Traditional Methods of Social Organization, PP# 36-40 – BLM 1.3.1

Kinship communities -FP`s lived in social groups based on a variety of genetic connections - the basic social group was the extended family -many thought that included children, aunts, uncles, and grandparents - clans were based on common ancestry, human or animal - extended family clans could be based on patrilineal (father), matrilineal (mother) -the Haudenosaunee had 6-10 clan families living together in a longhouse

Community size -Community size related to available resources -Populations could not grow to the extent that they would exhaust the resources of a territory -Only the Great Lakes and Pacific Coast region saw large settlements develop - When food supplies were wide and varied communities were very small, although larger gathering would occur at different times of the year - The Blackfoot and Dene had these types of gatherings annually

Roles and contributions -Many communities relied on a system of mutual support although there were also specific roles - Young men worked as hunters and defenders -women organized the camps, prepared food, and tended to crops - There was some flexibility within these gender roles - Elders recognized as having knowledge and wisdom - Elders teach by example; kindness, humility, patience, in this way they were natural leaders

Traditional education -Education used to promote worldview - mentored and taught by the whole community, not just parents - taught the history, spiritual beliefs and practical skills for their community - learning by doing was common - dreaming and visioning was also part of some cultures, vision quests would see children isolate from a community and fast before receiving a teaching (vision) - education was holistic and accomplished through storytelling – people were expected to interpret meanings and infer

Justice and conflict resolution -rules were not usually broken because individual needs were not separate from the community and most goods were freely shared -in cases of conflict people were allowed to present their perspective - offending individuals were encouraged to make amends with those they hurt - a person who broke hunting rules may be banished from the community - in Inuit communities elders would council and those who committed serious offences would be monitored by community members