UNIT 10 SIGNS AND SYMBOLS Objectives: Students will understand the relationship between a symbol and its meaning.

Students will realize why it is so difficult to interpret the petroglyphs.

Students will gain a deeper understanding of inference.

Subjects: Language arts, Social Studies. Suggested time: 2 class periods. Materia s: Copy for students: Signs and Symbols student activity sheet- ctivity ! "!# - $%, Clear Creek Canyon Rock Art Panel student information sheets "te&t and graphic% "!# - '-(%. )rom the teacher: old magazines and newspapers, glue stic*s, scissors, !!+ & !,+ and (.$+ & !!+ construction paper or copy paper, mar*ers. )or the teacher: Signs and Symbols student activity sheet- ctivity ! teacher answer sheet "!# - -%. Bac!gr"u#d: Since the beginning of spo*en language, people have developed signs and symbols. .etroglyphs and pictographs help us to infer ideas about the culture and life ways of the people who made them. /any of the petroglyphs on /esa .rieta may have symbolic meanings that we do not understand. 0n today1s merican culture we use and understand many signs and symbols. 0s this an indication of the pervasiveness and effects of our commercialized life style2 3his might be a good topic for discussion. Someone coming from another culture will have a difficult time understanding the meaning of some of our symbols. 3hey may infer a different meaning to these symbols from what was intended. $"cabu ar%: &%'"t(esis ) an educated guess or idea about a set of facts that can be tested by investigation. I#*ere#ce ) a conclusion made from observations.
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L"g" ) a symbol that is often used by a business5 short for logogram. Sig# ) a graphic shape or design that may warn or inform about something that one is approaching. S%mb" ) a graphic shape, design or ob6ect that represents an idea. I#tr"ducti"#: 7raw a common symbol on the board, such as the 8ia Sun symbol. s* students to describe what they see. "a circle with four lines attached in each direction.% 3his is an observation. 9ow as* what it means or stands for. "it represents NM on the state flag.% :ow do they *now2 ;hat does it mean to the people of 8ia .ueblo2 "Answers will be inferences.% s* about four students at a time to come to the board and draw other symbols or signs. :ave the rest of the class guess what they stand for. <emind students that no gang, drugs or war related symbols may be used. Activit% 1: !. 7iscuss the difference between actual and symbolic. 4se e&amples from the drawings on the board or draw an octagon. s* the students what shape it is. 3hen as* them what it often symbolizes "a stop sign% 3he ob6ect or picture re'rese#ts "r sta#ds *"r an idea or message 2. .ass out the Signs and Symbols student activity sheet, "!#-$%. :ave the students notice that there are images they recognize. 4nder each picture, write what it stands for or a meaning that our culture gives it. D" #"t +rite t(e #ame "* t(e "bject. 7o the first two or three together. 3hree blan*s are provided to allow students to enter their own symbols. =ive the students about !# minutes to finish it. "answers provided on Signs and Symbols student activity sheet Activity ! teacher answer sheet"#!$ %%. >. 7iscuss why we use symbols and how they might have developed. good e&ample is the swasti*a. 0t is an ancient design that was used by many cultures. Since the 9azis began using it, the swasti*a now has ta*en on a different meaning. Some people ob6ect to this new interpretation and have vowed to use it more fre?uently in order to bring bac* its traditional meanings. ,-te#si"#: 3urn the diagram into a bingo game or concentration game.

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Activit% .: !. @&plain that the class will be ma*ing an art collage of Logos, Signs and Symbols. s* students to bring popular magazines from home. 2. Cut out different symbols "with no written words% and glue them on the construction paper. 0f you don1t find enough symbols in the magazines, the students may draw with mar*er the symbols, signs and logos that they *now. 3his may also be used as a homewor* assignment. >. :ave students ta*e their finished collages to other classes to see how many of the symbols the children can recognize. /"#c usi"#: 7iscuss the results of this e&perience with the class. 7iscuss how someone from another culture or an ncestral .ueblo person might interpret the collages0 N"+ discuss ("+ +e i#*er mea#i#g t" t(e 'etr"g %'(s but rea % d" #"t !#"+ +(at t(e 'ers"# +as t(i#!i#g ab"ut "r +is(i#g t" c"mmu#icate0 " dapted from a pro6ect by /alinda .e*arci* of Santa Clara .ueblo.% Activit% 1: 3o each group of students or to each student, pass out a copy of Clear Creek Canyon Rock Art Panel student information graphic sheet "!#'%. @&plain that this panel was created by the ancient people of 4tah. !. 4se the following ?uestions to analyze the petroglyph panel: a. ;hat words would you use to describe the designs on this page2 "observations% b. ;hy do you thin* the people created these designs2 "inferences% c. 7o you thin* there is a symbolic message in the design labeled with a, b, c2 0f so, what is the message2 "inference% 2. .ass out the &nterpretation student information sheet "!#-(% and have the students ta*e turns reading the different paragraphs. 7iscuss the fact that each person had a different interpretation of the designs depending on their bac*ground and e&perience. >. 7iscuss why these petroglyphs might be important. " ctivity was adapted from &ntrigue of the Past. A 'eacher(s Activity )uide for *ourth through Seventh )rades, Aureau of Land /anagement, !BB>, p. B(%
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Assessme#t: :ave the students investigate their homes for symbols and bring bac* a list or sheet of drawings of at least five different symbols and their descriptions. "+,amples- poison skull and crossbones" Nike symbol" play" stop" rewind buttons on a .CR" recycle symbol" symbols of weather from the newspaper or '. news.% :ave students imagine that someone from a different country saw the symbols for the first time. :ave students write a sentence about each symbol describing what the person might infer that it means.

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U#it 100 Sig#s a#d S%mb" s

/L,A2 /2,,3 /ANYON 4,T2OGLY4& 4AN,L) INT,42,TATION Stude#t I#*"rmati"# S(eet) Activit% 1
" dapted from &ntrigue of the Past. A 'eacher(s Activity )uide for *ourth through Seventh )rades, Aureau of Land /anagement, !BB>, p. B(%

Leva# Marti#eau5 hired by the .aiute tribe of 4tah to interpret Clear Cree* Canyon petroglyphs. /artineau thin*s this is part of a larger story of the emergence from the underworld. a. 3he clan sign of the Aadger clan. Aadger was involved in and recorded the emergence story. b. 3he river reed which the people of the underworld crawled through to get to this world. c. god-li*e figure who is part of the emergence story. I#dia# 6"e 76"se'( 60 4ic!%avit85 4te 0ndian. .ic*yavit thin*s that this figure was left by the C.ueblo 0ndiansC whom he said once lived in Clear Cree* Canyon. :e feels this figure deals with ma*ing rain. a. <ain cloud ma*ing rain. b. Lightning bolt ma*ing lightning with the rain storm. c. /edicine man with good powers in a rain sing "ceremony to bring rain%. 9i Num!e#a5 :opi 0ndian and 7irector, 4tah 7ivision of 0ndian ffairs. 9um*ena thin*s this figure deals with the emergence into the fourth world. a. Seed sac* that contains the seeds used by the chipmun* to grow a plant for the people, which they used to climb out of the underworld. b. 3he spruce or pine tree which they climbed to get out of the third or underworld. c. two-horned priest of the higher order of the priesthood and *eeper of the oral traditions and the stories of the fourth world. 3e##et( Smit(5 9ava6o 0ndian and early wor*er at )remont 0ndian State .ar*. Smith thin*s this figure was part of a fertility ceremony. a. 3his was the sac* of seeds widely planted. b. 3his was a stal* of corn5 corn was the most important food source for the people. c. 3his was some type of god of fertility or germination who helps the crops and plants to germinate and grow.
".rovided through the courtesy of =ordon 3opham, )remont 0ndian State .ar*, Clear Cree* Canyon, 4tah.%

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