Classroom Activites

1. Tell Your Story. Have students work individually or in pairs. Remind students of the story of “Turkey Girl” and the importance of storytelling to the Native people of the Southwest. Ask students to brainstorm an ideal, moral, or lesson that they have learned and would like to pass on to others. Then have students create their own story to teach that lesson. Encourage students to be creative, using illustrations or any other form of expression that will help them relay their message.
2. Compare and Contrast. In viewing the program, students learned about several different groups of Native people of the Southwest. Ask students to make a chart to compare and contrast different aspects of each group – food, culture, lifestyle, etc. Encourage students to expand their chart by researching additional groups of native people. Once their charts are complete, ask students to consider how and why different groups have survived and prospered while others did not. Discuss as a class.