I. Purpose

In order for students to appreciate the influence the Iroquois Confederacy had on the Founding Fathers, it is first important for them to understand how cultures sharing the same environment influence each other.

II. Objectives

• Students will describe how an exchange of ideas takes place when different cultures come together.
• Students will define and use vocabulary related to the influence of the Iroquois Confederacy on the writing of the US Constitution.

III. Essential Questions

• How does the environment affect the manner in which culture develops?
• What effect does business have on cultural interactions?
• If a new group moves into an area already successfully occupied by an existing group, does the first group have any influence on the new group?
• How do the two groups share ideas and what types of ideas are they likely to share?

IV. Rationale

• Understanding the relationship between the environment and cultural development helps students recognize the historical context within which the Iroquois Confederacy influenced the Founding Fathers.
• Establishing a common language of historical events is critical for meaningful learning.

V. Student's Prior Knowledge

• Varied experience with environmental influences.
• Varied exposure to Colonial and Iroquois cultures.
• Varied awareness of the extent to which business affects the way different cultures react to each other.
• Varied appreciation of the extent to which a shared environment can influence the way very different groups of people respond to each other.

VII. Activity for Lesson One