Using images from the TIDES website and information found in the Handbook of Texas, students will explore the life and culture of the Caddo Indians through artifacts, maps, and correspondence. At the end of the lesson, students will write their own historically accurate letters to a friend or family member, describing the Caddo Indians as if they themselves were an Anglo settler in East Texas.
Created by Rhonda Williams, 2004
The student will identify the Caddo as a Native-American group in Texas before European exploration and describe the regions in which they lived. TEKS §113.6. Social Studies, Grade 4. (b)(1)(A)
The student will examine the way of life of the Caddo before European exploration. TEKS §113.6. Social Studies, Grade 4. (b)(1)(B)
The student will describe the effects of political, economic, and social changes on Native Americans in Texas during the last half of the 19th century. TEKS §113.6. Social Studies, Grade 4. (b)(4)(D)
The student will apply geographic tools, including legends, symbols, scales, and compass roses to interpret the Map of Texas Forts and Indians 1846-1850. TEKS §113.6. Social Studies, Grade 4. (b)(6)(A)
The student will explain the location and patterns of settlement and the geographic factors that influenced where the Caddo people lived by identifying clusters of settlement in Texas, explaining patterns of settlement at different time periods in Texas, and explaining the geographic factors that influence patterns of settlement and the distribution of population in Texas, past and present. TEKS §113.6. Social Studies, Grade 4. (b)(8)(A)(B)(D)
The student will explain the economic patterns of various early Native-American groups in Texas and the Western Hemisphere. TEKS §113.6. Social Studies, Grade 4. (b)(10)(A)
The student will explain how the Caddo earned their living and how geographic factors influenced the location of their economic activities. TEKS §113.6. Social Studies, Grade 4. (b)(13)(A)(B)
The student will describe how selected Native-American groups governed themselves during the early development of Texas. TEKS §113.6. Social Studies, Grade 4. (b)(15)(A)
The student will differentiate between, and use, primary and secondary sources such as biographies, print and visual material, and artifacts to acquire information about the Caddo in Texas. TEKS §113.6. Social Studies, Grade 4. (b)(22)(A)
The student will analyze information by sequencing, categorizing, identifying cause-and-effect relationships, comparing, contrasting, finding the main idea, summarizing, making generalizations and predictions, and drawing inferences and conclusions. TEKS §113.6. Social Studies, Grade 4. (b)(22)(B)
The student will communicate in written, oral, and visual forms. TEKS §113.6. Social Studies, Grade 4. (b)(23)(A,B,C,D,E)
Read information about the Caddo from the textbook together or read selected passages from Caddo Indians in The Handbook of Texas.
Print copies of photographs of Caddo pipes [SFM137.1 and SFM3.2], photograph of Caddo tomahawk [SMMAntiquities/057_0089], and photographs of Caddo pots SFML217.10, SFML217.11, SFML217.12 and SFML217.15
Divide class into 6 groups; give each group a copy of the photograph of an artifact and a copy of the Artifact Analysis Sheet - Caddo Culture.
Ask students to work together to answer the questions on the worksheet.
Have each group present information on its artifact to the class. If possible, allow students to place their image on the computer screen and projector or overhead projector.
Place the Map of Texas Forts & Indians 1846-1850 on the computer screen and projector.
Pass out the Map Analysis Sheet - Caddo Culture.
This activity needs to be completed as a group because each area of the map will need to be enlarged to answer the questions on the Map Worksheet.
Have students examine each area of the map, find the correct answer to the questions, and then volunteer to provide their answers to the class.
To end activity, ask students if the map needed to include any additional information.
Have students brainstorm methods of communication that existed in Texas in the 1830's, leading them to understand that handwritten letters were the major means of communication.
Using biographies available from The Handbook of Texas or your textbook, introduce Thomas J. Rusk and K.H. Douglass to the students.
Place the Thomas J. Rusk and K.H. Douglass letter to Jesse Watkins of September 14th, 1837 on the computer screen and projector.
Pass out Document Analysis Sheet # 1. Read the transcript of the letter of Rusk and Douglass aloud with students.
Have students complete Document Analysis Sheet # 1.
Discuss answers with students. Ask students if the authors of the document seem to want to honestly work out a permanent peace with the Caddo.
Place Charles A. Sewell's letter to George Aldrich, of February 22nd, 1839, on the computer screen and projector.
Pass out Document Analysis Sheet # 2. Read the transcript of Charles A. Sewell's letter to George Aldrich, of February 22nd, 1839, aloud with students.
Have students complete Document Analysis Sheet # 2.
Discuss answers with students. Ask students if the author of the letter seems concerned that other Texans will feel that he is too close to the Caddo. Does this worry show that attitudes towards the Caddo have changed in the eighteen months that have passed between the writing of the first letter and the second?
Assign the following to your students: Choose the artifact or document that you feel has been the most interesting. Write a paragraph in your journal in which you describe two things that you learned by using this resource that you might not have learned by only using the material in your textbook
Write the following assignment on a PowerPoint slide [overhead transparency, chalkboard, etc.]:
Based on the knowledge that you have gained about the Caddo, write a letter to a friend or family member in which you are an Anglo settler in East Texas. Describe what you know about the Caddo, possibly including their culture, lifestyle, and problems with the Anglo population. The letter should contain accurate historical information, so use your textbook and your Document Analysis Sheet for background. This assignment must be in letter form. It should be approximately 1 to 1 ½ pages long. Remember, in addition to the subject information, you can ask questions, give advice or instruction, and provide local or family news if appropriate. You should also respond to the questions asked in the original letter. Your grade will be based both on accurate content and on the use of standard English grammar. Be as neat as possible.
Have students research the present day Caddo. Ask them to discover the answer to the following questions: Where do the majority of Caddo live today? What sort of work do they do? How has their culture changed? How has it remained the same?
