Natural Texas & Its People

UNIT 1 11-16 DAYS Resources for teachers to aid classroom instruction that cover Texas History up to the year 1528. Brought to you by The Portal to Texas History

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Pacing

This unit is an eleven-day study of the regions and early Texas people before the arrival of the Spanish.

There are an optional 3 days of review activities and assignments to prepare students for testing. There is also an additional optional enrichment activity, “Voices of Texas History” providing a more in-depth look at rock paintings in south Texas as a form of recorded history.

Suggested pacing minutes are based on the average time it will take a class to complete each lesson; however, as the educator, use your best judgement based on the average pace of your class learning needs and styles.

Era Overview

In Natural Texas and its People (prehistory to 1528), students examine Texas’ geographic features and explore how the Native peoples in Texas interacted with the natural Texas environment before European colonization.

The geographic differences between the many regions that would come to be known as Texas were vast, stretching from the rich soils and lush vegetation of East Texas’ piney woods, to the swampier coastal plain along the Gulf of Mexico, to the drier and starker valley of South Texas, to the grasslands of the Texas central and high plains, to the arid and mountainous vistas of West Texas.

The first people of Texas were intimately connected to the physical geography of where they lived, with some groups prospering because of ample local resources while others struggled in challenging environments. Over many centuries, various native groups adapted themselves to all of Texas’ major geographic zones.

The Caddo thrived in the fertile eastern piney woods, where they built large-scale villages and extensive trading networks.
The Atakapa and Karankawa hunted, gathered, and fished in seasonal villages along the Texas coast.
Various Coahuiltecan tribes often struggled in the more arid conditions of South Texas, while the Apache roamed the Plains on foot in search of bison.
The Jumano in West Texas moved between established villages and hunting along the Plains, while the Wichita grew crops in the cross-timbers region that would become North Texas.

By the time the first Europeans arrived in Texas in 1528, each American Indian group had carefully adapted themselves to the particular regions in which they lived.

Unit Level Downloads (English)

Unit Plan Unit Plan MS Word Unit Plan Adobe PDF

Downloadable/Editable versions of the English language unit plan. Provides an Era Overview and pacing, and outlines each lesson’s estimated completion time, essential questions, a description of each lesson, and student learning experiences and activities.

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Lessons

Most lessons contain downloadable and printable documents, activities, and other resources to aid in classroom instruction. Lesson materials are available in multiple formats and typically contain variations based on learning needs.

The Big Picture

Students will be able to write or speak a clear summary of the unit’s main ideas. They will be able to give at least one specific example of something that will be covered in the unit, especially one that relates to primary source materials.

Lesson Plan, Teacher Guide, Primary Sources Used Downloadable/editable versions of this lesson plan, including a step-by-step guide through the lesson. When applicable, a list of primary sources used in the lesson is also included. Slideshow This ready-to-use classroom presentation contains the warm-up exercise (above), the daily objective, the “We will / I will” statements, and the essential question for the lesson. It guides the class through the assignment providing larger versions of images, visual representations of the directions, and supports for reading and answering including sentence stems for in-class responses. It concludes with the exit ticket, which is printed on the back of the warm up. Warm-up and Exit Ticket In this printable warm-up / bell-ringer activity, students compare different daily life activities today compared to how they believe they would have carried out these activities 1000 years ago. This will encourage students to begin to think within the context of life for the early Texas people. In this exit ticket, students will read a short passage and answer a multiple choice question asking them to identify which excerpt from the passage best provides evidence to support the claim that early American Indians in Texas depended on the land for surival. The question is structured similarly to the new 8th grade Social Studies STAAR item type called “Hot Text” in order to prepare 7th graders for the types of questions they will see in 8th grade. Grade Level Student Worksheet This printable worksheet assignment provides students an opportunity to use a primary source image to make inferences and predictions about the main idea and key concepts of this unit. It provides a brief reading passage with comprehension questions, questions requiring inferences, and using context to determine the meaning of key terms. Students will summarize the main idea of the unit based on the passage. **Grade Level** work combines short, constructed response and multiple-choice questions. Foundation Student Worksheet **Foundations level** work is an adapted version of the grade level work and requires less writing, offers multiple choice questions and prediction/inference responses asking for fewer examples or less information. The multiple-choice questions eliminate one answer choice. Advanced Student Worksheet **Advanced level** work builds on the grade level version and involves more writing, including short, constructed response questions.

Unit Plan # 1 45 min

How do we know what we know?

Students will learn what primary and secondary sources are, as well as how to distinguish the difference between the two. Students will be able to give examples of each and explain the benefits and drawbacks of using primary sources when studying history.

Unit Plan # 2 45-60 min

Vocabulary

In this two-day lesson, students will be introduced to the key terms within the context of the unit through short reading passages. Students will be able to identify, define, and give examples in words and/or images of each key term in the unit.

Lesson Plan, Teacher Guide, Primary Sources Used Downloadable/editable versions of this lesson plan, including a step-by-step guide through the lesson. Slideshow This ready-to-use classroom slideshow presentation contains the warm-up exercise (above), the daily objective, the “We will / I will” statements, and the essential question for the lesson. It guides the class through the assignment providing larger versions of images, visual representations of the directions, and supports for reading and answering questions including sentence stems for in-class responses. It concludes with the exit ticket. This slideshow provides the reading passages that students will use to complete their student work. Warm-up and Exit Ticket In this printable **Warm-up / bell-ringer activity**, students will define, give an example, an antonym, write the word in a sentence, and create an image that represents a a classroom-appropriate common slang word or phrase. This activity will help students differentiate between definitions and examples and prepare them for the work they will be doing with the unit vocabulary. In this **Exit Ticket**, students will match four sentences giving examples of vocabulary terms with the correct term. This question is based on the new STAAR item type called Drag and Drop. Student Work: Grade Level This two-day printable assignment provides brief reading passages that place the vocabulary terms within the context of the unit, giving background information and examples they will see in the coming assignments. Students will use these short readings to complete their vocabulary chart. Grade Level work requires students to provide each term’s definition, choose from three multiple-choice options of the correct example from the reading, and an image that represents the word. Student Work: Foundations Foundations level work requires students to choose from three multiple-choice options of each term’s definition and provide an image that represents the word. Student Work: Advanced Advanced level work requires students to provide each term’s definition, an example from the reading, an antonym, an image that represents the word, and to use it in a sentence. Vocabulary Quiz: Grade Level This assignment may be used to assess student understanding of the unit’s vocabulary terms. Grade Level provides matching, fill-in-the-blank with a word bank, and a short, constructed response to assess student mastery of unit vocabulary. Vocabulary Quiz: Foundations Foundations level work provides matching, fill-in-the-blank with a lettered word bank so that students may write the entire term or only the letter that corresponds with each term for a reduction in writing. Vocabulary Quiz: Advanced Advanced level provides matching, fill-in-the-blank, and three short, constructed response questions to assess student mastery of unit vocabulary.

Unit Plan # 3 90-110 min

What's the Story?

Students will read a passage that presents the various American Indian tribes of Texas within the context of pre-European exploration of Texas. They will be able to identify the significant information about various tribes, the power dynamics between certain tribes at the time, as well as which tribes were not yet present in Texas.

Lesson Plan, Teacher Guide, Primary Sources Used Downloadable/editable versions of this lesson plan, including a step-by-step guide through the lesson. When applicable, a list of primary sources used in the lesson is also included. Slideshow This ready-to-use classroom slideshow contains the warm-up exercise, the daily objective, the "We will / I will" statements, and the essential question for the lesson. It guides the class through the assignment providing larger versions of images, visual representations of the directions, and supports for reading, taking notes, and answering questions including sentence stems for in-class responses. It concludes with the exit ticket. Warm-up and Exit Ticket In this printable **Warm-up / bell-ringer activity**, students will use a timeline of significant events in the history of American Indians in Texas before the era of Exploration to make observations and formulate questions about this period of time. This presents students with a chronological view of several significant developments within the lives of American Indians in Texas prior to the timeframe of the information in the current unit. In this **Exit Ticket**, students will make a prediction about how they think the arrival of Europeans might affect the lives of the American Indians in Texas. The Warm-up and Exit Ticket document includes two warm-ups on the front of the page and two exit tickets on the back of the page. This formatting reduces the number of copies needed, as teachers will cut each printed page in half. Each student will receive a half-page with the warm-up on the front and the exit ticket on the back. Grade Level Student Worksheet In this printable worksheet assignment, students will read a passage addressing and correcting several misconceptions that contemporary people may have about early American Indians in Texas. Students next read a passage demonstrating how the various tribes of Texas had developed over time and what their societies were like at the beginning of the 16th century. **Grade Level** involves short, constructed response and multiple-choice questions for reading comprehension. Foundation Student Worksheet **Foundations Level** involves multiple choice questions with reading supports directing them to where to find the information in the passage. Advanced Student Worksheet **Advanced Level** involves additional short, constructed response questions for reading comprehension.

Unit Plan # 4 45-60 min

Texas Regions

In this two-day lesson, students will be able to identify, describe, and compare the distinct characteristics of each region of Texas.

Lesson Plan, Teacher Guide, Primary Sources Used Downloadable/editable versions of this lesson plan, including a step-by-step guide through the lesson. When applicable, a list of primary sources used in the lesson is also included. Slideshow This ready-to-use classroom slideshow presentation contains the warm-up exercise (above), the daily objective, the “We will / I will” statements, and the essential questions for the lesson. It guides the class through the assignment providing larger versions of images, visual representations of the directions, and supports for reading and answering questions including sentence stems for in-class responses. It concludes with the exit ticket. This slideshow provides the reading passages that students will use to complete their student work. Warm-up Day 1 – Exit Ticket Day 1 In this printable Warm-up / bell-ringer activity, students make observations about the area of Texas they live in, including information about typical climate, landforms, and plants and animals. In this Exit Ticket, students will refer to their warm-up observations about their own region. They identify what they were right about, what they were not quite right about, and what new information they learned. Share what they wrote with the class. Warm-up Day 2 – Exit Ticket Day 2 In this printable Warm-up / bell-ringer activity, Students choose two regions they took notes on yesterday to compare and contrast characteristics using a graphic organizer. In this Exit Ticket, students will complete a short, constructed response comparing two regions they studied. Share what they wrote with the class. Grade Level Student Work For this printable assignment students use the reading passages in the slideshow presentation to complete their chart for each region. Students record information about the climate, landforms, plant and animal life, and natural resources for each region. This assignment should take approximately two class periods. **Grade Level** combines requires students to write three to five notes from the readings on each of the following categories for each region: climate, landforms, plant and animal life, and natural resources of each region. Students will answer multiple-choice questions about significant information from each region. They will make a prediction which region they believe early people would be more likely to inhabit and support their claim with evidence from their notes. Foundation Student **Foundations Level** requires students to complete their regions chart by circling or highlighting from a list of characteristics provided in each category for each region. This allows for a reduction in writing and gives answer options to choose from. Students answer multiple-choice questions about significant characteristics of each region, with one answer choice eliminated. They make a prediction about where they believe most people in Texas would live based on their notes. Advanced Student **Advanced Level** requires students to write three to five notes from the readings on each of the following categories for each region: climate, landforms, plant and animal life, and natural resources of each region. Students will also write a one sentence summary describing the three most significant defining characteristics of the region above. At the end, students will write an essay comparing two regions of their choice from the lesson.

Unit Plan # 5 90-110 min

American Indian Tribes of Texas

Students will study and be able to identify the distinct characteristics of the primary early American Indian tribes who lived in Texas prior to European exploration. Students will categorize information about each tribe into the categories: food, shelter, mobility, culture, and location in Texas.

Lesson Plan, Teacher Guide, Primary Sources Used Downloadable/editable versions of this lesson plan, including a step-by-step guide through the lesson. When applicable, a list of primary sources used in the lesson is also included. Slideshow This ready-to-use classroom presentation contains the warm-up exercise (above), the daily objective, the “We will / I will” statements, and the essential question for the lesson.It guides the class through the assignment providing larger versions of images, visual representations of the directions, and supports for reading and answering questions including sentence stems for in-class responses. It concludes with the exit ticket. This slideshow provides the reading passages that students will use to complete their student work. Warm-up Day 1 – Exit Ticket Day 1 In this printable warm-up / bell-ringer activity, students read general statements about tribal characteristics and determine which region would be most likely to contain tribes with those characteristics. In this exit ticket, students choose one tribe they learned about in this lesson and write a sentence describing two the defining characteristics of this tribe using a sentence stem for structure. Warm-up Day 2 – Exit Ticket Day 2 In this printable warm-up / bell-ringer activity, students consider what they learned about the tribes from the previous day’s lesson. They choose one tribe from one region and imagine what a day in the life of a person from that tribe might be like. They record their responses. In this exit ticket, students examine an image of an American Indian woman and child drying corn to make inferences about what tribe they might be a part of, where they might live, etc. Grade Level Student Work In this printable Chart assignment, students use the short reading passages in the slideshow which present information on each tribe in Texas to complete their chart. **Grade Level** work requires students to complete a chart of the major Texas tribes by circling or highlighting the correct words or terms listed for the following categories: food, shelter, and mobility, then writing in information for culture. Students will also mark the location of each tribe on a map of Texas that provides the regional boundaries. Students will use a graphic organizer to compare two tribes of their choosing, then use that information to complete sentence stems comparing the two tribes. Foundation Student **Foundations level** work is an adapted version of the grade level work and requires students to complete a chart of the major Texas tribes by circling or highlighting from a list of options provided under the following categories: food, shelter, and mobility. Students will write their own notes for the category of culture, and then mark the location of each tribe on a map of Texas that provides the regional boundaries. Students will then use a word bank of significant terms to complete a section of fill-in-the-blank statements. Advanced Student **Advanced level** work builds on the grade level version and requires students to complete a chart of the major Texas tribes by recording information in the following categories: food, shelter, mobility, and culture. Students will also mark the location of each tribe on a map of Texas that provides the regional boundaries. Students will then write a paragraph comparing two tribes of their choosing. A graphic organizer is provided to organize information before writing.

Unit Plan # 6 90-110 min

Texas Today

Students will be able to identify key characteristics of Texas today related to natural and human geography. Students will be able to make connections between the human geography of Texas today and settlement patterns of early Texas people.

Lesson Plan, Teacher Guide, Primary Sources Used Downloadable/editable versions of this lesson plan, including a step-by-step guide through the lesson. When applicable, a list of primary sources used in the lesson is also included. Slideshow This ready-to-use classroom slideshow presentation contains the warm-up exercise (above), the daily objective, the “We will / I will” statements, and the essential question for the lesson. It guides the class through the assignment providing larger versions of images, visual representations of the directions, and supports for reading and answering questions including sentence stems for in-class responses. It concludes with the exit ticket. Warm-up and Exit Ticket In this printable **Warm-up / bell-ringer activity**, students consider what they would put in a time capsule for people 500 years in the future to learn about Texas today. This activity encourages students to consider what aspects of Texas life and culture today are significant to history. In this **Exit Ticket**, students will answer a multiple-choice question based on a map depicting the “Texas Triangle” – the highest populated area of Texas. Students determine which answer best summarizes the significance of the shaded area on the map based on the major themes from the unit. Grade Level Student Worksheet This printable worksheet assignment provides information about the economy, population centers, and culture of Texas today. It includes a map-labeling section of significant geographic locations in and around Texas including major cities and the states, country, and body of water that border Texas. Students answer questions to check for comprehension. **Grade Level work** combines short, constructed response and multiple-choice questions. The map-labeling segment includes a word bank and dotted lines to display the borders of the 4 Texas regions. Foundation Student Worksheet **Foundations level** work is an adapted version of the grade level work and requires less writing, offering multiple choice questions and prediction / inference responses asking for fewer examples or less information. The multiple-choice questions eliminate one answer choice. The map-labeling activity allows students to write the correct letter from the map beside the geographic location it represents, rather than labeling directly on the map to reduce writing. Advanced Student Worksheet **Advanced level** work builds on the grade level version and involves more writing, including short, constructed response questions. The map-labeling segment does not include the borders of the four Texas regions – students must draw an approximation of those borders.

Unit Plan # 7 45-60 min

Looking Ahead

Students will be able to identify and summarize the primary characteristics of the era of Natural Texas and Its People. Students will also recognize the cause-and-effect relationship between the end of this era and the arrival of the Spanish. Students will predict what they might see in the next unit.

Lesson Plan, Teacher Guide, Primary Sources Used Downloadable/editable versions of this lesson plan, including a step-by-step guide through the lesson. When applicable, a list of primary sources used in the lesson is also included. Slideshow This ready-to-use classroom slideshow contains the warm-up exercise, the daily objective, the “We will / I will” statements, and the essential questions for the lesson.It guides the class through the assignment providing larger versions of images, visual representations of the directions, and supports for reading and answering questions including sentence stems for in-class responses. It concludes with the exit ticket. Warm-up and Exit Ticket In this printable warm-up / bell-ringer activity, students consider a hypothetical situation in which they arrive on a different planet and encounter the beings they meet there. They record their responses about what they might think, wonder, feel, and experience. In this exit ticket, students will imagine the encounter from the warm-up between people from a different planet from the other point of view. Students will write their potential thoughts, questions, and experience if people from another planet showed up in their community. Grade Level Student Work In part I of this printable assignment -The End of an Era: - students read a brief passage explaining the era of Natural Texas and Its People, and the development of a new period of time in Texas history when the Spanish arrive. Part II: Two Worlds Collide: Students read an excerpt from a primary source by Cabeza de Vaca describing his first encounter with American Indians in Texas. Students use the passage to answer questions about terms in context and to interpret the author’s experience and meaning. **Grade Level** work combines short, constructed response and multiple-choice questions. Foundation Student Work **Foundations level** work is an adapted version of the grade level work and requires less writing, offering multiple choice questions and prediction / inference responses asking for fewer examples or less information. The multiple-choice questions eliminate one answer choice. Advanced Student Work **Advanced level** work builds on the grade level version and involves more writing, including short, constructed response questions. Advanced work includes a Part III: American Indians in Texas Today: Students will read questions presenting relative and absolute location related to contemporary American Indian tribes in Texas to determine which regions 3 tribes live in today. They will then use that information to identify tribal locations on a map.

Unit Plan # 8 45-60 min

Bingo Review Game

In this optional, review lesson, students will play Bingo to review key terms and concepts within the unit by listening to clues to identify terms and concepts. Students will write brief summaries or key words related to each term.

Unit Plan # 9 45-60 min

Mind Mapping Review Lesson

Students will create a visual representation of the connections between terms and concepts from the unit in a mind map. Students will be able to visualize how information from the unit is connected by making connections between terms on a mind map.

Unit Plan # 10 45-60 min

Study Guide

In this optional review lesson, students will review key terms and information from the unit in preparation for the unit one assessment. Students will be able to identify, explain, and compare significant information from the unit.

Lesson Plan, Teacher Guide, Primary Sources Used Downloadable/editable versions of this lesson plan, including a step-by-step guide through the lesson. When applicable, a list of primary sources used in the lesson is also included. Warm-up and Exit Ticket In this printable **Warm-up / bell-ringer activity**, students will take a quick self-assessment regarding their test-taking abilities and ways in which they can prepare for success on the unit 1 test. In this **Exit Ticket**, Students will self-assess how they feel about their strengths and weaknesses going into the test and state one thing they can do to prepare for success. The Warm-up and Exit Ticket document includes two warm-ups on the front of the page and two exit tickets on the back of the page. This formatting reduces the number of copies needed, as teachers will cut each printed page in half. Each student will receive a half-page with the warm-up on the front and the exit ticket on the back. Flash Cards These optional, printable flash cards provide a way for students to study and review important unit terms and their definitions and significance, focusing on the regions of Texas, their characteristics, and the American Indian tribes who lived in each area. Study Guide Students will complete the parts of the study guide to help them prepare for the test. The study guide includes a fill-in-the-blank key terms portion, geography and map labelling, and practice test questions based on the new STAAR item type questions on the 8th grade US History STAAR test. **Grade Level** work includes one short answer response question with a sentence stem to guide student responses, and fewer STAAR item type questions. Foundation Study Guide **Foundations level** work is an adapted version of the grade level work and includes multiple-choice options for the fill-in-the-blank portion, a sentence stem with multiple-choice options for the short answer response, and fewer STAAR item type questions with one answer option eliminated. Advanced Study Guide **Advanced level** work includes two short answer response questions as well as more practice questions based on new STAAR item types.

Unit Plan # 11 45-60 min

Voices of Texas History Extension Lesson

Students will read a passage about the White Shaman Rock Shelter pictographs in South Texas. Students will be able to explain the significance and challenges of using pictographic artifacts in the study of history. This lesson will give students a chance to better understand how modern people make inferences about past people and to understand that historical assertions based on these early artifacts are not absolute.

Extension 45-60 min

American Indians in Texas Today Extension Lesson

Students will connect their knowledge of historical Texas tribes to the tribes of Texas today by researching one of the tribes provided on a brief list of both federally and non-federally recognized tribes. Students will be able to identify where the tribe is currently located, the government, history, and significant people of the tribe today. This activity could be used for extra credit, outside research, additional work for students who finish other work before the class, or an additional project.

Extension 45-60 min

Maps

We've assembled the following list of maps that are applicable to the Natural Texas & Its People Unit.

Secunda etas mundi

Map shows the pre-Columbus world, based on Ptolemy's Geographia. Jerusalem is at the center of the map; the Indian Ocean is an enclosed area; and Scandinavia, southern Africa and the Far East are not shown.

Heart of Texas West Wildlife Trail

Map of the heart of Texas West depicting birding trails, with related illustrations.

Far West Texas Wildlife Trail

Map of major highways in western Texas with markings for parks and wildlife preservation areas; it is surrounded by illustrations of animals found in the area. The back contains detailed text describing the locations marked on the map, organized regionally.

Ecoregions of Texas [Map]

Map color-coded to "denote areas of general similarity in ecosystems and in the type, quality and quantity of environmental resources" with a key to regions and sub-regions in the lower-left corner as well as a detailed explanation in the upper-right corner.

Vegetation Types of Texas

Map of Texas showing the vegetation types within the state and county lines. There is a color coordinated legend that shows the location in relation within the state.

Wildflowers of Texas

Map showing the wildflower regions of Texas. The front of the map is a collage of photos of various wildflowers and the back contains a map showing the regions and descriptions of the flower species.

Photo Relief Map of North America

This photo relief map shows North and Central America and the surrounding areas. Blue outlining marks countries, roads, and bodies of water. States, territories, and provinces throughout the continent are marked in dotted lines and labeled. Geographic features are marked with relief shown by spot heights and shading. A note in the lower left corner says, "Heights are given in Feet above Sea Level."

Videos

We provide videos for both continuing education and classroom use. Please see each video's descriptive page for related resources and details about accessibility and viewing options.

52 min.

Prehistoric to Spanish Explorers

Texas prehistory through Spanish exploration, covering: (1) The Land and the Rivers, (2) First Settlers before 1500, (3) Indians of Texas by 1500.

More Resources

The following list of resources provide additional information to help you dive deeper into the context of the unit. Books are linked to OCLC WorldCat, allowing you find a copy in your nearest local library or to make a request for it using interlibrary loan.

General

website Results for Natural Texas & Its People in The Portal to Texas History

Digital copies of primary sources and other documents from our about this time period contributed to The Portal to Texas History by institutional partners from across the State.

website The Handbook of Texas

A digital encyclopedia developed by the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA) that is free and offers in-depth, reliable, and authoritative entries on every aspect of Texas history.

book W. W. Newcomb, Jr., The Indians of Texas: From Prehistoric to Modern Times (University of Texas Press, 1961).

One of the classic surveys of American Indians in Texas.

book David La Vere, The Texas Indians (Texas A&M University Press, 2004).

A careful update of Newcomb’s work that surveys the long history of native people in Texas.

book Daniel Gelo and Wayne Pate, Texas Indian Trails (Republic of Texas Press, 2003).

Survey of historic pathways and geographies of American Indians in Texas, with guides for visiting these native sites today.

book W. W. Newcomb, Jr, and Forrest Kirkland, The Rock Art of Texas Indians (University of Texas Press, 1996).

Exploration and examination of surviving rock and cave art by American Indians in Texas, with 32 color prints.

book Ellen Turner, Thomas Hester, Richard McReynolds, Stone Artifacts of Texas Indians, 3rd edition (Taylor Trade Publications, 2011).

Documents and details more than 200 stone tools and projectile points created by Texas Indians.