Eighth-grade Social Studies students do not just read and do work out of textbooks. They also try hands-on demonstrations. Recently, Mr. Morris’s and Mrs. Holland’s classes learned how to make Native American arrowheads. The students had been studying the Louisiana Purchase, the role that the Shoshone woman Sacagawea played in the exploration, and what tools and items the Indians used to create arrowheads used in hunting. This included elk horns, deer antlers, wood, stone, glass, and leather pads.

To make history come alive, Mr. Morris demonstrated how to create arrowheads using modernized items like copper strikers and glass bottles.

“The students seemed enthusiastic and interested,” Mr. Morris said.

Mrs. Holland also saw the benefit in the demonstration.

“The students were able to see one of the many difficult tasks that Native Americans encountered on a daily basis,” Mrs. Holland said.

Some students enjoyed seeing what could be done with the glass.

“I liked how Mr. Morris shaped the glass by using a bopper,” Stephany Iturriaga said.

Other students enjoyed the educational value of the demonstration.

“The Indians only had those tools back in their day to hunt animals,” Kobe Mosley said. “It was interesting because now we have bows and arrows, but then they only had spears that they attached to wooden sticks.”

Some students even got to chip off the glass themselves.

“Since I am Cherokee Indian, it was fun to learn more about my culture,” Kaila Lindsey said.