Students will identify occupational and recreational aspects of the Pinelands yearly cycle.
Information Sheet "Pinelands People: The Human Response to the Natural Environment"
PROCEDURE:
Discuss the terms nature, culture, and tradition. Introduce the concept of the "cultural calendar" and "working the cycle". Assign the following readings on the seasonal cycle and the Pinelands: "The Seasonal Cycle and the Culture of the Pinelands" and "Pinelands People: The Human Response to the Natural Environment". Write the names of some of the traditional seasonal occupations and activities of the Pinelands on the board (hunting and trapping for ducks, railbirds, muskrats, and turtles, gathering and harvesting berries and wild plants, boatbuilding and boat races). Ask students to describe each of these activities and to identify the time of year in which each occurs. Write their responses on the board.
Divide the class into four sections. Assign each of the four sections a season- spring, summer, fall, and winter. Give every section the yearly occupational calendars for each of the Pinelands occupational areas-woodlands, bays and marshes, and agriculture. Direct each section to make a list of the occupational activities from each of the areas for their respective season. Discuss the variety of occupational choices available to Pinelands residents throughout the year. Compare and contrast the activities available in each of the three areas.
EVALUATION:
1. Review student responses for accuracy, and for their demonstration of the ability to organize information and to compare and contrast similar and dissimilar items.
FOLLOW-UP:
1.Constructing a Cultural Calendar
Explain to students how their lives and those of their families and community are influenced and structured around a seasonal cultural cycle. Ask students to cite examples of traditional activities and events that recur on a yearly basis. Ask students to create written lists of dates which are important to their families and communities. The dates might mark birthdays, festivals, anniversaries, and holidays.
Have students write a brief description of the ways in which these events are celebrated or observed by their families and communities. Students can share these descriptions by reading them aloud to their classmates.
Create a classroom calendar on a bulletin board. Discover the events shared by all members of the class (4th of July, etc.) and place these on the calendar. Then have students enter individual items on the calendar. The class might also wish to publish a monthly roster, based on the classroom calendar, that lists the months events, with a brief description of the way each event is observed.
2. Write a letter from the point of view of a Pinelands resident who works the cycle to a city-dwelling family member. Students should describe events in the letter that would be appropriate to the occupational area of the letter writer
3. Write a story from the point of view of a Pinelands resident living one hundred years ago, during the decline of rural industry, who remained in the Pinelands. Describe the choices and decisions made by the individual that were necessary to insure their survival.
4. Compare and contrast the lifestyles of a bayman with a farmer. Write an imaginary account in which a bayman and a farmer go through the calendar year of work and recreation.
This lesson will introduce the students to the following vocabulary words:(click on the word to see its definition-use your browser's back button to return to this page)
6.5-All students will acquire historical understanding of varying cultures throughout the history of New Jersey, the U.S., and the world.
6.6-All students will acquire historical understanding of the economic forces, ideas, and institutions throughout the history of New Jersey, the U.S., and the world.
6.8-All students will acquire geographical understanding by studying human systems in geography.
Language Arts standards:
3.4-All students will read, listen to, view, and respond to a diversity of materials and texts with comprehension and critical analysis.
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