Activities for Mapping & Understanding Indian Mounds and Petroform Monuments
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Once we discover the tools past civilizations used to locate resources or mark seasonal changes, we must move to protect them and promote their significance to Indigenous history.
For thousands of years, indigenous people of North America constructed monuments of earth and stone. Each structure had a meaning and a purpose. Some honored those who died. Some were used to mark and prepare for seasonal changes. Some pointed the way toward valued resources. Some were landmarks. Some mapped the destinations to be reached from a trail crossing.
Measuring the Earth
Measuring the Earth is a set of lessons designed to show how astronomy, geography, and geometry are connected to the construction and use of earthwork monuments across North America.
Astronomy
Watching the movement of the sun, moon, stars, and planets from a set location was a way to understand a place and time.
These images of sunrise show how observing the sky from a specific location can provide a wealth of information. Similar patterns are related to certain mound and stone monuments in North America. (Images obtained from opensource software available from Stellarium.org using background for Grossmugl Mound, Austria.)
Geometry shouldn’t be limited to lessons on a flat piece of paper. Understanding geometry in 3-dimensions starts with a basic understanding of how most people perceive the world with two eyes.
Indigenous oral traditions recount the origin of the continent of North America with Turtle placing mud on its back. In English, the name for North America is Turtle Island.
Over 40 STEM / STEAM lessons are included in the facilitator guide. Pages from the learner eBook pages are included when applicable. The snippet below shows how information needed for a successful learning experience is presented to instructors.
The learner’s eBook is written at a 7th grade level. This sample shows a LIDAR image of bird effigy mounds in Wisconsin.
For more information on how-to obtain these materials for school or personal use:
Contact: For more information, please contact me at my gmail account iDesign.DianeFox
(Your personal contact information will not be sold or shared.)
For thousands of years, indigenous people of North America constructed monuments of earth and stone. Each structure had a meaning and a purpose. Some honored those who died. Some were used to mark and prepare for seasonal changes. Some pointed the way toward valued resources. Some were landmarks. Some mapped the destinations to be reached from a trail crossing.
