ii. Students will note the names of several villages in the region, then go to the 

 Search page to find objects made in one of the villages in the region. 

 iii. Explain to students that the collection does not contain objects from every 

 village, so they may have to search for several village names before finding 

 objects that can be identified with a specific village. 

 iv. Students then write brief descriptions of the objects from the settle- 

 ment. 

 b. Each student will return to the page on the website that contains the 

 cultural essay for the group he or she has been assigned. The students will 

 read the essay and prepare a short introduction to that group. Distribute 

 the rubric and talk about what the presentation should contain.

 8. Collect the descriptions of the objects. Collect and display the visual representations of 

 the language families. 

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 1.3
GEOGRAPHIC STUDY OF THE PEOPLES OF THE NORTH

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 1.4

9. Have students briefly meet with others who have researched the same cultural group. 

 Within each group, students should pool their knowledge and decide on a group 

 presentation.

10. There are 11 groups, so there should be 11 presentations. Remind students that they have 

 no more than 3 minutes for their group’s presentation. 

11. When all presentations have been made, ask students to do a fast-write that answers the 

 question, “What is the most interesting fact you learned about a group that you did not 

 study?” Name the group and tell what you learned. Tell why you found that particular 

 fact interesting.

ASSESSMENT METHODS, INSTRUMENTS AND RUBRICS:

 • Written reports on objects from the region

 • Visual representation of language families

 • Small group work to prepare for the oral presentation

 • Oral presentation

 • Fast-write

 
GEOGRAPHIC STUDY OF THE PEOPLES OF THE NORTH

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 1.5

Language Arts/English Standard 8: Developing research skills

Language Arts/English Standard 9: Multicultural understanding

Language Arts/English Standard 12: Applying language skills

NATIONAL CONTENT STANDARDS ADDRESSED:

Geography Standard 1: Understand how to use maps and other geographic representations, 

 tools and technologies to acquire, process and report information from a spatial 

 perspective.

Geography Standard 5: Understand that people create regions to interpret Earth’s complexity.

Geography Standard 9: Understand the characteristics, distribution and migration of human 

 populations on Earth’s surface.

Geography Standard 10: Understand the characteristics, distribution and migration of human 

 populations on Earth’s surface.

Language Arts/English Standard 1: Reading for perspective
GEOGRAPHIC STUDY OF THE PEOPLES OF THE NORTH

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 1.6

The visual representation contains the names (correctly spelled) 

of all the peoples/languages represented on the website.

The visual representation clearly shows accurate language 

relationships among the different peoples/languages 

represented on the website.

The visual representation is colorful and eye-catching.

The visual representation is neat.

REQUIREMENT POINTS

Up to 25

Up to 35

Up to 25

Up to 10

ASSIGNMENT RUBRIC: Language Families

ASSIGNMENT RUBRIC: Oral Introduction to Indigenous Group

REQUIREMENT POINTS

Preparation: The presenter read and understood the 

information contained on the website.

Presentation: The presenter spoke clearly so he or she can 

be heard and understood by others.

Presentation: The presenter stayed within his/her three 

minute limit.

Content: The presenter summarized the information from 

the website.

Content: The presentation was interesting and the 

information was understandable.

Up to 25

Up to 15

Up to 10

Up to 25

Up to 25
STUDENT HANDOUT: 

Background on the Native Languages of Alaska 

and Eastern Siberia

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 1.7

 There are three “kinds” of Native peoples in Alaska: those who are popularly called 

“Eskimos,” those popularly called “Indians,” and those popularly called “Aleuts.” Interestingly, 

not one of those terms is the original label that the members of the group used themselves. 

They were all names given by outsiders. 

 Alaska’s indigenous languages fall within two large families, with the exception of two 

language isolates that are not related to any other languages. These are:

 • The Esk-Aleut language family. There are four different Eskimo languages spoken in 

 Alaska: Iñupiaq in northwest Alaska, Central Yup’ik and very similar Cup’ik in 

 southwestern Alaska, St. Lawrence Island Yupik (also called Siberian Yupik or Yupik) 

 spoken on St. Lawrence Island, and Sugpiaq (also called Alutiiq) spoken in Prince 

 William Sound, Kodiak Island and the Alaska Peninsula. Sugpiaq people speak a 

 language very close to Central Yup’ik, but never referred to themselves as “Eskimos”. 

 Rather, many call themselves “Aleut,” “Alutiiq” or “Sugpiaq” when speaking English. 

 The final member of the Esk-Aleut language family in Alaska is Unangax (also called 

 Aleut.) This language is quite distinct from the other four languages. Its speakers often 

 call themselves “Aleuts” when speaking English, though they consider themselves a 

 different people from their neighboring Sugpiaq-speakers. In fact, historically, the 

 Unangax and the Sugpiaq peoples were bitter enemies.

 • The Na-Dene language family. Within this family are Alaska’s eleven Athabascan 

 languages, whose territories covered most of Interior Alaska. In addition, distantly 

 related Eyak, now nearly extinct, was spoken in southcentral Alaska. The Tlingit 

 language, spoken in Southeastern Alaska, rounds out this language family in Alaska.

 • Haida, also in Southeastern Alaska as well as its place of origin in British Columbia, is a 

 language isolate.

 • Tsimshian, a language isolate, has no known linguistic relatives. The culture of the 

 Tsimshians is similar to that of the Tlingits and Haidas, but the three languages are 

 entirely different.

 The languages of Siberia represented on this website are from three language families. 

These are:

 • Siberian Yupik, which is part of the Esk-Aleut language family of North America, 

 described above.

 • The Chukotko-Kamchatkan language family, which includes Koryak and Chukchi.

 • The Tungu-Manchurian language family, with origins in Asia, includes the Even people.

^

^
LEARNING EXPERIENCE 2

Natural Resources and How They Are Used

The following Learning Experience – one of thirteen – is designed 

for middle school students and will deepen and enrich 

their understanding of the peoples of the Far North through a series of 

classroom and research activities. It is written for teachers, 

but all students and life-long learners should feel free to undertake 

the investigations on their own or as part of an independent study.

Each section utilizes the Sharing Knowledge website (http://alaska.si.edu) 

plus additional online resources and includes references to the exhibition 

catalog Living Our Cultures, Sharing Our Heritage: The First Peoples of Alaska, 

an additional recommended resource (available for purchase online and from 

the Anchorage Museum). 

Each Learning Experience leads to an exploration of the cultural knowledge, 

beauty and ingenuity that are made tangible through the Smithsonian 

collections. Together, the thirteen sections, covering thirteen different 

themes, cut across cultures and historic periods.

The Learning Experiences can be used for independent teaching 

and learning in the classroom or at home and used as a complement 

to a class or personal visit to the exhibition at the Anchorage Museum, 

offering both pre-visit orientation activities and post-visit 

explorations and classroom activities.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures http://alaska.si.edu 
GRADE LEVEL

ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES

CULTURAL REGIONS

TIME NEEDED

MIDDLE SCHOOL

GEOGRAPHY, ANTHROPOLOGY, LANGUAGE ARTS

ALL EXCEPT EYAK (NO RELATED OBJECTS ON THE WEBSITE)

2 CLASS PERIODS 

LEARNING EXPERIENCE 2 :

Natural Resources and How They Are Used

LESSON SUMMARY:

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS CONSIDERED IN THE LESSON:

ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS APPROACHED THROUGH THE LESSON:

STUDENT OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES:

PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE OR SKILLS:

MATERIALS NEEDED OUTSIDE OF THE WEBSITE:

Lesson 2.1

Students explore the clothing they wear and learn about its manufacture. They then compare 

these processes with those used in making clothing of the North.

 1. How do climate and environment affect how we make a living?

 1. Each object illustrates and reflects a deep knowledge of materials and the use for which 

 the item was made.

 2. The Far North is a huge and hugely diverse region.

 3. Alaska Natives have a detailed knowledge and understanding of their environment, its 

 resources and its natural cycles, and they have developed many techniques and tools to 

 live in that environment.

 1. Students will learn how contemporary clothing is manufactured.

 2. Students will compare and contrast knowledge of their own clothing to those of the 

 indigenous peoples of the north.

 • Knowledge of the geographic ranges of the various indigenous peoples of Alaska and 

 eastern Siberia

 • Knowledge of the website’s navigation scheme

 • Ability to conduct independent or Internet research

 • Ability to draw a freehand map of Alaska and eastern Siberia (by copying the map 

 on the website)

Item of clothing made of natural materials (e.g., linen, wool or cotton)

Computer and projector

Student Handout “Man’s Muskrat Parka NMNH E176103”

Assignment rubric

Wall map of Alaska or print-out of map from a website that shows detailed place names

Computer printer (optional)

REFERENCED URL ADDRESSES:

http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blfabric.htm

www.adfg.state.ak.us 
NATURAL RESOURCES AND HOW THEY ARE USED

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 2.2

EXHIBITION CATALOG REFERENCES (Living Our Cultures):

“Introduction” by Aron Crowell (pps. 20-22) 

“Yup’ik” by Alice Rearden (pps. 97-121)

TEACHING STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITY IDEAS:

 1. Hold up an item of clothing made of natural materials such as linen, wool or 

 cotton. Ask students to list the materials that were used to make the clothing. 

 Encourage someone to look at the label for its place of manufacture and 

 materials.

 2. Send students to the Internet to do research on the various materials that are 

 needed to get from the raw fiber (whether it is cotton, linen or wool) to an item of 

 clothing. A helpful site is : 

 http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blfabric.htm. 

 Give students 10 minutes to browse through the site and take notes. 

 3. Bring students back together and ask what they learned from their brief 

 investigation about the manufacture of modern clothing. Pool the knowledge to 

 get a complete picture of the process. Point out that most Americans take the 

 process of clothing manufacture for granted, ignorant of the steps required.

 4. Go to the image of the man’s muskrat atkuk (parka) by doing a search in the 

 Yup’ik collection. On the search page, type “muskrat,” select clothing from the 

 Object Category list, select “Yup’ik” from the Culture list, then click on search. 

 Print or project on the wall the image of object number NMNH E176103, a Yup’ik 

 man’s muskrat parka. Distribute its written description to students (Student 

 Handout). Ask a student to read the first paragraph aloud. Ask for volunteers to 

 read the second and third paragraphs respectively.

 5. Review the information in the description. First, ask students to locate St. Michael, 

 the Yukon River, Nunivak Island and the Kuskokwim River on the map of Alaska. 

 Reinforce the boundaries of the Central Yup’ik culture area.

 6. While the following discussion is under way, send one or two students to the 

 computer to find and print photographs of muskrats, wolves and wolverines. 

 Send these students to the link on the site for the Alaska Department of Fish 

 and Game, Wildlife Notebook Series (http://www.adjg.state.ak.us; under 

 “Publications,” go to the Wildlife Notebook).
NATURAL RESOURCES AND HOW THEY ARE USED

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 2.3

 7. Meanwhile, as a class make a list on the board of all the materials used or neces- 

 sary for the making of this parka. The first three obvious materials are:

 a. Muskrat

 b. Wolf

 c. Wolverine

 Extend the list by asking students how they think these skins were obtained. Two 

 answers should emerge:

 d. By trade from the inland

 e. By trapping and hunting the animals

 Now ask what additional resource would be needed if the furs were obtained 

 through trade. A sixth resource should emerge:

 f. Seal oil

 Ask what would be needed if the parka makers trapped or hunted the animals. 

 Answers will vary depending on students’ knowledge but should include 

 something along the lines of:

 g. Sinew or rawhide for a trap

 h. Wood for traps, spears, arrows or deadfalls

 i. Wood sap or fish eggs to use as glue in making the complex hunting 

 implements

 j. Stone, ivory, antler, bone or metal for spear or arrow points

 Now ask what materials were needed to prepare the skins so they could be made 

 into a parka. Examples are:

 k. Stone or bone scraping tools to remove fat from the skin

 l. Wooden bowls to soak the skins for tanning

 m. Bone or metal (after contact with Europeans) needles for sewing

 n. Sinew from a caribou for thread

 o. Seal oil for light to sew by

 Students now have a fairly complete list of the materials required to make that 

 single item of clothing.

 8. Send students to the website for an independent investigation of another item 

 from the exhibit. To ensure broad coverage, assign each culture to at least one 

 student, inviting students to choose items from within their assigned cultures. 

 Students will need to choose their items carefully. For instance, a first choice 

 might not have enough printed information to complete the assignment, and 

 they might have to find another object. Distribute the assignment rubric and 

 allow the rest of the class period for its completion.
NATURAL RESOURCES AND HOW THEY ARE USED

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 2.4

 9. When students have completed the projects, ask for volunteers to share what they 

 learned. By show of hands, gauge the most commonly used types of resources, 

 divided into these categories:

 a. Furs

 b. Feathers

 c. Skins of non-fur bearing animals

 d. Other non-skin animal products

 e. Wood

 f. Stone

 g. Other non-wood plant products

 h. Other materials

 10. Now pose the Essential Question that guides this lesson: How do climate and 

 environment affect how the Native peoples of Alaska made and make a living? 

 Have students do a five-minute fast-write that answers this question based on their 

 research. When they have finished their fast-writes, ask for volunteers to share 

 their ideas. 

 11. As a summative activity, compare and contrast the processes for manufacturing 

 contemporary clothing and the clothing students explored on the website. Com- 

 pare and contrast the amount of environmental knowledge students need and 

 possess to obtain an item of clothing today with the knowledge of the Native 

 peoples they studied.

ASSESSMENT METHODS, INSTRUMENTS AND RUBRICS:

 • Participation in group exploration and discussion of the parka

• Completion of fast-write

• Completion of poster Internet research, based on rubric (below)
NATURAL RESOURCES AND HOW THEY ARE USED

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 2.5

NATIONAL CONTENT STANDARDS ADDRESSED:

Geography Standard 1: Understand how to use maps and other geographic representations, 

 tools and technologies to acquire, process and report information from a spatial 

 perspective.

Geography Standard 2: Understand how to use mental maps to organize information about 

 people, places and environments in a spatial context.

Geography Standard 8: Understand the characteristics and spatial distribution of ecosystems in 

 Earth’s surface.

Geography Standard 9: Understand the characteristics, distribution and migration of human 

 populations on Earth’s surface.

Geography Standard 10: Understand the characteristics, distribution and complexity of Earth’s 

 cultural mosaics.

Geography Standard 15: Understand how physical systems affect human systems.

Geography Standard 17: Understand how to apply geography to interpret the past.

Language Arts/English Standard 6: Applying knowledge

Language Arts/English Standard 8: Developing research skills

Language Arts/English Standard 9: Multicultural understanding

Language Arts/English Standard 12: Applying language skills
NATURAL RESOURCES AND HOW THEY ARE USED

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 2.6

REQUIREMENT POINTS

Identify an object, its cultural origin and locate its place of 

manufacture on a map of the Far North that you have drawn.

Describe in writing what the object is made of.

Describe in writing what materials were needed to obtain the object.

Describe in writing what materials were needed to make the object 

from the raw materials.

Up to 25

Up to 25

Up to 25

Up to 25

ASSIGNMENT RUBRIC
STUDENT HANDOUT: 

Man’s Muskrat Parka

NMNH E176103

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 2.7

 This muskrat parka for a man or boy, of medium length with a wolf and wolverinetrimmed hood, is a northern Yup’ik style described in historic sources for St. Michael, the Yukon 

River area and Nunivak Island. Women’s parkas in this region were longer than mens’, with 

rounded hems and side splits that reached almost to the waist. Farther south along the 

Kuskokwim River, parkas of both sexes extended to the ankles and were usually hoodless, 

requiring that a separate fur cap or hood be worn. Kuskokwim styles of parka decoration were 

far more elaborate, and the tradition of the “fancy parka” continues there today.

Muskrat skins (single layer) and Arctic ground 

squirrel (double layer) were used for winter 

parkas because these furs are light in weight 

but very warm. However, caribou (or its 

domesticated cousin, the reindeer, introduced 

to Alaska in the 1890s) is also quite warm and 

also more durable, making it perhaps the most 

desired material for winter clothing. 

Wolverine hair is ideal for parka hood ruffs 

because it does not collect the frost produced 

by breathing, and its long hairs block the wind 

to prevent frostbite. Wolverine cuffs (as on this 

parka) help to warm the wrists.

John Kilbuck, writing about Yup’ik trade on the Kuskokwim River in the 1880s, reported that 

seal oil from the coastal villages was sought by people from up-river villages, who brought 

muskrats and other interior furs to the coast for trade: “The upper river people anxious to get a 

supply of oil for light – and likely for a particular festival in mind for the coming winter, drift 

downstream in their birch bark canoes loaded with squirrel [Spermophilus parryii] skins or 

muskrat [Ontatra zibethicus] skins – the former tied in packages of 45 and the latter of 33 – each 

package is considered enough to make a parka for an adult man, while 40 and 30 respectively 

make a woman’s parka.”
LEARNING EXPERIENCE 3

Seasonal Knowledge, Yearly Cycles

The following Learning Experience – one of thirteen – is designed 

for middle and high school students and will deepen and enrich 

their understanding of the peoples of the Far North through a series of 

classroom and research activities. It is written for teachers, 

but all students and life-long learners should feel free to undertake 

the investigations on their own or as part of an independent study. 

Each section utilizes the Sharing Knowledge website (http://alaska.si.edu) 

plus additional online resources and includes references to the exhibition 

catalog Living Our Cultures, Sharing Our Heritage: The First Peoples of Alaska, 

an additional recommended resource (available for purchase online and from 

the Anchorage Museum). 

Each Learning Experience leads to an exploration of the cultural knowledge, 

beauty and ingenuity that are made tangible through the Smithsonian 

collections. Together, the thirteen sections, covering thirteen different 

themes, cut across cultures and historic periods.

The Learning Experiences can be used for independent teaching 

and learning in the classroom or at home and used as a complement 

to a class or personal visit to the exhibition at the Anchorage Museum, 

offering both pre-visit orientation activities and post-visit 

explorations and classroom activities.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures http://alaska.si.edu 
GRADE LEVEL

ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES

CULTURAL REGIONS

TIME NEEDED

MIDDLE SCHOOL

GEOGRAPHY, LIFE SCIENCES, ECOLOGY, ANTHROPOLOGY

ALL EXCEPT EYAK (NO RELATED OBJECTS ON THE WEBSITE)

4 CLASS PERIODS (ASSUMING THAT STUDENTS ARE FAMILIAR WITH

 THE NAVIGATION OF THE WEBSITE)

LEARNING EXPERIENCE 3 :

Seasonal Knowledge, Yearly Cycles

LESSON SUMMARY:

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS CONSIDERED IN THE LESSON:

ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS APPROACHED THROUGH THE LESSON:

STUDENT OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES:

PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE OR SKILLS:

Lesson 3.1

Students choose one or two culture groups and search the website to find information on the 

objects from those cultures. They choose at least one item that relates to each season. They 

draw and share a poster that shows the seasons and depicts the seasonal items they chose for 

the seasons.

How do climate and environment affect how we make a living?

 1. Each object illustrates and reflects a deep knowledge of materials and the use for which 

 the item was made.

 2. The Far North is a huge and hugely diverse region.

 3. Alaska Natives have a detailed knowledge and understanding of their environment, its 

 resources and its natural cycles, and they have developed many techniques and tools to 

 live in that environment.

 1. Students will reinforce their knowledge of the home territory of at least one indigenous 

 group from the website.

 2. Students will demonstrate independent or small group research through the production 

 of a poster that includes information on seasons and cycles in the lives of the indigenous 

 peoples of Alaska and eastern Siberia.

 3. Students will express in an oral report the relationship between the objects on the site 

 and the traditional knowledge necessary to make and use those objects in the 

 environments for which they were designed.

 4. Students will share and listen to fellow students to expand the understanding of seasonal 

 use of resources beyond the cultures they studied.

 • Knowledge of the geographic ranges of the various indigenous peoples of Alaska and 

 eastern Siberia

 • Knowledge of the website’s navigation scheme

 • Ability to conduct independent or small group research

 • Ability to follow multiple-stage instructions toward the completion of a project

 • Ability to skim text

 • Ability to draw objects (optional; you may instead choose to allow students to print 

 photographs of the objects, then cut and paste them onto their posters)
SEASONAL KNOWLEDGE, YEARLY CYCLES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 3.2

TEACHING STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITY IDEAS:

 1. As a pre-teaching activity the day before the lesson is to begin, draw a circle on large a 

 piece of paper or on the board to represent a year. Divide it into the seasons that are 

 appropriate to the place you live. For instance, if you live in Alaska where winter is long, 

 summer is short, but fall and spring are even shorter, those seasons should be given the 

 appropriate size on your circle graph.

 2. Introduce the topic of cyclical time to the class. Cyclical time is based on the knowledge 

 that, though each year is different in some ways from the one before, it is also similar. 

 Knowledge of the seasonal changes has made it possible for humans to live in nearly 

 every part of the earth for hundreds of thousands of years.

 

MATERIALS NEEDED OUTSIDE OF WEBSITE:

Computer and projector

Assignment rubric

Student Handout “Seasonal Knowledge, Yearly Cycles”

The Eskimo About Bering Strait by Edward Nelson (optional)

Poster board or art paper and art supplies

Computer printer (optional; necessary only if you allow students to paste photographs 

of the objects rather than draw them free-hand)

VOCABULARY:

Cyclical: recurring or revolving in cycles. 

Cycles: an interval of time during which a characteristic, often regularly repeated event 

or sequence of events occurs.

REFERENCED URL ADDRESS:

www.adfg.state.ak.us 

EXHIBITION CATALOG REFERENCES (Living Our Cultures):

“Introduction” by Aron Crowell (pps. 20-22)

“Iñupiaq” by Beverly Faye Hugo (pps. 44-55) 

“St. Lawrence Island Yupik” by Paapi Merlin Koonooka (pps. 72-79)

“Yup’ik” by Alice Aluskak Rearden (pps. 96-103)

“Unangax” by Alice Petrivelli (pps. 123-131)

“Sugpiaq” by Gordon L. Pullar (pps. 149-157)

“Athabascan” by Eliza Jones (pps. 174-183)

“Tlingit” by Rosita Worl (pps. 200-207)

“Haida” by Jeane Breinig (pps. 226-233)

“Tsimshian” by David Boxley (pps. 250-257)

^
SEASONAL KNOWLEDGE, YEARLY CYCLES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 3.3

 3. Talk about seasonal activities in the students’ own lives. Invite a student to the board to

 write one activity that relates to a season in the circle. Keep the circle on the board or 

 wall for the rest of the day, inviting students to add activities as they occur to them.

 4. The next day, look at the completed circle graph. It might include items such as “High 

 school football season” or “Christmas” or “Passover” or “summer vacation.” Now ask 

 students to replace the activity names with objects that represent those activities. For 

 instance, what might visually represent summer vacation? Homecoming? The World 

 Series? And so on. Use sticky notes with drawings on them to replace the names of 

 seasonal activities with visual representations of objects that relate to those activities.

 5. Now pose the Essential Question that guides this lesson: How do climate and environ-

 ment (the seasonal cycle) affect how we make a living? Have students do a five-minute 

 fast-write that answers this question for their own lives. When they have finished their 

 fast-writes, ask for volunteers to share their ideas. Discuss together the extent to which 

 environment and climate affect your lives. 

 6. Now explain the students’ tasks. They will work alone or in small groups (your choice) 

 and choose one or two cultural groups from among those covered in the website 

 (excluding Eyak). Alternatively, you might want to assign culture groups to ensure that 

 all are considered. Students will explore the objects produced by those cultures and find 

 at least one item that was used during each of the four seasons from their one or two 

 chosen cultures. They will then draw a poster that represents their findings, and make 

 an oral presentation to the rest of the class.

 7. Model the search for information about an object’s seasonal use by visiting the website 

 as you project your search on a big screen. Explain that students will need to look 

 beyond the short labels that accompany each object to find the information they seek. 

 They will need to read the cultural essays and detailed information on objects (Elders’ 

 Discussion and History) in order to complete the assignment.

 8. Go to the Search page. Select Yup’ik from the Culture list, type “hunting hat” in the 

 dialog box, and click on Search. When the hats appear on the screen, choose the white 

 hat with a bird’s head painted on it, number E038717. Read the caption aloud. Ask what 

 information is contained in the description that might tell students about the seasonal 

 use of the hunting hat. 

 9. Suggest that you might find additional information about the use of hunting hats in the 

 captions for the other three hats on the site. Find these objects and read their captions.
SEASONAL KNOWLEDGE, YEARLY CYCLES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 3.4

BIBLIOGRAPHY OF ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

 • Appropriate behavior during small group work (if appropriate)

 • Completion of fast-write

 • Completion of poster and oral report, based on rubric (below)

 10. Now show students how to search for more detailed information by clicking on the 

 History and Elders’ Discussion portions of the object description. Ask students to skim 

 the entry and let you know when they see anything about seasonal use. They will see 

 that the hunting hat was used in the spring while paddling a qayaq (kayak) among the 

 ice floes. If you read further, you will see that the hunting hat is also used during the 

 Bladder Festival. Unfortunately, the page does not tell when that festival occurs. How 

 ever, you can find out more about the Bladder Festival by searching the site. Follow 

 leads until you have gotten the information you seek.

 11. Distribute the Seasonal Knowledge handout to students. Explain that they will find 

 clues about seasonal activities on the handout. Ask students to look at the second entry 

 about the Bladder Festival, which explains that the hunting hat fits into the spring and 

 mid-winter quadrants of the year. 

 12. Distribute the Assignment Rubric and go over it together in class. Point out the last 

 requirement, that the oral report must explain how the object shows that its makers had 

 a detailed knowledge of their environment and climate. Model such an explanation by 

 using an object in your classroom that has seasonal impact (e.g., a winter parka).

 13. Allot a full class period to website exploration and the following class for the comple- 

 tion of the posters. At your option, you might have students either draw their objects 

 freehand or print them directly from the website, then cut out the photographs and 

 paste them onto the charts.

 14. Allow a final day for oral reports and class discussion. During the class discussion, 

 return to the Essential Question, “How do climate and environment affect how we make 

 a living?” Brainstorm the ways that their effects were made evident. Examples might 

 include when resources can be and are harvested, when objects are manufactured, and 

 what objects are needed during each season. In class discussion, compare the extent of 

 climatic and environmental effects on the students’ lives and those of the eleven 

 indigenous groups represented on the website.

ASSESSMENT METHODS, INSTRUMENTS AND RUBRICS:

Alaska Department of Fish and Game Wildlife Notebook Series

The Eskimo About Bering Strait by Edward Nelson
SEASONAL KNOWLEDGE, YEARLY CYCLES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 3.5

NATIONAL CONTENT STANDARDS ADDRESSED:

Geography Standard 1: Understand how to use maps and other geographic representations, 

 tools and technologies to acquire, process and report information from a spatial 

 perspective. 

Geography Standard 4: Understand the physical and human characteristics of places. 

Geography Standard 8: Understand the characteristics and spatial distribution of ecosystems on 

 Earth's surface.

Geography Standard 15: Understand how physical systems affect human systems. 

Geography Standard 17: Understand how to apply geography to interpret the past. 

Life Science (Grades 5-8) Standard 3.3, Regulation and behavior 

Life Science (Grades 5-8) Standard 3.4, Populations and ecosystems 
SEASONAL KNOWLEDGE, YEARLY CYCLES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 3.6

REQUIREMENT POINTS

Poster contains English and, if available, Native name of object, 

drawing of object and correct placement in the appropriate season

Poster contains an inset map showing the home territory of the 

Native group that is the subject of the study

Poster is neatly done and clear in its message

Poster is aesthetically pleasing, showing artistic merit

Oral report content explains the object’s traditional uses and its 

relationships with the seasons appropriate to it

Oral report is well organized and delivered in a clear, audible voice

Oral report explains how the object demonstrates the people’s 

detailed knowledge of their environment

Up to 20

Up to 20

Up to 20

Up to 10

Up to 10

Up to 10

Up to 10

ASSIGNMENT RUBRIC
STUDENT HANDOUT: 

Seasonal Knowledge, Yearly Cycles

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 3.7

 • Blackfish can be hunted in the winter through the ice of freshwater sloughs or 

 ponds. They are unusual fish in that they can actually breathe air from the 

 atmosphere.

 • The Bladder Festival was held each year in midwinter after the fall harvest was 

 over.

 • Beaver and muskrat were trapped in the early spring, just before the ice broke up in 

 the rivers and ponds.

 • There is open water in the ocean and rivers in the interior, western and northern 

 parts of Alaska from mid-May through October.

 • The ground and inland waters stay frozen from late October through mid-May.

 • The days begin to get longer and the sun brighter in March.

 • In Southeast Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, the ocean never freezes, though lakes 

 and ponds do often freeze in the winter.

 • Fur-bearing animals are best before the rut in early fall, after they have fattened up 

 by eating well all summer and after their winter coats have started to grow.

 • Winter fur-bearers might be leaner than 

 summer animals, but their fur is at its 

 thickest in the middle of the winter.

 • Berries ripen in late summer. Some berries, 

 such as lowbush cranberries, are best if they are 

 harvested after the first frost in September.

 • Fresh plants begin to peak up from the ground 

 as soon as the snow melts in May. The edible 

 plants are tastiest and tenderest when they first 

 pop up.

 • Whales were hunted by Iñupiat and St. 

 Lawrence Island Yupiget during their 

 migrations to the north in the spring and back 

 south again in the fall.

 • Kevgik (the Messenger Feast) took place after 

 the hardest part of the winter – usually in 

 February or March.

 • Arctic ground squirrels hibernate in the winter but can be trapped in the summer 

 when they are lively.

 • Migratory birds return to the northern part of Alaska just before the snow and ice 

 melt. They build nests and lay eggs in early summer. The eggs hatch and the birds 

 migrate south again by September or October.
SEASONAL KNOWLEDGE, YEARLY CYCLES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 3.8

 • Grass for Yup’ik and Unangax baskets, mats and boot liners must be collected in 

 the fall when it is tall, has lost its green color, and is already partially dried.

 • Seals are present year-round in many coastal parts of Alaska.

 • Walrus follow the edge of the sea ice. They move south in the winter as the ice 

 grows then north again in the summer when it melts.

 • Herring spawn in the early 

 spring – March in Southeast 

 Alaska, April farther north – 

 and people harvested both the 

 fish and their eggs.

 • Some fur-bearers, such as 

 mink, land otter, ermine, fox 

 and lynx were trapped in mid 

 winter when their coats were 

 the thickest.

 • Salmon return to freshwater 

 streams from the ocean in 

 summer and fall, and this is when they are taken.

 • Cottongrass gets tall and mature in the late summer.

188306

^
LEARNING EXPERIENCE 4

Living From the Land and Sea

The following Learning Experience – one of thirteen – is designed 

for middle and high school students and will deepen and enrich 

their understanding of the peoples of the Far North through a series of 

classroom and research activities. It is written for teachers, 

but all students and life-long learners should feel free to undertake 

the investigations on their own or as part of an independent study. 

Each section utilizes the Sharing Knowledge website (http://alaska.si.edu) 

plus additional online resources and includes references to the exhibition 

catalog Living Our Cultures, Sharing Our Heritage: The First Peoples of Alaska, 

an additional recommended resource (available for purchase online and from 

the Anchorage Museum). 

Each Learning Experience leads to an exploration of the cultural knowledge, 

beauty and ingenuity that are made tangible through the Smithsonian 

collections. Together, the thirteen sections, covering thirteen different 

themes, cut across cultures and historic periods.

The Learning Experiences can be used for independent teaching 

and learning in the classroom or at home and used as a complement 

to a class or personal visit to the exhibition at the Anchorage Museum, 

offering both pre-visit orientation activities and post-visit 

explorations and classroom activities.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures http://alaska.si.edu 
GRADE LEVELS

ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES

CULTURAL REGIONS

TIME NEEDED

MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL

GEOGRAPHY, LIFE SCIENCES, ECOLOGY, ANTHROPOLOGY

ALL 

2 - 3 CLASS PERIODS (ASSUMING THAT STUDENTS ARE FAMILIAR 

 WITH THE NAVIGATION OF THE WEBSITE)

LEARNING EXPERIENCE 4 :

Living From the Land and Sea

LESSON SUMMARY:

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS CONSIDERED IN THE LESSON:

ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS APPROACHED THROUGH THE LESSON:

STUDENT OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES:

PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE OR SKILLS:

MATERIALS NEEDED OUTSIDE OF THE WEBSITE:

Lesson 4.1

Students explore objects on the website that were used by peoples of the North to hunt on both 

land and sea. They learn that every successful hunt is the result of good preparation and is 

followed by efforts to process and preserve the food and to share it.

How did peoples of the north get their food during traditional times?

 1. Each object illustrates and reflects a deep knowledge of materials and the use for which 

 the item was made.

 2. The Far North is a huge and hugely diverse region.

 3. Alaska Natives have a detailed knowledge and understanding of their environment, its 

 resources and its natural cycles, and they have developed many techniques and tools to 

 live in that environment.

 1. Students will investigate two methods of hunting in detail, one land-based and the other 

 sea-based.

 2. Students will describe how their chosen objects fit into the four-part hunting cycle 

 (preparation, hunting, processing of the meat and distribution).

 • Knowledge of the geographic ranges of the various indigenous peoples of Alaska and 

 eastern Siberia

 • Knowledge of the website’s navigation scheme

 • Ability to conduct independent or paired research

Computers and projector

Student Handout “Living From the Land and Sea”

Large wall map of Alaska and eastern Siberia (optional)

VOCABULARY:

Ingenious: clever or resourceful; made or done in a clever or original way. 

Distribute: to give out in shares.
LIVING FROM THE LAND AND SEA

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 4.2

TEACHING STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITY IDEAS:

 1. In class, pose the essential question that this lesson addresses. Make two columns on the 

 board, one for LAND and the other for SEA. Ask students to help you fill in the columns 

 with as much information as they can about hunting methods related to each.

 2. Project or print the website’s cultural map as a reminder to students of the groups that 

 are likely to practice sea hunting and those that are likely to undertake hunting on land. 

 If you have a wall map with a scale, ask a student to measure the size of one of the 

 coastal cultures (either Iñupiaq or Yup’ik) from coast to interior border. Students will 

 find that even the coastal culture areas have several hundreds of miles of interior terri- 

 tory as well. Therefore with few exceptions (notably, the Unangax and St. Lawrence 

 Island Yupik), almost all groups on the coast would also engage in hunting land animals. 

 Note that the Athabascans and some Eastern Siberians would have engaged in much 

 more land hunting than sea hunting due to their geography.

 3. As guided practice before students undertake individual research, project the website 

 and go to the Search page. Select all cultures but choose only the Hunting category. 

 Dozens of objects will come up. Randomly choose one and model an investigation of 

 that object, looking at both the Elders’ Discussion and History sections.

 4. Distribute the student handout and explain that students will now undertake individual 

 (or paired – your choice) investigations of one land-hunting implement and one sea or 

 ice-based implement. Go over the assignment sheet to be sure students understand what 

 is expected of them.

 5. Allow one to two full class periods for the investigation, depending on class ability.

 6. When students have completed their assignments, regroup and share. Go over some or 

 all of the questions together, pooling information. Encourage student participation, 

 explaining that every student will be expected to remember at least one interesting 

 thing said by a classmate during the discussion.

 

EXHIBITION CATALOG REFERENCES (Living Our Cultures):

“Introduction” by Aron Crowell (pps. 20-22)

“Iñupiaq” by Beverly Hugo (pps. 44-55)

“St. Lawrence Island Yupik” by Paapi Merlin Koonooka (pps. 72-79)

“Yup’ik” by Alice Aluskak Rearden (pps. 96-103)

“Unangax” by Alice Petrivelli (pps. 123-131)

“Sugpiaq” by Gordon L. Pullar (pps. 149-157)

“Athabascan” by Eliza Jones (pps. 174-183)

“Tlingit” by Rosita Worl (pps. 200-207)

“Haida” by Jeane Breinig (pps. 226-233)

“Tsimshian” by David Boxley (pps. 250-257)

^

^
LIVING FROM THE LAND AND SEA

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 4.3

 7. Ask students to comment on the most impressive, interesting or unusual thing they 

 learned during their website search.

 8. Have students do a fast-write on the topic, “The most interesting thing I learned about 

 hunting in the North from one of my classmates.” Share fast-writes.

ASSESSMENT METHODS, INSTRUMENTS AND RUBRICS:

 • Completion of Student Handout

 • Completion of fast-write

 • Participation with a partner during website research (optional) 

 • Participation in class discussion
LIVING FROM THE LAND AND SEA

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 4.4

NATIONAL CONTENT STANDARDS ADDRESSED:

Geography Standard 1: Understand how to use maps and other geographic representations, 

 tools and technologies to acquire, process and report information from a spatial 

 perspective. 

Geography Standard 2: Understand how to use mental maps to organize information about 

 people, places and environments in a spatial context.

Geography Standard 8: Understand the characteristics and spatial distribution of ecosystems in 

 Earth’s surface.

Geography Standard 9: Understand the characteristics, distribution and migration of human 

 populations on Earth’s surface.

Geography Standard 10: Understand the characteristics, distribution and complexity of Earth’s 

 cultural mosaics.

Geography Standard 15: Understand how physical systems affect human systems.

Geography Standard 17: Understand how to apply geography to interpret the past.

Life Science (Grades 5-8) Standard 3.3, Regulation and behavior 

Life Science (Grades 5-8) Standard 3.4, Populations and ecosystems 
STUDENT HANDOUT: 

Living From the Land and Sea

DIRECTIONS:

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 4.5

Choose two objects used to hunt, one used on land, the other at sea or on the sea ice. The two 

items must be from different cultures. Read the Elders’ Discussion and the History sections 

about the objects, then answer these questions:

A. Land-based hunting item:

 1. Item name (English and indigenous language, if available): 

 2. Object number: 

 3. Culture that produced the item: 

 4. Provenance (where the object came from): 

 5. What animal was this item used to hunt? 

 6. Was the item used for any purpose other than hunting? Explain. 

 7. What season was the object used? 

 8. How was this object used? 

B. Sea-based hunting item:

 9. Item name (English and indigenous language, if given): 

 10. Object number: 

 11. Culture that produced the item: 

 12. Provenance (where the object came from): 

 13. What animal was this item used to hunt? 

 14. Was the item used for any purpose other than hunting? Explain. 

 15. What season was the object used? 

 16. How was this object used? 
Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 4.6

C. General questions:

 17. Many people have commented about the ingenious methods peoples of the North used 

 to hunt and trap. What impressed you most about one or both of the objects you 

 investigated? 

 18. People usually think that only men hunted in the old days, but this is not true. Find 

 information on the website that explains women’s roles in hunting and retell the story 

 in your own words. 

 19. Make a list of the skills a person would need in order to successfully use one of the items 

 you studied. List at least six skills.

 20. Every successful hunt involves more than just killing an animal. From your research on 

 the website, tell how one group of people accomplished the four parts to the hunting 

 cycle:

 a. Preparation (you can write about either physical or spiritual preparation 

 for the hunt):

 b. Finding and killing the animal (you don’t need to write more about this 

 part; you have already talked about it above).

 c. Preparing the meat for storage or eating: 

 d. Distributing the food to others (you can talk about who shared a daily 

 meal or about using food in a ceremony or celebration): 

LIVING FROM THE LAND AND SEA
LEARNING EXPERIENCE 5

Traveling

The following Learning Experience – one of thirteen – is designed 

for middle and high school students and will deepen and enrich 

their understanding of the peoples of the Far North through a series of 

classroom and research activities. It is written for teachers, 

but all students and life-long learners should feel free to undertake 

the investigations on their own or as part of an independent study. 

Each section utilizes the Sharing Knowledge website (http://alaska.si.edu) 

plus additional online resources and includes references to the exhibition 

catalog Living Our Cultures, Sharing Our Heritage: The First Peoples of Alaska,

an additional recommended resource (available for purchase online and from 

the Anchorage Museum). 

Each Learning Experience leads to an exploration of the cultural knowledge, 

beauty and ingenuity that are made tangible through the Smithsonian 

collections. Together, the thirteen sections, covering thirteen different 

themes, cut across cultures and historic periods.

The Learning Experiences can be used for independent teaching 

and learning in the classroom or at home and used as a complement 

to a class or personal visit to the exhibition at the Anchorage Museum, 

offering both pre-visit orientation activities and post-visit 

explorations and classroom activities.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures http://alaska.si.edu 
GRADE LEVELS

ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES

CULTURAL REGIONS

TIME NEEDED

MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL

GEOGRAPHY, ANTHROPOLOGY, LIFE SCIENCE, 

LANGUAGE ARTS

ALL EXCEPT EYAK (NO RELATED OBJECTS ON THE WEBSITE)

2 CLASS PERIODS

LEARNING EXPERIENCE 5:

Traveling

LESSON SUMMARY:

Students explore the website for information about how, where and why the peoples of the Far 

North traveled in pre-contact days.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS CONSIDERED IN THE LESSON:

 1. Who are my people? How do we support each other?

 2. How do the climate and environment affect how we make a living?

ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS APPROACHED THROUGH THE LESSON:

STUDENT OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES:

 1. Students will inventory different modes of transportation available to indigenous peoples 

 of the Far North.

 2. Students will determine reasons that people traveled in the past.

 3. Students will map routes people took as they traded in the past.

PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE OR SKILLS:

MATERIALS NEEDED OUTSIDE OF THE WEBSITE:

Lesson 5.1

 1. Each object illustrates and reflects a deep knowledge of materials and the use for which 

 the item was made.

 2. When objects are taken out of context, the viewer must work to imagine them back in 

 their context if they are to understand the role they played in the culture and lives of the 

 people.

 3. The Far North is a huge and hugely diverse region.

 4. Alaska Natives have a detailed knowledge and understanding of their environment, its 

 resources and its natural cycles, and they have developed many techniques and tools to 

 live in that environment.

 • Knowledge of the website’s navigation scheme

 • Ability to conduct independent research

World wall map

Colored push pins

Computer and projector

Student journals

Student Handout “Travel in the Far North”

Butcher paper (or similar paper roll)
TRAVELING

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 5.2

TEACHING STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITY IDEAS:

 1. With a world wall map displayed, ask students to mark the places they have visited with 

 push pins. If a location is already marked, there is no need to place a second pin at that 

 place.

 2. As a class, look at the map to see where classmates have traveled. Ask students to tell 

 why they traveled to each place. Write their answers on the board. They might answer, 

 for instance, “vacation” or “school field trip” or “family reunion.” After you have written 

 these answers on the board, have students identify broad categories they could fit under. 

 Examples might be Fun, Education, Family, Economics.

 3. Now turn to the map on the website. Project it on a screen. There is no scale on the 

 map, so you will have to help students visualize the distance by noting that the distance 

 from the southeastern-most tip of Alaska to the southwestern-most end of the Aleutian 

 Islands is about the same as the distance between Savannah, Georgia and San Francisco, 

 California. Explain that despite these great distances, all the people represented on the 

 website were part of a vast trade network long before any motorized means of 

 transportation were available to them. Distribute the Student Handout “Travel in the 

 Far North” to students. 

 4. Talk about what sorts of things the indigenous peoples of the north might want to trade. 

 Ask students to write these speculations down in a journal. Tell them that they will 

 verify or correct these speculations through research on the website.

 5. Brainstorm as a class reasons for travel in Alaska other than trade. Ask students to write 

 these ideas down in their journals, again to be verified by research.

 6. Still using the computer and projector, go to the Search page and search all cultures for 

 Travel and Boats. Direct students to do the same at their individual computers as they 

 complete the Student Handout on their own.

EXHIBITION CATALOG REFERENCES (Living Our Cultures):

“Introduction” by Aron Crowell (pps. 15-22)

“Iñupiaq” by Beverly Faye Hugo (pps. 48, 56-63)

“St. Lawrence Island Yupik” by Paapi Merlin Koonooka (pps. 79, 80-89)

“Unangax” by Alice Petrivelli (pps. 130-131)

“Sugpiaq” by Gordon L. Pullar (pps. 154-155)

“Athabascan” by Eliza Jones (pps. 175-189)

“Tlingit” by Rosita Worl (pps. 203-204,206)

“Tsimshian” by David Boxley (pps. 251-127)

^
TRAVELING

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 5.3

ASSESSMENT METHODS, INSTRUMENTS AND RUBRICS:

 • Engagement in class discussion

 • Completion of web research

 • Completion of Student Handout

 7. After students have completed the handouts, pool their knowledge by making a 

 composite map on butcher paper of the movement of materials and people throughout 

 the Far North. Ask students to draw their own objects’ travels on the map. When the 

 map is complete, look at it as a class and discuss the distances traveled and types of 

 materials taken along.

 8. If students’ research results do not include all cultural areas (except Eyak) on the 

 website, fill in blanks by finding objects as a class for the missing cultures.

 9. In class, compare and contrast the various modes of transportation in the Far North by 

 pooling students’ knowledge. Relate those modes of transportation with the 

 environment – particularly the weather and terrain – in the Far North.
TRAVELING

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 5.4

NATIONAL CONTENT STANDARDS ADDRESSED:

Geography Standard 1: Understand how to use maps and other geographic representations, 

 tools and technologies to acquire, process and report information from a spatial 

 perspective.

Geography Standard 4: Understand the physical and human characteristics of places.

Geography Standard 8: Understand the characteristics and spatial distribution of ecosystems 

 in Earth’s surface.

Geography Standard 9: Understand the characteristics, distribution and migration of human 

 populations on Earth’s surface.

Geography Standard 10: Understand the characteristics, distribution and complexity of 

 Earth’s cultural mosaics.

Geography Standard 11: Understand the patterns and networks of economic interdependence 

 on Earth’s surface.

Geography Standard 15: Understand how physical systems affect human systems.

Geography Standard 16: Understand the changes that occur in the meaning, use, distribu- 

 tion and importance of resources.

Geography Standard 17: Understand how to apply geography to interpret the past.

Language Arts/English Standard 6: Applying knowledge

Language Arts/English Standard 8: Developing research skills

Language Arts/English Standard 12: Applying language skills

Life Science (Grades 5-8) Standard 3.4: Populations and ecosystems
STUDENT HANDOUT: 

Travel in the Far North

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 5.5

DIRECTIONS:

You will investigate three questions about travel in the 

Far North:

 • How did people travel?

 • Why did people travel?

 • Where did people travel?

PART 1: HOW DID PEOPLE TRAVEL?

Look at the objects that relate to travel and boats from all cultures. Choose three items 

from three different cultures. Then record:

1. Item 1 culture: 

2. Item 1 object name (English and indigenous language if available): 

3. Item 1 object number: 

4. Describe Item 1 (pretend you are talking on the telephone and must tell a friend about 

the object). 

5. What season was Item 1 used? 

6. Check the appropriate boxes (as many as apply):

 fresh water travel ocean travel

 land travel ice travel

1. Item 2 culture:

2. Item 2 object name (English and indigenous language if available): 

3. Item 2 object number:

4. Describe Item 2 (pretend you are talking on the telephone and must tell a friend 

about the object). 
Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 5.6

5. What season was Item 2 used? 

6. Check the appropriate boxes (as many as apply):

 fresh water travel

 ocean travel

 land travel

 ice travel

1. Item 3 culture:

2. Item 3 object name (English and indigenous language if available): 

3. Item 3 object number:

4. Describe Item 3 (pretend you are talking on the telephone and must tell a friend 

about the object). 

5. What season was Item 3 used? 

6. Check the appropriate boxes (as many as apply):

 fresh water travel

 ocean travel

 land travel

 ice travel

Read the cultural essays and information on some of the objects on the site. List three reasons 

that people traveled in the Far North.

1.

2.

3.

Find an object that was traded or contains materials that were obtained by trade. Answer these 

questions about the object:

PART 2: WHY DID PEOPLE TRAVEL?

PART 3: WHERE DID PEOPLE TRAVEL?
Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 5.7

1. Name of the object (English and indigenous language if available): 

2. Where was the object made (culture and community, if available)? 

3. Besides the place where the object was made, where else were the materials from?

4. Draw a free-hand map of the Far North and indicate by arrows a possible route by which the 

materials got from their origin to the place where they were used to make the object.
LEARNING EXPERIENCE 6

Northern Clothing: Designed for Extremes

The following Learning Experience – one of thirteen – is designed 

for middle and high school students and will deepen and enrich 

their understanding of the peoples of the Far North through a series of 

classroom and research activities. It is written for teachers, 

but all students and life-long learners should feel free to undertake 

the investigations on their own or as part of an independent study. 

Each section utilizes the Sharing Knowledge website (http://alaska.si.edu) 

plus additional online resources and includes references to the exhibition 

catalog Living Our Cultures, Sharing Our Heritage: The First Peoples of Alaska, 

an additional recommended resource (available for purchase online and from 

the Anchorage Museum). 

Each Learning Experience leads to an exploration of the cultural knowledge, 

beauty and ingenuity that are made tangible through the Smithsonian 

collections. Together, the thirteen sections, covering thirteen different 

themes, cut across cultures and historic periods.

The Learning Experiences can be used for independent teaching 

and learning in the classroom or at home and used as a complement 

to a class or personal visit to the exhibition at the Anchorage Museum, 

offering both pre-visit orientation activities and post-visit 

explorations and classroom activities.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures http://alaska.si.edu 
GRADE LEVELS

ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES

CULTURAL REGIONS

TIME NEEDED

MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL

GEOGRAPHY, ANTHROPOLOGY

ALL EXCEPT EYAK (NO RELATED OBJECTS ON THE WEBSITE)

3 CLASS PERIODS 

LEARNING EXPERIENCE 6 :

Northern Clothing: Designed for Extremes

LESSON SUMMARY:

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS CONSIDERED IN THE LESSON:

ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS APPROACHED THROUGH THE LESSON:

STUDENT OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES:

PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE OR SKILLS:

Lesson 6.1

Students ponder their own clothing choices and identify the factors that help them decide what 

to wear in any given situation. They examine traditional articles of clothing made by the 

indigenous peoples of the North to learn about the construction and materials used in their 

manufacture.

 1. How do climate and environment affect how we make a living?

 1. Each object illustrates and reflects a deep knowledge of materials and the use for which 

 the item was made.

 2. The Far North is a huge and hugely diverse region.

 3. Alaska Natives have a detailed knowledge and understanding of their environment, its 

 resources and its natural cycles, and they have developed many techniques and tools to 

 live in that environment.

 1. Students will identify the ways in which a variety of items of clothing have been 

 designed specifically for survival in the Far North.

 2. Students will relate the environmental conditions of the North with the clothing that 

 allowed them to live in those conditions.

 • Knowledge of the geographic ranges of the various 

 indigenous peoples of Alaska and eastern Siberia

 • Knowledge of the website’s navigation scheme

 • Ability to conduct independent or Internet research

 • Ability to draw a freehand map of Alaska and 

 eastern Siberia (by copying the map on the website)

VOCABULARY:

Context: the whole background or environment that produced or affects the production or 

 appropriateness of an object.
NORTHERN CLOTHING: DESIGNED FOR EXTREMES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 6.2

TEACHING STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITY IDEAS:

 1. Open a discussion about clothing. What is the preferred clothing for a female student in 

 your school? A male student? Draw a table on the board with five columns, labeled as 

 follows. Ask students to help you fill in the table. Examples of context or situation 

 might be church, a party, a camping trip, etc. After you have elicited two or three 

 examples, distribute Student Handout 1 “Clothing in Context” and have students com- 

 plete it on their own. Provide about 5 minutes for this activity.

Context, Season

or Situation

Appropriate

Female Teenager

Clothing

Appropriate

Male Teenager

Clothing

Appropriate

Female Adult

Clothing

Appropriate

Male Adult

Clothing

MATERIALS NEEDED OUTSIDE OF THE WEBSITE:

Computer and projector

Student Handouts “Clothing in Context” and “Examining Clothing”

Individual student computers for website research

Computer printer (optional)

EXHIBITION CATALOG REFERENCES (Living Our Cultures):

“Iñupiaq” by Beverly Faye Hugo (pps. 60-62, 70)

“St. Lawrence Island Yupik” by Paapi Merlin Koonooka (pps. 76-77, 86-88, 92)

“Yup’ik” by Alice Aluskak Rearden (pps. 100-101, 108-110, 118-119)

“Unangax” by Alice Petrivelli (pps. 126-19, 137, 144)

“Sugpiaq” by Gordon L. Pullar (pps. 152-153, 162-163, 168-16)

“Athabascan” by Eliza Jones (pps. 179, 189, 194-196)

“Tlingit” by Rosita Worl (pps. 218-219, 221-223)

“Haida” by Jeane Breinig (pps. 244-245)

“Tsimshian” by David Boxley (pps. 271-272)

^
NORTHERN CLOTHING: DESIGNED FOR EXTREMES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 6.3

 2. Call the class back to order and ask for volunteers to add items to your class chart. 

 When the chart is as complete as you wish to make it, ask students to explain why the 

 same people might wear different clothing in different circumstances, and why different 

 people are expected to wear different clothes. Elicit from them the factors that lead 

 them to decide what to wear, when and where. Examples might be the amount of wear 

 and tear the clothes will be subject to, comfort, ethnicity of the wearer, signs of respect 

 for a person or experience, membership in a group, importance of wealth, age and the 

 fashion of the day. 

 3. Ask students how they know when something is in fashion. Does fashion always make 

 sense from a practical point of view? Can something be both fashionable and practical?

 4. What factors would students expect to play a role in the design and manufacture of 

 traditional clothing made by indigenous peoples of the North? Look at the list of 

 factors they came up with and conjecture if any of those that are relevant in the 

 students’ lives might be considered irrelevant to traditional peoples of the North. When 

 the list has been narrowed, send the students to the website to find clothing that would 

 fit each criterion. You might divide the list up. For instance, if the students decide that 

 there will be three factors (e.g., warmth, durability, elaborate designs for ceremonials), 

 divide the class into three groups, each tasked with finding several examples of one of 

 the factors. If possible, encourage students to either bookmark pertinent objects to 

 project for others to see or print copies of the clothing they find.

 5. Bring students back together to share their discoveries. If possible, project images of the 

 items of clothing on a large screen so everyone can see them. 

 6. Students will now choose one item of clothing to examine in detail. You might have 

 students work in pairs, depending on the availability of computers. Distribute Handout 

 2 “Examining Clothing.” Give students time to complete the assignment.

 7. After students have handed in the assignment, have students explore the website and 

 record what they learn about the following topics:

 a. The different situations that require different clothes in the Far North

 b. The different environmental conditions that required specific design 

 elements in clothing

 c. The distance the various materials traveled to get to the seamstress or 

 individual who made the article of clothing

 8. Now pose the Essential Question that guides this lesson: How do climate and 

 environment affect how the Native peoples of Alaska made and make a living? Have 

 students do a five-minute fast-write that answers this question based on their research. 

 When they have finished their fast-writes, ask for volunteers to share their ideas. 
NORTHERN CLOTHING: DESIGNED FOR EXTREMES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 6.4

ASSESSMENT METHODS, INSTRUMENTS AND RUBRICS:

• Participation in class discussions

• Completion of written assignments

• Time on task during the Internet research
NORTHERN CLOTHING: DESIGNED FOR EXTREMES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 6.5

NATIONAL CONTENT STANDARDS ADDRESSED:

Geography Standard 9: Understand the characteristics, distribution and migration of human 

 populations on Earth’s surface.

Geography Standard 10: Understand the characteristics, distribution and complexity of Earth’s 

 cultural mosaics.

Geography Standard 15: Understand how physical systems affect human systems.

Geography Standard 17: Understand how to apply geography to interpret the past.

Language Arts/English Standard 8: Developing research skills

Language Arts/English Standard 9: Multicultural understanding

Language Arts/English Standard 12: Applying language skills
STUDENT HANDOUT 1: 

Clothing in Context

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 6.6

DIRECTIONS:

Think of the different kinds of clothing you see around you every day. Think about the 

different situations that would cause a person in your community to wear something 

different or special. Identify the situation or occasion. Then, very briefly, describe the 

normal acceptable attire for that situation. Fill in as many boxes below as you can. 

Grading: A: 26 to 35 square filled in

 B: 20 to 25 squares filled in

 C: 15 to 19 squares filled in

 D: 10 to 14 squares filled in

 F: Fewer than 10 squares filled in

Context, Season

or Situation

Appropriate

Female Teenager

Clothing

Appropriate

Male Teenager

Clothing

Appropriate

Female Adult

Clothing

Appropriate

Male Adult

Clothing
STUDENT HANDOUT 2: 

Examining Clothing

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 6.7

 1. Item name (English and indigenous language, if available): 

 2. Object number: 

 3. Culture that produced the item: 

 4. Provenance (where the article of clothing came from): 

 5. Written description (pretend that you are talking on the phone to a friend and 

 have no way to describe the item except using words): 

 6. What is the clothing made of? List as many types of material as you can, no 

 matter how small. Example: if the item is sewn with sinew, list it.

 7. In what situation or situations would this article of clothing be worn?

 8. Rate the article of clothing on a scale of 1 to 5, 1 indicating that the factor is least 

 true of the item, 5 indicating that the factor is most true of the item:

 a. Durability: 

 b. Beauty:

 c. Warmth: 

 d. Waterproof or water repellent: 

 e. Easily made: 

 f. Materials were easily obtained close to home:

Directions: Choose one article of clothing from the website. Read the Elder’s Discussion 

and History sections for it, then answer these questions.
Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 6.8

 9. Explain how this item of clothing was designed specifically for life in the Far North: 

 10. Enlarge the image of the article of clothing on your computer screen so you can see it in 

 detail. Describe what impresses you the most about this item:
LEARNING EXPERIENCE 7

Children in Northern Cultures

The following Learning Experience – one of thirteen – is designed 

for upper elementary abd middle students and will deepen and enrich 

their understanding of the peoples of the Far North through a series of 

classroom and research activities. It is written for teachers, 

but all students and life-long learners should feel free to undertake 

the investigations on their own or as part of an independent study. 

Each section utilizes the Sharing Knowledge website (http://alaska.si.edu) 

plus additional online resources and includes references to the exhibition 

catalog Living Our Cultures, Sharing Our Heritage: The First Peoples of Alaska,

an additional recommended resource (available for purchase online and from 

the Anchorage Museum). 

Each Learning Experience leads to an exploration of the cultural knowledge, 

beauty and ingenuity that are made tangible through the Smithsonian 

collections. Together, the thirteen sections, covering thirteen different 

themes, cut across cultures and historic periods.

The Learning Experiences can be used for independent teaching 

and learning in the classroom or at home and used as a complement 

to a class or personal visit to the exhibition at the Anchorage Museum, 

offering both pre-visit orientation activities and post-visit 

explorations and classroom activities.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures http://alaska.si.edu 
GRADE LEVELS

ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES

CULTURAL REGIONS

TIME NEEDED

UPPER ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOL

GEOGRAPHY, ANTHROPOLOGY

ALL EXCEPT EYAK (NO RELATED OBJECTS ON THE WEBSITE)

1 - 2 CLASS PERIODS

LEARNING EXPERIENCE 7: Children in Northern Cultures

LESSON SUMMARY:

Students learn about the ways children prepare for adulthood through formal and informal

education and activities. As an optional activity, they make replicas of toys or games from the 

site and teach them to younger students.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS CONSIDERED IN THE LESSON:

 1. Who am I? What is my place in the world?

 2. What must I learn in order to be a good, contributing member of society?

ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS APPROACHED THROUGH THE LESSON:

 1. Societies devise ways to teach children to be contributing members of the society.

STUDENT OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES:

 1. Students research objects on the exhibit website that relate to children and their 

 education. 

 2. Students read the cultural essays for clues about the ways children were and are educated. 

 3. Students compare and contrast education methods in their own lives with those used in 

 Alaska Native cultures.

 4. Enrichment: Students make replicas of toys or games and learn to use them. They teach 

 younger students how to play the games.

PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE OR SKILLS:

 • Knowledge of the website’s navigation scheme

 • Ability to conduct independent research

MATERIALS NEEDED OUTSIDE OF THE WEBSITE:

Computer and projector

Student Handout “Children in Northern Cultures” 

Individual student computers for website research

Enrichment: Art supplies to make replicas of games or toys from the website

Enrichment: Not Just a Pretty Face edited by Molly Lee

Lesson 7.1

EXHIBITION CATALOG REFERENCES (Living Our Cultures):

“Introduction” by Aron Crowell (pps. 22-24) 

“Iñupiaq” by Beverly Faye Hugo (p. 57)

“First Seal Hunt” by Paul Asicksik, Jr. (p. 67)

“St. Lawrence Island Yupik” by Paapi Merlin Koonooka (pps. 80-81, 88-89, 95) 

“Yup’ik” by Alice Aluskak Rearden (pps. 97-99, 105-107, 114-115)
CHILDREN IN NORTHERN CULTURES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 7.2

TEACHING STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITY IDEAS:

 1. Ask students to do a fast-write on one of the following three questions: “What does it mean 

 to be a child in my community? When does a person leave childhood and become an 

 adult? How do people know when a person is no longer a child?”

 2. Place students in groups based on the question they answered in their fast-writes. In these 

 groups, have students share their fast-writes.

 3. Call the class together and ask for responses to the three questions. Explain that you will 

 be exploring objects from the website that relate directly to children.

 4. Using a computer and projector, open the website and go to the Search page. Ask 

 students to guide you in your search for objects on the site that would be specifically 

 made for children. Ask them to help you undertake a search that can lead to an object a 

 child would use by coming up with at least three key search words. Follow their 

 suggestions until you find one object that all agree is specifically designed for children. 

 Together, read and discuss the Elders’ Discussion and History sections about that object.

 5. Introduce the Enduring Understanding for this lesson: All societies devise ways to prepare 

 children to become contributing members of the society. Ask how the object you have just 

 viewed illustrates that concept.

 6. Assign independent website research on children’s items. Distribute the Student Handout 

 “Children in Northern Cultures.” Each student will choose one object and learn about it, 

 completing the handout as he or she reads the information on the website.

 7. Enrichment: Students augment their research by referring to the book Not Just a Pretty 

 Face, which includes a history of dolls in Alaska Native cultures.

 8. Have students share their research.

 9. Enrichment: Select one or more toys from the website. Be sure to choose an item that is 

 relatively simple in construction, is made of materials that can be used or simulated in the 

 classroom, and is explained clearly enough so students know how to make and use it.

 10. Assist the students in making replicas of the chosen toys or games. Have students 

 introduce their replicas to younger students and teach them how they are used.

 11. As a summative activity, discuss ways the students themselves are preparing for adulthood. 

 Discuss both formal education (such as schooling) and informal education (such as 

 watching a parent deal with various family issues; or games that improve skills). Have 

 students compare the cultures they studied with the ways children are treated and 

 prepared for adulthood in their community.

“Athabascan” by Eliza Jones (pps. 184-185, 187-189)

“Clan Knowledge” by Ricardo Worl (p. 216)

“Haida” by Jeane Breinig (pps. 236-237)
CHILDREN IN NORTHERN CULTURES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 7.3

ASSESSMENT METHODS, INSTRUMENTS AND RUBRICS:

 • Participation in class discussions

 • Completion of written assignments

 • Time on task during the Internet research

 • Enrichment: Completion of a replica of a toy or game

BIBLIOGRAPHY OF ADDITIONAL SOURCES:

Not Just a Pretty Face edited by Molly Lee
CHILDREN IN NORTHERN CULTURES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 7.4

NATIONAL CONTENT STANDARDS ADDRESSED:

Geography Standard 1: Understand how to use maps and other geographic representations, 

 tools and technologies to acquire, process and report information from a spatial 

 perspective.

Geography Standard 9: Understand the characteristics, distribution and migration of human 

 populations on Earth’s surface.

Geography Standard 10: Understand the characteristics, distribution and migration of human 

 populations on Earth’s surface.

Geography Standard 15: Understand how physical systems affect human systems.

Language Arts/English Standard 8: Developing research skills

Language Arts/English Standard 9: Multicultural understanding

Language Arts/English Standard 12: Applying language skills
STUDENT HANDOUT: 

Children in Northern Cultures 

DIRECTIONS:

Choose one item from the website that is specifically designed for children. Read the Elders’ 

Discussion and History sections for the object. Then read the appropriate cultural essay 

and answer these questions:

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 7.5

 1. Item name (English and indigenous language, if available):

 2. Object number:

 3. Culture that produced the item:

 4. Provenance (where the object came from):

 5. Written description (pretend that you are talking on the phone to a friend and have no 

 way to describe the item except using words):

 6. Who used this object? (e.g., by a boy, girl, baby, teenager, etc.)

 7. How did this object help prepare a child to become a contributing member of the society? 

 8. Think of a comparable object from your life. Compare and contrast it with this object:
Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 7.6

CHILDREN IN NORTHERN CULTURES

 9. After reading the cultural essay and other information on the website, write a paragraph 

 that describes both formal ways of educating children (nowadays, this would be through 

 school attendance) and informal ways of educating children. 
LEARNING EXPERIENCE 8

Whaling Traditions

The following Learning Experience – one of thirteen – is designed 

for high school students and will deepen and enrich 

their understanding of the peoples of the Far North through a series of 

classroom and research activities. It is written for teachers, 

but all students and life-long learners should feel free to undertake 

the investigations on their own or as part of an independent study. 

Each section utilizes the Sharing Knowledge website (http://alaska.si.edu) 

plus additional online resources and includes references to the exhibition 

catalog Living Our Cultures, Sharing Our Heritage: The First Peoples of Alaska, 

an additional recommended resource (available for purchase online and from 

the Anchorage Museum). 

Each Learning Experience leads to an exploration of the cultural knowledge, 

beauty and ingenuity that are made tangible through the Smithsonian 

collections. Together, the thirteen sections, covering thirteen different 

themes, cut across cultures and historic periods.

The Learning Experiences can be used for independent teaching 

and learning in the classroom or at home and used as a complement 

to a class or personal visit to the exhibition at the Anchorage Museum, 

offering both pre-visit orientation activities and post-visit 

explorations and classroom activities.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures http://alaska.si.edu 
GRADE LEVEL

ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES

CULTURAL REGIONS

TIME NEEDED

HIGH SCHOOL

GEOGRAPHY, ANTHROPOLOGY, LIFE SCIENCES, HISTORY

INUPIAQ, ST. LAWRENCE ISLAND YUPIK, CHUKCHI, 

UNANGAX, SUGPIAQ

2 CLASS PERIODS

LEARNING EXPERIENCE 8:

Whaling Traditions

LESSON SUMMARY:

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS CONSIDERED IN THE LESSON:

ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS APPROACHED THROUGH THE LESSON:

STUDENT OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES:

PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE OR SKILLS:

Lesson 8.1

Students learn that art, ceremony and spiritual beliefs are integral to Native whaling traditions 

of the Bering Sea, Arctic Ocean and Gulf of Alaska. They take the virtual tour “Whaling Traditions” with a study guide in hand. At the end of the tour, they choose one object that relates to 

whaling and compose a story about it.

 1. Who are my people? How do we support each other?

 2. How do the climate and environment affect how we make a living?

 3. What is the nature of the universe from an Alaska Native perspective?

 4. What were and are the purposes of ceremonies and celebrations in Alaska Native 

 societies?

 5. How have the indigenous cultures of the north changed?

 1. Alaska Natives have a detailed knowledge and understanding of their environment, its 

 resources and its natural cycles, and they have developed many techniques and tools to 

 live in that environment.

 2. To Alaska Natives, the environment consists not only of the physical, visual aspects of 

 the world, but also of its spiritual dimension which is a vital force that must be acknowl- 

 edged and understood for a group’s physical, emotional and spiritual health.

 3. Ceremonies and celebrations help bind a society together.

 4. Cultures change while maintaining essential elements.

 1. Students will explore the technological aspects of whaling among indigenous communi- 

 ties of the North.

 2. Students will explore the social aspects of whaling among indigenous communities of 

 the North.

 3. Students will explore the spiritual aspects of whaling among indigenous communities of 

 the North.

 • Knowledge of the website’s navigation scheme

 • Ability to conduct independent or Internet research

 • Ability to write a short story and one-paragraph essay

 ̃ ^
WHALING TRADITIONS

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 8.2

MATERIALS NEEDED OUTSIDE OF THE WEBSITE:

Computer and projector

Student Handout “Study Guide for ‘Whaling Traditions’ 

Virtual Tour”

Individual student computers for website research

Computer printer (optional)

TEACHING STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITY IDEAS:

REFERENCED URL ADDRESSES:

http://www.nativepeoples.com/article/articles/169/1/Gifts-from-the-Whales/Page1.html

http://www.alaskool.org/projects/traditionalife/WhalingAWOL/WhalingAWOL.htm 

www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF15/1529.html

http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/Static/Statewide/NG_plan/PDFs/Marine_Mammals.pdf 

www.iwcoffice.org/

http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/notebook/marine/bowhead.php 

www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/whales/

www.acsonline.org/factpack/bowhead.htm

http://www.commerce.state.ak.us/dca/commdb/CF_CIS.htm 

http://www.highnorth.no/Library/Hunts/Other/al-es-wh.htm 

 1. This lesson is designed as a self-guided virtual tour of the portion of the website called 

 “Whaling Traditions.” Distribute the Student Handout and allow students time to 

 complete their explorations.

 2. Note that there are several enrichment options described on the handout. Determine 

 ahead of time whether you will want students to undertake this additional research.

 3. When students have completed the website research, bring them together and ask for 

 volunteers to read the stories they composed about their chosen whaling objects.

 4. Debrief by returning to the four Enduring Understandings that underlie this lesson. Ask 

 students to expand on examples from their learning that support those understandings.

EXHIBITION CATALOG REFERENCES (Living Our Cultures):

“Iñupiaq” by Beverly Faye Hugo (pps. 45-47, 50-51, 64-68, 71)

“St. Lawrence Island Yupik” by Paapi Merlin Koonooka (pps. 74-75, 92-95)

“Unangax” by Alice Petrivelli (pps. 126)

^

VOCABULARY:

Umialiq: in the Iñupiaq language, this is the word for a boat captain.

^
WHALING TRADITIONS

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 8.3

NATIONAL CONTENT STANDARDS ADDRESSED:

Geography Standard 4: Understand the physical and human characteristics of places. 

Geography Standard 6: Understand how culture and experience influence people’s percep- 

 tions of places and regions.

Geography Standard 8: Understand the characteristics and spatial distribution of ecosystems 

 on Earth's surface.

Geography Standard 11: Understand the patterns and networks of economic interdependence 

 on Earth’s surface.

Geography Standard 15: Understand how physical systems affect human systems. 

Geography Standard 16: Understand the changes that occur in the meaning, use, distribution 

 and importance of resources.

Geography Standard 17: Understand how to apply geography to interpret the past. 

Life Science (Grades 5-8) Standard 3.3, Regulation and behavior 

Life Science (Grades 5-8) Standard 3.4, Populations and ecosystems 
STUDENT HANDOUT: 

Study Guide for “Whaling Traditions” Virtual Tour

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 8.4

DIRECTIONS:

Take the virtual tour “Whaling Traditions” on the website. As you follow the tour, find 

the answers to the following questions. Write the answers on a separate sheet.

 1. Locate the whaling communities on this map of the Bering Sea/Arctic Ocean. 

 2. How has whaling technology changed?

 3. How is whaling the same today as in the past?

 4. What was the role in whaling for the wife of an umialiq (boat captain)?

 5. How is respect shown to the whale before, during and after a whale hunt?

 6. Describe the spiritual aspects of the whale hunt.

 7. In what ways is the whale hunt a community-wide event?

 8. What showed a symbolic connection between the captain’s wife and the whale?

 9. Which species of whale are hunted? By which groups of people?

 10. At the beginning of the virtual “Whaling Traditions” tour, Merlin Koonooka says, 

 “People always say that the whale gave itself to the hunter.” What does he mean by 

 that?

 11. Choose one object in the virtual tour “Whaling Traditions.” Read the Elders’ Discussion 

 and History sections for the object. Then write a story around that object, using 

 information you have learned from the tour and website.

 12. Enrichment: For more information on whaling today, visit the websites: 

http://www.nativepeoples.com/article/articles/169/1/Gifts-from-the-Whales/Page1.html and 

http://www.highnorth.no/Library/Hunts/Other/al-es-wh.htm 
Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 8.5

 13. Enrichment: Visit one of the following websites to learn more about the biology of the 

 bowhead whale:

 • http://www.alaskool.org/projects/traditionalife/WhalingAWOL/WhalingAWOL.htm 

 • www.omplace.com/omsites/discover/BOWHEAD/ for a map of bowhead whale 

 distribution

 • www.nps.gov/bela/html/bowhead.htm

 • www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF15/1529.html for an article titled “Bowhead 

 Whales May Be the World’s Oldest Mammals” and a photograph of ancient harpoon 

 heads found in recently killed bowheads

 • http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/Static/Statewide/NG_plan/PDFs/Marine_Mammals.pdf 

 and www.iwcoffice.org/ for much information on whales and whaling, including 

 catch limits and actual whales taken in recent years

 • http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/notebook/marine/bowhead.php for the Alaska 

 Department of Fish and Game’s Wildlife Notebook page on bowhead whales

 • www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/whales/ for a number of pages on whale 

 biology and anatomy

 • www.acsonline.org/factpack/bowhead.htm for the American Cetacean Society’s 

 fact sheet on bowheads

 14. Enrichment: To learn more about Alaska’s whaling communities, visit: 

 http://www.commerce.state.ak.us/dca/commdb/CF_CIS.htm. Under “Select a Community,” 

 choose one coastal whaling village and report it, gathering information about:

 a. Location (find and mark it on the map of Alaska)

 b. Distance from your community

 c. Population

 d. Short sketch of the community’s 

 history

 e. Economic base today

 f. How many schools are there and 

 how many students and teachers 

 are in each school?

 g. Transportation: how does a 

 person get to the village or town?
LEARNING EXPERIENCE 9

Northwest Coast Ceremonial Art

The following Learning Experience – one of thirteen – is designed 

for high school students and will deepen and enrich 

their understanding of the peoples of the Far North through a series of 

classroom and research activities. It is written for teachers, 

but all students and life-long learners should feel free to undertake 

the investigations on their own or as part of an independent study. 

Each section utilizes the Sharing Knowledge website (http://alaska.si.edu) 

plus additional online resources and includes references to the exhibition 

catalog Living Our Cultures, Sharing Our Heritage: The First Peoples of Alaska, 

an additional recommended resource (available for purchase online and from 

the Anchorage Museum). 

Each Learning Experience leads to an exploration of the cultural knowledge, 

beauty and ingenuity that are made tangible through the Smithsonian 

collections. Together, the thirteen sections, covering thirteen different 

themes, cut across cultures and historic periods.

The Learning Experiences can be used for independent teaching 

and learning in the classroom or at home and used as a complement 

to a class or personal visit to the exhibition at the Anchorage Museum, 

offering both pre-visit orientation activities and post-visit 

explorations and classroom activities.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures http://alaska.si.edu 
GRADE LEVEL

ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES

CULTURAL REGIONS

TIME NEEDED

HIGH SCHOOL

HISTORY, ANTHROPOLOGY, ART

TLINGIT, HAIDA, TSIMSHIAN

3 CLASS PERIODS

LEARNING EXPERIENCE 9 :

Northwest Coast Ceremonial Art

LESSON SUMMARY:

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS CONSIDERED IN THE LESSON:

ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS APPROACHED THROUGH THE LESSON:

STUDENT OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES:

PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE OR SKILLS:

Lesson 9.1

Students study the aesthetics and ceremonial use of clan objects from the three Northwest 

Coast cultures represented on the website (Tlingit, Tsimshian and Haida).

 1. What is the meaning of the symbolic representations in Northwest Coast art?

 2. What are the social purposes of the objects made by Northwest Coast peoples?

 1. When objects are taken out of context, the viewer must work to imagine them back in 

 their context if they are to understand the role they played in the culture and lives of the 

 people.

 2. To Alaska Natives, the environment consists not only of the physical, visual aspects of 

 the world, but also of its spiritual dimension which is a vital force that must be 

 acknowledged and understood for a group’s physical, emotional and spiritual health.

 3. Ceremonies and celebrations help bind a society together.

 1. Students will become familiar with the forms that make up the decorative objects of the 

 Tlingit, Tsimshian and Haida peoples.

 2. Students will explain the relationship between the art of Southeast Alaska and the clan 

 system that organizes the societies.

 3. Students will explain the social purposes of decorating and displaying clan objects.

 • Knowledge of the website’s navigation scheme

 • Ability to conduct independent or Internet research

VOCABULARY:

Moiety: one of two hereditary social divisions in a group of people; in Tlingit and Haida society, 

 these are the Raven and the Wolf or Eagle.

Phratry: a hereditary social division that in a group of people; in Tsimshian society, there are 

 four phratries, the Killer whale, Eagle, Raven and Wolf.

Clan: a group of families claiming descent from a common ancestor.

At.óow: in the Tlingit language, this is the word for an owned or a purchased thing, including 

 land, a spirit, a personal name, an artistic design, ceremonial regalia and artistic objects 

 that depict the clan crest, a song, a name or a story. An at.óow is a “clan treasure,” as 

 Rosita Worl describes in the Living Our Cultures exhibition catalog (p. 217).

Design element: a component such as a form line that is used repeatedly in planning and 

 making a physical object.
NORTHWEST COAST CEREMONIAL ART

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 9.2

TEACHING STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITY IDEAS:

REFERENCED URL ADDRESSES:

http://www.pbs.org/harriman/explog/lectures/worl.html 

 for an essay that explains clan property, including the works of art represented 

 on the website.

http://vilda.alaska.edu/

http://www.artsconnected.org/artsnetmn/teachers/schuld/SCNOTE1.HTML 

 1. Tell the students that today you will focus on some of the art from the Tlingits, 

 Haidas and Tsimshians. Point out their home territories on the site’s cultural 

 map. Note that to Alaskans, this part of the world is called “Southeast Alaska,” or, 

 in short-hand, “Southeast.” These three cultures are often grouped with other 

 cultures along the entire coastline from Alaska to Oregon into what is com- 

 monly termed “Northwest Coast cultures.” This seeming contradiction (are they 

 in the southeast or the northwest?) is easily understood when one realizes that to 

 people living in the contiguous 48 states, the Tlingits, Haidas and Tsimshians 

 live in the northwestern part of the country.

 2. Before looking at the art itself, alert students to the fact that whenever an animal 

 or object (such as a specific mountain) is depicted on the art, this is an indication 

 that the particular animal or object might be a crest symbol for the clan. Those 

 in the know would understand which clan owned the object by looking at the 

 crest design. Compare this concept with family crests in the United Kingdom. 

 Distribute the Student Handout “Tlingit Clans and Crests.”

MATERIALS NEEDED OUTSIDE OF THE WEBSITE:

Computer and projector

Student journals

Student Handouts “Tlingit Clans and Crests” and “Northwest Coast Art”

Printed and photocopied historic photographs from the website www.vilda.alaska.edu that 

depict at.óow, including:

 • ASL-P427-40, “Canoes Arriving in Sitka, 1904?”

 • ASL-Angoon-People-18, Carving Totum (totem) Poles

 • ASL-P87-0161, Ceremonial Art, Klukwan

 • ALS-Angoon-People-04, Chief Mitlakatle (Mitlakotle) & Staff

Enrichment: Tlingit Myths and Texts by John R. Swanton

EXHIBITION CATALOG REFERENCES (Living Our Cultures):

“Introduction” by Aron Crowell (pps. 25-26)

“Tlingit” by Rosita Worl (pps. 217-225)

“Haida” by Jeane Breinig (pps. 243-249)

“Tsimshian” by David Boxley (pps. 267-275)
NORTHWEST COAST CEREMONIAL ART

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 9.3

 3. Project the image of E221177 from the website, which depicts a Raven and Killer 

 Whale. Look at the Student Handout (Tlingit Clans and Crests) and decide 

 which clan or clans this item might have belonged to. Help students trace the 

 various parts of the animal (eyes, ears, feet, wings, dorsal fin). Guide them as 

 they identify various design elements such as ovoid, U-form and S-form. Note 

 the colors that were used. 

 4. Enrichment: For a detailed study of the elements of Northwest Coast Art, go to 

 http://www.artsconnected.org/artsnetmn/teachers/schuld/SCNOTE1.HTML. 

 5. Together, read the record for this object. Ask students to describe, based on the 

 reading, the relationship between the object and the clan’s social and spiritual 

 ties. 

 6. Have students read the three essays on Haida, Tlingit and Tsimshian culture on 

 the website. Focus their reading by asking them to note in their journals all 

 references to art or ceremonial objects.

 7. Enrichment: Have students lookup on the Internet some of the artists Delores 

 Churchill mentions in her article, “Haida History and Art” (e.g., Charles Eden- 

 shaw, John Robson). Project images of their work for the entire class to see.

 8. Visit the Harriman Expedition Retraced website and read aloud the essay by 

 Rosita World (“Introduction to Tlingit Culture and Repatriation”) at 

 http://www.pbs.org/harriman/explog/lectures/worl.html. Review the main points 

 of the essay, as follows:

 a. What is at.óow? (This is a Tlingit word that means “an owned or a pur- 

 chased thing,” and can include land, a spirit, a personal name, an artistic 

 design, ceremonial regalia or objects that depict the clan crest, a song, a 

 name or a story.)

 b. At.óow are both social (belonging to a specific group, the clan), and sacred, 

 recalling ancient ties with the spirit world and reaffirming those ties in the 

 present.

 c. How did Tlingit clans acquire the spirits and crests that appear on at.óow? 

 (Through ancient encounters between humans and a supernatural entity 

 usually in the form of a bird, animal or fish.)

 d. At.óow are worn and sung or presented at a memorial ceremony (ku.éex’). 

 This celebrates the clan’s history and ancestors, validates the clan’s right to 

 the at.óow, instructs others about the clan, and calls forth the ancestors 

 and spirits of the at.óow.
NORTHWEST COAST CEREMONIAL ART

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 9.4

 e. At.óow were not considered trade items during pre-contact or Russian days. 

 However, in some cases at.óow were given as gifts to cement relationships 

 or as payment for social gaffes. In these cases, the value of the at.óow was 

 known to be inestimably high, regardless of the labor costs of making the 

 item.

 9. Many objects that were at.óow have ended up in private or museum collections. 

 Explain the following to students (information taken from an unpublished 

 lecture by Rosita Worl):

 a. Well into the American period (after 1875), the practice of selling or 

 trading at.óow began. This was sometimes in response to conversion 

 to Christianity, or to high prices being offered to people who had become 

 impoverished as a result of the incursion of Americans and Europeans. 

 Some churches actively sought the destruction, purchase or removal of 

 at.óow, recognizing their spiritual power as competition to their brand of 

 Christian spirituality.

 b. After 1880, Tlingits began to make replicas of their at.óow for sale as tour- 

 ist items, having discovered that their art was one of the only routes for 

 economic betterment. These tourist objects were distinguished from true 

 at.óow, for they did not embody the same social and spiritual connections 

 as did actual ceremonial objects. Ships stopping at ports in Southeast 

 Alaska began to see a familiar sight: Tlingit people, particularly women 

 with baskets, arrayed on the dock with goods to sell.

 c. Today the art continues to command unprecedented high prices. The 

 down side is that there is no recognized copyright of the clan symbols 

 themselves, which are frequently appropriated by non-Native artists or 

 businesses.

 10. Students’ next task is to find ceremonial objects from Southeast Alaska on the 

 website. Each student will choose one object, read the Elders’ Discussion and 

 History sections for the object, and complete Student Handout “Northwest Coast 

 Art.”

 11. For additional images of Tlingit at.óow or ceremonial art from the Haida or 

 Tsimshian cultures, visit a website of archival photographs, 

 http://vilda.alaska.edu. Allow students time to browse through the site for 

 historic photographs that show at.óow (a partial list appears in the Materials 

 Section at the beginning of this unit). Print some photographs, photocopy them 

 and distribute them to students. Look at the photographs together. Point out 

 that all the photographs were made during the American period, when people 

 sometimes made replicas of their at.óow for sale. Ask students to differentiate 

 between those photos that show actual at.óow and those that depict replicas or 

 made for sale.
NORTHWEST COAST CEREMONIAL ART

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 9.5

 12. Enrichment: Swanton’s Tlingit Myths and Texts contains a number of Tlingit 

 clan stories, some of which indicate the way the clan came to have a particular 

 clan crest. Explain that only from a clan member can the reliable version of a 

 clan story be heard and that these stories were originally told to John Swanton 

 by appropriate clan members in 1904. Examples of texts the students might read 

 begin on page 224 and continue for a number of pages. Assign as homework the 

 reading of an at.óow story. Students may read a story of their choosing, or you 

 may assign specific stories to individual students. Students will write a brief 

 synopsis of the action of the story and include reference to the clan that owns 

 the story and the kwáan (community) in which Swanton heard the story. This 

 will be a written assignment to be handed in to you.

 13. Enrichment: After reviewing the design elements in Northwest Coast, and after 

 viewing a number of examples from the website, students decide on an animal 

 they would like to depict. They draw a Northwest Coast-style picture of that 

 animal using ovoids, U-forms, S-forms and traditional colors.

 14. As a final lesson assessment, revisit the second Essential Question posed at the 

 beginning of this lesson: What are the social purposes of the beautiful objects 

 made by Northwest Coast peoples? Have students prepare short essays in 

 answer to the question.

ASSESSMENT METHODS, INSTRUMENTS AND RUBRICS:

 • Appropriate behavior during small group work (if appropriate)

 • Completion of written work

 • Time-on-task when conducting Internet research

 • Completion of artwork
NORTHWEST COAST CEREMONIAL ART

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 9.6

NATIONAL CONTENT STANDARDS ADDRESSED:

Geography Standard 1: Understand how to use maps and other geographic representations, 

 tools and technologies to acquire, process and report information from a spatial 

 perspective.

Geography Standard 6: Understand how culture and experience influence people’s perceptions 

 of places and regions.

Geography Standard 9: Understand the characteristics, distribution and migration of human 

 populations on Earth’s surface.

Geography Standard 16: Understand the changes that occur in the meaning, use, distribution 

 and importance of resources.

Geography Standard 17: Understand how to apply geography to interpret the past.

Language Arts/English Standard 6: Applying knowledge

Language Arts/English Standard 8: Developing research skills

Language Arts/English Standard 12: Applying language skills

Visual Arts (Grades 9-12) Standard 3.1: Students reflect on how artworks differ visually, spatially, 

 temporally and functionally, and describe how these are related to history and culture. 

Visual Arts (Grades 9-12) Standard 4.1: Students differentiate among a variety of historical and 

 cultural contexts in terms of characteristics and purposes of works of art. 

Visual Arts (Grades 9-12) Standard 4.2: Students describe the function and explore the meaning 

 of specific art objects within varied cultures, times and places. 
STUDENT HANDOUT 1: 

Tlingit Clans and Crests

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 9.7

The following is a partial list of Tlingit clans and their crests. Traditionally, some 50 clans were 

active in Southeast Alaska, and the following list includes only about 40% of them. Note that 

each Tlingit clan is either a Raven or Eagle clan. In the past, members of a Raven clan could 

only marry someone from the Eagle clan and vice versa. In Tlingit and Haida society, a person 

gets his or her clan membership only from the mother. Fathers do not pass their clan 

membership on to their children.

EAGLE CLANS:

Teikweidí; major crest: Brown Bear

Kaagwaantaan; major crest: Brown Bear

Chookaneidí; major crest: Brown Bear

Dakláweidí; major crest: Killer Whale

Wooshkeetaan; major crest: Shark

Yanyeidí; major crests: Wolf and Eagle

Shangukeidí; major crest: Thunderbird

Naasteidí; major crest: Eagle

Naanyaa.aayí; major crest: Wolf

Neixádi; major crest: Beaver

RAVEN CLANS:

Kwaashkíkwáan; major crest: Owl, 

 Raven’s Bones, Raven

T’akdeintaan; major crest: Sea Tern

Kiks.ádi; major crest: Frog

Deisheetaan; major crest: Beaver

Lineidí; major crests: Dog Salmon, Big Dipper

Ganaxteidí; major crest: Woodworm

Ganax.ádi; major crests: Raven, Starfish

Teehíttaan; major crest: Dog Salmon

Kaach.ádi; major crests: Frog, Halibut

Kooyu.eidí; major crest: Raven
STUDENT HANDOUT 2: 

Northwest Coast Art

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 9.8

Choose one ceremonial clan object from the Tlingit, Haida or Tsimshian cultures.

DIRECTIONS:

 1. Item name (English and indigenous language, if available): 

 2. Object number: 

 3. Culture that produced the item:

 4. Provenance (where the article of clothing came from): 

 5. What does the object depict (e.g., a raven, eagle, killer whale, etc.)? 

 6. Does the museum record indicate what clan the object belonged to? If so, write the clan 

 name. 

 7. How was the item used?

 8. How did this object relate to the spiritual world in the culture? 

 9. How did this object contribute to a feeling of group solidarity in the culture?
LEARNING EXPERIENCE 10

Ceremonies

The following Learning Experience – one of thirteen – is designed 

for middle and high school students and will deepen and enrich 

their understanding of the peoples of the Far North through a series of 

classroom and research activities. It is written for teachers, 

but all students and life-long learners should feel free to undertake 

the investigations on their own or as part of an independent study. 

Each section utilizes the Sharing Knowledge website (http://alaska.si.edu) 

plus additional online resources and includes references to the exhibition 

catalog Living Our Cultures, Sharing Our Heritage: The First Peoples of Alaska, 

an additional recommended resource (available for purchase online and from 

the Anchorage Museum). 

Each Learning Experience leads to an exploration of the cultural knowledge, 

beauty and ingenuity that are made tangible through the Smithsonian 

collections. Together, the thirteen sections, covering thirteen different 

themes, cut across cultures and historic periods.

The Learning Experiences can be used for independent teaching 

and learning in the classroom or at home and used as a complement 

to a class or personal visit to the exhibition at the Anchorage Museum, 

offering both pre-visit orientation activities and post-visit 

explorations and classroom activities.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures http://alaska.si.edu 
GRADE LEVELS

ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES

CULTURAL REGIONS

TIME NEEDED

MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL

GEOGRAPHY, COMPARATIVE RELIGION, ANTHROPOLOGY

ALL (EXCEPT EYAK, FOR WHICH THERE ARE NO OBJECTS)

1 - 2 CLASS PERIODS

LEARNING EXPERIENCE 10: Ceremonies

LESSON SUMMARY:

Students explore the website for information about ceremonies that were and are important to 

northern peoples. They examine, in-depth, one object that was used exclusively for ceremonies.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS CONSIDERED IN THE LESSON:

 1. What is the nature of the universe from an Alaska Native perspective?

 2. What were and are the purposes of ceremonies and celebrations in Alaska Native societies?

 3. Who takes part in the celebrations and ceremonies?

 4. How have the indigenous cultures of the north changed?

ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS APPROACHED THROUGH THE LESSON:

 1. When objects are taken out of context, the viewer must work to imagine them back in 

 their context if they are to understand the role they played in the culture and lives of the 

 people.

 2. To Alaska Natives, the environment consists not only of the physical, visual aspects of the 

 world, but also of its spiritual dimension which is a vital force that must be acknowledged 

 and understood for a group’s physical, emotional and spiritual health.

 3. Ceremonies and celebrations help bind a society together.

 4. Cultures change while maintaining essential elements.

STUDENT OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES:

 1. Students will identify the ceremonies that are important in their own lives.

 2. Students will consider the purposes and meanings of the ceremonies they are involved in.

 3. Students will examine a ceremonial object from the website as a vehicle for learning 

 about ceremonies that were and are important to the indigenous peoples of the Far North.

 4. Students will identify ways in which the ceremonies of the Native peoples of Alaska and 

 eastern Siberia have changed.

PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE OR SKILLS:

 • Knowledge of the website’s navigation scheme

 • Ability to conduct independent research

MATERIALS NEEDED OUTSIDE OF THE WEBSITE:

Student journals

Computer and projector

Student Handout “Ceremonial Objects”

Lesson 10.1
CEREMONIES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 10.2

TEACHING STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITY IDEAS:

 1. Ask students to name the ceremonies that are common in their community. Possible 

 examples might be church services, graduation ceremonies, Bar Mitzvahs, weddings, 

 funerals. In class discussion, have students consider the social, personal and spiritual 

 aspects of all ceremonies, as follows: 

 a. Social, because ceremonies always involve a community of people whose presence 

 ratifies the event.

 b. Personal, because some ceremonies mark a change in the status of an individual, 

 for instance from child to adult or from single to married.

 c. Spiritual, because ceremonies often invoke a higher power to guide, bless or 

 witness the change or event. Even when an event is not religious (e.g., high school 

 graduation), participants are asked to contemplate the deep meaning of the 

 change in status and to strive to become better people.

 2. Ask students to do a fast-write in their journals on the question, “What are the purposes 

 of ceremonies in my life?” 

 3. Have students share their fast-writes (optional).

 4. Ceremonies played and play a crucial role in the lives of the indigenous peoples of the 

 Far North. Students will explore this facet of life through the objects on the website that 

 were most closely associated with ceremony and spiritualism. Explain that each student 

 will learn about and report on one object that was used exclusively in ceremonial 

 pursuits. Brainstorm the kinds of objects that might fit this criterion. Students might 

 come up with the following:

 a. Masks

 b. Clothing, particularly special clothing that is highly decorated

 c. Items related to healing

 d. Items related to dancing

 5. Consider assigning cultures to the students to ensure that all 10 groups (excluding Eyak) 

 represented on the website are covered in the assignment. Distribute the Student 

 Handout, explain the assignment, and provide time for students to complete the website 

 research.

EXHIBITION CATALOG REFERENCES (Living Our Cultures):

“Introduction” by Aron Crowell (pps. 25-26)

“Iñupiaq” by Beverly Faye Hugo (pps. 65-71) 

“St. Lawrence Island Yupik” by Paapi Merlin Koonooka (pps. 91-95) 

“Yup’ik” by Alice Aluskak Rearden (pps. 116-121) 

“Return of the Dance” by Crystal Dushkin (p. 142) 

“Unangax” by Alice Petrivelli (pps. 143-147) 

“Sugpiaq” by Gordon L. Pullar (pps. 167-173) 

“Athabascan” by Eliza Jones (pps. 191-199) 

“Tlingit” by Rosita Worl (pps. 216-225) 

“Haida” by Jeane Breinig (pps. 243-249) 

“Tsimshian” by David Boxley (pps. 267-275)

^
CEREMONIES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 10.3

 6. When reports have been completed, ask students for volunteers to share especially 

 interesting information from their research.

 7. After students have made their reports, consider the information they gathered as a 

 whole. Point out that in order for people to create objects that are entirely ceremonial in 

 nature, three conditions have to be met:

 a. The people have to believe that this activity is absolutely essential to their 

 continued well-being.

 b. The people have to have the resources to produce the object; this can involve a 

 great deal of effort if, for instance, the resources are not available locally but have 

 to be traded.

 c. The people have to have the time to devote to making the object; some relief from 

 the tasks of getting food and shelter must be available.

 Ask students for examples from the website that confirmed that these three conditions 

 were met.

 8. As a wrap-up activity, either lead a class discussion with the visual aid of a Venn diagram 

 or have students design a comparative visual display (individually or in pairs) to compare 

 the ceremonies students read about with the ceremonies in their own lives. Prompt com- 

 parisons along the following dimensions:

 a. Reasons for the ceremony: why do people perform the ceremony?

 b. The presence of special regalia or objects that are used only during that ceremony 

 (the actual objects will vary from culture to culture; the question is whether special 

 items are used)

 c. The make-up of the group that participates in the ceremony

 d. The spiritual beliefs that underlie the ceremony

ASSESSMENT METHODS, INSTRUMENTS AND RUBRICS:

 • Engagement in class discussion

 • Completion of fast-write

 • Completion of website research

 • Completion of visual display (optional) 
CEREMONIES

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 10.4

NATIONAL CONTENT STANDARDS ADDRESSED:

Geography Standard 1: Understand how to use maps and other geographic representations, 

 tools and technologies to acquire, process and report information from a spatial 

 perspective.

Geography Standard 6: Understand how culture and experience influence people’s perceptions 

 of places and regions.

Geography Standard 9: Understand the characteristics, distribution and migration of human 

 populations on Earth’s surface.

Geography Standard 12: Understand the processes, patterns and functions of human 

 settlement.

Geography Standard 16: Understand the changes that occur in the meaning, use, distribution 

 and importance of resources.

Geography Standard 17: Understand how to apply geography to interpret the past.
Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 10.5

STUDENT HANDOUT: 

Ceremonial Objects

DIRECTIONS:

Your teacher will assign a specific culture for your research. Your task, after you have received 

your culture assignment, is to identify one object from that culture that was used almost 

exclusively for ceremonial purposes. You will read about that object and answer the questions 

posed below.

1. Culture 

2. Object name (English and indigenous language, if available): 

3. Object number:

4. Where the object came from (region or community): 

5. Describe the ceremony that the object was used in:

6. Describe how the object was used in the ceremony:

7. What was the purpose of the ceremony?

8. Who attended the ceremony?

9. Did the ceremony help bind the community together? If so, how?
Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 10.6

10. Was the ceremony primarily for an individual or for the entire community? Explain.

11. What changes have occurred in the ceremony over time?

12. What spiritual beliefs underlie the ceremony?
LEARNING EXPERIENCE 11

Division of Labor by Gender

The following Learning Experience – one of thirteen – is designed 

for middle and high school students and will deepen and enrich 

their understanding of the peoples of the Far North through a series of 

classroom and research activities. It is written for teachers, 

but all students and life-long learners should feel free to undertake 

the investigations on their own or as part of an independent study. 

Each section utilizes the Sharing Knowledge website (http://alaska.si.edu) 

plus additional online resources and includes references to the exhibition 

catalog Living Our Cultures, Sharing Our Heritage: The First Peoples of Alaska, 

an additional recommended resource (available for purchase online and from 

the Anchorage Museum). 

Each Learning Experience leads to an exploration of the cultural knowledge, 

beauty and ingenuity that are made tangible through the Smithsonian 

collections. Together, the thirteen sections, covering thirteen different 

themes, cut across cultures and historic periods.

The Learning Experiences can be used for independent teaching 

and learning in the classroom or at home and used as a complement 

to a class or personal visit to the exhibition at the Anchorage Museum, 

offering both pre-visit orientation activities and post-visit 

explorations and classroom activities.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures http://alaska.si.edu 
GRADE LEVELS

ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES

CULTURAL REGIONS

TIME NEEDED

MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL

GEOGRAPHY, ANTHROPOLOGY

ALL EXCEPT EYAK (NO RELATED OBJECTS ON WEBSITE)

2 CLASS PERIODS

LEARNING EXPERIENCE 11 :

Division of Labor by Gender

LESSON SUMMARY:

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS CONSIDERED IN THE LESSON:

ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS APPROACHED THROUGH THE LESSON:

STUDENT OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES:

PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE OR SKILLS:

MATERIALS NEEDED OUTSIDE OF THE WEBSITE:

Lesson 11.1

VOCABULARY:

Students examine the collection to determine the respective roles of men and women in the 

traditional societies of the north. Girls in the class explore items on the website that belonged 

to, were used by, or were made by women, while boys explore the same for men. They consider 

the complementary nature of the division of labor in these cultures.

 1. Who am I? What is my place in the world?

 2. What must I learn in order to be a good, contributing member of society?

 1. Many societies assign different roles and responsibilities to men and women respectively. 

 2. In the cultures of the Far North, roles and responsibilities of both men and women were 

 essential to physical survival and to cultural continuity.

 1. Students examine the collection to determine the respective roles of men and women in 

 traditional society.

 2. Students explore continuity and change in the respective roles of men and women in 

 their own communities.

 • Knowledge of the website’s navigation scheme

 • Ability to conduct independent or Internet research

Student Handouts “Division of Labor by Gender” and “The Girl Who Was Left Alone”

Individual student computers for web site research

Division of labor: a system in which different individuals do different jobs, depending on 

 their skills or roles in society; no single individual is able to accomplish everything 

 by himself or herself, but collectively the society fulfills its needs and is able to 

 survive and continue.

Specialization: a concentration on a specific branch of knowledge or work.

Aŋatkuq: in the Iñupiaq language, this is the word for shaman or individual who can enter the 

 spirit world more easily than most and bring about changes in hunting luck and human 

 health.

Sinew: a tendon, often used in the cultures of the Far North as thread.

Ulu: a semi-circular knife, associated particularly in the Inuit cultures of the Far North.
DIVISION OF LABOR BY GENDER

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 11.2

TEACHING STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITY IDEAS:

 1. Write the word “specialization” on the board. Ask students for a couple of examples of 

 areas they specialize in. Assign a fast-write: “My area of specialization is . . . .”

 2. When the fast-writes are done, ask for volunteers to share. Talk about how specialization 

 and division of labor go hand-in-hand. Define “division of labor” as “A system in which 

 different individuals do different jobs, depending on their skills or roles in society. No 

 one individual is able to accomplish everything by himself or herself, but collectively 

 the society fulfills its needs and is able to survive and continue.” Ask students to imagine 

 a society where there is no specialization and no division of labor. What would it look 

 like? How would it be different from the world they live in? Write their ideas on the 

 board as they talk.

 3. Note that there has probably never been a human society without some degree of 

 specialization or division of labor, but the degree varies. The contemporary American 

 system relies on a high level of division of labor. To illustrate this point, ask students 

 how many of their families’ needs are met purely within the family without relying on 

 someone else to get food, water, transportation or education.

 4. The most common type of division of labor in human society is between men and 

 women. Discuss why this may be so. Discuss the extent to which it is so in your commu- 

 nity. Extend the discussion to issues of equity and fairness. Differentiate between a 

 division of labor that relies on special skills and one that relies on one’s sex, age or 

 appearance.

 5. Conclude the discussion with the statement that many of the “hunter-gatherer” societies, 

 such as those represented on the website, are thought to be based on a very limited 

 division of labor. Students will discover through their Internet research that not only is 

 there a great deal of specialization, some based on ability and some on sex, but also this 

 specialization is incorporated into the social and ceremonial system.

EXHIBITION CATALOG REFERENCES (Living Our Cultures):

“Introduction” by Aron L. Crowell (pps. 22-24)

“Iñupiaq” by Beverly Faye Hugo (pps. 45-47, 50-51, 55, 59-62, 69) 

“First Seal Hunt” by Paul Asicksik, Jr. (p. 67) 

“St. Lawrence Island Yupik” by Paapi Merlin Koonooka (pps. 76-78, 80-81, 85-87, 92-93) 

“Yup’ik” by Alice Aluskak Rearden (pps. 97-121)

“Unangax” by Alice Petrivelli (pps. 124-125, 128, 132, 136, 138-141)

“Sugpiaq” by Gordon L. Pullar (pps. 153, 164,172)

“Athabascan” by Eliza Jones (pps. 176-183, 186-189, 194-197)

“Tlingit” by Rosita Worl (pps. 206-209, 214-225) 

“Haida” by Jeane Breinig (pps. 230-241) 

“Tsimshian” by David Boxley (pps. 258-259, 263-265)

^

^
DIVISION OF LABOR BY GENDER

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 11.3

 6. Before you undertake website research, explain that the girls will explore items that 

 belonged to, were used by or were made by women, while boys will explore the same for 

 men. Distribute the Student Handout “Division of Labor by Gender” to students and 

 allow time in class for them to complete their Internet research and fill in the study 

 guide.

 7. When research and study guides are complete, pull the class together and discuss 

 student answers, particularly to the last four questions that ask for generalizations and 

 judgments.

 8. As a way to pull the ideas from this lesson together, read the Student Handout, “The Girl 

 Who Was Left Alone.” The story contains the very common motif of shape-shifting and 

 the ancient ability of people and animals to enter each others’ worlds in disguise. Relate 

 this to a world view in which all creatures have spirits and are aware of the actions and 

 motives of people. Discuss why a father would be so upset with a daughter who wouldn’t 

 marry. Relate the discussion to the students’ work on division of labor by gender among 

 the indigenous peoples of the Far North.

ASSESSMENT METHODS, INSTRUMENTS AND RUBRICS:

 • Participation in class discussions

 • Completion of written assignments

 • Time on task during the Internet research
DIVISION OF LABOR BY GENDER

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 11.4

NATIONAL CONTENT STANDARDS ADDRESSED:

Geography Standard 4: Understand the physical and human characteristics of places.

Geography Standard 6: Understand how culture and experience influence people’s perceptions 

 of places and regions.

Geography Standard 11: Understand the patterns and networks of economic interdependence 

 on Earth’s surface.

Geography Standard 16: Understand the changes that occur in the meaning, use, distribution 

 and importance of resources.

Geography Standard 17: Understand how to apply geography to interpret the past.
STUDENT HANDOUT 1: 

Division of Labor by Gender

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 11.5

DIRECTIONS:

You will be examining items on the website that are made, used or owned exclusively 

by men or women. Find at least seven objects. As you undertake the research, use 

these questions as a study guide.

 1. Are you researching items for men or women? 

 2. Fill in this chart with as many items as possible from the website. An example 

 for men is given.

Item Name

(English and

indigenous language,

if available)

Item Number Culture

Indicate whether it

was made, used 

or owned by 

men or women

Tunic (dag) E064278 Athabascan Used and owned

by men
Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 11.6

 3. Choose one of the items in your table. In what way were members of the opposite sex 

 involved with this item (if at all)? 

 4. Write one thing that all the items on your list together tell you about division of labor 

 and specialization in indigenous cultures of the Far North. 

 5. Enrichment: Read three of the cultural essays on the website. Search for clues about 

 the different roles men and women played in the societies. Write a short paragraph 

 that describes the main roles that members of your gender assumed in one or more of 

 the cultures. Be sure to identify which culture(s) you are talking about. 

 6. Based on the reading you have done on the website, how were the tasks of both men 

 and women necessary? 

 7. In what way do the ceremonies relate to the division of labor along gender lines? 
STUDENT HANDOUT 2: 

The Girl Who Was Left Alone

Adapted from the story as told by Paul Monroe of Noatak

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 11.7

This is an Iñupiaq story from Noatak, Alaska, told by Paul Monroe to Edwin 

S. Hall, Jr. in 1964-65. Adapted from The Eskimo Storyteller (pp. 315-318), edited 

by Edwin S. Hall, Jr., University of Alaska Press, 1998.

 There was a beautiful girl. Her hair was long and thick and she always had it 

braided just so. She was strong, too. And she could sew. Everyone knew she did 

beautiful work. Her father was the best hunter in the village. So lots of men wanted 

to marry her.

 She had three brothers, all married. But the girl did not want to get married. 

Her father tried and tried to marry her off. She said no to every man who came by. 

No one could get her to say yes.

 Finally one day her father was fed up. He told everyone in the village, “Pack 

up. We’re going to leave. But don’t tell my daughter we’re going.”

Then he got an aŋatkuq (shaman) to put the girl into a deep sleep. He took away all 

her clothes, snares, everything.

 The oldest son’s wife didn’t like what was happening. She loved her little 

sister-in-law. She hid a needle, some sinew and an ulu inside the house. She hid some 

old clothes where the girl would find them when she woke up. And she hid a seal 

poke with a little bit of oil in it. Everyone left.

 When the girl woke up no one was there. She did not know what had happened. But she found the things her sister-in-law had hidden for her. She made boots 

from the seal poke. She made snares from the sinew. She snared some ptarmigan, 

and they kept her alive.

 When summer came, she walked down river. She saw some fish and caught 

them in a net she made. While she was walking, she saw a house far away, but she 

did not go toward it. Then she saw a freshly killed caribou in the trail in front of her. 

She dried the meat and tanned the skin. She took out the sinew for thread. The next 

day she found another caribou and did the same thing. This happened several times.

 One day a young man came up to her. “I killed those caribou for you,” he said. 

“I want you to come home with me to be my wife.” Well, the girl who did not want to 

marry didn’t know what to do. She thought a while. Then she went with him. She 

knew she would die without someone to hunt for her.

 In her new home, the girl had the job of cooking all the food. Her mother-inlaw made clothes. This gave the girl an idea. She remembered her needle, sinew and 

ulu. She knew her favorite sister-in-law had left them for her. She started making a 

fancy parka for her brother’s wife.

 When the parka was finished, the girl, her husband and his two brothers set 

out to find other people. Soon they found her father’s new village. She went inside a 

house and there was her family. She walked right past her father. She went straight 

to her sister-in-law and gave her the parka.
Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 11.8

 Her father wanted to hug 

her, but she kept away from 

him. She could not forgive him 

for leaving her all alone.

 Soon there were loud 

noises outside, like a fight. 

Something growled and then 

howled. The people all ran 

outside and saw that one of the 

men had killed a wolf. There 

were two other wolves standing 

at the edge of the village. The 

girl knew that the dead wolf was 

one of her husband’s brothers. 

She ran to the other wolves, 

turning into a wolf herself. She 

never went back to her father’s 

village, but stayed a wolf the 

rest of her life with her wolf 

husband.
LEARNING EXPERIENCE 12

What Is the Nature of the Universe?

The following Learning Experience – one of thirteen – is designed 

for high school students and will deepen and enrich 

their understanding of the peoples of the Far North through a series of 

classroom and research activities. It is written for teachers, 

but all students and life-long learners should feel free to undertake 

the investigations on their own or as part of an independent study. 

Each section utilizes the Sharing Knowledge website (http://alaska.si.edu) 

plus additional online resources and includes references to the exhibition 

catalog Living Our Cultures, Sharing Our Heritage: The First Peoples of Alaska, 

an additional recommended resource (available for purchase online and from 

the Anchorage Museum). 

Each Learning Experience leads to an exploration of the cultural knowledge, 

beauty and ingenuity that are made tangible through the Smithsonian 

collections. Together, the thirteen sections, covering thirteen different 

themes, cut across cultures and historic periods.

The Learning Experiences can be used for independent teaching 

and learning in the classroom or at home and used as a complement 

to a class or personal visit to the exhibition at the Anchorage Museum, 

offering both pre-visit orientation activities and post-visit 

explorations and classroom activities.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures http://alaska.si.edu 
GRADE LEVEL

ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES

CULTURAL REGIONS

TIME NEEDED

HIGH SCHOOL

PHILOSOPHY, ANTHROPOLOGY

ALL 

3 CLASS PERIODS

LEARNING EXPERIENCE 12 :

What Is the Nature of the Universe?

LESSON SUMMARY:

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS CONSIDERED IN THE LESSON:

ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS APPROACHED THROUGH THE LESSON:

STUDENT OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES:

PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE OR SKILLS:

MATERIALS NEEDED OUTSIDE OF THE WEBSITE:

Lesson 12.1

Students learn about the European cosmological systems described by Aristotle, Ptolemy, 

Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, St. Thomas Aquinas and others. They compare one of those representations with their own ideas of the nature of the universe, which they in turn compare with 

the universe as understood in the indigenous cultures of the north.

 1. What is the nature of the universe from an Alaska Native perspective?

 1. The peoples of the Far North region feel a strong physical, historical and spiritual 

 connection to the place they live.

 2. To Alaska Natives, the environment consists not only of the physical, visual aspects of 

 the world, but also of its spiritual dimension which is a vital force that must be acknowl- 

 edged and understood for a group’s physical, emotional and spiritual health.

 1. Students will explore Western notions of the nature of the universe, beginning with 

 Aristotle.

 2. Students will explore northern indigenous notions of the nature of the universe.

 3. Students will formulate and express their own notions of the nature of the universe.

 • Knowledge of the website’s navigation scheme

 • Ability to conduct independent research

 • Ability to skim text

Computers with Internet connections

Student Handouts 1, 2 and 3

Student journals

Poster board or art paper and art supplies

VOCABULARY:

Cosmology: the scientific study of the form, evolution, etc., of the universe; the branch of meta- 

 physics dealing with the origin and structure of the universe. 

Metaphysics: the branch of philosophy that seeks to explain the nature of reality.
WHAT IS THE NATURE OF THE UNIVERSE?

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 12.2

REFERENCED URL ADDRESSES:

TEACHING STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITY IDEAS:

(Note to teacher: be sure to test these web addresses before assigning them to students, to 

ensure that they are still active) 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmology_%28metaphysics%29 (from which Student Handout 2 is taken)

www.museum.vic.gov.au/scidiscovery/gravity/cosmology.asp

www.worldwideschool.org/library/books/sci/history/AhistoryofScienceVolumeII/chap12.html

www.stanford.edu/class/engl174b/chain.html

www.kheper.net/topics/greatchainofbeing/index.html

http://jackytappet.tripod.com/chain.html

http://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/Tillyard01.html

http://zebu.uoregon.edu/2000/ph123/hh.html

 1. Write the words “the universe” on the board. Ask students what the physical parts of the 

 universe are. Write their answers on the board. Examples might include galaxies, stars, 

 planets, moons. Tell them that they have just begun to describe their “physical 

 cosmology.” Unpack the word “cosmology”: from the Greek “cosmos,” meaning “world,” 

 and logica,” meaning “study of.”

 2. Explain that in this lesson students will compare earlier and contemporary cosmologies 

 from the Western world with the cosmology of the indigenous peoples of the north.

 3. Return to the word “cosmology.” Explain that there is another branch of cosmology, 

 “metaphysical cosmology.” Unpack “metaphysical”: beyond the physical. Briefly brain- 

 storm what could be beyond the physical aspects of the universe. Some students might 

 object that there is nothing beyond the physical. Others might come up with ideas such 

 as “thought” or “God” or “laws of physics.” Accept all answers.

EXHIBITION CATALOG REFERENCES (Living Our Cultures):

“Introduction” by Aron Crowell (pps. 25-26)

“Iñupiaq” by Beverly Faye Hugo (pps. 63, 68-69)

“First Seal Hunt” by Paul Asicksik, Jr. (p. 67)

“St. Lawrence Island Yupik” by Paapi Merlin Koonooka (pps. 84, 91-95)

“Yup’ik” by Alice Aluskak Rearden (pps. 99-105, 112-121)

“Ellam Yua – Person of the Universe” by Marie Meade (p. 106)

“Return of the Dance” by Crystal Dushkin (p. 142)

“Unangax” by Alice Petrivelli (pps. 143-147)

“Sugpiaq” by Gordon L. Pullar (pps. 167-173)

“Sugpiaq Masks” by Sven Haakanson, Jr. (p. 166)

“Athabascan” by Eliza Jones (pps. 191-199)

“Tlingit” by Rosita Worl (pps. 205, 207, 216-225)

“Haida” by Jeane Breinig (pps. 239, 243-249)

“Tsimshian” by David Boxley (pps. 263, 267-275)

^
WHAT IS THE NATURE OF THE UNIVERSE?

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 12.3

 4. Distribute Student Handout 1 to students and ask them to answer only Part I, which asks 

 them to delve into their own beliefs about the way the universe works as they answer 

 these questions. They will later compare their own cosmological systems with that of 

 the indigenous peoples of the north.

 5. Explain that over time and space, people have developed many different cosmologies. 

 Distribute Student Handout 2 and look at several of the most well-known cosmological 

 systems in Europe and Asia. Ask students to write a paragraph in their journals about 

 which system most closely approximates their own beliefs. This is meant to be a private 

 piece which need not be shared with others or with you.

 6. Students will now conduct independent on-line research to investigate several related 

 cosmological beliefs that held sway over Europe for several hundred years and 

 culmi nated in the idea of the “Great Chain of Being.” Distribute Student Handout 3 and 

 let students visit the various Internet sites mentioned there to draw their own 

 representations of one of the metaphysical cosmologies described on one or more of the 

 sites.

 7. Now turn to the cosmology of Native Peoples of Alaska and eastern Siberia, as described 

 on the website. Students will fill in Part II of Student Handout 1. In order to do so, they 

 will need to skim the cultural essays for each group for mention of relationships 

 between people and animals, the land or a creator. 

 8. After students have completed the investigation, discuss what they have learned, using 

 the study questions as a guide. As a summative activity, discuss how the cosmology of 

 the Native Peoples of Alaska and eastern Siberia differs or is similar to the cosmology 

 that underlies life in the U.S. today. Ask students to speculate about the reasons that 

 certain cosmologies arise in industrialized societies, while others are more common in 

 farming, hunting or gathering societies. You might draw a Venn diagram on the board 

 to show similarities and differences. Make this an open-ended discussion that leads to 

 questions of values, students’ own interactions with the universe, and comparisons with 

 what students have learned about indigenous beliefs and values.

ASSESSMENT METHODS, INSTRUMENTS AND RUBRICS:

 • Participation in class discussions

 • Completion of written assignments
WHAT IS THE NATURE OF THE UNIVERSE?

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 12.4

NATIONAL CONTENT STANDARDS ADDRESSED:

Geography Standard 4: Understand the physical and human characteristics of places.

Geography Standard 6: Understand how culture and experience influence people’s perceptions 

 of places and regions.

Geography Standard 10: Understand the characteristics, distribution and complexity of Earth’s 

 cultural mosaics.

Geography Standard 16: Understand the changes that occur in the meaning, use, distribution 

 and importance of resources.
STUDENT HANDOUT 1: 

What Is the Nature of the Universe?

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 12.5

You will investigate two cosmologies: the one that you are most familiar with from your own 

life and that of the indigenous peoples of the North. 

PART 1: THE COSMOLOGY I KNOW

1. What are the physical parts of the universe, according to the cosmology?

2. What are the metaphysical parts of the universe, according to the cosmology?

3. According to this cosmological system, how did the universe originate?

4. Is there a creator in this cosmological system? What is its/her/his/their nature (e.g., is the 

 creator though to be anything like a human being)?

5. What are the non-human beings in this cosmology? In other words, what physical objects 

 are believed to have a spirit or soul?
Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 12.6

6. What is the relationship and proper behavior between humans and the creator?

7. What is the relationship and proper behavior between humans and other non-human 

 beings? If there is more than one set of proper behaviors (e.g., a difference between how 

 one behaves toward plants and animals or between mammals and fish, for instance), list as 

 many as possible.

Part II: The Cosmology of the Indigenous Peoples of the Far North

8. What are the physical parts of the universe, according to the cosmology?

9. What are the metaphysical parts of the universe, according to the cosmology?

10. According to this cosmological system, how did the universe originate?
Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 12.7

11. Is there a creator in this cosmological system? What is its/her/his/their nature (e.g., is the 

 creator though to be anything like a human being)?

12. What are the non-human beings in this cosmology? In other words, what physical objects 

 are believed to have a spirit or soul?

13. What is the relationship and proper behavior between humans and the creator?

14. What is the relationship and proper behavior between humans and other non-human 

 beings? If there is more than one set of proper behaviors (e.g., a difference between how 

 one behaves toward plants and animals or between mammals and fish, for instance), list as 

 many as possible.
STUDENT HANDOUT 2: 

What Is the Nature of the Universe?

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 12.8

Downloaded and selected from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmology_%28metaphysics%29

COSMOLOGY (METAPHYSICS)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Cosmology is the branch of philosophy and metaphysics that deals with the world as the 

totality of all phenomena in space and time. 

There are many basic cosmological positions that form the foundation of virtually all 

philosophies and religions. These include:

 • Naturalism: The universe is all that exists. 

 • Pantheism: God and the universe have a one to one correspondence. 

 • Panentheism: The entire universe is part of God, but God is greater than the 

 universe. 

 • Dualism: There are two gods, and the universe is a product of these gods. 

 (Zoroastrianism) 

 • Godism: The universe is an illusion, only God is real and exists. 

 • Deism: God created the universe, set everything in motion and then had 

 nothing more to do with it. God remains completely transcendent to the 

 creation after He creates it. 

 • Theism: God is the always existent, original being who created a universe 

 intended to be known and creatures intended to know it. God is both 

 transcendent and immanent regarding the creation. 
STUDENT HANDOUT 3: 

What Is the Nature of the Universe?

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures

ASSIGNMENT: Visit as many of the following Internet sites as necessary in order to be able to 

draw a visual representation of a cosmological system that was predominant in Europe for an 

extended period in the past.

After you have reviewed the sites, draw a graphic representation of your chosen cosmological 

system on poster board or the paper your teacher supplies. 

 1. Aristotle: www.museum.vic.gov.au/scidiscovery/gravity/cosmology.asp

 2. For written text on Ptolemy, Copernicus, Kepler and Galileo (advanced), go to: 

 www.worldwideschool.org/library/books/sci/history/AhistoryofScience

 VolumeII/chap12.html

 3. The “great chain of being” described by St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) and 

 depicted in 1579 at www.stanford.edu/class/engl174b/chain.html

 4. A representation of the “ladder of intellect” that relates to Aquinas’s “great chain 

 of being” at www.kheper.net/topics/greatchainofbeing/index.html

 5. A more detailed representation of the hierarchy in Aquinas’s “great chain of 

 being” at http://jackytappet.tripod.com/chain.html

 6. More detail on the medieval and Renaissance ideas about the Great Chain of 

 Being at http://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/Tillyard01.html

 7. A graphic representation contrasting two systems at 

 http://zebu.uoregon.edu/2000/ph123/hh.html

Your physical representation should strive for these standards:

 1. It should be colorful and visually pleasing.

 2. The various elements of the universe should be clearly drawn and/or labeled.

 3. The poster should clearly communicate the relationship among the various 

 elements in the cosmology.

 4. The sources for your information (e.g., the Internet site addresses) should be 

 given.

 5. The dates when this cosmological system was or is part of the belief system 

 should be given. 

Lesson 12.9
LEARNING EXPERIENCE 13

Non-Human Beings

The following Learning Experience – one of thirteen – is designed 

for middle and high school students and will deepen and enrich 

their understanding of the peoples of the Far North through a series of 

classroom and research activities. It is written for teachers, 

but all students and life-long learners should feel free to undertake 

the investigations on their own or as part of an independent study.

Each section utilizes the Sharing Knowledge website (http://alaska.si.edu) 

plus additional online resources and includes references to the exhibition 

catalog Living Our Cultures, Sharing Our Heritage: The First Peoples of Alaska, 

an additional recommended resource (available for purchase online and from 

the Anchorage Museum). 

Each Learning Experience leads to an exploration of the cultural knowledge, 

beauty and ingenuity that are made tangible through the Smithsonian 

collections. Together, the thirteen sections, covering thirteen different 

themes, cut across cultures and historic periods.

The Learning Experiences can be used for independent teaching 

and learning in the classroom or at home and used as a complement 

to a class or personal visit to the exhibition at the Anchorage Museum, 

offering both pre-visit orientation activities and post-visit 

explorations and classroom activities.

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures http://alaska.si.edu 
GRADE LEVELS

ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES

CULTURAL REGIONS

TIME NEEDED

MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL

GEOGRAPHY, LIFE SCIENCES, ECOLOGY, ANTHROPOLOGY

ALL EXCEPT EYAK (NO OBJECTS ON THE WEBSITE) 

4 CLASS PERIODS (ASSUMING THAT STUDENTS ARE FAMILIAR WITH

 THE NAVIGATION OF THE WEBSITE)

LEARNING EXPERIENCE 13 :

Non-Human Beings

LESSON SUMMARY:

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS CONSIDERED IN THE LESSON:

ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS APPROACHED THROUGH THE LESSON:

STUDENT OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES:

PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE OR SKILLS:

VOCABULARY:

Lesson 13.1

Students read the exhibit script, cultural essays and a traditional tale about the relationship 

between people and non-human beings. They explore their own ideas about the relationship 

between humans and non-humans.

 1. What is the nature of the universe from an Alaska Native perspective?

 2. Besides humans, what beings are spiritually and physically important to the indigenous 

 peoples of the North?

 1. Native peoples of the Far North have a detailed knowledge and understanding of their 

 environment, its resources and its natural cycles, and they have developed many 

 techniques and tools to live in that environment.

 2. Humans are not the only sentient beings in the world.

 3. In order to live successfully in the North, a person needs to know and understand the 

 physical and spiritual dimensions of the non-human beings that share the landscape.

 1. Students will examine two objects that illustrate the physical and spiritual relationship 

 between humans and non-humans.

 2. Students will read a story in which humans enter the non-human realm and learn from 

 the experience.

 3. Students will examine their own relationship with non-human beings – specifically, 

 animals.

 • Knowledge of the geographic ranges of the various indigenous peoples of Alaska and 

 eastern Siberia

 • Knowledge of the website’s navigation scheme

 • Ability to read a story and visualize its action

 • This learning experience can be used as a sequel to the “Nature of the 

 Universe” learning activity (optional). 

Non-human being: an entity in the universe that is aware of itself and the rest of the world.

MATERIALS NEEDED OUTSIDE OF WEBSITE:

Computer and projector

Student Handouts “Traditional Beliefs About Non-Human Beings” and “A Bear Story”
NON-HUMAN BEINGS

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 13.2

TEACHING STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITY IDEAS:

 1. Introduce the term “non-human being” to the class. The word “being” indicates a con- 

 sciousness, some sort of mind or soul that is aware of its surroundings. Talk about the 

 non-human beings that would be important to the indigenous peoples of the North. 

 Students will likely think of animals that the people depend on, or perhaps dogs who 

 help haul goods and hunt. Explain that in the indigenous world view, the land itself, the 

 stars and moon, and a huge mountain would also be considered beings with 

 consciousness.

 2. Distribute the Student Handout “Traditional Beliefs About Non-Human Beings” and read 

 it together in class. Talk about what kind of physical relationships humans might have 

 with non-humans (e.g., they might hunt them, gather them, keep them as pets, or be 

 killed by them). Talk about what kind of spiritual relationships humans might have 

 with non-humans (e.g., they might worship them, respect them through various rituals, 

 give thanks to them, fear and placate them, or enjoy them).

 3. Project the image of one item that illustrates the relationship between humans and 

 non-humans, the puggutaq (bowl, dish or plate in Qawiaraq Iñupiaq), 188306.000 from 

 Cape Prince of Wales, Alaska. To access this record, go to the main page “Sample the 

 Smithsonian Collections” section and click on the image of the large wooden bowl with 

 ivory figurines encircling it. Ask students to take notes as you view this and other objects 

 and their captions. Read the captions and investigate the knowledge elders share in the 

 Elders’ Discussion section.

 4. Next project the image of the angnakgum saleeguu (chief’s hat in Unangam Tunuu), 

 144870.000 from the Aleutian Islands. To find this image, do a search, narrowing it down 

 to only Unangax hunting objects. There are several chief’s hats, so you might have to 

 look at several before you find the correct one. Ask students to take notes as you view the 

 objects and their captions. Read the captions and investigate the knowledge elders share 

 in the Elders’ Discussion section.

 5. Discuss what each of these items has to do with animals. In what way are the spirits of 

 animals reflected or explored through these two objects?

EXHIBITION CATALOG REFERENCES (Living Our Cultures):

“Introduction” by Aron Crowell (pps. 12-26)

“Iñupiaq” by Beverly Faye Hugo (pps. 47, 50-51, 68, 71)

“First Seal Hunt” by Paul Asicksik, Jr. (p. 67)

“St. Lawrence Island Yupik” by Paapi Merlin Koonooka (pps. 75, 77, 91-92, 94)

“Yup’ik” by Alice Aluskak Rearden (pps. 99-103, 108, 112, 116-117, 120-121)

“Ellam Yua – Person of the Universe” by Marie Meade (p. 106)

“Sugpiaq” by Gordon L. Pullar (pps. 152-153, 155-157, 167-173)

“Athabascan” by Eliza Jones (pps. 176, 183, 198-199)

“Tlingit” by Rosita Worl (pps. 201, 205-206, 212, 217-220, 223-225)

“Haida” by Jeane Breinig (pps. 227, 231, 236, 238-239,244-247, 249) 

“Tsimshian” by David Boxley (pps. 254-255, 258, 262-265, 270-273)

^ ^

^
NON-HUMAN BEINGS

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 13.3

 6. Do a fast-write that asks students to reveal their own experiences with animals. These 

 can be pets, or animals they have hunted or fished. The topic of the fast-write is, “Think 

 of one time when you and an animal came face-to-face. Then write about what you 

 think went on in the mind of that animal at that time.”

 7. Have students share their fast-writes with a partner, then ask for volunteers to share with 

 the whole class.

 8. Distribute the Student Handout “A Bear Story” to students. Read the story aloud in class. 

 Teacher notes follow the student handout and may help you explain unusual aspects of 

 the story to the students. Discuss what this story reveals about the underlying 

 relationship between humans and bears. How is it that a human man could marry a 

 female bear? Explore both literal and metaphorical relationships. What does the story 

 tell about the proper way to show respect for bears?

 9. As a final activity, have students explore the website to find an additional object that 

 shows a special physical and spiritual relationship between humans and non-human 

 beings. Have students complete the Student Handout “Non-Human Beings in 

 Indigenous Life.” When the work is completed, discuss in class the conclusions the 

 students reached.

ASSESSMENT METHODS, INSTRUMENTS AND RUBRICS:

 • Completion of fast-write

 • Participation in class discussions

 • Notes from the projected images of the bowl and chief’s hat

 • Completion of student handout

BIBLIOGRAPHY OF ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

Alaska Native Writers, Storytellers & Orators: The Expanded Edition edited by Spatz, Breinig and 

Partnow (optional) 
NON-HUMAN BEINGS

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 13.4

NATIONAL CONTENT STANDARDS ADDRESSED:

Geography Standard 4: Understand the physical and human characteristics of places.

Geography Standard 6: Understand how culture and experience influence people’s perceptions 

 of places and regions.

Geography Standard 10: Understand the characteristics, distribution and complexity of Earth’s 

 cultural mosaics.

Geography Standard 16: Understand the changes that occur in the meaning, use, distribution 

 and importance of resources.

Geography Standard 17: Understand how to apply geography to interpret the past.

Language Arts/English Standard 6: Applying knowledge

Language Arts/English Standard 8: Developing research skills

Language Arts/English Standard 9: Multicultural understanding

Language Arts/English Standard 12: Applying language skills
STUDENT HANDOUT 1: 

Traditional Beliefs About Non-Human Beings

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 13.5

 Ronald Brower, Sr., of Barrow, Alaska, said, “The spirit of the whale and the spirit of man 

are both intertwined in the traditional beliefs. It is expected that whales gave themselves to the 

whalers.”

 Art, ceremony and the words of Elders refer to the spiritual bonds that link human 

beings with every aspect of the universe – animals, plants, sky and earth. In traditional belief, 

each of these is a spirit-being, aware of human thought and actions, giving of itself if treated 

with care and respect.

 In Alaska Native oral traditions, animals and humans are very closely related, changing 

into one another and speaking the same languages. Animals of different species fluidly 

transform and merge their bodies, an important theme of Native artists.
STUDENT HANDOUT 2: 

A Bear Story

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 13.6

 A young man once was out hunting, it is said, going after bear. When he came 

upon a cave, he looked in. When he looked in, he saw a female bear, it was a woman, 

inside the cave. She invited him in and, it is said, he entered.

The male bear was gone and was out hunting, the wife told him. These two bears were 

a married couple.

 The man looked into the cave. The bear’s wife was a woman. When he looked 

in, she let him in, it is known. When he went in, she fed him.

 Before long, her husband returned. He reached the entrance. He entered the 

cave. Then his wife, it is known, hid the young man, this hunter-man, behind her.

 Her husband 

exclaimed as he entered, 

“Ha! The smell of man!” 

smelling man.

 Then his wife threw 

out his glove, the young 

man’s glove. “You smell 

this,” she said.

 There they wintered. 

They prepared stored food, 

vegetation, and fish. When 

they prepared the food they 

had a fire, a small fire, in 

the center, in the center of 

the cave.

 She would place her 

hands above the fire. Above the fire she would melt her body fat, when she was about 

to prepare food.

 All winter the two of them stayed there, all three lived there, the male bear not 

knowing he was there behind his woman.

 Then when spring came, when it was time for bears to go out, her husband went 

out, saying he would see how it is outside. When bears come out of their caves then, it 

Originally told in Sugpiaq by Walter Meganack, Sr.

Translated into English by Derenty Tabios and James LaBelle

Reprinted with permission from Alaska Native Writers, Orators and Storytellers: 

The Expanded Edition; Alaska Quarterly Review, 1999.
Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 13.7

...is known that they circle them, like the sun circling.

 He went circling . . . singing . . . and playing out there. The third time around he 

made a mistake, it is known. Ha! He made a mistake.

 “I will not see you again,” he said to his wife, toward the cave. “Someone will 

capture me this summer or this fall.”

 Then his wife did not come out. It was too cold for her. Two children they had, 

little bears in the cave. Also in the cave was the young man she had kept, the young 

hunter.

 Then after a time, after a few days, following her husband’s parting, it was 

known, they came out, then the young man. When she was ready to go out, the 

woman bear put on her clothes, her skins. She then clothed her children with their 

skins when they were ready to leave.

 Then when they all were ready to leave, she advised the young man, “These two 

children are yours. When you arrive home and you hear dogs bark, be sure to run to 

the sound. Dogs may tear my children up, at the edge of your village, when we come.”

Now when the young man, the hunter, arrived home, he told them that he had lost 

track of where he’d been all winter. (He’d been at the bear’s cave.)

It was known he ran whenever dogs barked, seeing those little bears. But once, after a 

number of times with the dogs, when they began to bark when he was occupied, he did 

not go and check. When he was with her, and near her, with a woman he liked, because 

he liked what he was doing, he did not go and check.

 After a while, it is known, then he went to check out of curiosity. Already, it is 

known, the dogs had torn the bear cubs to pieces.

 Their mother then came out, it is known. Then from her face she removed her 

skin and exposed a human face. Speaking to the man, she said, “Remember, I advised 

you about the dogs, that each time they barked, you were to run to your children to 

check on them? You’ve made a foolish mistake with me.”

 Then she put her skin back on and tore the young man completely to pieces.
Teacher Notes: Background on A Bear Story

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 13.8

 This work dates from 1970 to 1971, and it is important both for its content and its 

place in the history of Alutiiq [Sugpiaq] scholarship. The transcription in Alutiiq was 

the first serious attempt since the Russian period to design a popular orthography for 

the language. Derenty Tabios, a native speaker of Alutiiq, and then a student at Alaska 

Methodist University, worked first with Richard Dauenhauer, then with linguists Irene 

Reed and Jeff Leer on the Alutiiq orthography.

 The story is interesting for its style. The narrator frequently uses the 

morpheme – ma – always awkward in English translation, but something like “it is 

said,” or “it is known.” This is a common device in storytelling, where tradition bearers 

establish the reliability of their transmission. In the original as well as in English 

translation, the story is delicate at the end, where the hunter is too busy enjoying the 

pleasures of the flesh to fulfill his spiritual obligation to the Bears. – RD

 Like other stories in this volume, this tale depicts an event that occurred in the 

very ancient times when humans and animals could enter the others’ worlds, indicated 

or symbolized in the stories by the donning or doffing of appropriate clothing. People 

have lost the abilities to enter animals’ worlds and understand their speech, but 

animals still have intuitive powers of knowing what humans are thinking and doing.

In this story the bear woman melts her body fat in the winter, an apt metaphor to 

explain why bears are so skinny when they emerge from hibernation at the end of the 

winter.

 At one point in the story, the bear husband makes a mistake which will result, 

he believes, in his being caught by the humans. The mistake is not specified, but it 

might be that he went around his cave the wrong way, or sang the wrong words to the 

song, or accidentally urinated where he shouldn’t have. The important point is that 

bears, like humans, have certain rituals which must be closely followed. This shows 

the analogy between humans and animals: both are subject to stringent rules of 

behavior. . . . – PP 

Written by Richard Dauenhauer and Patricia Partnow

Reprinted with permission from Alaska Native Writers, Orators and Storytellers: 

The Expanded Edition; Alaska Quarterly Review, 1999.
STUDENT HANDOUT 3: 

Non-Human Beings in Indigenous Life

Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center | Living Our Cultures Lesson 13.9

DIRECTIONS:

Find one object from the website (besides those you discussed together in class) that 

shows a physical and spiritual relationship between humans and non-human beings.

 1. Name of the object in English and the indigenous language (if available): 

 2. Object number: 

 3. Culture that produced the object: 

 4. Describe the object as if you are talking to someone on the telephone and cannot 

 show them a picture. 

 5. List the ways this object is involved physically with non-humans (e.g., plants and 

 animals): 

 6. List the ways this object shows a spiritual relationship between its human owner 

 or user and a non-human being: 

 7. What feelings about non-human beings do you think the owner of this object had 

 when he or she used it?