Tecumseh's Speech to the Osage- Analysis, Questions, Assessment

Historical primary source documents make history come alive in our Social Studies classrooms, but students need to be taught the strategies and skills to make meaning of them. This 36-page lesson plan, Tecumseh's Speech to the Osage- Primary Source Analysis, Questions, Discussion, and Assessment, provides teachers with all the materials and strategies they need to help their 6th through 9th grade students navigate a difficult and important speech in American History. Tecumseh, a Shawnee leader, was a masterful orator who used his skills to convince other tribes to join him in resisting white settler encroachment on indigenous land. As your students navigate the text, through 4 different readings, they will build an understanding of the context and origin (reading 1), the Big Idea (reading 2), the purpose and argument (reading 3) and will draw important conclusions as they think like a historian. (reading 4). Besides the 4-Reads lesson plan, there is a lesson plan in which teachers can introduce or review what primary source documents are and why they are important. The lesson includes Tecumseh's speech and a paraphrased version so you can differentiate for your ELL, RSP, 504, and struggling students.

The standards- aligned lesson includes the following:

• objectives and learning targets

• an Essential Question: What strategies for resistance and unity emerge from indigenous voices in the face of colonial expansion?

• 3 Guiding Questions: 1. How does Tecumseh appeal to a sense of shared identity and purpose among indigenous peoples in his speech? 2. What specific actions does Tecumseh propose to resist encroachment on indigenous lands? 3. How did Tecumseh's call for unity influence indigenous resistance movements during the early 19th century?

• A convenient "About this Resource" orients teachers to everything included in the lesson

• A link to the force copy of the google doc, which you can edit.

• Lesson Plan 1: Primary and Secondary Sources

• Lesson Plan 2: Four Reads: Reading and Analyzing a Primary Source Document

• Primary Source Document: Original and Paraphrase: 

• 4 Reads Questions and Answer key

• Multiple choice and Short Answer Assessment and Answer Key

• Say, Mean, Matter Assessment