“Agriculture & the River: A Current of Change”- Midwest Area River Coalition 2000 (MARC 2000)

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NSS-EC.9-12.1 PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES

 

NSS-EC.9-12.2 EFFECTIVE DECISION MAKING

 

NSS-EC.9-12.5 VOLUNTARY EXCHANGE

 

NSS-EC.9-12.6 GAINS FROM TRADE

 

NSS-EC.9-12.8 SUPPLY AND DEMAND

 

NSS-EC.9-12.9 COMPETITION IN THE MARKETPLACE

 

NL-ENG.K-12.1 READING FOR PERSPECTIVE

 

NL-ENG.K-12.2 UNDERSTANDING THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE

 

NL-ENG.K-12.7 EVALUATING DATA

 

NL-ENG.K-12.11 PARTICIPATING IN SOCIETY

What you should know:

 

This video represents the position of the Midwest Area River Coalition on the proposed plan to expand the lock and dam system on the Mississippi River. According to the press materials on the video, "Agriculture & the River: A Current of Change" details the process of transporting the 100+ million tons that move along our rivers each year.  A majority of these barges are carrying the agricultural products so vital to our regional and national economy.  From American farms to destinations all over the world, this video details how those products traverse the 'third coast' of America, the Mississippi River system, keeping American agriculture one of the central tenets of America's economy.”

 

The proposed plan to expand the lock and dam system is one of the most contentious issues facing the river community today. Opinions differ widely on how an expanded lock and dam system would affect the living ecosystem, benefit farmers, impact world markets, and change the river for years to come. The issue is complex, and there will be no simple answers.

 

Questions to ask:

 

• What viewpoints are represented in this video?
• What viewpoints are not represented in this video?
• Who depends on barges to transport goods on the waterways? What business, industries and communities are involved in this issue?
• What kinds of goods are transported, and to where?
• What might happen if barge transport stopped?
• What might happen if barge transport increased?

·       Who in your community is involved in this issue, and how?

 

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

An online report on the “Environmental Advantages of Inland Barge Transportation” at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineer’s web site

http://www.mvr.usace.army.mil/navdata/PDF/EnvironmentalAdvantagesofInlandBargeTransportation.pdf

 

Inland Rivers Ports and Terminals web site, a group representing the barge industry

http://www.irpt.net/irpt.nsf/LinksView/EnvironmentalAdvantages?Opendocument

 

American Rivers web page with information on the environmental effects of commercial navigation on the river

http://amrivers.org/mississippiriver/misscommerce1.htm

 

American Rivers web page with comments on the USACE navigation study

http://amrivers.org/mississippiriver/corpsnavigationstudy.htm

 

Vendor Information

 

Midwest Area River Coalition 2000
906 Olive Street, Suite 1010

St. Louis, MO 63101
314/436.7303

http://www.marc2000.org

Living in the Landscape: Leaving Boundaries Behind" Video

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.2 PLACES AND REGIONS

 

NSS-G.K-12.3 PHYSICAL SYSTEMS

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NS.9-12.1 SCIENCE AS INQUIRY

 

NS.9-12.3 LIFE SCIENCE

 

NS.9-12.4 EARTH AND SPACE SCIENCE

 

NS.9-12.6 PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES

What you should know:

 

This video explores the diversity of Minnesota’s ecosystems, but has relevance for any area within the Upper Mississippi River Valley. Minnesota is home to three of the major biomes of the Upper Midwest- the coniferous forest, the boreal forest or Big Woods, and the tall grass prairie. Using beautiful imagery and original music, the video reveals the subtle beauty of each of the biomes, and the relationships between humans and the landscape over time.

 

Questions to ask:

 

• How are these biomes connected to each other, and how are they distinct and separate?
• In what ways have humans learned to live within these biomes, and how have humans changed them?
• Is it important to preserve these three biomes and why or why not?
• How are the three biomes profiled in this video connected to the river?

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

MN DNR’s Ecosystem Education Program

http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/ecological_services/ecosystemed/index.html

 

Biomes web site from NASA’s Earth Observatory

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Laboratory/Biome/

 

A prairie restoration plan from the North Central Regional Education laboratories

http://www.ncrel.org/mands/FERMI/prairie/Prairie_Res/

 

Native prairie restoration site from the MN DNR

http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/prairierestoration/index.html

 

Prairie restoration site from the Illinois State Museum

http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/prairie/htmls/pr.html

 

 

Vendor Information

 

Minnesota Dept. of Natural Resources

500 Lafayette Road

St. Paul, MN 55155

http://www.dnr.state.mn.us

 

"Moving America's Harvest by Barge" CD-ROM provided by the American Soybean Association

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NSS-EC.9-12.1 PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES

 

NSS-EC.9-12.2 EFFECTIVE DECISION MAKING

 

NSS-EC.9-12.4 POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE INCENTIVES

 

NSS-EC.9-12.5 VOLUNTARY EXCHANGE

 

NSS-EC.9-12.6 GAINS FROM TRADE

 

NSS-EC.9-12.7 MARKETS AND MARKET PRICES

 

NSS-EC.9-12.8 SUPPLY AND DEMAND

 

NSS-EC.9-12.9 COMPETITION IN THE MARKETPLACE

 

NSS-EC.9-12.14 ENTREPRENEURS

 

What you should know:

 

This CD-ROM is produced and distributed by the American Soybean Association (ASA), an industry trade group. Their marketing program, the Soybean Trade Expansion Program (STEP), produced the CD-ROM to educate the public about their position on the proposal to increase the size of the locks on the Mississippi River.

 

According to their web site, “Half the value of the U.S. soybean crop is exported each year, and more than 75 percent of U.S. soybean exports move to world ports via the Upper Mississippi and Illinois River systems.” The inland waterways of the U.S. are an important part of the economic system of the Upper Midwest, but using the rivers as highways carries an environmental cost. The conflicting use of the river is one of the most contentious issues facing us today, and in the near future.

 

 

Questions to ask:

 

• What are the benefits of moving commodities by barge, and what are the costs? What do we gain and what do we lose?
• Is it possible to use the river as a highway, while preserving the ecosystems? How?
• What other issues are similar to this one? Where else is it necessary to balance the needs of the economy with the needs of an ecosystem?
• Who is involved in this issue, and what jobs do they do?

 

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

American Soybean Association’s web site

http://www.soygrowers.com/

 

An article on the environmental costs and benefits of industrial agriculture from the Union of concerned Scientists

http://www.ucsusa.org/food_and_environment/sustainable_agriculture/page.cfm?pageID=350

 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) navigation education web pages

http://education.usace.army.mil/navigation/navigate.html

 

USACE study of navigation on the Mississippi River

http://www2.mvr.usace.army.mil/umr-iwwsns/

 

American Rivers web site, commenting on the USACE navigation study

http://www.americanrivers.org/mississippiriver/corpsnavigationstudy.htm

 

 

Vendor Information

 

American Soybean Association

Soybean Trade Expansion Program

Jill Wagenblast

(800) 688-7692

http://www.soygrowers.com/step/barge.htm

 

"Renewing the River: Rebuilding Habitat on the Upper Mississippi River"- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.3 PHYSICAL SYSTEMS

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NSS-G.K-12.2 PLACES AND REGIONS

 

NS.9-12.3 LIFE SCIENCE

 

What you should know:

 

“Renewing the River: Rebuilding Habitat on the Upper Mississippi River” details the ambitious plan to “draw down” the river to encourage the regrowth of shore plants, and emulate the historic fluctuations in the flow of the river. Before the construction of the locks and dams system, the river flow would seasonally fluctuate, flooding, then drying out, hundreds of miles of shoreline habitat for fish, migrating birds, and resident populations of water fowl. When the locks and dams were constructed, they held the river at unnaturally high and consistent flows, to accommodate barge and recreational boating traffic.

 

The video profiles a project in Pool 8, between LaCrosse and Genoa, WI, that drew down the waters over 18 inches over 40 days in 2001. The project was a remarkable collaborative effort between government, industry, and local citizens, to see if habitat could be restored without major negative effects to human interests along the river. Though the results were mixed, the video tells an important story about cooperation and compromise.

 

Questions to ask:

 

• What is a drawdown?
• What were the impacts of this project, both positive and negative?
• What compromises had to be made in the design and implementation of this project, and why?
• What factors could not be controlled, and why?
• What other projects have you heard about that are similar to this, and what are the similarities and differences?

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

Minnesota DNR

http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/index.html

 

Wisconsin DNR

http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/

 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

http://www.usace.army.mil/

 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

http://www.fws.gov/

 

Articles from the LaCrosse Public Library’s Digital Library Collection, on the river habitat

http://lplcat.lacrosse.lib.wi.us/digitalproject/naturalbeauty.htm

 

Vendor Information

 

Minnesota Dept. of Natural Resources

500 Lafayette Road

St. Paul, MN 55155

http://www.dnr.state.mn.us

 

"The Dakota Conflict" Video

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NL-ENG.K-12.1 READING FOR PERSPECTIVE

 

NL-ENG.K-12.2 UNDERSTANDING THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE

 

NL-ENG.K-12.9 MULTICULTURAL UNDERSTANDING

 

NL-ENG.K-12.11 PARTICIPATING IN SOCIETY

 

NSS-USH.5-12.5 ERA 5: CIVIL WAR AND RECONSTRUCTION (1850-1877)

 

What you should know:

 

People of the Dakota nation lived in the Upper Mississippi River Valley for centuries before Europeans settled there. The coming of the settlers marked an era of strife, conflict and loss for the proud Dakota nation. In 1862, at the height of the Dakota Conflict, as American was becoming embroiled in the Civil War, 38 men were hanged by representatives of the U.S. government, at the order of President Abraham Lincoln. It was the largest mass execution in U.S. history. After the execution, 6,000 Dakota survived by escaping into exile in the West. This video examines this period in history from the Dakota perspective.

Questions to ask:

 

• Why were the Dakota and the settlers at war?
• Who bears the greatest responsibility for the conflict? Why?
• The government commission conducted 393 trials over a six-week period. None of the defendants was represented by counsel. Were the trials of the Dakota men fair? Why?
• When did the conflict end? How did it end?
• What has been the legacy of the Dakota Conflict?

Suggested Web Sites:

 

Chronicle of the Dakota trials, from Douglas Lindner, faculty member at the University of Missouri, Kansas City School of Law

http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/dakota/dakota.html

 

Minnesota Historical Society’s Visual Resources database

http://collections.mnhs.org/visualresources/

 

Dakota Language Homepage

http://www.alliance2k.org/daklang/dakota9463.htm

 

Minnesota Public Radio documentary on the Dakota Conflict

http://news.mpr.org/features/200209/23_steilm_1862-m/

 

 

Vendor Information

 

 

Twin Cities Public Television, Inc.

172 East Fourth Street

St. Paul, 55101

http://www.tpt.org/dakota/

"The Mighty Mississippi: A Balance of Integrity" Video- Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.3 PHYSICAL SYSTEMS

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NSS-G.K-12.2 PLACES AND REGIONS

 

NSS-EC.9-12.2 EFFECTIVE DECISION MAKING

 

NSS-EC.9-12.1 PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES

 

NL-ENG.K-12.3 EVALUATION STRATEGIES

What you should know:

 

This video, from the Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee, makes a strong case for compromise as industry, recreation and environmental interests pursue their often-conflicting agendas in the Upper Mississippi River Valley. The video looks back in time through the history of development along the river to explore how industry developed at the expense of the ecological river, and looks forward to explore how to find a balance among the competing interests. Sedimentation, water quality, commercial navigation, hydropower, recreation and what the future might hold are all considered.

Questions to ask:

 

• What are the major interests competing for use of the river?
• What services do these interests require, and what services do they offer?
• How would you prioritize these interests, and why?
• What kinds of solutions can you come up with to achieve a “balance of integrity?”
• Who in your area is working on these issues?

Suggested Web Sites:

 

Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee

http://www.mississippi-river.com/umrcc/

 

Report- “A River that Works and a Working River” on the conflicting interests vying for the river

http://www.mississippi-river.com/umrcc/pdf/A%20RIVER%20THAT%20WORKS.pdf

 

Great River Greening, St. Paul, MN

http://www.greatrivergreening.org/

 

River Action, Davenport, IA

http://www.riveraction.org/

 

Vendor Information

 

Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee (UMRCC)

John Duyvejonck

4469 48th Ave. Ct.

Rock Island, IL 61201

http://www.mississippi-river.com/umrcc/

 

"Wacipi Powwow" Video and Teacher's Guide

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.4 HUMAN SYSTEMS

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NL-ENG.K-12.1 READING FOR PERSPECTIVE

 

NL-ENG.K-12.2 UNDERSTANDING THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE

What you should know:

 

The Dakota people are among the original people of the Upper Mississippi River Valley, and have a long and proud relationship to the river. Wacipi Powwow is a powerful documentary of the traditional Dakota gathering, a celebration of family, community and culture. In this video, members of the Dakota nation tell their own stories, sing their songs, dance traditional dances and offer an intimate look at deeply held values and beliefs of the Dakota nation. The video is colorful, joyous, and exciting to watch. The subjects on this video include:

 

• The spiritual significance of the powwow;
• The community significance of the powwow;
• The Native American struggle for cultural identity; and
• The stories of the beginnings of powwows and Native American dances.

 

Questions to ask:

 

·       What are the purposes of, and reasons for, the powwow?

·       How do you celebrate the kinds of things the Dakota celebrate in their powwow?

·       How are the beliefs and traditions of the Dakota similar to your traditions?

·       What are some of the struggles the Dakota have faced?

·       How are these struggles similar or different to the struggles you face?

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

KTCA’s web site supporting Wacipi Powwow, with information on many of the traditions explored in the video.

http://www.ktca.org/powwow/index.html

 

An online report from the Mahkato Mdewakanton Association on the background of the annual powwow in Mankato.

http://www.turtletrack.org/MahkatoWacipi/Press/July272002.htm

 

See also the Mahkato Mdewakanton Association’s page on Mahkato Education Day.

http://www.turtletrack.org/MahkatoWacipi/Education.htm

 

The Gathering of Nations Powwow web site

http://www.gatheringofnations.com/

 

Vendor Information

 

Twin Cities Public Television, Inc.

172 East Fourth Street

St. Paul, 55101

http://www.tpt.org/powwow/index.html

 

 

A Brief History of the Steamboat War Eagle

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-USH.5-12.4 ERA 4: EXPANSION AND REFORM (1801-1861)

 

NSS-USH.5-12.5 ERA 5: CIVIL WAR AND RECONSTRUCTION (1850-1877)

 

What you should know:

 

The Steamboat the War Eagle was the lead boat in the original Excursion of 1854, carrying many of the politicians and dignitaries involved, including President Millard Fillmore. In later years, it was called the President’s Boat. In 1870, the steamboat, burned and sank, killing five people in the awful conflagration. The LaCrosse County Historical Society published this pamphlet as part of their effort to raise and restore the remains of the War Eagle.

 

Questions to ask:

 

• What was the role of steamboats in developing towns along the river?
• What role did steamboats play in the Civil War?
• Why were steamboats dangerous to operate?
• Why would people want to raise and preserve the wreck of the War Eagle?

 

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

Steamboats.com is a site dedicated to paddlewheel riverboats

http://www.steamboats.com

 

Online demonstration of how a steam engine works

http://twaintimes.net/boat/sbpage3a.htm

 

An incredible Steamboat web site from Germany

http://www.steamboats.org/

 

Steamboats.org offers an interactive tour of a virtual steamboat

http://www.steamboats.org/eexplore.htm

 

Vendor Information

 

LaCrosse Historical Society

Robert Taunt

608.785.9635

taunt.robert@lacrossecounty.org

 

A River That Works and A Working River ­ The Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.2 PLACES AND REGIONS

 

NSS-G.K-12.3 PHYSICAL SYSTEMS

 

NSS-G.K-12.4 HUMAN SYSTEMS

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NSS-G.K-12.6 THE USES OF GEOGRAPHY

 

NSS-EC.5-8.1 PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES

 

NSS-EC.5-8.2 EFFECTIVE DECISION MAKING

 

NSS-EC.5-8.3 ALLOCATING GOODS AND SERVICES

 

NSS-EC.5-8.7 MARKETS AND MARKET PRICES

 

NS.5-8.1 SCIENCE AS INQUIRY

 

NS.5-8.3 LIFE SCIENCE

 

NS.5-8.6 PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES

 

NL-ENG.K-12.3 EVALUATION STRATEGIES

 

What you should know:

 

This report by the Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee details how this “nation has benefited from natural and economic resources of the Upper Mississippi River System (UMRS)”. It also discusses how the country continues to compromise that “natural resources system, or ecosystem” and discusses the necessary and recommended corrective policies and actions to return the UMRS to a healthy state.

 

This report was a joint project of the Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee, the Minnesota ­ Wisconsin Boundary Commission, Dan McGuiness and the National Audubon Society with funding provided by both the McKnight Foundation and the US Environmental Protection Agency, and represents the opposing position stated in the video, ““Agriculture & the River: A Current of Change”- Midwest Area River Coalition 2000 (MARC 2000),

 

Questions to ask:

 

• What viewpoints are represented in this report?
• What was the river itself like before the locks and dams?
• How has the vegetation and animal life in and near the river changed after installation of the locks and dams?

·       How are communities effected by these changes and issues, in what ways, and to what degrees?

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee:

http://www.mississippi-river.com/umrcc/

 

Online copy of the report: A River That Works and A Working River ­ The Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee

http://www.mississippi-river.com/umrcc/pdf/A%20RIVER%20THAT%20WORKS.pdf

 

Big River links to Upper Mississippi River resources:

http://www.big-river.com/index.html

http://www.big-river.com/bigriverlinks.html

 

Sierra Club, North Star Chapter, with comments and reports on ecological effects of river traffic and locks and dams:

http://www.northstar.sierraclub.org/

http://www.northstar.sierraclub.org/mr_mississippi_river.htm

 

Vendor Information:

 

Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee

4469 48^th Avenue Court

Rock Island, IL 61201

309.793.5800 ext. 522

umrcc@mississippi-river.com

 

 

A Thousand Friends of Frogs Activity Guide

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NS.9-12.6 PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES

 

NS.9-12.3 LIFE SCIENCE

What you should know:

 

Besides being a charismatic animal that naturally excites the interest and concern of students of all ages, frogs are a critical bio-indicator species. The health of frog populations gives us important information about the health of the ecosystems in which they live. At present, frog populations around the world are in decline, and the incidence of malformities is on the rise. Frog populations are threatened by habitat loss and degradation, loss of atmospheric ozone, disease, increase in pollution, and overuse of pesticides. This activity guide offers lesson plans to help your students understand the role of the frog in the ecosystem, and why it is such an important species.

Questions to ask:

 

·       What are the characteristics of frogs?

·       Where does a frog fit into the food chain? What does a frog eat, and what eats a frog?

·       What frogs live in your area?

·       Why are frogs considered to be an “indicator” species?

·       Who in your area works with frog populations?

Suggested Web Sites:

 

A Thousand Friends of Frogs

http://cgee.hamline.edu/frogs/

 

Minnesota Dept. of Natural Resources Frog Pages

http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/reptiles_amphibians/frogs_toads/saving.html

 

North American Amphibian Monitoring Program

http://www.im.nbs.gov/amphibs.html

 

Missouri Botanical Gardens Aquatic Critters

http://mbgnet.mobot.org/fresh/slide/intro.htm

 

An online article from Scientific American about frog deformities

http://www.sciam.com/print_version.cfm?articleID=000D5DCC-CA4A-1E1C-8B3B809EC588EEDF

Vendor Information

 

Center for Global Environmental Education

Hamline University

1536 Hewitt Ave. MS-A1760

St. Paul, MN 55104-1284

http://cgee.hamline.edu/

 

Big River Reader: An Anthology of Stories about the Upper Mississippi, from the First Four Years of Big River

 

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NL-ENG.K-12.1 READING FOR PERSPECTIVE

 

NL-ENG.K-12.2 UNDERSTANDING THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

What you should know:

 

The Big River Reader is published by Big River, a magazine devoted to the “Upper Mississippi River, for people who live, work and play on the river.” This edition of the Big River Reader was reprinted especially for the River Exploration Trunks. The Big River magazine, and the stories in the Big River Reader, are gleaned from sources along the river between the Twin Cites and Davenport, IA, the same reach of the river that saw the boats in the original Excursion of 1854, and will see the 2004 Grand Flotilla. These stories offer a rich local context for information, story ideas, inquiry questions and native knowledge for teachers in schools all along the river.

 

 

Questions to ask:

 

·       What can you see, hear, smell, taste and feel along a river?

·       How do people use natural resources along the river where you live?

·       What kinds of experiences have you had on the river that could become bigger stories?

·       What are the most interesting animals, plants, occupations, people, or experiences you have seen along the river? Why?

 

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

Big River Magazine’s web site

http://www.big-river.com/

 

National Geographic's annual conservation public-awareness campaign

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/geographyaction/

 

The Rivers of Life online “River Voices” Gallery, with stories from a wide variety of river authors, along with suggestions for student writing assignments

http://cgee.hamline.edu/rivers/Resources/Voices/toc.htm

 

River of Words is an international environmental art and poetry program created to promote watershed awareness, literacy, and the arts

http://www.riverofwords.org/

Vendor Information

 

Big River Magazine

Reggie McLeod, Editor

111 Riverfront, Suite 204

P.O. Box 204

Winona, MN 55987

http://www.big-river.com/

 

Buttons of Native Mississippi River Mussels

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-EC.9-12.5 VOLUNTARY EXCHANGE

 

NSS-EC.9-12.6 GAINS FROM TRADE

 

NSS-EC.9-12.7 MARKETS AND MARKET PRICES

 

NSS-EC.9-12.8 SUPPLY AND DEMAND

 

NSS-EC.9-12.9 COMPETITION IN THE MARKETPLACE

 

NSS-EC.9-12.14 ENTREPRENEURS

 

NSS-G.K-12.4 HUMAN SYSTEMS

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

What you should know:

 

The button on this card is from the Blumenthal Lansing Button Company, and is part of a cluster of resources about freshwater mussels and the button industry. The button industry was once one of the major industries in river towns south of Red Wing, and some of the button companies survive to this day. Freshwater mussels need clean water to survive. In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s as St. Paul, MN grew, and the amount of raw sewage dumped into the river increased, freshwater mussel populations had a difficult time reproducing in the polluted waters south of the metropolitan area. Pollutants settled to the bottom of the river channel around the Red Wing area, and south of there, mussel populations thrived. The button, and the history of the company that makes the buttons are included to give your students an opportunity to touch a part of the living history of industry on the river.

 

Questions to ask:

 

·       Who used these buttons as the business changed over the years?

·       Who collected the shells? How?

·       What was done with the “meat” of the mussels collected for buttons?

·       What do freshwater mussels need to survive?

·       What kinds of freshwater mussels live in your area?

·       Who in your community works with freshwater mussel populations?

·       What industries in your community use the natural resources of the river? How?

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

History of John Boepple-Father of Muscatine's Pearl Button Industry

http://www.muscatine.k12.ia.us/was/History/pearlbuttons/contents.htm

 

Fun With Freshwater Mussels

http://www.uvm.edu/~pass/tignor/mussels/index.htm

 

Environmental Education for Kids (EEK) from Wisconsin Dept. of Natural Resources

http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/caer/ce/eek/critter/watercritter/mussel.htm

 

Buglopedia

http://www.bugsurvey.nsw.gov.au/html/popups/bpedia_14_tol_fr-mu.html

 

 

Vendor Information

Blumenthal Lansing Company

1929 Main Street, Lansing, IA 52151

http://buttonsplus.com/

 

Calls of Minnesota's Frogs & Toads (audio CD) from Minnesota Frog Watch

 

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NS.9-12.6 PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES

 

NS.9-12.1 SCIENCE AS INQUIRY

 

What you should know:

 

Besides being a charismatic animal that naturally excites the interest and concern of students of all ages, frogs are a critical bio-indicator species. The health of frog populations gives us important information about the health of the ecosystems in which they live. At present, frog populations around the world are in decline, and the incidence of malformities is on the rise. Frog populations are threatened by habitat loss and degradation, loss of atmospheric ozone, disease, increase in pollution, and overuse of pesticides. The CD, “Calls of Minnesota's Frogs & Toads” can help you and your students learn to identify different types of frog species by the calls they make. Volunteers in the MN Frog Watch, a citizen-monitoring network that annually surveys frog populations in MN, use this CD to learn to identify frogs by the sounds of their calls.

 

Questions to ask:

 

·       What are the characteristics of frogs?

·       Where does a frog fit into the food chain? What does a frog eat, and what eats a frog?

·       Why do frogs call?

·       What frogs live in your area?

·       Who in your area works with frog populations?

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

A Thousand Friends of Frogs

http://cgee.hamline.edu/frogs/

 

Minnesota Dept. of Natural Resources Frog Pages

http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/reptiles_amphibians/frogs_toads/saving.html

 

North American Amphibian Monitoring Program

http://www.im.nbs.gov/amphibs.html

 

Missouri Botanical Gardens Aquatic Critters

http://mbgnet.mobot.org/fresh/slide/intro.htm

 

Vendor Information

 

Center for Global Environmental Education

Hamline University

1536 Hewitt Ave. MS-A1760

St. Paul, MN 55104-1284

http://cgee.hamline.edu/

 

Earth Force: Low Cost Water Monitoring Kit

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NS.9-12.6 PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NS.9-12.3 LIFE SCIENCE

What you should know:

 

The quality of our waters is a reflection of the quality of our lives. Without clean water, there is no hope of good health, a vibrant economy, a healthy ecosystem, plentiful food, or any of the other factors that contribute to the quality of life for residents of a community, a watershed, or a nation. There is no substitute for clean water.

 

Testing and evaluating the quality of your water is the first step in improving the quality of local waters. Around the nation and around the world, citizen-monitoring networks are forming to take responsibility and control of monitoring water. By engaging your students in simple water monitoring protocols, you give them the knowledge they need to have a voice in the growing discussion of how clean we want our waters to be.

 

Questions to ask:

 

·       How clean is our water, and how clean is clean enough?

·       Is the water clean enough for native populations of fish?

·       Can we drink the water right out of the nearby river or stream? Why, or why not?

·       Where does our drinking water come from?

·       What factors in our community influence the quality of the water?

·       How could we clean up our water?

·       What might happen to your community if the water became more polluted?

 

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

Global Rivers Environmental Education Network (GREEN)

http://green.org/

Don’t miss the GREEN resources page

http://www.green.org/resources/

 

Earthforce, a national service-learning organization

www.earthforce.org

 

River Network, a citizen water-monitoring network

http://www.rivernetwork.org/

 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Water

http://www.epa.gov/OW/

 

Vendor Information

 

Global Rivers Environmental Education Network (GREEN)

1908 Mount Vernon Avenue, Second Floor

Alexandria, VA 22301

http://green.org/

 

Exploration of the Mississippi River Activity Guide- WI DNR & Sport Fish Restoration

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NS.9-12.6 PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES

 

NS.9-12.3 LIFE SCIENCE

 

What you should know:

 

The activities in this guide are original activities developed for teaching using the Mississippi River as a context, or have been adapted from Project Wild Aquatic or Project WET. The guide contains background information, activities and lesson plans, extensions and is a comprehensive guide to teaching with the river as a focus.

 

A guide such as this can seem a bit overwhelming at first. There is so much information in this resource it might be hard to find your way around in it. But, if you are in need of an active, hands-on lesson plan, this is a great place to start.

 

Questions to ask are included with each activity in this guide

Suggested Web Sites:

 

Wisconsin DNR’s Education web site

http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/kidstuff/

 

Minnesota DNR’s Education web site

http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/es/index.html

 

Iowa DNR’s Education web site

http://www.iowadnr.com/education/index.html

 

Illinois DNR’s Education web site

http://dnr.state.il.us/lands/education/index.htm

 

Project WILD

http://www.projectwild.org/

 

Project WET

http://www.projectwet.org/

Vendor Information

Jeff Janvrin

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

101 S Webster St
PO Box 7921
Madison Wisconsin
53707-7921

http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/

 

Land of the Spotted Eagle by Luther Standing Bear

 

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NL-ENG.K-12.9 MULTICULTURAL UNDERSTANDING

 

NL-ENG.K-12.2 UNDERSTANDING THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE

 

NL-ENG.K-12.1 READING FOR PERSPECTIVE

 

NSS-USH.K-4.2 THE HISTORY OF STUDENTS' OWN STATE OR REGION

 

What you should know:

 

Luther Standing Bear was raised in the traditional ways of his people, the Lakota. He was away from the Pine Ridge Sioux Reservation in South Dakota for sixteen years before returning in 1931. Soon after his return he wrote, “Land of the Spotted Eagle.”

 

The story is sad, in many ways; the author looks at his people, and their relations with the government of the whites. From his perspective, his peoples’ lands were stolen, and his culture, language and rituals denigrated. Though these times represent a difficult part of our historical relationship with the native people of the Upper Mississippi River basin, it is important to hear their perspective.

 

The book is advanced for students in grades 3-5, but is included as a resource for teachers. It can be read aloud, in whole or in part, to give students a first-person account of growing up in the Lakota tradition and culture.

 

Questions to ask:

 

·       Describe several ways that the Lakota culture is different than your culture.

·       Describe several ways that Lakota culture is the same as your culture.

·       What games do the children of the Lakota play, and how are they similar to games you play?

·       What do the children of the Lakota like to eat, and how are these foods and treats similar to yours?

·       What kinds of celebrations do the Lakota have, and how are they similar to yours?

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

Other stories shared by Dakota and Lakota men and women, from the University of Nebraska Press online

http://www.blackelkspeaks.unl.edu/LakotaLives.html

 

Voices From the Western Frontier- Newspaper articles about the Lakota nation

http://www.rootsweb.com/~nalakota/indexhome.html

 

Lakota na Dakota Wowapi Oti Kin (Lakota Dakota Information Home Page)

http://puffin.creighton.edu/lakota/index.html

 

Lakota and Dakota Lives- Books by and about the Lakota and Dakota people

http://www.blackelkspeaks.unl.edu/LakotaLives.html

 

Vendor Information

 

University of Nebraska Press

233 North 8th St

Lincoln NE 68588-0255

http://nebraskapress.unl.edu/

 

Mahkato Wacipi- Music CD ROM

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NL-ENG.K-12.9 MULTICULTURAL UNDERSTANDING

What you should know:

 

This audio CD is a recording of the songs, dances and stories of a two-day Wacipi, or powwow, held in Southern Minnesota; an event of forgiveness and reconciliation. In 1862, at the height of the Dakota Conflict, 38 men were hanged by representatives of the U.S. government. The two-day powwow, held as part of the 1987 Year of Reconciliation, marked a turning away from animosity, to a healing process between cultures. This recording commemorates this important event in modern relations between the Dakota and the American nations.

 

Questions to ask:

 

• What do the Dakota sing about?
• How are their songs similar and different than those of your culture?
• Why is music so important to people of the Dakota nation?
• What is reconciliation, and why was it so hard for the Dakota and the American nations to reconcile?

 

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

The web site of the Mahkato Mdewakanton Association, honoring the 38 Dakota executed

http://www.turtletrack.org/MahkatoWacipi/index.htm

 

Web site for “From the Top,” dedicated to young classical musicians.

http://www.fromthetop.org/default.html

 

An online multimedia project from Dakota Meadows Middle School, Mankato, MN, about the Dakota Conflict of 1862

http://www.isd77.k12.mn.us/schools/dakota/conflict/history.htm

 

Learn more about Charles Eastman, a Dakota whose family was killed in the great conflict of 1862

http://www.worldwisdom.com/Public/SlideShows/SlideShow.asp?SlideShowID=3&SlideDetailID=3

 

Vendor Information

 

American Composer Forum

332 Minnesota Street, E-145

Saint Paul, MN 55101

http://www.innova.mu

Manager For a Day in a National Wildlife Refuge Complex

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-C.9-12.1 CIVIC LIFE, POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

 

NSS-C.9-12.3 PRINCIPLES OF DEMOCRACY

 

NSS-C.9-12.5 ROLES OF THE CITIZEN

What you should know:

 

In August and September of 2002, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service held a series of twelve meetings during which citizens identified hundreds of concerns about how wildlife and fish refuges are managed, and will be managed in the future. These concerns were consolidated into 12 issue areas, and are represented in this resource by one-page fact sheets. By having small groups of students represent, and argue for, each issue or perspective, your students can experience the difficult compromises that refuge managers must make as they try and balance the many interests competing for the use of the river. This resource is a useful hands-on accompaniment to the video, “The Mighty Mississippi: A Balance of Integrity.”

Questions to ask:

• What must be done to restore ecosystems within the various refuges along the river, and at what cost?
• Who benefits from the restoration, and who bears the costs?
• In what ways can community volunteers be engaged in restoration efforts?
• What kinds of invasive species threaten refuge ecosystems?
• What kind of plan can you develop to remove invasive species?
• How would you manage fire in the refuge?
• What challenges does this kind of planning present?

Suggested Web Sites:

 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

http://www.fws.gov/

 

Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee

http://www.mississippi-river.com/umrcc/

 

Report- “A River that Works and a Working River” on the conflicting interests vying for the river

http://www.mississippi-river.com/umrcc/pdf/A%20RIVER%20THAT%20WORKS.pdf

 

Great River Greening, St. Paul, MN

http://www.greatrivergreening.org/

 

River Action, Davenport, IA

http://www.riveraction.org/

Vendor Information

Cynthia Samples

Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge

51 E. 4th Street, Room 111

Winona, MN 55987

 

Mississippi Blue

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.2 PLACES AND REGIONS

 

NA-VA.9-12.2 USING KNOWLEDGE OF STRUCTURES AND FUNCTIONS

 

NA-VA.9-12.3 CHOOSING AND EVALUATING A RANGE OF SUBJECT MATTER, SYMBOLS, AND IDEAS

 

NA-VA.9-12.4 UNDERSTANDING THE VISUAL ARTS IN RELATION TO HISTORY AND CULTURES

 

What you should know:

 

In the 1870’s, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers were preparing to resurvey the Mississippi River, in order to create new maps of the twisting, complex waterway. To facilitate the mapping, Henry Peter Bosse was hired to photograph the river, documenting the dynamic system. The river Bosse photographed is essentially the same river that Mark Twain navigated as a steamboat captain.

 

The book, “Mississippi Blue,” is a compilation and commentary on both Bosse and his photographs of the river. Along with the photographs, the author has included several articles from periodicals published between the 1870s and the early 1900s. The articles provide a cultural context to the photographs, and offer a glimpse into the times and events of the photographer.

 

“Mississippi Blue” was generously donated to the River Exploration Trunks by the author, Charles Wehrenburg.

 

Questions to ask:

 

• In what ways are mapping and photography connected?
• How are cyanotypes made?
• Look at the photos of the stretch of river nearest your town. In what ways has the river changed since these photographs were taken?
• In what ways can photography help us track the development of and changes in culture?

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers site on Henry Peter Bosse’s photographs

http://www.mvr.usace.army.mil/bosse/bosse.htm

 

Chemistry and Art- the cyanotype process

http://www.sewanee.edu/Chem/Chem&Art/Detail_Pages/Laboratory/Photography/Cyano_VanDyke/cyano_vandyke_lab.htm

 

 

Vendor Information

 

Twin Palms Publishing

PO Box 10229

54 1/2 East San Francisco St.

Santa Fe, NM 87501

 

Mississippi River Brochure and Trail Guide - Mississippi National River and Recreation Area (MNRRA) of the National Park Service (NPS)

These resources can be used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.1 THE WORLD IN SPATIAL TERMS

 

NSS-G.K-12.2 PLACES AND REGIONS

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NSS-G.K-12.6 THE USES OF GEOGRAPHY

 

What you should know:

 

The Mississippi River Brochure and the Trail Guide of the Minneapolis/Saint Paul Area are easy-to-use, compact references that describe the trails and roads running through the nationally significant gorge area of the Upper Mississippi River.

 

MNRRA is a unique in the National Park system. The Mississippi River Brochure illustrates the fact that the Recreation Area has no definitive boundaries, but is a patchwork of public and private lands along a 72-mile stretch of river. The Trail Guide offers a section-by-section tour of the area on both sides of the river.

 

Questions to ask:

 

• Why did Congress designate this section of the river as a National Park?
• What groups and individuals played a part in lobbying Congress for the designation?
• What makes this park different from other National Parks?
• What kinds of wildlife live in this park? Are these species different than those that live along your stretch of the river?
• What are some of the different ecosystems you might find along the river? Are they similar to the ecosystems along your stretch of the river?
• What kinds of industry will you see long this stretch of river? Do you have similar industries where you live?

Suggested Web Sites:

 

The Mississippi National River and Recreation Area web site

http://www.nps.gov/miss/

 

Audubon’s Upper Mississippi River Campaign web site

http://www.audubon.org/campaign/umr/

 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s “Surf Your Watershed” site

http://www.epa.gov/surf/

Vendor Information

Mississippi National River and Recreation Area (MNRRA)

111 E Kellogg Blvd

St. Paul, MN 55101-1256

http://www.nps.gov/miss/

 

 

Mississippi National River and Recreation Area of the National Park Service Posters (MNRRA NPS Posters)

These resources can be used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.1 THE WORLD IN SPATIAL TERMS

 

NSS-G.K-12.2 PLACES AND REGIONS

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NSS-G.K-12.6 THE USES OF GEOGRAPHY

 

What you should know:

 

The large, colorful posters can be used in conjunction with several other resources in your trunk. Published by the National Park Service, the posters are large, easy-to-read and offer a visual tool to enhance your exploration of the history of the river. Each of the four posters in the set looks at a different part of the river system- the ecosystem, the cultural history and the industry of the area. Use the posters as exemplars for student assessment, to add visual interest to your classroom, or as resources for a scavenger hunt.

 

 

Questions to ask:

 

• What are some of the different features of ecosystems along the river, and how are they different?
• What caused caves to form along the river, and how have the caves been used over time?
• What kinds of natural resources were important to Dakota life along the river, and in what ways were they important?
• How did industry move up the river? What kinds of industries developed along the river?

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

The Mississippi National River and Recreation Area web site- maps section

http://www.nps.gov/miss/maps/index.html

 

A short history of Little Crow, of the Kaposia band, written by his son, Ohiyesa, (Charles Eastman)

http://www.indigenouspeople.net/littcrow.htm

 

History of Lambert’s Landing, from the MNRRA web site

http://www.nps.gov/miss/maps/model/lambert.html

 

History of Fountain Cave, from the MNRRA web site

http://www.nps.gov/miss/maps/model/fountain.html

 

Mississippi River history from the Padelford Packet Boat Co.

http://www.riverrides.com/pages/About_Us/about_riverhistory.html

Vendor Information

Mississippi National River and Recreation Area (MNRRA)

111 E Kellogg Blvd

St. Paul, MN 55101-1256

http://www.nps.gov/miss/

 

Muscatine, Iowa Shells in a Bag

 

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NSS-EC.9-12.1 PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES

 

What you should know:

 

This sample of mussel shell middens is part of a broad collection of resources on the freshwater mussel. The cooperative, volunteer efforts of many people from river towns between Lansing, IA and Muscatine, IA were tapped in order to locate and gather the shells included in your trunk. While once these shells lined the riverbanks, serving as a reminder of the once thriving button industry, the shells have become much more rare. Redevelopment efforts in towns along the Mississippi have buried or crushed most of them. Because these are river artifacts, there is no vendor listed.

 

The button industry was once a major part of the economy of many towns along the river. The shells you have illustrate how buttons blanks were cut out of the mussel shells. Freshwater mussels are an important indicator species, thriving only in unpolluted waters. The health of freshwater mussel populations has much to tell us about the health of the river. Currently, pollution, dams, dredging, and invader species like the zebra mussel and the Asian clam threaten freshwater mussels.

Questions to ask:

 

• What are the characteristics of the freshwater mussel?
• What is the role of the freshwater mussel in local ecosystems?
• What is the role of the freshwater mussel in local food webs?
• What species of freshwater mussels live in your area?
• Who collected the mussel shells to make buttons?
• What happened to the “meat” of the mussel after the shells were collected?
• Who in your local community works with freshwater mussel populations?

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

Fun With Freshwater Mussels

http://www.uvm.edu/~pass/tignor/mussels/index.htm

 

Freshwater Mussel Lesson Plan

http://www.sdafs.org/nongame/musselworkshop.pdf

 

Environmental Education for Kids (EEK) from Wisconsin Dept. of Natural Resources

http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/caer/ce/eek/critter/watercritter/mussel.htm

 

Buglopedia

http://www.bugsurvey.nsw.gov.au/html/popups/bpedia_14_tol_fr-mu.html

 

Missouri Botanical Gardens Aquatic Critters

http://mbgnet.mobot.org/fresh/slide/intro.htm

 

 

NCGA The World of Corn Report

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-EC.9-12.1 PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES

 

NSS-EC.9-12.2 EFFECTIVE DECISION MAKING

 

NSS-EC.9-12.3 ALLOCATING GOODS AND SERVICES

 

NSS-EC.9-12.5 VOLUNTARY EXCHANGE

 

NSS-EC.9-12.6 GAINS FROM TRADE

 

NSS-EC.9-12.7 MARKETS AND MARKET PRICES

 

NSS-EC.9-12.8 SUPPLY AND DEMAND

 

NSS-EC.9-12.9 COMPETITION IN THE MARKETPLACE

 

NSS-EC.9-12.14 ENTREPRENEURS

 

NL-ENG.K-12.3 EVALUATION STRATEGIES

 

NL-ENG.K-12.1 READING FOR PERSPECTIVE

What you should know:

 

“The World of Corn” is an industry brochure from the National Corn Growers Association that profiles some of the individuals working in the production of corn in the U.S. along with industry figures on U.S. corn production and consumption. It is part of a collection of resources on industries related to the river.

 

Questions to ask:

 

• How are corn and the river connected?

• What are the environmental costs and benefits to growing corn?
• If corn is produced in your community, where is it consumed, and by whom?
• What are some of the products produced from corn? Are any of those products produced in your community?

Suggested Web Sites:

 

National Corn Growers Association

http://ncga.com

 

The American Corn Growers Association

http://www.acga.org/

 

The costs and benefits of industrial agriculture, from the Union of Concerned Scientists

http://www.ucsusa.org/food_and_environment/sustainable_agriculture/page.cfm?pageID=350

 

Vendor Information

 

National Corn Growers Association

1000 Executive Parkway, Suite 105

St. Louis, MO 63141-6397

http://ncga.com

 

Northern Plains Archive Project Maps

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.2 PLACES AND REGIONS

 

NL-ENG.K-12.9 MULTICULTURAL UNDERSTANDING

 

NSS-G.K-12.4 HUMAN SYSTEMS

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

What you should know:

 

This packet of maps contains reproductions of five maps that were hand drawn between 1685 and the 1870s. They show the progression of knowledge acquired as European cultures explored North America, and as those cultures developed a mechanism with which to compute longitude.

 

The maps offer a glimpse into how North America was uncovered, how understandings changed, how treaties were negotiated, and how our nation grew. There is an enormous amount of detail in these maps. Consider scanning them, and enlarging sections of them to learn more about the handwritten notations on the maps.

 

It is highly recommended that you laminate your maps to increase their life expectancies.

Questions to ask:

 

• How was mapping done before explorers could measure longitude?
• Did mapmakers always strive for absolute accuracy, or was there benefit to obscuring or misrepresenting land areas?
• Why were maps so important to earlier governments? Why are they important now?
• How is mapping an art, and how is mapping a science?

Suggested Web Sites:

 

Northern Plains Archive Project web site

http://www.hiddenhistory.com/home1.htm

 

The David Rumsey Historic Map collection web site has over 8,800 historic maps online

http://www.davidrumsey.com/

 

The Darkwing Atlas Project from the University of Oregon

http://www.uoregon.edu/~atlas/

 

Historical Maps and charts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

http://chartmaker.ncd.noaa.gov/csdl/ctp/abstract.htm

 

Historic map collections from the Library of Congress

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gmdhtml/gmdhome.html

 

Index of map image sites, hosted by the WWW-Virtual Library

http://ihr.sas.ac.uk/maps/webimages.html

 

 

Vendor Information

 

Northern Plains Archive Project

http://www.hiddenhistory.com/home1.htm

 

Ojibway Music From Minnesota: A Century of Song for Voice and Drum

 

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NA-M.K-4.6 LISTENING TO, ANALYZING, AND DESCRIBING MUSIC

 

NA-M.K-4.9 UNDERSTANDING MUSIC IN RELATION TO HISTORY AND CULTURE

 

NL-ENG.K-12.9 MULTICULTURAL UNDERSTANDING

 

NSS-USH.K-4.2 THE HISTORY OF STUDENTS' OWN STATE OR REGION

 

What you should know:

 

Music is an important part of every culture, and Ojibway music is no exception. To European ears, Ojibway music might sound unfamiliar, but the songs are complex, distinctive and evocative. Because music is such an important part of our relationship to rivers, the music of the Ojibway is one of a collection of audio CDs that capture early music, and trace the development of Ojibway songs over time.

 

Questions to ask:

 

• How are these songs similar to and different than songs from your culture?
• What kinds of instruments did the Ojibway use in their earliest songs, and what kinds of instruments do they use now? Are these similar to instruments you recognize from your own musical traditions?
• What are the songs about? Can you describe the emotions of these songs?

 

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

Minnesota Historical Society ordering information for “Ojibway Music From Minnesota: A Century of Song for Voice and Drum”

http://www.mnhs.org/market/mhspress/0132.html

 

Turtle Island Productions music web site

http://www.turtle-island.com/music.html

 

PBS’ “River of Song” web site, featuring articles about river music, and the music itself, including music from the Ojibway

http://www.pbs.org/riverofsong/music/e1-articles.html

 

Online listing of Native American Music, from Swarthmore College

http://www.swarthmore.edu/Library/underhill/Music/natives.html

 

Online publication exploring traditions of Native powwows, from the University of Illinois Press

http://www.press.uillinois.edu/epub/books/browner/ch1.html

 

 

Vendor Information

 

Minnesota Historical Society Press

345 Kellogg Blvd. West

St. Paul, Minnesota 55102-1906

http://www.mnhs.org/market/mhspress/0132.html

Science Museum of Minnesota Topographical and Aerial Maps

 

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.1 THE WORLD IN SPATIAL TERMS

 

NSS-G.K-12.2 PLACES AND REGIONS

 

NSS-G.K-12.3 PHYSICAL SYSTEMS

 

NSS-G.K-12.4 HUMAN SYSTEMS

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NSS-G.K-12.6 THE USES OF GEOGRAPHY

 

What you should know:

 

The Science Museum of Minnesota has created these custom maps for each of the schools receiving a trunk from the Grand Excursion, Inc. Using data from the U.S Geological Survey, provided by the Dept. of Natural Resources in each of the four states participating in the Grand Excursion, the maps show the area around each school in both topographical and aerial views.

 

The aerial photography dates from 1991. Schools built after 1991 will not appear on the maps, but you should be able to find the location of your school building and any buildings that surround it that were constructed prior to 1991.

 

Questions to ask:

 

• How are the two maps the same, and how are they different?
• What shaped the land?
• Where do people live on the land around your school, and where do they not live? Why?
• Can you trace the flow of water through the area around your school?
• What are the different ways land is used around your school? Has land use changed over time?

 

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

Science Museum of Minnesota

http://www.smm.org/

 

Online aerial and satellite photography

http://terraserver-usa.com/

 

USGS site on reading topographical maps

http://mac.usgs.gov/isb/pubs/booklets/symbols/

 

Vendor Information

 

Science Museum of Minnesota

120 W Kellogg Boulevard

St. Paul, MN 55102

http://www.smm.org/

 

The Everlasting Sky: Voices of the Anishinabe People

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NL-ENG.K-12.1 READING FOR PERSPECTIVE

 

NL-ENG.K-12.2 UNDERSTANDING THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE

 

NL-ENG.K-12.9 MULTICULTURAL UNDERSTANDING

What you should know:

 

This book is a series of essays by Anishinabe author Gerald Vizenor that explore the complex experience of being an Anishinabe in modern America. Vizenor looks at the turbulence of the 1970s on the reservations of the north, the violence of the clashes between Native Americans and the government of the U.S. and what it means to live outside of the dominant culture.

 

Questions to ask:

 

• What kinds of groups do you belong to, and what groups do you find yourself outside of?
• What is a dominant culture?
• What are the values of the dominant culture in which you live? Do you share those values? Why, or why not?
• What are the values of the Anishinabe culture that the author explores? Do you share those values? Why or why not?

 

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

Native Voices web site, a source for books on Native American culture

http://www.nativevoices.com/

 

Anishinabe culture page from MN State University

http://emuseum.mnsu.edu/history/mncultures/anishinabe.html

 

National Museum of the American Indian, from the Smithsonian Museum

http://www.nmai.si.edu/

 

Anishinabe Language web site

http://first-ojibwe.net/

Vendor Information

 

Minnesota Historical Society Press

345 Kellogg Blvd. West

St. Paul, Minnesota 55102-1906

http://www.mnhs.org

 

Through Dakota Eyes: Narrative Accounts of the Minnesota Indian War of 1862

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NL-ENG.K-12.1 READING FOR PERSPECTIVE

 

NL-ENG.K-12.2 UNDERSTANDING THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE

 

NL-ENG.K-12.9 MULTICULTURAL UNDERSTANDING

 

NL-ENG.K-12.11 PARTICIPATING IN SOCIETY

 

NSS-USH.5-12.5 ERA 5: CIVIL WAR AND RECONSTRUCTION (1850-1877)

What you should know:

 

“Through Dakota Eyes” is a collection of narratives told by people of the Dakota nation, recounting their experiences in the turbulent mid-1800s in the Upper Mississippi River Valley. It is part of a collection of resources representing Native American perspectives on the river, and the history of development along it. As you read these narratives, you will notice inconsistencies, even contradictions. Everyone experiences events differently. Reading a broad selection of accounts of the same set of events offers an opportunity to understand the many effects the Dakota Conflict had on the complex society of the Dakota people.

 

Some of the narratives were passed down through generations as oral tradition, while others were passed as stories through generations. Still others were recorded decades after the fact. What is important in this book is the breadth of the reporting; the narratives collected here give us a window back into a time of turmoil, danger and mistrust between cultures. This book makes clear the need for the kind of reconciliation attempted during the powwow that produced the music on the CD, “Makato Wacipi.”

Questions to ask:

 

• What were the causes of the Dakota Conflict?”
• How do these narratives differ from other accounts of the conflict, offered by European historians?
• How do we decide which perspective on this series of events to believe? Is there one truth?
• In what ways were the Dakota treated differently than the whites?
• In what ways were the mixed-breed residents treated differently?
• Do you see any parallels or similarities between the Dakota Conflict and any other conflicts in recent history?

Suggested Web Sites:

 

The web site of the Mahkato Mdewakanton Association, honoring the 38 Dakota executed

http://www.turtletrack.org/MahkatoWacipi/index.htm

 

An online multimedia project from Dakota Meadows Middle School, Mankato, MN, about the Dakota Conflict of 1862

http://www.isd77.k12.mn.us/schools/dakota/conflict/history.htm

 

Learn more about Charles Eastman, a Dakota whose family was killed in the great conflict of 1862

http://www.worldwisdom.com/Public/SlideShows/SlideShow.asp?SlideShowID=3&SlideDetailID=3

 

An online report from the Mahkato Mdewakanton Association on the background of the annual powwow in Mankato.

http://www.turtletrack.org/MahkatoWacipi/Press/July272002.htm

 

See also the Mahkato Mdewakanton Association’s page on Mahkato Education Day.

http://www.turtletrack.org/MahkatoWacipi/Education.htm

 

The Gathering of Nations Powwow web site

http://www.gatheringofnations.com/

Vendor Information

 

Minnesota Historical Society Press

345 Kellogg Blvd. West

St. Paul, Minnesota 55102-1906

http://www.mnhs.org

 

Water Resources Education Poster Series: USGS and USACOE

 

 

What you should know:

 

This poster is one of a series of nine posters, created to introduce the following water-related topics: Oceans, Watersheds, Hazardous Waste, Wetlands, Water Use, Wastewater Treatment, Navigation, Ground Water and Water Quality. Your trunk includes one of these nine posters. Each poster can be used to introduce or address a wide variety of standards and discipline areas.

 

The posters are available at no charge from the USGS, and the U.S. Environmental Protection agency. To order the other posters in this series, see Vendor Information, below.

 

On the back of each poster is additional information for teachers on related topics, tidbits of content information and background on the issue depicted on the poster, questions to explore, and possible actions to take to address the concerns connected to each issue. The posters are a fun, colorful way to engage students’ interest in a water-related topic, and focus a deeper inquiry.

Suggested Web Sites:

 

U.S. Geological Survey’s education web site

http://www.usgs.gov/education/index.html

 

Water curriculum resources from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

http://www.epa.gov/teachers/curriculumwater.htm

Vendor Information

 

U.S. Geological Survey

Branch of Information Services

Box 25286

Denver Federal Center

Denver, CO 80225

Phone- 1-888-ASK-USGS

WEF: The Water Sourcebook: A Series of Classroom Activities for Grades 9-12

 

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

Please note: Each of the different activities in the Water Sourcebook for grades 9-12 is correlated to multiple national education standards in the areas of math, science, language arts, social studies and the arts. To see the correlation chart, go to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s site at:

http://www.epa.gov/safewater/kids/wsb/912corr.pdf

 

What you should know:

The Water Sourcebooks are a co-production of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Water Environment Federation. Along with an introduction to general concepts about water, these guides for educators offer grade-level appropriate lessons and activities in the areas of Drinking and Wastewater Treatment, Surface Water, Groundwater, Wetlands and Coastal waters, correlations to nationals education standards, and fact sheets about water.

The lessons focus on “the water management cycle using a balanced approach showing how it affects all aspects of the environment.” The Water Sourcebooks are also available online. See below for the web site URL.

Questions to ask:

 

• Why is water so important?
• Where is water found on Earth, and where is it not?
• How old is water?
• What is a watershed and how does it work?
• What are the ways we use water?
• How do we purify water?
• What are the ways we use dams?
• Where does our drinking water come from?
• What is a wetland and why are they important?
• Why conserve water?

 

 

Suggested Web Sites:

 

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s web site for the Water Sourcebooks

http://www.epa.gov/safewater/kids/wsb/

 

The Water Environment Federation’s education web site

http://wef.org/education/

 

Vendor Information

 

Water Environment Federation

601 Wythe Street

Alexandria, VA 22314-1994

http://www.wef.org/

While the Locust Slept A Memoir

This resource can used to address the following National Education Standards:

 

NSS-G.K-12.5 ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY

 

NL-ENG.K-12.1 READING FOR PERSPECTIVE

 

NL-ENG.K-12.2 UNDERSTANDING THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE

 

NL-ENG.K-12.9 MULTICULTURAL UNDERSTANDING

 

NL-ENG.K-12.11 PARTICIPATING IN SOCIETY

What you should know:

 

Peter Razor, the author of “While the Locust Slept,” is a member of the Fond du Lac band of Ojibway. As a very young child, his mother was sent to an asylum, and his father abandoned the family. Peter was sent to the State Public School, then later sent to work for a white family on their farm in southwest Minnesota.

 

Bigotry and abuse marked Razor’s upbringing. The story he tells in this memoir is told sparely, but with great feeling and insight. His memoir encapsulates the legacy of the conflict between American and Dakota peoples that began with the Dakota conflict of the mid-1800s. Many Native American memoirists tell similar stories.

Questions to ask:

 

• What events shaped Razor’s earliest memories?
• How did Razor find out about his own past?
• Why were Indian children expected to leave their cultural traditions and assimilate into white culture?
• Is cultural assimilation still an expectation in the U.S.?

Suggested Web Sites:

 

Peter Razor’s web site

http://www.peterrazor.com

 

Native American memoirist Linda Hogan

http://www.hanksville.org/storytellers/linda/

 

Native American author Paula Gunn Allen

http://www.hanksville.org/storytellers/paula/

 

Native Voices, a source for books and other materials on Native American culture

http://nativevoices.com/

Vendor Information

Minnesota Historical Society Press

345 Kellogg Blvd. West

St. Paul, Minnesota 55102-1906

http://www.mnhs.org