November 21, 2022
This fall, Sebring third grade students were presented with a journey back in time as they learned about the lives of indigenous people through the Mahoning Valley Historical Society.
Traci Manning and Shannon McMaster of the Mahoning Valley Historical Society (MVHS) brought history to life for the students in a presentation at the school this fall. They talked with students about the various indigenous peoples who traveled through the Mahoning Valley- discussing the groups’ migration and reasons they would have moved. The students learned about the homes and clothing the tribes made from materials in nature. They discussed the kind of food they would eat and games played by these people.
“This program fits in so nicely with third grade curriculum,” says Sebring third-grade teacher Leann Laure. “The main focus of our social studies is how our local community has changed. We talk a lot about Sebring and how things look today as compared to the past, but this allows us to discuss our county and how it has changed in the past. The students are fascinated that there were Native Americans that once lived in this area.”
The students rotated through various stations, playing the games, viewing the clothing and jewelry replicas, and talking about the homes and food of the tribes who moved through the Mahoning Valley. They even learned some Algonquin words - a language spoken by tribes that made their homes in the Valley - including the fact that the word Mahoning is Algonquin.
Traci Manning from the Mahoning Valley Historical Society speaks with Sebring B.L. Miller third grade students about migration of indigenous people.
Sebring students attempt to ‘spear the fish’ in the game ‘poma wonga’ (which means ‘spear the fish’)
Mrs. Laure and some of her students look at clothing replicas at the Mahoning Valley Historical Society’s presentation to B.L. Miller third grade students.
A Sebring third-grader gets excited by catching nearly all of the elements in the ‘spear the fish’ game.
Sebring students explore a replica of a mokuk, used by Native Americans as it was gathered.
A Sebring B.L. Miller third-grader looks at a spoon crafted from the cartilage of an elk’s ear.
B.L. Miller students examine clothing and jewelry items that represent what indigenous people traveling through the Mahoning Valley would have worn.
Sebring B.L. Miller students play a game involving painted peach pits that indigenous peoples in the area would have played.