The Great Plains
Life on the Plains Flat Region Few trees grew on the dry Great Plains Millions of buffalo grazed in the huge area Tribes on the Great Plains include the Lakota (aka Sioux), Pawnee, Osage, and Cheyenne.
Life on the Plains Cont’d Most people followed a farming AND hunting life Because most of the land was dry, people usually settled their villages along rivers, where they could get water for their crops (corn, beans, squash, and pumpkins.) Built lodges to live in. (These are large, round huts built over a deep hole.
There were plenty of buffalo in the Great Plains. People used buffalo as: Meat Buffalo hides for clothing and blankets Buffalo horns into bowls Used the stomachs of buffalos, hung from four poles, as cooking pots for stew
A buffalo could weigh well over a ton and could run very fast. The hunters were on foot, making it difficult for them to get close enough to use their bows and arrows They would crouch near the animal in disguise or get the buffalo to stampede over a cliff. While on the hunt, people would live in tepees. The women set up the tepees by setting up poles in a circle. They covered the poles with buffalo hides. The poles were also used to transport buffalo meat
The Cheyenne In the 1500’s, people from Spain brought the horse near the Great Plains. In the late 1700’s, the Cheyenne tamed some of the descendants of the wild horses. The Cheyenne got horses by raiding other tribes and by trading. Buffalo hunting became easier and a major way to gain food.
The horse made Cheyenne’s settlements much easier to move. A horse-drawn travois could move four times as much weight as a travois pulled by a dog. They could move tepees much easier. The horse became SO important to the Cheyenne and other Plains people that they measured wealth in horses.
The Cheyenne Today Today, about 12,000 Cheyenne still live on the Great Plains. Many Cheyenne follow their traditions, keeping their language and ceremonies alive.
Immersion There will be options of what to contribute to our Immersion Area. You will be able to pick what you would like to contribute. (If you do not get chosen for your first pick, please be flexible.) You will meet with your partner and quickly work on your project. Once you've finished, please raise your hand and we'll add it to our Immersion Area. Keep your voices at 3 inches. Questions?
Opportunities Buffalo and Horses -Create the landscape -Teepees and lodges