RUE Episode 119: Native American Homes

Thanks for visiting the Episode 119 page of Ramping Up your English. This episode explores the various kinds of houses used by Native Americans.

**Cedar plank houses** were common in the **Pacific Northwest**. In coastal Alaska, **totem poles** were placed outside these structures were several related families lived together.

**Teepees** were common on the **Great Plains** of North America and the nearby mountains. They provided portable shelter for people who travelled great distances in pursuit of Buffalo. Not all American Indians lived in teepees.

**Pueblo Indians** built houses close together in cities – called Pueblos. The word pueblo in Spanish means **community**. Along with housing, pueblos contained storage for food,

A **communal plank house** is seen here. These shelters were set into the ground to stabilize temperature. These tyoes of housed were often seen in the Pacific Northwest.

**Native Americans homes** were commonly built using materials close at hand. Some were built to endure for years while others may only serve for a season.

Watching Episode 119

If you missed seeing Episode 119: Native American Houses on RVTV, or if you just want to watch it again, click here. This will take you to the episode on archive.org.

Episode 119 Summary

From the longhouses of the Iroquois to the pit houses of the Takema, Native Americans used local materials and traditional methods of construction to build shelters to meet their needs. Beyond basic shelter, though, these were homes, nurturing families and contributing to communities that have deep meaning to the people abiding in these homes. We take a look at a variety of American Indian homes as well as students who learn English while learning about them.

Videos Used in this Episode

Click here to watch the featured video: Native American Homes.

Links to Videos

This episode used parts of some videos produced by others. You can see the entire videos by clicking links below. These You Tube videos are likely to have ads.

Click here for a video about the Iroquois longhouse. For the entire video of Grandma Aggie at the Pit house in Kerby, Oregon, click here. Now click here for the video about Navajo Wigwams by the IWCS. Click here for the video about Ojibwe wigwams from The Slice. Click here for the video about Diligwa, a Living Cherokee History by Osiyo.tv.

While not used in the featured video of this episode, click here to watch a video about wikiups of the Ute people. Click here to view a video about Mandan Earth Lodges. Click here to learn about shelters for Native people in Montana from Long Ago in Montana: staying Warm.

Homework

Find out what kind of homes the Native Americans in your area built. Then compare and contrast these homes with the home you live in now. If you don’t live in an area where Native Americans lived, just pick a tribe and learn about their houses. Also, thinking of the home where you live, learn about where the building materials came from. Discuss this with another English learner or English speaker if possible.

Next Episode

In Episode 120, we look at the artists that produced images of Native Americans for all the world to see. Whether with paint and canvass or with cameras and glass plates, artists have rendered images of Native Americans before, during, and after the Reservation Period. Click here to visit the Episode 120 page of Ramping Up your English.