The Buffalo Jump
Developed by Carol Adams and Carmen Espinoza for Arlee Elementary School
Text Title, Author and Citation
Roop, Peter. The Buffalo Jump.Flagstaff, AZ: Northland Publishing Co., 1996.
Suggested Grade Level(s)
K-6. Readability level is 5.9
About the Authors
Peter Roop, a Wisconsin State Teacher of the Year, has been bringing books and children together for over 30 years. He has written extensively for Cricket and Cobblestone Magazines.
Connie Roop, a high school environmental science teacher, is a recipient of the Women Leaders in Education Award from the American Association of University Women and a Kohl Education Foundation Award for Exceptional Teaching.
Together, Connie and Peter have written 100 children's books ranging from historical fiction to nonfiction. Their books have received recognition from the National Association of Science Teachers, National Council of Teachers of English, the Children's Book Council, and the American Library Association. They received Wisconsin's Laura Ingalls Wilder Book Award. They have presented over 800 workshops for students, educators and writers in 26 states.
Peter and Connie Roop. 14 Apr. 2006. 30 Dec. 2006 <
Reviews
For reviews of the Roops’ work, please visit the following site:
Peter and Connie Roop. 14 Apr. 2006. 30 Dec. 2006 <
Text Summary
The Buffalo Jump is an illustrated text about a young Blackfeet boy, Little Blaze, who wants to be the buffalo runner (ahwa waki) so he can get his new name. A jump was also a chance for the ahwa waki to earn a new name. But his father has chosen his brother, Curly Bear, instead, and Little Blaze is angry. When Curly Bear stumbles while leading the herd, will Little Blaze be able to forget his hurt feelings and save his brother?
Tribe(s) Represented in Text
Great Plains Indians, Blackfeet
Setting of Text
Blackfeet Indian hunting grounds
Genre of Text
Picture book
Time Required
1 class period
Supplies and Materials
buffalo robe, skull, Montana OPI website ( KWL chart, questions
Background Information
The buffalo was an important part of survival for the Blackfeet Indians and many other Plains Indians. When the buffalo nearly disappeared, the life and culture of the Plains Indians changed forever.
Implementation Level, Essential Understandings and MT Content Standards
Banks - O’meter / Essential Understandings – Big Ideas / Montana Content Standards4 / Social Action / 1-Diversity between tribal groups is great. / X / 5-History represents subjective experience & perspective. / Social St.
1.2, 2.6, 3.3, 3.4, 4.2, 4.7 / Reading
1.1, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 2.1, 2.2, 2.5, 2.6, 4.2, 4.5
3 / Transformative / X / 2-Diversity between individuals is great. / 6-Federal Indian policies shifted through 7 major periods.
2 / Additive / X / 3-Oral histories are valid & predate European contact. / 7-Tribes reserved a portion of their land-base through treaties. / Writing
1.1, 1.4
Listening 3.6
Arts 4.3
1 / Contributions / X / 4-Ideologies, traditions, beliefs, & spirituality persist / 8-Three forms of sovereignty exist - federal, state, & tribal.
Instructional Outcomes – Learning Targets
Content Area Standards
Essential Understandings
Essential Understanding 2: There is great diversity among individual American Indians as identity is developed, defined and redefined by many entities, organizations and people. There is a continuum of Indian identity ranging from assimilated to traditional and is unique to each individual. There is no generic American Indian.
Essential Understanding 3: The ideologies of Native traditional beliefs and spirituality persist into modern day life as tribal cultures, traditions and languages are still practiced by many American Indian people and are incorporated into how tribes govern and manage their affairs.
Additionally, each tribe has its own oral history beginning with their origins that are as valid as written histories. These histories pre-date the “discovery” of North America.
Essential Understanding 6: History is a story and most often related through the subjective experience of the teller. Histories are being rediscovered and revised. History told from an Indian perspective conflicts with what most of mainstream history tells us.
Social Studies
Students will
1.2 assess the quality of information (e.g., primary or secondary sources, point of view and embedded values of the author).
2.6 explain conditions, actions and motivations that contribute to conflict and cooperation within and among groups and nations (e.g., discrimination, peer interaction, trade agreements).
3.3 analyze diverse land use and explain the historical and contemporary effects of this use on the environment, with an emphasis on Montana.
3.4 explain how movement patterns throughout the word (e.g., people, ideas, diseases, products, food) lead to interdependence and/or conflict.
4.2 describe how history can be organized and analyzed using various criteria to group people and events (e.g., chronology, geography, cause and effect, change, conflict, issues).
4.7 summarize major issues affecting the history, culture, tribal sovereignty, and current status of the American Indian tribes in Montana and the United States.
Skill Sets
Reading
Students will
1.1 make predictions and clearly describe, with details, meaningful connections between new material and previous information/experiences.
1.3 interpret and provide oral, written, and/or artistic responses to ideas and feelings generated by the reading material and compare responses with peers.
1.4 demonstrate understanding of main ideas and select important supporting facts and details.
1.5 provide accurate, detailed summaries using key elements of appropriate reading material.
2.1 decode unknown words combining the elements of phonics, grammatical structures, analysis of word parts, and context to understand reading material.
2.2 demonstrate understanding of and analyze literary elements (e.g., plot, character, setting, point of view, conflict).
2.5 adjust fluency, rate, and style of reading to the content and purpose of the material.
2.6 develop vocabulary through the use of context clues, analysis of word parts, auditory clues, and reference sources, and construct general and specialized vocabularies related to specific academic areas, cultures, and technology.
4.2 read to organize and understand information and to use material to investigate a topic (e.g., reference material, manuals, public documents, newspapers, magazines and electronic information).
4.5 identify recurring themes, perspectives, cultures, and issues by reading (e.g., identity, conflict, change).
Writing
Students will
1.1 organize text in paragraphs with clear beginning, middle, and end, using transitions and logical sequence.
1.4 apply conventions of standard written English (e.g. spelling, punctuation, usage) appropriate for grade level and purpose.
Listening
Students will
3.6 draw connections between one's experiences, information, and insights, and experiences communicated by others.
Arts
Students will
4.3 illustrate how media influence the way meaning and perception of reality are created and shared.
Learning Experiences – Text-Based Inquiry
Before
Preview the book.
Discuss what a buffalo jump is and how they were used.
Predict based on the title and the cover what the story is about, who the story is about, and where and when the story takes place.
Discuss the meaning of a name. (Little Blaze/Charging Bull).
Do KWL Chart as a whole class or in small groups on the buffalo; discuss the meaning of a name; discuss what the Plains Indians used the buffalo for.
During
Read the book aloud and when you come upon a Blackfeet word write it down with the English translation next to it on chart paper.
Stop throughout the text reading to discuss different aspects of the story such as the conflict between brothers or what is happening in the story as far as cultural components of the Blackfeet Indians.
Try to get students to put themselves in the place of a character in the book. How would they feel? What would they do?
After
Review the KWL chart and add to it.
Tie discussion into Essential Understandings 2,3,4 and 5.
Make a diorama of a buffalo jump or illustrate a scene in the story.
Assessment
Teacher observation and student participation.
Have students write a summary of the story.
Teacher Notes
This is a very enjoyable picture book that could be used with any age. We are 6th grade teachers so our ideas are geared for that grade. However, these ideas could be easily revised to fit any age. We chose this book to go along with the book Buffalo Hunt by Russell Freedman. It is an informational book on the hunting of buffalo by the Plains Indians.
According to the concordance on Amazon.com, this book is a 5.9 reading level.
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-->These are the 100 most frequently used words in this book, also according to the amazon site above:
ahwa,air,anger,arrow,away,bear,behind,below,blaze,boys,braves,bring,brother,buffalo,bull,camp,celebrate,charging,choose,cliff,closer,come,cried,cup,curly,deed,does,done,down,dust,eagle,earth,edge,even,far,fast,faster,father,feet,fire,followed,friend,frighten,front,good,grabbed,grass,ground,herd,himself,hyi,jump,knew,landed,lay,lead,let,little,lodge,looked,luck,morning,must,name,new,night,nothing,now,people,pile,ran,raven,right,robes,rock,run,running,saw,see,seen,son,spirit,spoken,stacks,stampeding,still,stones,suddenly,sun,tomorrow,tribe,turned,voice,waki,walked,warrior,watched,wind,without,yes
Extension Activities
1. Contact a local tribal storyteller to tell stories related to the buffalo. If a storyteller is not available find legends in your local library to read aloud or listen to. Keepers of the Animals, The Buffalo Jump
2. Take a field trip to the Bison Range or a buffalo farm.
3. Look over a map of the Plains Indians and discover the different tribes and reservations in that area.
4. Research the buffalo and its near-extinction.
5. Read Buffalo Hunt by Russell Freedman.
6. Short answer questions: How is the buffalo used today? Why do you think the decline of the buffalo population had a big effect on the life of the Blackfeet/Plains Indians?
Resources and References
“The Buffalo Jump.” Amazon.com. 30 Dec. 2006
Cates, Jon. Home on the Range-The Story of the National Bison Range. Billings, MT: Falcon Press, 1986.
“Idea Book for Creating Lessons and Units about American Indians.” 2002. Montana Office of Public Instruction. 30 Dec. 2006 <
“Meet Russell Freedman.” 2002. Houghton Mifflin Reading. 30 Dec. 2006 <
Peter and Connie Roop. 14 Apr. 2006. 30 Dec. 2006 <
Roop, Peter. The Buffalo Jump. Flagstaff, AZ: Northland Publishing Co., 1996.