Study of Tribal Culture Culminates in Feast

The tribe members sat, legs crossed, just outside the large white tepee in the center of the room.

Representatives from the Pueblos, Cheyenne, Iroquois and others arrived with their faces painted in rainbow streaks and heads adorned in bright, feathered head-dress, to indulge in smoked salmon and turkey, wild berries and corn bread.

Friday’s feast was the culmination of the Native American Studies program at St. Michael and All Angels School in the hills of Studio City. The third-graders, clad for the feast in traditional attire, spent the last three months studying the culture and history of Native Americans.

“They look forward to this day all year long,” said their teacher, Kathie Kopanica.

And they prepared for it for almost as long. The decorations in the school’s hall included 6-foot-high totem poles made from cardboard boxes and miniature villages made of Popsicle sticks.

“Each tribe has its own unique culture and beliefs, and we want our students to understand that,” said Barbara Card, director of curriculum.

Part of the curriculum examines how the tribes adapted to their surroundings and climate. Another part focuses on the difference between the belief systems of many Native American tribes and their European counterparts.

Twenty-three third-graders have become authorities on the subject through reading.

“There’s a lot I like about studying the Native Americans,” said Summer Williams, 9, whose great-grandmother is a member of the Choctaw tribe, which is from the Mississippi area, “but I liked learning about my great-grandmother’s tribe the most.”

Jaclyn Sarkissian, 9, said she was amazed at the ingenuity of the Pueblos.

“I can’t imagine building a house out of clay, but they did it and it worked,” she said.