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Social studies activity

Montana's Story: Big Sky, Glacier National Park & Native Nations

Montana is called 'Big Sky Country' because the sky there looks bigger than anywhere else in America. Here is why: Montana is so flat in the east and so wide open that you can see the horizon in every direction — no tall buildings, no trees blocking the view — just 360 degrees of sky. On a clear day in Montana, you can sometimes see a storm coming from 100 miles away.

Hands OnAbout 25 minutesScreen-freeParent help expected

Materials and setup

How this changes by age

Pre-K (ages 3–4)

Montana is called 'Big Sky Country' because the sky there looks bigger than anywhere else in America. Here is why: Montana is so flat in the east and so wide open that you can see the horizon in every direction — no tall buildings, no trees blocking the view — just 360 degrees of sky. On a clear day in Montana, you can sometimes see a storm coming from 100 miles away.

Difficulty 1 of 3

Steps

  1. Fill the top TWO-THIRDS of your paper with bright blue sky and giant white clouds — make the sky bigger than the land!
  2. Along the bottom third, draw the flat Montana prairie: brown and gold grasses, very flat.
  3. Add one tiny farmhouse or one tiny bison to show how small everything looks under that huge sky.
  4. Ask: 'If you could see a storm coming from 100 miles away, how much time would you have to find shelter?'

Learning objectives

  • Understand why Montana is called 'Big Sky Country' — the geography of flat open land creates a wider horizon
  • Notice scale: how landscape shapes the feeling of a place
  • Wonder at how weather becomes visible from enormous distances on open plains

Kindergarten (ages 5–6)

The Blackfeet, Crow, Lakota, and many other nations have lived in Montana for thousands of years. They were expert hunters who followed the great bison herds — and bison were not just food. Bison hide became clothing, blankets, and tipi covers. Bison bones became tools. Bison stomach became a cooking pot. One bison could provide everything a family needed for weeks. The plains nations used nearly every single part of the animal — nothing was wasted.

Difficulty 2 of 3

Steps

  1. Draw a large bison in the center of your paper.
  2. Around the bison, draw arrows pointing to different parts of the body, with a small picture of what each part became: hide → tipi, bones → tools, meat → food.
  3. Add a wide Montana sky behind the bison — big and blue.
  4. Write or dictate: 'The Blackfeet people used bison for ___, ___, and ___.'
  5. Ask: 'Can you think of anything in your house that comes from just one animal or plant?'

Learning objectives

  • Explain how plains nations used every part of the bison — it was not just food, it was an entire material culture
  • Identify the Blackfeet, Crow, and Lakota as Native nations of Montana
  • Compare the relationship between plains peoples and bison to how we get what we need today

Early elementary (ages 6–8)

Glacier National Park in Montana had 150 glaciers when it was first mapped in 1910. Today it has fewer than 26 — the glaciers are melting and scientists are studying exactly why. Going-to-the-Sun Road, which winds through the park high above two giant valleys, is one of the most spectacular drives on Earth. Montana also has more cattle than people — one of the only places in America where cows outnumber humans! The Blackfeet Nation calls this land the 'Backbone of the World,' and their nation's territory borders the park to this day.

Difficulty 2 of 3

Steps

  1. Draw a Montana timeline: Blackfeet, Crow, and Lakota nations on the plains (before 1800); Lewis and Clark pass through (1805); gold and copper mining boom (1860s–1880s); Glacier National Park established (1910) with 150 glaciers; today — fewer than 26 glaciers remain.
  2. For each event, draw a symbol and write one sentence.
  3. On a Montana map, mark Glacier National Park, the Missouri River, Helena (capital), and the Blackfeet Nation territory.
  4. Write a paragraph: Glacier National Park had 150 glaciers in 1910 and has fewer than 26 today. What questions does that make you want to ask? What would scientists need to find out?
  5. Share your paragraph with a family member.

Learning objectives

  • Describe the dramatic loss of glaciers in Glacier National Park using specific numbers
  • Explain the Blackfeet Nation's connection to the land that became Glacier National Park
  • Practice asking scientific questions prompted by data
  • Connect Montana's geography to its history and its people

Upper elementary (ages 8–10)

Glacier National Park in Montana had 150 glaciers when it was established in 1910. Today it has fewer than 30 — and scientists predict they will all be gone by 2030. The park was partly carved out of Blackfeet Nation territory; the Blackfeet called this land the 'Backbone of the World' and were never fully compensated for it. Now the very glaciers that defined the park are disappearing due to climate change. Montana also hosts some of America's largest copper mining legacy sites — Butte's Berkeley Pit is a mile-wide open pit mine filled with water so acidic it poses serious environmental challenges. Research one of these issues and argue what responsibility we carry for the landscape and the people whose land we built on.

Difficulty 3 of 3

Steps

  1. Choose one topic: (1) The Blackfeet Nation's exclusion from Glacier National Park and their claims today; (2) Butte's Berkeley Pit mine — cause, scale, and cleanup challenges; or (3) The loss of Glacier's glaciers and what disappears with them.
  2. Find at least three specific facts (numbers, dates, names) about your topic.
  3. Create a cause-and-effect diagram: What decisions led to this situation? What are the current consequences?
  4. Write a two-paragraph response: Paragraph 1 — what happened and who made each key decision. Paragraph 2 — what you think should happen now, and who bears responsibility.
  5. Write one sentence: 'The hardest part of this problem to solve is ___ because ___.'
  6. Present your diagram and argument to a family member and ask them to challenge one of your claims.
  7. In 1880s Montana, a cattle rancher could buy a young steer for about $5 and sell a fattened one in Chicago for around $25. If a rancher drove 1,000 head north and lost 10 percent along the way, how much revenue was left? Subtract $3,000 in cowboy wages and supplies, and calculate the profit. Then suggest one way a modern rancher could earn more per animal.
  8. Glacier National Park rangers build and repair mountain trails using hand tools. Design a switchback trail up a steep hill by drawing a side view and a top view. Label where you would put drainage dips so rain does not wash the path away, and explain in one sentence why straight-up trails fail.

Learning objectives

  • Research a specific Montana environmental or historical justice issue using precise facts
  • Trace the decisions that created a current problem through a cause-and-effect diagram
  • Argue who bears responsibility for a historical or environmental harm
  • Connect a 19th-century decision (excluding Blackfeet from park land) to a 21st-century question (who stewards it now)

Safety and evidence note

Read the full activity before beginning. An adult should supervise tools, heat, food, outdoor work, movement, and experiments as appropriate. Completion records that the activity was done; the child’s explanation, work sample, photo, or demonstration is stronger evidence of learning than a completion check alone.

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