Teacher Resource Page Activities
Home of the Free and the WildMustangs represent the spirit of the Old West. Wild and free, they evoke images of vast rolling prairies, untamed hills and mountains, hidden canyons.
Though the ancestors of horses once roamed across North America, they died out thousands of years ago. The horse returned to the Americas with the invasion of Spanish explorers in the 16th century. Some of those animals escaped from or were freed by their masters, reproduced in the wild and became the foundation for the herds of mustangers that still roam the American West today. Over the centuries, more horses have joined these wild bands.
One of the enduring romances of the Old West is the tale of the spiritual bon between mythic heroes and the wild horses they tames. At the turn of the century, there were possibly as many as 2 million wild horses. But the Old West is no more. Roads, cities, ranches, farms, people and progress have covered much of the mustang's range, and the remaining horses are scattered throughout publicly owned lands and on a few private preserves in the West.
The transition has been cruel and bloody. Earlier in this century, wild horses were hunted down and shipped to slaughterhouses. With the government's blessing, mustangers used means fair and foul to destroy these icons of the past.
In the 1950's, the tide began to turn. As people became more attuned to humane animal treatment, the cruelty and the waste of the mustangers gave birth to a movement to protect these wild and free creatures. On December 15, 1971, Congress passed the Wild Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act.
Today, an estimated 39,000 mustangs still roam federally managed lands in the West. The Department of Interior's Bureau of Land Management keeps mustangs from overwhelming the rangeland by capturing thousands of the horses each year and making them available for adoption by citizens. Since 1973, more than 140,000 wild horses and burros have been adopted throughout the United States.
Intended audience: 6th - 9th grades (middle school range)
The Education Standards for the individual activites can be accessed by simply clicking on the link at the end of each activity. The number/letter combinations indicate which standards correlate to that activity according to the Educational Standards Key.
Authors -- The developers of the teachers' guide are Elaine Larson and writer Ruth Bylander. Elaine Larson is the director of educational services and outreach for South Dakota Public Television. Elaine has a BA in English education with a minor in history and an MA in educational administration. She has taught English and social studies at the middle and high school level, has been a curriculum specialist at a community college, and has done a great deal of adult education. Ruth Bylander is South Dakota Public Television's public information department writer.
Activities
Discuss:1. Wild horses live on lands owned and managed by the U.S. government. Who should benefit from the management of these lands? Standards 1a, 1b, 1c
a. Wild horses. These living reminders of the Old West have been roaming free on these lands for more than 100 years.
b. Other wildlife. Wild horses are a fairly recent addition to the environment and other animals and plants should take precedence.
c. Ranchers, loggers and miners. People should have the right to earn a living.
d. All of the above. The government should make an effort to offer something for each group without completely shutting one out.2. What makes a horse "wild?" Many people debate the use of the term "wild" applied to the mustangs living in sanctuaries and on open ranges across the West. Is a wild horse simply an unbroken horse? Is "wild" the same as "feral" in referring to these horses? Standards 1c, 3a, 3c
Research:
1. According to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the horse became extinct on the North
American continent around 8000 BC. Spanish explorers reintroduced horses to North American in the 1500s.
- Where did the original North American horses come from? Standard 3c
- What may have caused their extinction? Standard 3b
- What has been the history of the horse in North America?Standard 1b
- What is the history of the horse in Native American cultures? Standard 1b
2. What is the process for adopting a wild horse? What are the requirements?
Define:
Conquistador, feral, sanctuaryWrite:
Write an essay on the use of the word "romance" in the title of the program: Wild Horses: An American Romance. What does it mean to take a "romantic" view of wild horse history and issues? Does the program depict wild horses in a "romantic" way? What would be the opposite of a "romantic" viewpoint or depiction? Tip: In this context "romance" does not refer to relationships between two people, but to an idealistic, emotional perspective.Standards 1b, 2
Wild Horse Annie
"In hindsight, they wish they hadn't have made so much fun of her and they wished they hadn't gave her the name that spread like wildfire. They also wished that they had paid attention to business at the time, because, basically, they didn't think that one woman could change Nevada around."
-Dawn Lappin, wild horse refuge operator and president of the WHOA (Wild Horse Organized Assistance), an organization founded by Wild Horse Annie.
Kids and Wild Horse Annie to the Rescue:
Kids don't think they have the power to change things, but America's grade-school children played a big part in saving the American mustang.
In 1950, a Nevada woman noticed blood dripping from a truck ahead of her and she followed it. What Velma Johnston found horrified her. Wild horses, many of them injured, had been packed into the truck and hauled to a shipping yard where they would be sent to a pet food factory.
This was legal. Hunters known as "mustangers" were licensed by the Bureau of Land Management to rid the range of mustangs. The horses were captured for slaughter or just gunned down as the panicked animals were hunted by plane or truck.
In 1952, Johnston, among others, convinced the Storey County Nevada Commission to ban the hunting of horses from airplanes. But she wanted more. Next, she lobbied the Nevada Legislature, where a heckler derisively named her "Wild Horse Annie." His name-calling backfired. The nickname stuck and the movement grew like wildfire.
Wild Horse Annie got newspapers and television interested in the plight of wild horses. And she encouraged grade-school children across the nation to write to Congress. The massive letter-writing campaigns paid off. In 1959, the hunting of wild horses by airplane was banned. On Dec. 15, 1971, the United States Congress passed the Wild FreeRoaming Horse and Burro Act protecting these living remnants of the Old West. Wild Horse Annie died in 1977. But her legacy lives on, wild and free.Activities
To Think about:
Velma "Wild Horse Annie" Johnston is a role model in several ways.1. She overcame physical handicaps, and her shyness about her looks, to make a public stand about something she cared about. According to friend Dawn Lappin, Johnston had had polio and had trouble turning her head and she was sensitive about her crooked teeth.
2. She proved that one person could change the law of the land. She organized a campaign using the media (newspapers, magazines, radio and TV) and encouraged thousands of schoolchildren to write to Congress.
3. She didn't let name-calling bullies stop her. She took on the name "Wild Horse Annie" after a name-calling opponent called her that to make fun of her.Discuss:
a. What caused Velma Johnston to overcome her physical challenges to become a public spokesperson for wild horses? 1e
b. Name other people - either historical figures or people in your community - who have overcome challenges to make a stand on an issue. What characteristics and attitudes do these people have that make them role models? 1e
c. What is the "common good?" Did Wild Horse Annie's efforts support the common good? What present-day ramifications related to wild horse populations and land-use issues may be a result of her successful campaign? 1a, 1b, 1c, 1dWrite:
a. Write a short essay on the role of citizen action in facilitating change. Cite examples from the history of our nation, the world, or your community. Include your opinion on the role citizens play in strengthening the "common good." 2
b. Write a letter to the editor from the perspective of a person living in Nevada during the time Wild Horse Annie was mounting her campaign to save wild horses. Your letter may either support or oppose her efforts. Support your opinions with facts as much as possible. 2
Dayton Hyde and the Wild Horse Sanctuary
" The horse spirit is no different
from a human spirit.
You can probably hear their cries;
you can probably hear hoof beats;
you can probably hear a gunshot.
And that spirit of the horse
is probably still in these canyons. "-Wallace Coffey, Comanche horseman and historian
In 1988, Dayton 0. Hyde founded the Institute of Range and the American Mustang (IRAM), a non-profit organization that owns the I 1,000-acre Black Hills Wild Horse Sanctuary southwest of Hot Springs in the Black Hills of South Dakota. The Sanctuary is home to about 350 mustangs.1. According to the program, why did Dayton Hyde found the Black Hills Wild Horse Sanctuary? 1e
2. How does Dayton Hyde fund IRAM and the Black Hills Wild Horse Samctuary?
3. How is the work of Dayton Hyde impacting wild horse population and issues of land use? 1a, 1dWild Horse Ancestors:
Wild horses, like those in the Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Refuge in Montana, have a unique genetic background. Blood testing has shown that the Pryor horses are primarily derived from horses with Spanish ancestry. Wild horses in other areas have different unique genetic make-ups. Some common breeds are listed and described on the SD Public Broadcasting web site.Questions:
1. How are these breeds different? How are they similar? 3a
2. How do the traits of each breed help these horses adapt to the environment in which they live? 3a, 3c
3. Why are the horses found in different sanctuaries or refuges around the country genetically different from each other? 3a, 3b, 3c
"I'd love to be a horse
. ... And sometimes, I just run across the prairie just
as fast as an old body can go,
just hoping that I'll become a horse,
and not have to go back to being a human.
But old age and my human body
always catch up with me."-Dayton Hyde, founder and operator of the Black Hill, Wild Horse Sanctuary
Book it Up
(Most should be available via bookstores, libraries and the Internet.)"Thunder of the Mustangs: Legend and Lore of the Wild Horses"
Edited by Mark Spragg, 1997; Sierra Club Books"The Wild Horse: An Adopters Manual"
By Barbara Eustis-Cross and Nancy Bowker, 1992.
LIFE Foundation, I I I I Lamb Road, Ridgecrest, CA 93555"Mustang (American Wildlife in American Spaces)"
By Sharon Curtin, 1996. Photographs by Yva Momatiuk and John Eastcott.
Rufus Publishing. Includes many beautiful color photos of American mustangs."America's Last Wild Horses"
By Hope Ryden, 1991; Dutton Paperback.
A comprehensive history of the wild horses in America.For ages 9 and up:
"Wild Horses"
By Carol Ann Moorhead, 1994; illustrated by Kay Herndon;
designed by Gail Kohler Opsahl; photography by George McDonald.
Roberts Rinehart Publishers 1-800-352-1985
Denver Museum of Natural History educational and activity book."Mustang : Wild Spirit of the West"
By Marguerite Henry; illustrated by Robert Lougheed, 1992.
Aladdin Paperbacks The story of Wild Horse Annie."Man and Mustang"
By George Ancona, 1992. Simon and Schuster
Photo essay of mustang training by
volunteer New Mexico State Penitentiary inmates."The Mustang (Endangered in America)"
By Alvin Silverstein with Laura Silverstein Nunn, Virginia Silverstein, 1997.
Millbrook Press The history of wild horses, color photographs and a list of organizations."I think they represent our freedom our own lost freedom. "
To Find Out MoreWrite:
Black Hills Wild Horse Sanctuary
P.O. Box 998, Hot Springs, SD 57747
1-800-252-6652 or (605) 745-5955Wild Horse and Burro National Program Office
NV-960
BLM
P.O. Box 12000
Reno, Nevada 89520-0006The Wild Horse and Burro Holding Facility at Elm Creek
BLM-Elm Creek Center
P.O. Box 160
Elm Creek, Nebraska 68836Bureau of Land Management
Contains adoption details, history, links.
http://www.wildhorseandburro.blm.gov/Institute of Range and the American Mustang
which operates and supports the
Black Hills Wild Horse Sanctuary near Hot Springs.
www.wildmustangs.comLinks to dozens of horse-related Web sites
www.haynet.netOrdering Information:
This 60-minute documentary, narrated by Native American actor Wes Studi, is available on videocassette from GPN for $24.95 (shipping and handling included). Call 1-800-228-4630. Order it online now.
