Inside Caitlin's Head

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Subject:

Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences

Institution Name:

Smithsonian American Art Museum Campfire Stories

Collection:

Smithsonian Institutions

Grade Level:

Primary, Secondary

Abstract:

In the 1830s, George Catlin (1796–1872) packed his paintbrushes and trekked through remote Indian country in the Great Plains. Committed to documenting traditional Native culture, he visited more than 140 tribes and painted more than 325 portraits and 200 scenes of American Indian life. Catlin's prolific works, both his art and his writings, illustrate Indian cultures on the precipice of radical change—change that would come with U.S. expansion into tribal territories.
In this lesson, students will be asked to examine Catlin's life and to determine how various decisions he made affected its outcome. Students will be asked to interpret, elaborate on, and reenact events occurring in Catlin's lifetime by writing, drawing, and role-playing.

Course Type:

Learning Module

Languages:

English

Material Type:

Curriculum Standards, Lesson Plans

Media Format:

Graphics/Photos, Text/HTML

Conditions of Use:

Custom Permissions
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