Menominee Medicine Buffalo
Synopsis
This lesson introduces the Menominee Buffalo herd as Medicine Buffalo, exploring how buffalo heal the land.
Students will read Indigenous children's literature about buffalo, then make and scatter native seed bombs during this 45-minute lesson.
The lesson also includes vocabulary words in the Menominee language.
Teaching Materials
Preparation:
Use the story map to learn about the full curriculum and build necessary background knowledge for implementing this lesson.
Set aside two days for this lesson, one for creating the seed bombs and another for planting after they have dried.
Ensure the wildflower seeds for this activity are native to your region.
Materials:
Wildflower seeds
Buffalo poop (dried and ground into powder) - if available
Water
Compost/soil
Powdered clay
The Gift of the Great Buffalo by Carole Linstrom
Climate Change Connections:
Highlight the importance of biodiversity and planting seeds in the face of climate change.
Extensions:
The lesson suggests visiting the Buffalo at Medicine Fish as an extension.
Have students keep an observation log of the seed bomb sites over several weeks, recording germination and growth, and compare the results to areas that were not seeded.
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