Oops! We have found a few errors in North Dakota: People Living on the Land (ndstudies.gov/gr8) since it was published in October 2014. However, because it is an online curriculum, we can make changes quickly. Though there are good reasons to provide students with paper textbooks (there is nothing like the feel of a book in your hands), one of the great advantages of a web-based curriculum is the ease of correcting errors (typographical or factual) that nearly every textbook contains.

During our first introduction of this 8^th grade curriculum to teachers, one of the participants noted that a sentence about the U.S. Constitution stated that it was written in 1889 (instead of 1789, as we all know). Well, that was embarrassing. After teaching U.S. History for 17 years, I should have seen that typo immediately. However, the error was quickly and easily corrected.

One day while thinking about nothing of importance, it struck me that in writing the introduction to the role of North Dakotans in World War II, I had failed to mention the outcome of the war. Adults of my age generally know that the Allies defeated Germany, Italy, and Japan in 1945. For eighth graders, that event is far in the distant past and the conclusion of the war needed to be clarified. And, it was – just one day later.

Differences of opinion are harder to resolve. Take for instance the photo of the Bakken oil region at night that was published by NASA a few years ago. The photo illustrated a section about how oil development had changed western North Dakota. (You can find the photo in Unit IV, Lesson 1, Topic 5, Section 3, Image 18.)

This NASA satellite photograph has state lines superimposed. The bright lights in the Bakken are caused by gas flares, drilling rig lights, and other night-time activity.

In the photo, the lights of the Bakken make it appear to be a city as large as Chicago. Recently, the Energy and Environmental Research Center at the University of North Dakota published a similar satellite image, but the lights (whether from flares, drilling rigs, or other activity) appear individually and do not make the Bakken look like a great new urban center.

This satellite photograph of North Dakota shows the lights of the Bakken on the left side and the lights of Chicago in the lower right side. Minneapolis-St. Paul is the bright area just right of center. This photo was provided by the University of North Dakota-EERC. Technicians at the EERC adjusted the photo for atmospheric conditions that caused the Bakken lights to glare in the NASA photo. Photo courtesy EERC.

The problem is that NASA is a darn good resource and that image has strength. Nevertheless, driving through the Bakken at night is not like driving through Chicago. How to present the concept of major changes in western North Dakota without distortion? By presenting the problem to students.

If we publish both images along with some material about how the photos conflict, students can discuss whether to trust or to challenge resources. Through guided discussions with their teachers they can learn an important life skill of analyzing information before they decide to accept or reject what they read or hear. Part of what we learn in school is about “stuff.” The other part is about how to become a learning person. North Dakota: People Living on the Land is part of both processes.

If you remember my previous posts about the SEND program (http://blog.statemuseum.nd.gov/blog/please-dont-eat-artifacts), then you know we have educational trunks that provide history-related objects and information to classrooms throughout the state. Students can touch real things that represent and interpret the history they are learning about. Of the trunk topics we have available, the Fur Trade trunk is always one of the most popular. It is packed with interesting objects that reveal what the world was like when Europeans and Native Americans first engaged in commercial activity together. Just one object can be used to teach a multitude of concepts. For example, this is a leg-hold trap from the trunk:

Leg-hold, spring trap from the Fur Trade SEND trunk

The jaws are welded shut so people of all ages can safely handle the object. It is made of steel and is about 27.5” long, including the chain. The long spring on each side of the jaws (as opposed to coil springs) makes it a double, long-spring trap. There is also a round pan with a maker’s mark on it.

Close up photograph of the trap pan displaying the manufacturer’s logo

The pan gives us a lot more information to think about. It is stamped: Oneida Victor 1, Made in U.S., Reg. U.S. Pat of Animal Trap Co. Lititz, PA. There is also a large, noticeable “V” cut into the steel pan. An internet search for the term “Oneida Victor” reveals that the Oneida silverware company traces its roots back to a religious commune in New York that owned several enterprises over the years, including a company that was once the leading manufacturer of game traps.¹

What other discussions can this object spark? If we are working with a group of students in a classroom, I would expect a lot of students to have questions about what trapping is. Some students might have first-hand experience with trapping, especially if they live on a farm or their family hunts and fishes. This object might generate a conversation about the ethics of hunting, fishing, and trapping, especially with an adult audience. It would be good for the person leading the discussion to have an understanding of the history of trapping and changes in best practices and standards that the trapping community has developed in response to changing viewpoints on hunting and trapping ethics.

This also opens up a lot of opportunities to talk about and study science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) topics in relation to land and resource management. Students could be presented with a real life problem: develop a beaver management plan in an urban area. They would need to figure out the range of modern beaver habitat (they can be found in forty-nine states). Students would need to figure out how many beavers the local ecosystem can support, how many are estimated to be living there, and what the best options are for population control. This will also raise some interesting issues for the students including how to coordinate their efforts and how to educate the public about an often controversial issue. What a great example of project-based learning connecting current events to real history—bringing history to the classroom in a relevant way!

Minnesota History. “MHS Collections: Society Collects Animal Traps.” Winter (1972): 146-148, accessed September 2, 2015. http://collections.mnhs.org/MNHistoryMagazine/articles/43/v43i04p146-148.pdf.