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Iroquois Confederacy’s Impact on the United States Constitution

 

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Curriculum Level: 9-12

By Dr. Derrick Savage of White Oak High School, Onslow County Schools, North Carolina

OVERVIEW OF LESSON:
This lesson will focus on Native American government structures, specifically the Iroquois Confederacy, and the influence of those structures on the formation of the government of the United States of America. We will also address reasons why these contributions are not stressed in American education. At the conclusion of the lesson, students will be able to deconstruct stereotypes of Indigenous peoples living in North America by conducting an in-depth analysis of the complexities of Indigenous societal structure with a focus on Indigenous systems of government. Students will analyze the governmental structure of Indigenous peoples and identify the aspects of Indigenous systems of government that served as a model for the formation of the United States Government.

SUGGESTED GRADE LEVELS: Grades 10-12

SUBJECT: Social Studies (Founding Principles of the United States of America and North Carolina: Civic Literacy Honors Level)

CORRESPONDING NATIONAL AND/OR STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA STANDARDS:

Priority Standards

National Standards (from the National Museum of the American Indian)

Essential Understanding 2: Time, Continuity, and Change- Indigenous people played a significant role in the history of the Americas. Many of these historically important events and developments in the Americas shaped the modern world.

North Carolina Standards

CL.C&G.1.1 Explain the influence of the founding principles on state and federal decisions using primary and secondary source documents.

CL.H.1.2 Compare competing narratives of the historical development of the United States and North Carolina in terms of how each depicts race, women, tribes, identity, ability, and religious groups.

CL.H.1.3 Interpret historical and current perspectives on the evolution of individual rights in America over time, including women, tribal, racial, religious, identity, and ability.

Secondary Standards

National Standards (from the National Museum of the American Indian)

Essential Understanding 1: American Indian Cultures- American Indian cultures have always been dynamic and changing.

Essential Understanding 2: Time, Continuity, and Change- The Western Hemisphere was laced with diverse, well-developed, and complex societies that interacted with one another over millennia.

North Carolina Standards

CL.C&G.1 Understand the impact of the founding principles of the United States on federal and state government.

CL.H.1.6 Exemplify ways individuals have demonstrated resistance and resilience to inequities, injustice, and discrimination within the American system of government over time.

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS:

  • How did the Iroquois Confederacy govern the Iroquois tribes?
  • How is the structure of the Iroquois Confederacy similar to the structure of the government of the United States of America as defined in the US Constitution?
  • What aspects of the Iroquois Confederacy are still present in the modern-day US government system?

LESSON OBJECTIVES:

  1. Students will be able to compare the structure and operation of the Iroquois Confederacy and the operation of the government of the United States of America.
  2. Students will be able to identify the influence of the Iroquois Confederacy on the United States Constitution by citing specific examples from the text of the United States Constitution.
  3. Students will be able to identify specific aspects of the United States government that were first seen in the Iroquois Confederacy.
  4. Students will be able to summarize the impact of the Iroquois Confederacy on the formation and operation of the government of the United States.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION FOR THE EDUCATOR or RESOURCES TO EXPLORE FURTHER:

SPECIFIC STUDENT STRATEGIES & ACTIVITIES:

  • DAY 1 (50-70 Minutes)
    • Warm Up (5 minutes): Discuss the following question as an entire class: When creating the government of the United States, what influenced the Founding Fathers?
    • Cooperative Activity (30 minutes):
      • Post the following question: How did the Iroquois Confederacy govern the Iroquois tribes?
      • Place students in small groups (4 students per group). Each group should utilize the following roles: Director (lead the group and maintain order), Timekeeper (keep the group mindful of the time constraints and ensure that the group is continually working), Recorder (record ideas and thoughts that come from group discussion), and Artist (responsible for any artwork (ie. Drawings) needed for the final product).
      • instruct each group to search credible websites (Website suggestions: History.com, Britannica.com, pbs.org, haudenosauneeconfederacy.com, Library of Congress, americanindian.si.edu) to create a one-pager (One-pager examples) on chart paper responding to the posted question, how did the Iroquois Confederacy govern the Iroquois tribes? Provide students with the One Pager Checklist to guide their work. Instruct students to use the checklist and suggested websites to research the Iroquois Confederacy and find examples of how the Confederacy governed the Iroquois tribes including structure, powers, rights of tribal members, etc.
      • Students will take a gallery walk with their small group and view each group’s one-pager. As they view each group’s one-pager, each student will complete the gallery walk chart.
    • Media (20 minutes): Show the video The Iroquois Confederacy-America’s First Democracy (begin video at 17 seconds).
      • FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT: After viewing the video, students respond to the following questions on a sheet of paper. (Questions can also be posted and students can respond during viewing)
        1. What was the origin of the Iroquois Confederacy?
        2. What role did the Grand Council play?
        3. How is the governmental structure of the Iroquois similar or different from modern-day governments?
    • Homework: FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT: Provide students with the reading, The Iroquois and the Nature of American Government, and instruct students to read and summarize the information provided. Instruct students to pay particular attention to the way the Founding Fathers quoted in the article spoke about the Iroquois.

Differentiation: In a standard level class substitute The Iroquois and Founding of the U.S. Constitution

  • DAY 2 (80-90 minutes)
    • Warm Up (10 minutes): As a class, discuss the homework article from the previous class. Have students share their summaries to facilitate the discussion.
    • Cooperative Assignment (40 minutes):
      • Divide the class into 4 equal groups. Each group should have a director, a timekeeper, and a recorder.
      • Distribute copies of the United States Constitution and the Iroquois Constitution to each group. Assign one of the following from the United States Constitution to each group: Preamble, Article 1, Article 2, and Article 3.
      • Instruct groups to use the copies of the two constitutions to create a Venn Diagram of similarities and differences between the government established by the two constitutions (30 minutes).
      • FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT: Each group will present their Venn Diagrams to the class (10 minutes).
    • FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT (30 minutes):
      • Provide students the From the Great Law of Peace to the Constitution of the United States article
      • Instruct students to read the article independently.
      • After reading, post the question, How is the structure of the Iroquois Confederacy similar to the structure of the government of the United States of America as defined in the US Constitution? Instruct students to respond to the question on a sheet of paper or in a Word document. (Responses must be at least 2 paragraphs in length.)

Differentiation: In a standard level class substitute Iroquois Constitution: A Forerunner To Colonists’ Democratic Principles

ASSESSMENTS:

  • Formative: Video discussion questions
  • Formative: The Iroquois and the Nature of American Government summary
  • Formative: Venn Diagram presentations
  • Formative: How is the structure of the Iroquois Confederacy similar to the structure of the government of the United States of America as defined in the US Constitution? Written Response
  • Summative: Assume the role of one of the Founding Fathers and compose a letter to the Iroquois people identifying aspects of their government used in the United States Constitution and displaying gratitude for their contributions to America. Provide students with the RAFT template to complete their letter. Use the RAFT Rubric to score the assessment.

LEARNING EXTENSION(S):

  • Summative: Create a visual representation of a principle from the Iroquois Confederacy seen in the United States government.

MATERIALS:

REFERENCES: 

Bagley, C. L., & Ruckman, J. A. (1983). Iroquois contributions to modern democracy and communism. American Indian Culture and Research Journal, 7(2).

Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopedia (2024). Iroquois Confederacy. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Iroquois-Confederacy

Citizen Potawatomi Nation. (2024). Iroquois Confederacy. Iroquois Confederacy – CPN Cultural Heritage Center. https://www.potawatomiheritage.com/encyclopedia/iroquois-confederacy/

Gershon, L. (2021). The Native American roots of the US constitution – jstor daily. JSTOR Daily-Politics and History. https://daily.jstor.org/the-native-american-roots-of-the-u-s-constitution/

Grinde, D. A. (1993). The Iroquois and the nature of American government. American Indian culture and research journal, 17(1).

Hansen, T. (2018). How the Iroquois great law of peace shaped U.S. democracy. Native America. https://www.pbs.org/native-america/blog/how-the-iroquois-great-law-of-peace-shaped-us-democracy

Little, B. (2020). The Native American government that helped inspire the US Constitution. History.com. https://www.history.com/news/iroquois-confederacy-influence-us-constitution

Murphy, G. (2007). Constitution of the Iroquois nations. Uintah Basin Teaching American History Project. https://www.uintahbasintah.org/usdocuments/doc64.pdf

National Constitution Center. (1988). The United States Constitution. US Constitution. https://constitutioncenter.org/media/files/constitution.pdf

Native American History. (2020). The Iroquois Confederacy – America’s first democracy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phlgnWCvU_c

Parkins, D. A. (2023, July 29). The Iroquois and founding of the U.S. Constitution. Native America Today. https://nativeamericatoday.com/the-iroquois-and-founding-of-the-u-s-constitution/

Schaaf, G. (1989). From the Great Law of Peace to the Constitution of the United States: A Revision of America’s Democratic Roots. American Indian Law Review, 14, 323.

The New York Times. (1987). Iroquois constitution: A forerunner to colonists’ democratic principles. https://www.nytimes.com/1987/06/28/us/iroquois-constitution-a-forerunner-to-colonists-democratic-principles.html

We Are Teachers. (2022). 20 one-pager examples and advice for using them in class. https://www.weareteachers.com/one-pager-examples-english-language-arts/

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