Ute Indians: Past and Present

Summary

Students will become familiar with the Ute Indians both past and present.

Enduring Understandings:

• Who the Ute Indians were and their significance in Utah history.
• What the Ute culture was like before European expansion.
• How things are different today for the Ute Indians today compared to the past.

Materials

Background for Teachers

Students will learn about the Ute Indians both past and present.

Enduring Understandings:

• Who the Ute Indians were and their significance in Utah history.
• What the Ute culture was like before European expansion.
• How things are different today for the Ute Indians today compared to the past.

Intended Learning Outcomes

• Students will be familiar with the early Ute Indians of Utah.
• Students will be able to locate where the Ute Indians lived, on a map
• Through reading, students will be familiar with Ute legends and traditions.
• Students will be able to explain what set Ute Indians apart from other tribes in the area at that time.
• Students will be able to indicate how the Ute Indian tribe is different today than it was pre-pioneer.

Instructional Procedures

1. Have students complete a KWL chart recording what they know about Ute Indians of today and yesterday and what questions they have.
2. Introduce the Ute tribe by reading the Ute Indian Fact Sheet online.
3. Have students look for examples of Ute culture (art, traditions, clothing, stories, etc.)
4. Have students create a list of things they find.
5. Look at the HistoricAmericanIndiansinUtah picture to see where the Ute Indians used to live.
6. Have students then compare that map to map_4 and tribal_map-2 which shows the current Indian reservations.
7. Read and share a Ute legend.
8. Read about what it is like for Ute Indians on the Ute Indians today website.
9. Create a venn diagram showing likes and differences of today and yesterday.

Extensions

This lesson could be adapted to any of the five original Utah tribes.

Assessment Plan

• Use the Venn Diagram to write a paragraph comparing the Utes of the past to the Utes of today.
• Create a map of the Ute Indians land in Utah both past and present, adding additional information about the tribe.