Osage, Legend and Arkansas History: Fact or Fiction

This lesson serves to spark interest in the study of Arkansas’ three Native American groups by using an Arkansas legend, “Norristown Mountain”. Students will evaluate the authenticity of the legend, “”Norristown Mountain,”” by comparing facts about the Osage Indians and the legend. Students will develop an excitement for studying Arkansas’ Native American groups through the exploration of legends, culture, and traditions that tie, specifically, the Osage to Arkansas’ past.

Lesson Plan

Courtesy of CALS Butler Center for Arkansas Studies

Grade Level: K-4 Elementary School

Time period: Pre-European Exploration Through Arkansas Settlement to 1802

Arkansas Academic Standards are subject to revision every six years by the Arkansas Department of Education. The frameworks used in the majority of lesson plans on the Arkansas History Hub are from the 2006 Social Studies Frameworks and the 2007 Arkansas History Amendments and School Library Media Frameworks.

EA.2.AH.7-8.3, G.1.4.4, G.1.5.7, H.6.3.14, H.6.3.8, H.6.4.10, H.6.4.14, H.6.4.15, H.6.5.29, TPS.4.AH.7-8.8