“Who Was Sacagawea?”

By: Dennis B. Fradin and Judith Bloom Fradin

Illustrated by: Val Paul Taylor

Summary:  First, Sacagawea was the daughter of a Shoshone chief; she was born around 1788 in Lemhi County, Idaho. Around age 11, she was captured by the enemy’s tribe called Minitaree tribe. This Minitaree tribe attacked with guns, violently attacked and destroyed her village, killing and taking captive of most of her family. She was then sold to the Mandan Indians who kept her enslaved until they gambled her off. A French-Canadian trapper named Toussaint Charbonneau made her one of his wives. He was an abusive middle aged white man who was a fur trader. He forced her to become his wife; back in the 1800s most women at that time had no freedom or voice.

Next, at age 15, she was pregnant with her first child when the Corps of Discovery arrived near the Hidatsa village. Captain Meriwether and William Clark, they interviewed several trappers who might be able to interpret or guide the expedition up the Missouri River. They hired Toussaint Charbonneau and his wife Sacagawea as an interpreter and a guide. Sacagawea spoke Shoshone, they knew they would need her help of the Shoshone tribes at the head waters of the Missouri. Clark nicknamed Sacagawea, “Janey”, others called her “Bird Woman.”On February 11^th, 1805, she gave birth to Jean Baptiste Charbonneau; Clark called him “Pompy.” In April the expedition started Lewis and Clark gave her the job of interpreter. Sacagawea was also skilled in native plants, berries, and edible roots. She saved then many times, once their boat capsized and she saved all the documents, she knew that if the Indian tribes saw white men with an Indian woman and a baby they would find them to be safe. She also spoke Shoshone, Lewis and Clark needed her to speak to the Shoshone tribe who were famous for breeding horses. On this journey they were met with a lot of obstacles, they nearly got attacked by rattlesnakes, mosquitoes, and brown bears. They suffered from flues, fevers, and diarrhea. They were also hit but extreme weather, snow storms, hail, rain, and floods. But though it all, she got them to their destination, her long lost village that she was raised in. She danced with joy at the sight of her long lost brother now chieftain Cameahwait.  In late august she said good-bye to her brother and continued on the pacific. Again they faced many trials, met many native Indians, and traded many goods but Sacagawea kept them from starving.

Finally, they reached their destination around New Years Day of1806. Clark heard a whale washed up on the pacific shores. No one included Sacagawea; she was so hurt that she helped them on this journey. She traveled a great distance through terrible conditions with a baby. She saved their documents and maps, helped them get horses, found them food. She finally got up the nerve to tell Clark that she wanted to see this whale! Clark took her to the whale and she was amazed at the site of this gigantic fish. Lewis and Clark, finally headed back home to Saint Louis. Lewis and Clark paid Charbonneau $500.33 dollar which was a fortune back in those days. Sacagawea did not receive a dime! Clark missed them so much that he asked them to come to Saint Louis. They arrive in the autumn month of 1810. Sacagawea fell ill and died on December 20, 1812. Before she died she gave birth to a daughter named Lisette. Clark and his wife adopted Sacagawea’s children and raised them as their own.  On the 100^th anniversary of the Lewis and Clark expedition, Sacagawea had more landmarks named for her bravery. Memorials were built in her honor more than any other American woman. Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Wyoming have mountain named after her. Washington and North Dakota have lakes named for her. In the year 2000 the United Stated issued a new dollar coin with Sacagawea’s picture on it.

Evaluation by Genre: Historical fiction, and Biography of her early life, the Lewis and Clark expedition, her later years and her death. It is a fiction book that is in many of the schools around the world.

Key facts about Sacajawea: She is brave, she was on a trip with Lewis and Clark, she helped them explore the Louisiana Purchase, she had a baby boy during the expedition, she was kidnapped as a child, on the expedition she found her brother, she saved important papers and got supplies in the river, she died in her early 20’s.

 Illustration and Art:   The illustrations and artwork is about Sacagawea and her adventure to the Pacific Coast with the Lewis and Clark Expedition. The book has one hundred black and white drawings for young readers.

Personal Comments: This book about Sacagawea was very informative; it gives you not only Sacagawea’s life but the Lewis and Clark expedition.  I liked this book because it keeps you in suspense on her near death experiences. I used to look at Indian woman as just squaws who had lives of drudgery. Like African cultures, women had no education or importance in the world other than to bear children and to work in the fields. Indian women were called squaws which meant “prostitutes “this was used by both Indians and Whites when referring to Indian women. Indian women had intense workloads and very rugged hardships that they had to shoulder. Lewis even thought that they were carrying venereal diseases through a letter to his wife back home. Abuse and beaten many times buy her white husband Charbonneau; she still showed remarkable courage on her journey. Without her they would have died many, many times in the wilderness. Another part that I loved about this book, it showed remarkable courage. Can you just imagine the ingenuity you had to have to find your way through uncharted land? Being the only woman with a baby she had great strengths she probably did not realize herself. Her knowledge of roots and plants was one of the many factors that made her a valuable asset to the Lewis and Clark expedition. I loved the ending that even though she died at the young age of 24, she was honored by way of monuments, memorials, landmarks, and rivers.

Motivational Activities: I would use this book in reading centers, encore, and read alones. I would incorporate this book in classroom discussion where we could read together and discus Sacagawea’s life and how she was a very important factor to the Lewis and Clark expedition. I, the teacher would bridge over to history with the American Indians and the explorers. I could show them a map of the United States and have them draw a line from Sacagawea’s home where she was raised to the famous journey she took to the Pacific Ocean. First, I would use Technology (computer) to look up all the information on Sacagawea and her journey. There are many, many ways to incorporate this book. I would engage them in vocabulary words and use sentence structure.  I would engage the children in dramatic play; they could read passages and answer questions. They also can do puzzles, word finds, and drawings. Next, I would integrate Art by way of drawings, face masks, and costumes. They would draw a timeline of her life. Finally, I would incorporate music, thru Indian dance. I would also use visual Art pretending to be the characters in the book. I feel this book is very appropriate for K-6 classroom.

Reader Response Questions: (1) who was Sacajawea? (2) What was tribe called?

(3) What kinds of foods did they eat? (4) Who was the president at the time? (5) Who was Bird woman? (6) Who was the father of her baby boy and what did he do for a living? (7) Why was Salt important? (8)Explain the Louisiana Purchase? (9) Why did she die young? (10) What would you have done differently if you were Sacajawea?

This Non-Fiction book shows Informational sources that explain the subject. This book is designed to inform the reader. It covers diverse topics ranging from: poverty, race, culture, ethics, work, home, and play. It also provides knowledge about Indian culture and how one woman helped Lewis and Clark. It enables students at different reading levels to engage in this book. It presents detailed information about its subjects through a brief straight forward text and carefully composted illustrations (photographs). (Literature and the Child, 117).

If you like this book you can read: Who was Thomas Jefferson? Who was Ben Franklin?  And many others from the Fradin collection.

Cited

Fradin, J (2002), who was Sacagawea? New York, Grosset & Dunlap, Children’s Books.

Whitman Galda, Lee, Bernice E. Cullinan, and Lawrence R. Sipe. "Literature and the Child." , 7th Edition by Lee Galda, Bernice E. Cullinan, Lawrence R. Sipe (9780495602392). Wadsworth, Cengage Learning, n.d. &, 1998. Print.

Post by: Terry M. Wheaton