Winakung at Waterloo comes to Byram Lakes
BYRAM The second grade students at Byram Lakes Elementary School enjoyed a morning of hands-on activities provided by Winakung at Waterloo, a non-profit that organizes educational events around the historic Waterloo Village. Andrea Proctor, Director of Winakung at Waterloo, along with her assistants Bonnie Brydon, Marie Kovacs, Mark Sowinski and Susan Wojcik, dressed in Native American attire and brought a wealth of knowledge and inspiration to the students. The presentation began with a brief introduction to the Lenape Indians that lived in the area. The students, as well as their teachers, were treated to a unique and fun experience which involved moving between a variety of stations provided by Winakung at Waterloo. The students were divided into groups of ten to allow each child the opportunity to experience life as a Native American from this area. The children used a mortar and pestle to understand the rigors of providing food for a family. The students used tools to simulate the digging of holes and the starting of fires. They removed corn from the cob and took turns grinding corn into flour for cooking. Using play food, children put together a meal that the Lenape would have been able to prepare from the available food in the woods or grown in gardens. Examination of a variety of pelts from animals located in the area provided the children with a chance to feel rabbit, coyote, deer, bear, fox and raccoon skins. They discussed the use and value of the animals to the Native Americans. As the children moved from station to station they played games that children, as well as adults, may have played in the village. These included a moccasin game using an arrowhead which was hidden and needed to be found, the game of pick-up sticks, an activity that would improve one’s ability in spear throwing by throwing corn cobs into a variety of different sized baskets and a game that involved throwing bits of bone or pits from a wooden bowl and attempting to catch them again. The second grade students also had the opportunity to learn about the language used by the Lenape Indians and the types of clothing that was made and worn by the Lenape. Through Winakung at Waterloo, the children at Byram Lakes were able to come away from the experience with a new knowledge and understanding of life in a Native American village that was located right in their own neighborhoods.