1621 Wampanoag-Plymouth Treaty BEYOND the Thanksgiving Narrative — and Powhatan/Pocahontas BOOK-VS-EVIDENCE

Morning Meeting + standing recite Three Promises. Read aloud one chapter from 'Squanto's Journey' (Bruchac, 2000) — Tisquantum's full story including his earlier kidnapping by English fishermen, time in Spain, time in England, and return to find his Patuxet village wiped out by epidemic — BEFORE he met the Plymouth colonists.

• Standing recite Three Promises
• Read 'Squanto's Journey' opening chapter
• Affirm: 'Tisquantum's story is complex — he was kidnapped and enslaved by English fishermen years BEFORE the Mayflower; he spoke English when he met Plymouth because he had been in England as a captive.'

Show the 1621 Wampanoag-Plymouth treaty primary-source text (Plimoth Patuxet Museum Wampanoag Homesite educator pack — co-curated with Wampanoag historians). Walk through the actual 6 articles of the treaty (mutual defense, return of stolen goods, mutual visitation rights, allies of one are allies of the other, etc.). Apply MG-7 full routine. NEXT: Loewen BOOK-VS-EVIDENCE on the 'first Thanksgiving' narrative. LEFT COLUMN: 'What the Thanksgiving story says' — Pilgrims and Indians sat down together in friendship; Indians taught Pilgrims to farm; everyone was friends. RIGHT COLUMN: 'What primary-source evidence shows' — there was a harvest feast in fall 1621; ~90 Wampanoag attended (3x more than Plymouth's ~50 colonists); the Wampanoag were ALREADY farming corn/beans/squash (they taught the colonists, but they were not 'helpers' — they were a sovereign nation with diplomatic interests); within 50 years (King Philip's War 1675-78) Wampanoag and English would be at war. THEN: Loewen BOOK-VS-EVIDENCE on Pocahontas. LEFT COLUMN: 'What the Pocahontas story says' — Pocahontas saved John Smith; she fell in love with John Rolfe; her story is a romance. RIGHT COLUMN: 'What primary-source evidence shows' — Matoaka was 10-11 years old at the time of the alleged 'rescue'; John Smith's 'rescue' story was added in his 1624 'Generall Historie of Virginia' AFTER Smith had no living witnesses to contradict him (the story is absent from Smith's 1608 'True Relation'); Matoaka was later KIDNAPPED by the English in 1613 and held for ransom; she converted to Christianity (likely under duress) and married John Rolfe and traveled to England where she died at age 21.

• 1621 was a sovereign-to-sovereign treaty, not a 'helping' relationship.

  model Sourcing: Plimoth Patuxet Wampanoag Homesite educator pack, co-curated with Wampanoag historians. Contextualization: 1621, the year after Mayflower 1620, 90% of Patuxet Wampanoag had been killed by epidemic 1617-1619 from earlier European contact. Corroboration: William Bradford's 'Of Plimoth Plantation' also documents the treaty. Close reading: the treaty has 6 articles of mutual defense and alliance — it is a sovereign-to-sovereign treaty. NMAI 5th move: Wampanoag voice is present today; the Wampanoag are still here.

  prompt Apply MG-7 to the 1621 Wampanoag-Plymouth treaty.
• Sourcing — when was the source created, by whom, why? Smith had motivation to invent the story.

  model John Smith's first account of his 1607 capture by Powhatan (in his 1608 'True Relation') does NOT mention any rescue by Pocahontas. The rescue story first appears in Smith's 1624 'Generall Historie of Virginia' — written 17 years AFTER the alleged event, AFTER Smith had no living witnesses to contradict him, AFTER Pocahontas herself had died (1617). Loewen and Bruchac document this critique. Matoaka was 10-11 years old at the time.

  prompt Why is the Pocahontas John-Smith story considered unreliable by historians?

• Why is 'Squanto' not just a 'helper' but a complex sovereign-nation diplomat?
• Name one item the dominant Thanksgiving story gets wrong.
• Why is the John-Smith-Pocahontas 'rescue' story unreliable?

Children apply MG-7 full 4-question routine + NMAI 5th move to the 1621 Wampanoag-Plymouth treaty. Discuss: Wampanoag are present TODAY (Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe + Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head Aquinnah, both federally recognized).

• In groups, fill in BOOK-VS-EVIDENCE 2-column on the 'first Thanksgiving' OR Pocahontas narrative (choose one).

  scaffold Sentence frames; partner check.
• Write one sentence using the Sovereignty Promise applied to the Wampanoag and Powhatan nations today.

  scaffold Sentence frame: 'The Wampanoag are sovereign and present today, with federally recognized nations at ___. The Pamunkey/Powhatan are sovereign and present today, with the Pamunkey Indian Tribe at ___.'

M-5-F-HIS-07-B Diagram

Wall poster with LEFT COLUMN 'What the Dominant Pocahontas Story Says' (4 entries: she saved John Smith / she fell in love with John Rolfe / her story is a romance / she was a willing bridge between cultures) and RIGHT COLUMN 'What Primary-Source Evidence Shows' (4 entries: John Smith's 1608 True Relation does NOT mention any rescue / the rescue story first appears in Smith's 1624 Generall Historie / Matoaka was 10-11 years old at the time / Matoaka was later KIDNAPPED by English 1613 and forced to convert and marry). Banner: 'Loewen + Bruchac documented critique.' Style: rigorous documentary format.

• Name one fact about Tisquantum/Squanto that the dominant story leaves out.
• Why was the 1621 harvest feast a sovereign-to-sovereign diplomatic event, not a 'helping' relationship?

• Standing recite Three Promises
• Preview tomorrow: King Philip's War 1675-78 and the Pequot War 1636-37 — Indigenous resistance to colonial expansion — TRAUMA-INFORMED MG-15 protocol applied. MG-15 caregiver letter goes home today.

• Ask a caregiver: 'What did YOU learn about the first Thanksgiving in school? How does that compare with what we are learning?' Bring back the answer for class discussion.