Fifth grade student Dylan Bycroft and his classmates at Jefferson Elementary learned about Native American culture from two special guests Tuesday afternoon. Bycroft’s great-uncle Rick and great-aunt Bobbi Robertson were at the school to teach students about the history of Native Americans.
The couple are from Miami, Okla.
Among their historical tidbits, Rick Robertson explained the symbolism of the pipe ceremony.
“The East is red and it means knowledge,” he said holding a pipe.
The south is yellow and this color means spring and growth. The west is where the sun sets and the west is black.
“White is for the North,” he said “The white covers Mother Earth with a blanket of snow.”
Rick said Mother Earth, Father Sky and the pipe holder are part of the ceremony too.
Every May, Dylan Bycroft and his mother, Stephanie, who is secretary at Jefferson, and the rest of their family join the Robertsons for a gathering.
Bobbie explained that Rick is a Gourd Dancer at the ceremonial Sun Dance. Gourd dances are prayer songs. Rick has been part of Sun Dances for many years.
“They do 16 songs straight,” she said. “Then they take a break and do 16 more.”
They showed different artifacts to the children like arrowheads and a drum made by a man in Copan, Okla. The details in the artifacts are hand made.
“The bead work is usually done by women,” Bobbi said. “They also make shoes and clothing.”
The students also got to sample traditional food. Stephanie helped pass around bread to each student that Bobbi had made. Once at a large gathering Bobbi had to cook for many people without modern day appliances.
“I fed at least 300 people fried bread, buffalo and rice,” she said.
The couple said it was important to share the ceremonies and history with other people.
“We hope to pass our tradition on to our younger generation,” Bobbi said.
Straight from the source Students learn about Native American culture
