Meanwhile, upper elementary students watched a Power point showing various authentic Native American war and medicine shields, as well as hides and teepees with painted pictograph designs. Students learned that pictographs were used by Native Americans to record important events. Then on to creating beautifully woven Lakota dancing shields! Students traced and cut out a large dinner plate sized circle in brown, tan or black paper, folded the circles in half and cut inch-wide sections from the fold almost to the edge of the circle. Next they wove colored strips in a pattern filling their shields ("over under, over under"). Week two, I either read an actual "book" with a pictograph story or showed this brief slide show with examples of pictographs used in every day Native American life. https://www.slideshare.net/ChrisNoel1/native-american-44232313
Then students "wrote" their own story using pictographs which they drew on the alternate woven squares on their shields using pencil then sharpies and oil pastels. Week three they decided on their personal animal totem to add to their shield. Their animal was drawn on copy paper, filled with pictographs and designs, then outlined in sharpie and colored with markers and/or colored pencil. Week four, they carefully cutout and glued their totem animal onto the middle of their shield, adding yarn ending with hand made feathers.