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Curriculum

SHI encourages teachers to download its units and resources for use in class. Use the audio tools to hear Haida words featured in the curriculum.

Haida

Beach: Since time immemorial Haida people have survived using what nature provides. Southeast Alaska has a rich, extensive coastline, so Haida people gather numerous beach creatures that nourish them. They in turn respect the creatures of the tides and beaches that sustain them. During winter and early spring, when fresh foods weren’t always available, they began the tradition of gathering food from the beaches. This unit is best suited for the spring because many schools conduct Sea Week/Month activities during April or May. (Unit) (Resources) (Audio)
Berries: Of all the natural subsistence foods of the Haida people, the wild berry, rich in vitamins and minerals, balances their diet. Before refined sugar was introduced into the Haida diet, berries were the sweeteners. Wild berries are still very special traditional foods. Some wild berries are not exactly palatable eaten alone. For example, currents and soap berries are best mixed with sweeteners. Some berries, like the salmonberry, are usually served mixed with cultivated berries or other fruits such as bananas. This mixture is a common food at Haida events and ceremonies. Traditional methods of preserving berries are drying them into cakes or coating the berries in seal or hooligan oils and mixing them in the roe of fish. Berries are also used for flavoring the flesh of fish, seal or deer. Contemporary methods of preservation include jarring and freezing berries of all kinds. (Unit) (Resources) (Audio)
Canoes: Southeast Alaska is made up of many miles of coastline and hundreds of islands, with a wide variety of resources and villages scattered throughout. Canoes were the primary mode of transportation used by the people of Southeast Alaska for hundreds of years. Haida people use canoes and other watercraft to support their coastal lifestyle, to gather resources, and for basic transportation. Canoes were used for hunting, fishing, gathering and traveling between villages to trade or take part in a traditional party. Canoes vary greatly depending on their function. The process of canoe building requires much skill, and often the canoes themselves would be used as trade items between tribal nations. A carver with great skills could bring wealth and prestige to a clan and village. Today traditional canoes are still used in a variety of traditional and recreational ways. Canoes represent unity and teamwork, strength training and health, as well as being a sophisticated art form and symbol of cultural identity. (Unit) (Resources) (Audio)
Cedar: For hundreds of years, the ocean and the forest have provided life sustaining resources for the Haida people of Southeast Alaska. Using red and yellow cedar trees they made their homes, canoes, clothing, tools, dishes, baskets and monument poles. Today, Haida people continue these traditions, holding deep respect for the cedar and the gifts that it provides to sustain and enrich peoples’ lives. (Unit) (Resources) (Audio)
Elizabeth Peratrovich: Elizabeth Peratrovich was a member of the Tlingit Lukaax.adi clan, part of the Raven moiety. She is an important Civil Rights leader for Alaska Natives. As Alaska Native Sisterhood Grand President, Elizabeth worked in collaboration with the Alaska Native Brotherhood to end the blatant discrimination Natives throughout Alaska faced daily, prior to the passage of the Anti-Discriminatino Bill in 1945. (Unit)
Hemlock: The forest in Southeast Alaska is a Sitka Spruce/Western Hemlock rainforest. Western hemlocks are shade-loving trees. They begin their life cycle in the undergrowth of the Sitka Spruce. The old-growth forest provides habitat for many birds, animals, insects and plants that young students can explore to begin to understand a forest ecosystem. Children will recognize the short, flat needles of the hemlock as “friendly” to touch. Historically, Haida people had many uses for hemlock trees. The rough, reddish brown bark is used for tanning hides and producing the black dye for Chilkat Robes. The heartwood is carved into tools such as spoons, dip-net poles, combs, spear shafts, and children’s bows. Today, halibut hooks are carved from the circular wood of the hemlock trunk. Hemlock boughs are placed in the water for collecting herring roe. The needles are used as medicine for healing burns. (Unit) (Resources) (Audio)
Herring: Herring have played an integral role in Haida life. They provide food for consumption and trading in the form of fish, oil, and eggs to providing jobs in canneries. Life would not be possible with them. In addition many of the animals in the ocean life cycle are dependent on herring. The animals that provide Haida people with food need herring for their survival. Herring may not be a primary food source to Haida people; but those foods that we are so dependent on use herring as their primary food. Herring help teach us to respect all life and recognize how we are all linked to one another. (Unit) (Resources) (Audio)
Hooligan: The Nass River, in Nisga’a and Tsimshian territory on the coast of British Columbia, have been a rich food source for Haida people for hundreds of years. The first high tide in May brings the celebration of returning ooligan, with seagulls, seals and seal lions, eagles, ravens, crows and people all joining in this welcoming of spring. Students learn the cultural and ecological rules to guarantee the return of this valuable food source in this unit. (Unit) (Resources) (Audio)
Plants: Traditionally, Haida people gathered plants for food, medicine, making rope and nets, baskets and clothing, baby carriers and diapers. Trees provided shelter, tools, transportation and firewood for winter warmth. Although many needs are now met with commercially produced plant products, Haida people continue to gather plants for nutritious food, herbal medicine and to create cultural treasures. The Haida people believe everything has a spirit. Respect and thanks are expressed when gathering what nature provides. (Unit) (Resources) (Audio)
Salmon: Southeast Alaska has abundant resources. Upon settling in the region the Haida people adapted and developed their traditional food gathering around these resources, the primary one being salmon. Five species of salmon are found in Southeast and the Haida people caught and preserved – and continue to preserve – each of them for both summer and winter use. (Unit) (Resources) (Audio)
Sea Mammals: Haida people have occupied the Northwest coast for thousands of years. Their tribal land covers a wide region from Prince of Wales to the Queen Charlotte Islands. Haida people traditionally subsist on the area’s wealth of natural resources. A way of life suited to the resources and demands of the environment was adopted. Hunting activities were determined by the seasonal availability of local resources. Haida people continue to have a great understanding of the environment. The techniques used to gather food have changed but subsistence hunting and fishing continue to be important today. Food is a central aspect of Haida culture and the sea is an abundant provider. The sea offers a bounty of animal life and supplies many foods. The types of foods eaten and methods of preparation have remained much the same over the years. In order to respect the lives of the animals that are harvested, all parts of the animal are utilized in some way. For example, parts of many different sea mammals are used in the making of at.óow, tools, and weapons. Sea mammals also play an important role in many of the oral narratives of the Haida people. Some of them have become symbolic crests owned by particular clans. (Unit) (Resources) (Audio)
Spruce Trees: Upon settling in Southeast Alaska the Haida people evaluated their environment. They adapted their lives to what nature provided – which is a lot of species of trees. This unit explores the use of the spruce tree. The roots provided containers for cooking, hats to keep people dry and lashings for many of the tools used. The trunk gives us canoes, paddles and temporary shelters, and the pitch was melted down and used as an antiseptic on cut and burns. Many clan treasures are carved from the trunks of spruce trees or woven from the roots. With a visit to a museum students can explore some of these items as well as everyday items made from the parts of a spruce tree. (Unit) (Resources) (Audio)
Totem Poles: One of the first things anyone who sees an old village site notices are the magnificent totem poles perched along the shore. To us today totems are beautiful works of art. To the Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian people of Southeast Alaska they also hold deep meaning and are of great significance. They tell clan stories and describe important historical events. Some even signify the final resting place of clan leaders. (Unit) (Resources) (Audio)
Who Am I?: Haida children are traditionally taught their lineage through oral history. They learn their family history, what village they are from, what clan they are a member of, what moiety they belong to, and the crests they are entitled to use because of that membership. Through oral history they learn their Haida name, where it came from and what it means. Knowing who you are and where you come from is absolutely essential today even as it was generations ago. (Unit) (Resources) (Audio)