This Week: A Brief History of the American Southwest for Kids - Radio Special
This time on The Children's Hour, we have a different kind of show. This episode is taken from our six episode educational podcast series called "A Brief History of the American Southwest - For Kids" which was produced through multiple virtual field trips to sites of significance in our high desert of New Mexico.
The story begins nearly 23,000 years ago, when people began migrating through, hunting, and living in this part of the world. After nearly 20,000 years, the Chacoan era arrives. We can see today the complexity of Chaco Canyons architecture, engineering, and governance demonstrating the sophistication of the Southwestern cultures.
Then in 1530, uninvited guests arrived in New Mexico in search of the mythical Seven Cities of Gold, confronting the A:shiwi A:wan (Zuni) community with horses, metals, guns, all of which were never before seen in this area.
In 1680, America had its first successful revolution: the Pueblo Revolt. We learn the story of Po'Pay, the religious leader and runner from Ohkay Owingeh just outside of Santa Fe, New Mexico, organized the entire Pueblo community. Twenty years later, the Spanish returned with more arms, people, and might and overtook the Puebloan people. It became clear that for survival, there must be peace. We learn how the Spanish King handled doling out the lands of the Southwest to attempt to foster peace.
Finally, we come into the period of time when this area was nationalized by the United States, a fledgling country itself, after the end of the Spanish-American War, and the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.
This is a radio special based on a 6 part educational curricular podcast series of the same name, and comes with a Learn-Along guide that meets and cites National educational standards.
Join us for a walk through history, this time on The Children's Hour!