ACESSU NASWEMOWAKON
"Changes in Footwear"

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Present-day Passamaquoddy tribal member making moccasins.

Grade Level:

Subject Areas:

• Social Studies
• Science

Objectives:

• Students will explore the the evolution of Passamaquoddy footwear as it relates to changing times.
• Students will examine a modern day photo of a Passamaquoddy man making moccasins and will be asked to identify elements that would not have been present prior to the arrival of the European explorers.
• Students will explore natural resources and other materials needed to produce modern-day footwear.

Technology Equipment and Skills Needed:

• Modern-day picture of a Passamaquoddy man making moccasins.
• Pens, pencils
• Internet Access
• Encyclopedias

Lesson Overview:

Students will examine the modern-day picture of Passamaquoddy moccasin-making and identify the natural resources and other materials needed, as well as compare and contrast past-present technologies used in this process.

Cultural Content:

Prior to the arrival of the Europeans, Passamaquoddy moccasins were made from animal skins. They were made from thick leather such as moosehide (sometimes from used robes), puckered and sewn with small stitches to keep water out. Sometimes they were made from the long tubes of hide removed from moose legs, sewn across the toes. For very wet conditions moccasins were often made of seal skin.

Other Background Information for Teacher:

Other Helpful Reference Materials:

"The Wabanakis of Maine and the Maritimes" A resource book about Penobscot, Passsamaquoddy, Maliseet, Micmac and Abenake Indians. American Friends Service Committee, Bath, Maine, 1989.

Speck, Frank G., "Penobscot Man," Octagon Books, New York, 1976.

Assessment:

Main Learning Results, July 1997

Social Studies:Geography (B3) Human Interaction with Environment

Use of a variety of materials and geographic tools to explain how the physical environment supports and constrains human activities.

Science and Technology: (M1) Implications of Science and Technology

Explore how cultures have found different technological solutions to deal with similar needs or problems. (e.g., construction, clothing, agricultural tools and methods).

Native American Standards, Orbis Associates, Washington, D.C.,1998

Science and Technology: Content Standard E

An awareness of the problem-solving skills demonstrated by historical American Indians in the development and improvement of tools and technologies (e.g. tanning of hides).

Evaluation

Students list natural resources and other materials used in the process of moccasin-making.

Students will make a list in order to compare past-present technologies.