image of O’odham art showing native people dancing and celebrating with the word "History" on it.

O’odham Language Lesson – Part 1 History

This O’odham Language Lesson focuses on the past and present of O’odham language (H2.1). Students will explore O’odham grammar, O’odham words, the importance of O’odham storytelling, and how the O’odham language is being revitalized to continue their rich culture, traditions, and unification of the O’odham community. The O’odham language is still spoken today and is passed on from generation to generation. 

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Course Information

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State Standards: , , , , , ,

Course Instructor

Brenda Kilmurray Author

Brenda Kilmurray is a National Board Certified Teacher, currently certified in Arizona with 17 years’ experience in the classroom working with 3rd – 5th grade students.  Brenda was awarded Cochise County’s Arizona Rural Teacher of the Year (2017), The Air Force Association’s Cochise County STEM Teacher of the Year (2017), Sierra Vista Unified School District’s Elementary Teacher of the Year (2017), and The Arizona Educational Foundation’s Arizona Teacher of the Year Semi-Finalist (2018). Brenda brings her passion for the classroom and understanding of the Arizona Department of Education State Standards together to create engaging and developmentally appropriate lessons. These lessons incorporate differentiated reading, writing, and STEAM activities. The lessons featured here were reviewed and critiqued by content experts, including historians, archaeologists, other educators, many of whom are members of Indigenous communities. For a full list the advisors visit Our Contributor’s Page.

Special Thanks to Our Contributors

Amerind would like to thank Angelica Salcido, Angelina Saraficio, and Amy Spotted Wolf for reviewing this lesson. Their comments, advice, and guidance improved these educational materials significantly. We are truly grateful for Angelica Salcido, Angelina Saraficio, and Amy Spotted Wolf’s help. Any errors or oversights in these materials are solely the responsibility of Amerind.

Course Structure

This course is delivered in 4 parts.

  1. History – Includes all links and activities in the Orange column below.
  2. ELA Reading and Writing – Includes all links and activities in the Yellow and Green columns with the title ELA.
  3. STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) – Includes all links and activities in the blue column with the title S.T.E.A.M.
  4. Resources – This is a simple page with links for extended learning and study. These are found in the purple column labeled Resources.

The image below gives a quick view of the lessons and links that are found in each of the lessons. You can access this document here.

O’odham Language Lesson – Curriculum Chart

History /Social Science Standard

Learning Objectives:

H2.1 We will explore how cycles of conflict and cooperation have shaped relations among people, places, and environments.
RI.3 – We will describe the relationship between a series of historical events using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect.
RI.10 We can use social studies content to read grade-level informational texts
W.3 We can write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences

History ActivitiesELA 
Crosswalk		ELA
Activities		S.T.E.A.M.Digital
Resources
Lessons
1) O’odham Language Digital Notebook
2) O’odham Language slideshow 
3) O’odham Language CLOZE notes		Reading Passages
1) Amerind Saving O’odham Language
2) O’odham Language Practice
3) Native Language Immersion Reading
Writing Assignment
Editable O’odham Newspaper Template
Activities
1) The O’odham Language Activity
2) O’odham Animal Vocabulary
3) O’odham Animal Vocabulary Mystery
4) Learn and Explore Language Lesson		S.T.E.A.M.
1) Tour of O’odham exhibit at the Arizona State Museum
2) Tohono O’odham Nation Traditional Song
3) O’odham Dances		1) Ms. Patsy Sings O’odham Songs
2) Tohono O’odham English-O’odham Dictionary
3) Sophia McAnlis Education Native Language Culture (ENLC) Director counts to 10 in O’odham
4) Sophia McAnlis Education Native Language Culture (ENLC) Director shares O’odham Colors in O’odham
5) Sophia McAnlis Education Native Language Culture (ENLC) Director shares O’odham food in O’odham
6) O’odham School  Readers

Accessing the Course Content

This course is designed and presented with the goal that the material can be easily used by anyone. As a result, each lesson will present content in multiple ways to accommodate many different teaching styles and technology needs. For each lesson you will have the following options:

  • Website Content – The lessons/worksheets/videos will be available to view inside of the website. You can read and use the lesson from this site.
  • External Link – You will also have a link that directly links you to the resource (ie. Google Doc, Google Slide, YouTube Video)
  • PDF Download Link – If the content is a handout or document, you will have access to a link to download the .pdf.

* IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR GOOGLE DOCS AND SLIDES

If you go directly to a link to save a google document or slide, you must make a copy of the document and save it to your own account.