Native Americans

The Mohawk, the Onondaga, the Seneca, the Oneida, and the Cayuga made up the Iroquois League of Nations in eastern New York state. The Iroquois Nation’s democratic government had been operating successfully for hundreds of years and greatly influenced the drafting of the U.S. Constitution. The executive, judicial and legislative branches were based in part on this Native American government. Find out about many other Native American cultures by using the direct links on the Times Launchpoint Web site:

https://www.latimes.com/launchpoint/.

Level 1

The First Americans: Learn about the first people to live in North America and compare how living in different geographic areas affected their daily lives.

https://www.germantown.k12.il.us/html/intro.html

The Red Earth Dances: Was the Grass Dance created to simulate the prairie grasses blowing in the wind, as a ritual to flatten a grassy area or as a victory celebration? Find out about the symbolism and the stories behind eight Native American dances.

https://powersource.com/gallery/objects/dance.html

The Native American Bedtime-Story Collection: Why do sweet-smelling roses grow on the prairie? How did the turtle get its hard shell? Find out through this collection of Native American stories, including both Iroquois and Apache tales about the origin of fire.

https://the-office.com/bedtime-story/indians.htm

Level 2

Southern Native American Powwows: Learn about different Native American dances and the meanings contained within the headdresses and ceremonial regalia. Hear a variety of songs and drummings and learn about proper etiquette for attending a powwow.

https://ananke.advanced.org/3081/

NMAI Conexus Archives/Artists: The Gallery of the National Museum of the American Indian offers many online exhibits on Native American culture. View slides of master artists explaining their work, see demonstrations of Indian sign language, hear Qulla flute and drum music, and learn about the reintroduction of bison on native land.

https://www.conexus.si.edu/map/arts.htm

The Native Americans: Find out how 16 tribes reacted to Lewis and Clark as they traveled through their lands.

https://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/native/index.html

Level 3

Native Tech: Thousands of years of expertise and tradition are chronicled in this site, which details the history as well as the technology behind such arts as beadwork, basketry and pottery. Resources include photographs, poetry, stories, recipes, games as well as thorough craft instructions.

https://www.lib.uconn.edu/NativeTech/

Native Americans in North Georgia: The discovery of gold in the north Georgia hills triggered the move of the Cherokee nation to Oklahoma, a move that the Cherokee nation fought in court but which eventually led to the “Trail of Tears.” Learn more about Native American history, including the mystery of the mound builders and the creation of “talking leaves.”

https://ngeorgia.com/history/findex.shtml

First Nations Histories: Get an in-depth look at the history, culture, languages, and geography of 48 Native American tribes.

https://www.dickshovel.com/up.html

Launch Point is produced by the UC Irvine department of education, which reviews each site for appropriateness and quality. Even so, parents should supervise their children’s use of the Internet. This week’s column was designed by Lynda Cardwell, Michelle Suarez and Anna Manring.

EXPLORER’S QUEST: Who was the only man in history to single-handedly devise a written language, the Cherokee alphabet?

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CLUE: See Native Americans in North Georgia

Find What You Need to Know: Have a project on California history? Need help doing a math problem? Launch Point now covers more than 50 topics for getting your schoolwork done. Go to https://www.latimes.com/launchpoint/ for the full list of subjects and direct links to the best Internet sites.

Answer to last week’s Quest: The parachute, the helicopter, the army tank, the diving suit and retractable landing gear for flying machines.