Diamond 9: Why were the Native Americans defeated?

This great diamond 9 cctivity is designed to help students studying the key reasons why the Native Americans were defeated by the US government. It can be used as a revision tool, starter or plenary for the full range of ability and should work alongside any main stream resource on this topic. If you are looking for something more suited to lower and middle ability students, then I have several more tradition card sort on this topic.

When you purchase this great resource you will be able to download a fully editable Microsoft Word document which can be differentiated further if you wish. The resource includes nine diamond shaped cards which include one of the reasons why the Native Americans were defeated. Once students have cut the cards out, they are set three tasks including:

1. Remove any reasons that you don’t think are important. Record and explain why you have removed them.
2. Arrange the remaining diamonds to show any links that you can find between the different reasons. Record and explain your reasons.
3. Make a smaller diamond shape using the four most important reasons to explain why the Native Americans were defeated. Record and explain your reasons.

At each stage students should be feeding back to their group or the class and explain. This is absolutely crucial for developing those critical thinking skills that we associate with diamond 9 activities. Once students have sorted the cards, you can extend their understanding further by discussing or writing an extended answer explaining which factor played the most important role in their defeat.

The aims and objectives of this lesson are:

Theme: The American West
Know: How were the Native Americans defeated by the US Government?
Understand: How did the US government undermine the Native American way of life?
Evaluate: Which factor was the most important in undermining their way of life?

WILF - What Am I Looking For?
Identify and describe: How did the US Government defeat the Native Americans?
Explain: What tactics and strategies did they use to undermine their way of life?
Analyse: Which factor or combination of factors was the most successful?

If you like this resource then why not check out my other resources on this topic in my TES shop. You can also follow ‘The History Academy’ on Twitter, Google Plus, YouTube and Facebook for the latest updates or even to get in touch and chat about how you have used this resource or to ask questions. We aim to produce cheap and affordable resources for either the price of a good cup of coffee or a happy meal so that you can spend more time doing the things that you want.

Anyway, have fun and stay in touch via social media for the latest updates.

Kind Regards

Roy