Crawford Lake

This week the students in room 101 had the opportunity to visit Crawford Lake and see how the Wendat First Nations People would have lived 600 years ago.  The students actively chose this trip while completing their research projects on the First Nations People of Canada.  Consolidating what they had learned through their research made this trip very meaningful to the students and they voted it the "Best Trip Ever!!!".

On our hike through the forest, students learned how the First Nations people helped the early settlers survive in the late 1600s-1700s.  The First Nations people showed settlers how they could use cedar tea to cure scurvy, and use hemlock and juniper as medicine.  They showed them how to use snowshoes in the winter, and keep warm by making clothing of animal furs.  

Our leader Mandy, showed us how the Wendat people of this area set up their longhouses.  These longhouses would have to be rebuilt every 15 years.  She showed us how the Wendat built platforms along the side of the longhouses which were used for the storage of food and for sleeping.  As fire pits were used in the inner walkway of the longhouses the Wendat people slept on the lower bunks as the rising smoke would be worse on the upper levels.  Mandy showed us how the Wendat made mattresses from cedar leaves and animal furs to sleep on.  The natural oils of the cedar would ward off mosquitos.