Enter the Longhouse

							                 Overview of Modules and Learning Tasks
                        Tulalip Learning Journey
                                   By David Cort


Contents
1. Introductory Module
2. The Seven Animated Modules
3. The Other Modules


                          1. INTRODUCTORY MODULE

Enter the Longhouse
This module introduces students to the storyline that runs through the entire site.
Nate and Kayla have been asked to go and meet an elder at the longhouse.
When the children enter the longhouse, Tulalip elder Tiatmus tells them about
the fight to preserve the treaty rights of Native people. He shows them some
disturbing photographs, and the children begin to wonder. Are those police?
What are they doing with all those fish? What are they doing to that young man?
The images immerse students in an urgent situation: Native people are in danger
of losing their traditional treaty rights to fish. The images are from the “fish wars”
that occurred in the Puget Sound in the 1960s and 1970s, and are intended to
raise questions and motivate student learning. We appeal to students’ sense of
injustice in order to build engagement.
        Tiatmus tells Nate and Kayla that their elders are preparing to testify
before a judge about the people’s history, and the judge is going to use that
testimony to make a decision about Native treaty fishing rights. (This scenario
was inspired by the actual experience of one of our team leaders, Ray Fryberg.
He was motivated to begin extensive historical studies as a result of the Boldt
case.) Tiatmus explains that Nate and Kayla need to travel in a special canoe,
back through time to the world of their ancestors, in order to earn a gift. Only be
bringing back all the gifts can the children help their elders succeed in their battle
for the tribe’s treaty rights.
        Teachers can assist students in this introductory module by helping them
notice details and articulate questions. I like to repeat this module with my
students several times on subsequent days and allow the discussion to become
richer with each viewing. Teachers do not need to be experts in treaty history! At
this point of the journey, we want students to be thinking hard, questioning and
getting excited to explore and learn.
        When Nate and Kayla leave the longhouse, they are presented with a
map. This map represents much of the traditional territory of the Tulalip
ancestors. Each location on the map is associated with a cultural or historical
learning topic.
        Here are the map locations and their associated learning topics. Animated
modules are in bold.
                 Bush Point            Games
                 Cultus Bay            Cedar
                 Sandy Point           Family
                 Baby Island           Clamming
                 Holmes Harbor         Camps
                 Greenbank             Portaging Canoes
                 Portage
                 Greenbank             Tulalip Timeline
                 Camano Island         Meeting Needs and
                                       Wants
                 Camano Head           History-The Slide
                 Hat Island            Fishing and Gathering
                 Warm Beach            Houses
                 Spee-bi-da            Beach Seining
                 Tulalip Bay           Enter the Longhouse
                 Mission Beach         Cemetery
                 Priest Point          Canoes
                 Quil Ceda Creek       Fishing
                 Hibuleb               Ceremonies
                 Mukilteo              Treaty
                 Lake Stevens          Lake Stevens
                 Snohomish City        River Game (game
                                       module)
                 Allen Prairie         Hazelnuts
                 Monroe                Rock Pile
                 Elwell Creek          Rock Platform
                 Sultan                Elk Hunt (game module)
                 Index                 Gathering
                 Pilchuck              Hunting

How will students navigate the site? The content of the site is not organized as a
linear sequence of activities. The journey metaphor means this site is organized
geographically, with many possible learning sequences. Here is where teachers
must make an important decision. Do teachers want their students to work
through the site in a particular order, for example having all students begin with
the House Module, then moving to the Fishing Module, and so on; or do teachers
want to allow their students to construct their own path through the site, selecting
the modules that appeal to them? Do teachers want to present the animated
modules to the whole class using a computer projector in order to discuss it
together? Or do teachers want students to explore in their own way in a
computer lab or class computer center?

In my classroom I had great success presenting the animated modules to the
whole class using a projector. I also used many of the informational texts as
whole-class shared readings. At other times I would take the class to the
computer lab and allow individual choice for exploring the site. At these individual
choice times, students would choose a non-animated module, read the
directions, and explore the learning tasks. They would record their thinking in
learning journals.


                     2. THE SEVEN ANIMATED MODULES

Fishing Module (Quil Ceda Creek)
Fishing Module Learning Tasks
Artifact Analysis: Fishing tools Use the Artifact Analysis Worksheet from the
“Dig Deep” CBA to analyze fishing tools and develop a historical account of the
time period these artifacts represent. EALRs History 1.2.1, 1.1.1a

Fishing Past and Present Create a children’s book or slide show to
demonstrate how fishing has changed over time. EALRs History 1.3; Geography
3.1, 3.2, 3.3; Writing: 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 2.1, 2.3; Communications: 3.1, 3.2

Fishing Module Resources
Interactive Fishing Artifacts Pages Located on the task page. Use the
interactive tools to analyze a virtual fishing artifact for CBA work.
NorthWest Indian News Video Reports “Skokomish Chums,” “Klickitat River
Hatchery,” “Summer Spill,” “Celilo Falls,” “Welcome Pole.”
Web Links Information on fish, fishing technology, fishing today, and traditional
Puget Sound salmon stories



House Module (Warm Beach)
House Module Learning Tasks
Build and Present Winter House Models Read information from Ruth Shelton
on the Resources page regarding the old style construction methods and look at
diagrams of ancient construction practices. Use this information to construct a
model of an ancient winter house or just one wall of a longhouse. Present these
models to third grade classes preparing for their visits to the Tulalip longhouse,
demonstrating an understanding of why winter houses were constructed the way
they were.

Create a Powerpoint Longhouse You will build a virtual longhouse and/or wall
using graphics provided in a downloadable powerpoint page. You will copy these
graphics and use them as pieces to create a powerpoint presentation
demonstrating your understanding of how longhouses were built in the old days,
and why they were constructed that way.
EALRs History 2.1, Geography 2.2, Writing 2.2, 2.3, 3.1, Communication 3.1, 3.2,
3.3, Science 1.2

House Module Resources
Learning Pages on the TLJ Site Informational texts and diagrams. Longhouses,
summer houses, longhouse photo, longhouse diagrams, summer house photo.
Readings Interview with Tulalip elder Ruth Shelton, informational text
NorthWest Indian News Video Reports “Building a Plankhouse,” “Old Man
House Transfer,” “Plankhouse Rebuilt by Chinook Tribe.”
Web Links Visit a virtual longhouse on the Suquamish tribe’s Virtual Longhouse
site.



Games Module (Bush Point)
Games Module Learning Task
Traditional Field Day Plan a field day for your school using traditional games.
Create a station for each game, and make signs or flyers for each station
explaining the game and its cultural importance. Invite other classes to your field
day and have fun! Start on the Resources Page by reading informational texts
about a number of traditional games. EALRs History 1.3; Writing: 2.1, 2.2

Games Module Resources
Traditional Text “Race for the Girl”
Narrative Text “The Laughing Game”
Informational Texts Fourth-grade informational texts adapted from scholarly
work. Excellent for shared reading work on informational text. Readings include:
“Ball Games,” “Dance Contest,” “Laughing Game,” “Guessing Game,” “sme’tali,”
“Broad Jump,” “Hoop and Pole,” “Tug of War,” “Wrestling,” “Foot Race,”
“Children’s Games,” “Disc Game,” “Bone Game.”
NorthWest Indian News Video Reports “The Living Legend of Sla-Hal,” “Native
Night Safeco Field,” “YakamaSuns.”
Web Links Information on smitali, slahal, and bone game music.



Ceremonies Module (Hibuleb)
Ceremonies Module Learning Task
Plan a Potlatch Follow these directions from Tulalip History and Culture in order
to plan a potlatch. EALRs History 1.3; Writing: 2.1, 2.2

Ceremonies Module Resources
Traditional Text “Salmon”
Narrative Text “The Potlatch”
Informational Texts Potlatch informational text, Ruth Shelton interview on
potlatches, Salmon Ceremony text.
Photos Potlatch photos
NorthWest Indian News Video Reports “Tulalip Tribes First Salmon
Ceremony,” “Lummi Nation Stommish Water Festival and Pow wow,” “Pow wows
at Puyallup, Nooksack, Cowlitz and Siletz.”
Web Links Pow wow photos online, pow wow kid photos online.



Canoes Module (Priest Point)
Canoes Module Learning Task
Canoe Types: Compare/Contrast Select two of the canoe types and use a
graphic organizer to compare and contrast them. How are their forms different?
How does this relate to their different functions?

Canoe Journey Itinerary: 1878 Read Myron Eels’ description of a canoe
journey in 1878 and chart an itinerary of the voyage. EALRs History 1.3, 2.1;
Geography 1.1, 3.3;
Writing 3.1

Canoe Journey Itinerary Imagine you are a leader in the Tulalip Canoe Family.
Plan an itinerary for a Canoe Journey by creating a time schedule and map of
your route, including where you will stop and what activities you will engage in at
each stop. EALRs History 1.2, 2.1; Geography: 1.1, 3.3; Writing: 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 3.1

Lesson Plans You will also find a section on the Task Page for Teachers.
Lesson plans for this module to help you prepare your students for these learning
tasks.

Canoes Module Resources
Narrative Text “The Canoe Carver”
Informational Texts Myron Eels’ canoe journey from 1878
Jerry Jones Interviews View online video interviews of the great Tulalip canoe
carver.
Canoes on the Web Link to a site designed to teach kids about Native northwest
canoes from the University of Washington, MESA.
NorthWest Indian News Video Reports “Canoe Journey to Tulalip 2003,”
“Paddle to Elwha 2005,” “Paddle to Elwha 2005,” “Canoe Carving at Lake Union,”
“Canoes Greet Tall Ships.”
Other Web Links Example schedule from the 2005 Canoe Journey; site
designed for tribal members participating in the Canoe Journeys; Building a Strip
Canoe (Before he passed away, Jerry Jones completed a strip canoe and said
he believed this was the future for Native canoes).
Family Module (Sandy Point)
Family Module Learning Tasks
Write a Dialogue Compare and contrast how children have been raised in the
past and today at Tulalip. Use the readings from the Red Book to complete a
compare/contrast chart. Then use your chart to write a dialogue between a
young person and an elder in the old days, and a dialogue between a young
person and an elder or parent today. You could also express this dialogue in the
form of a comic strip. EALRs History 1.3, 2.1; Geography 3.3; Writing: 1.1, 1.2,
2.2, 2.3

Whose Rules? Examine teachings on our resource page to determine what
rules have been important for Tulalip people and select one rule to examine in
detail. Use the graphic organizer from the “Whose Rules” CBA to determine
what problem the rule is addressing, and who was responsible for creating or
passing on the rule. Does the rule help promote a more democratic society?
EALRs History 1.3, 2.1; Geography 3.3; Writing: 1.1, 1.2, 2.2, 2.3

Family Module Resources
Informational Texts from Tulalip History and Culture William Shelton, Edward
Curtis, Charles Buchanan, Geri Bill
Informational Text Information on traditional family life
Traditional Stories Stories told by Tulalip elder Tiatmus Ray Moses: “The
Kingfisher,” “The Rattlesnake”
NorthWest Indian News Video Reports “Honoring Ancestors at Tsi-whit-zen”



Cedar (Cultus Bay)
Cedar Module Learning Tasks
Observe and Infer—Cedar and Culture Using careful observation, list as many
parts of the cedar tree as you can and research uses for parts of a cedar tree.
Analyze how ancient Snohomish culture would be affected by the loss of the
cedar tree. Pay attention to cause/effect relationships. EALRs History 1.3, 2.1;
Geography 3.1, 3.3; Science 1.1; Writing: 1.1,2.2, 2.3,3.1

Cedar Module Resources
Narrative Text “The Cedar Tree”
Informational Texts Information on cedar wood, bark, withes, and roots.
Web Links Basket images online
Lesson Plans Lesson plans for this module to help you prepare your students
for these learning tasks.
                           3. THE OTHER MODULES

Gathering (Index)
Students read a variety of informational texts about gathering throughout the
seasons of the year, the many different foods Tulalip ancestors gathered, and the
places in Tulalip traditional territory where women gathered food. Then students
examine photos of gathering from the University of Washington’s Digital Archive.
Next, students read a selection from a traditional story called, "Star Husband."
Students write in their journals about what they have learned and annotate their
journey maps.

Hunting (Mt. Pilchuck)
Students read a variety of informational texts about hunting, traditional
teachings, and bows, arrows and quivers. They complete a chart and create an
illustration using the information they learn. Next, students read excerpts from
two traditional stories, “Star Husband” and “Seal Hunters.” They write in their
journals about what the stories reveal about traditional hunting, gathering and
food.

Clamming (Baby Island)
Students read several informational texts about the importance of clams for
Tulalip ancestors. They perform a web research task about clams and
clamming. Then they view a Baby Island photo gallery. Students write in their
journals about what they have learned and annotate their journey maps.

Camps (Holmes Harbor)
Students print out the "Whidbey Island Map" and then carefully read an
informational passage. They use the information in the passage to label,
annotate and illustrate the map. Students also view mat house photos and
read information about mat houses. Students write in their journals about what
they have learned and annotate their journey maps.

Portaging Canoes (Greenbank Portage)
Students perform a web research task: they read online about the right way to
portage a canoe. Then they use what they learn to revise an illustration by
adding tumplines. Next students perform a map task: they examine a map to
think about when they would want to use the Greenbank Portage and how it
would help them in their journeys. Students write in their journals about what they
have learned and annotate their journey maps.

Tulalip Timeline (Greenbank)
Student play the Timeline Game to learn about important events in Tulalip
history and where they fit on a timeline. They use the resources on the
Resources Page in order to succeed. After learning about a number of the
important events in Tulalip history, students create their own timeline using the
Timeline Maker. Students select the time range for their timeline as well as the
events they would like to include. They can find appropriate photos from the web
to add to their timeline, write captions and comments, and print out the timelines
to display in class.

Meeting Needs and Wants (Camano Island)
This is a big task because it involves visiting many of the other modules in the
Tulalip Learning Journey and bringing together information about how Tulalip
ancestors met their needs and wants. As students perform this task, they
develop skills that will prepare them for the fifth-grade CBA “Meeting Our Needs
and Wants.” In this task, students consider what they have learned in these
modules about how Tulalip ancestors met their needs and wants (economy).
Students then create a power point show or report in order to present their work
to another class or in the online gallery.

History – The Slide (Camano Head)
Students read two informational texts about the slide at Camano Head. They
also view photos of Camano Head today. They write in their journals about what
they have learned and annotate their journey maps.

Fishing and Gathering (Hat Island)
Students read informational texts about flounder fishing and the connection
between the Snohomish Tribe and Hat Island. They also view photos of Hat
Island. They write in their journals about what they have learned and annotate
their journey maps.

Beach Seining (Spee-bi-dah)
Students visit several web sites to gather information about beach seining. Then
they view photos of Spee-bi-dah. Students write in their journals about what they
have learned and annotate their journey maps.

Cemetery (Mission Beach)
Students read informational texts about the burial customs of Tulalip ancestors
and how Mission Beach served as a cemetery, as well as a location for duck
hunting. Then students view historical photos of ancient canoe burials and
ancient duck hunting technologies. Students write in their journals about what
they have learned and annotate their journey maps.

Treaty (Mukilteo)
Read the Treaty. In this activity students read from the actual Treaty of Pt. Elliot
using the following tools to help them understand it: Glossary—students MOUSE
OVER words to see a glossary that tells you the meaning of each word or
phrase; Paraphrase—students read our paraphrase of the treaty; Notes—
students read explanatory information about the treaty; and Map—students
follow the treaty boundaries on our map.
Map the Treaty. Students use an interactive, historical map to examine the
locations of the tribes that were relocated to Tulalip. Students draw the routes
they think each tribe may have followed to come to Tulaip. Students discuss
these questions: What do you notice about the paths and distances different
tribes must have traveled? What can you infer about the relationships of the
different tribes? Which tribe may have had the easiest move, and which tribe
may have had the hardest adjustment? Why?
Informational Text. Students read the an informational text taken from Ruth
Shelton's History transcribed and translated by Upper Skagit elder Vi Hilbert.
Ruth was born 2 years after the treaty, so she heard stories from her relatives
about what had taken place. Students discuss these questions: What areas did
tribal leaders consider keeping when they gave most of their lands to the United
States government? Why did they finally choose Tulalip as the site for their
reservation?
NorthWest Indian News Video Reports. Students view and discuss reports
from the NorthWest Indian News series: “Reenactment of the Point Elliott
Treaty,” “150th Anniversary of the Treaty of Yakama Commemoration,” “The
Treaty of Neah Bay,” “Rights of Sovereignty,” “Quileute Boundary Dispute,” and
“Tlingit Ancestral Lands in Glacier Bay National Park.”

Lake Stevens
Students read informational texts about fishing and gathering at Lake Stevens.
Then they do web research to learn more about salmonberries. Students write in
their journals about what they have learned and annotate their journey maps.

Hazelnuts (Allen Prairie, near Monroe)
Students read informational texts about the importance of hazelnuts for Tulalip
ancestors. Then they do web research to learn more about invasive, non-native
plants and our native hazelnuts. Next, students view online photos of native
hazelnut bushes. Students write in their journals about what they have learned
and annotate their journey maps.

Woods Creek Cooking Rock Pile (Monroe)
Students read informational texts about the cooking techniques of Tulalip
ancestors. Then they examine diagrams of traditional cooking techniques.
Students write in their journals about what they have learned and annotate their
journey maps.

Rock Fishing Platform (Elwell Creek, near Monroe)
Students read an informational text about how Tulalip ancestors fished from the
rock platforms at Elwell Creek. Then they examine photos of Native fishermen
from the past 100 years fishing from rocks and platforms. After reading the
informational text and examining the photos, students write in their journals about
their thinking.

River Game (Snohomish City)
In this game students pull a canoe up the course of the Snohomish River,
learning the geography of the river and noting Lushootseed names for traditional
locations along the way. At the end of each leg, students view photos of these
traditional locations today. Bonus points are awarded at the end of each leg to
students who correctly answer questions about traditional canoes.

Elk Hunt Game (Sultan)
In this hunting game, students note the traditional way of holding a bow. Students
must do a careful reading of an informational text about hunting to replenish their
arrows at the end of each round.