Education

Black Hawk State Historic Site offers a great educational program for field trips of students from Kindergarten through High School. All field trips include a guided tour of the Hauberg Museum. Build the best possible field trip for your group by choosing from the provided activities listed below:

• Museum Tour (Indoor): Enjoy a guided tour of the Hauberg Indian Museum, learning how the Sauk and Meskwaki lived by following them through the seasons.
• Illinois and Iowa Animals (Indoor): Learn fascinating facts about common Illinois and Iowa wildlife by examining mounted specimens and furs up close.
• Nature Hikes (Outdoor): Discover nature on a guided hike either through the Nature Preserve to the north or along the Rock River to the south.

When calling to schedule, feel free to suggest a topic that matches your curriculum for our hike leaders to cover while out on the trail (e.g. wildflowers, plants, diversity, or ecosystems).
To schedule your visit, call 309-788-9536 or email blackhawkhistoricsite@gmail.com.

To encourage schools to utilize this great program, several local foundations graciously provide funds to help schools meet the transportation costs associated with field trips. Learn about and apply for our Bus Grant.

Did you ever wonder what life was like for the indigenous peoples who lived here before us? You can bring their story alive for your students by incorporating the new book: Twelve Moons: A Year with the Sauk and Meskwaki, 1817-1818 into your classroom. As the title suggests, the lunar months dictated the seasonal activities of these two tribes, and through the pages of this book, students will travel back in time to experience it. This book and curriculum guide will help you easily launch an adventure in classroom studies, with lessons and activities that promote critical thinking and inquiry-based learning.

The companion curriculum guide has been reviewed by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), who stated in part:

The resource is cross curricular and highly accessible…the illustrations are visually appealing, and the supplemental resources complement the design of the book.

Twelve Moons author, Elizabeth Carvey, was director of the John Hauberg Indian Museum at Black Hawk State Historic Site for 36 years until her retirement in 2017. She, along with educators Kristen Bergren, Terry Bilyeu and Marion Lardner have written the teacher-friendly curriculum with cross-curricular lessons and activities to complement this book. Five book sections, along with other supplemental materials created for this project, are ready to use in your classroom in this ongoing project.

• “Curriculum overview”
• “Introduction”
• “Saukenuk”
• “Poster of Saukenuk” (Legal size paper)
• “Senisepo Kebesaukee”
• “Poster-Map of Senisepo Kebesaukee” (Legal size paper)
• “Fur Traders”
• “Fur Traders Game”
• “Fur Traders Poster-Map and Fur Trade Game sheet C and example sheet C” (Legal size paper)
• “Long House”
• “Long House Posters” (Legal size paper)

Twelve Moons: A Year with the Sauk and Meskwaki, 1817-1818 is available at the Hauberg Indian Museum.

Ecosystems at Black Hawk State Historic Site is a video series that showcases three of the unique ecological communities that make up the park.

In Mr. Chuck's Critter Corner, the park naturalist investigates many of the different animals that call Black Hawk State Historic Site home.

Critter Corner Extended Learning

Critter Corner Extended Learning - Answers