Welcome to the Iroquois WebQuest! Your task is to follow the links below to gather information about the Iroquois, the Native Americans who once inhabited most of what is now New York State.

As you visit each site you will be searching for the answers to a specific set of questions. Record your answers in the graphic organizer packet you will be given. There will be a separate organizer for each site you visit. Happy hunting!

Who are the Iroquois?

Organizer 1: Go to The Iroquois of the Northeast. Follow the links for SOVEREIGN PEOPLE and THE THREE SISTERS. Use the information you find there to answer the questions below.

• What did the Iroquois call themselves?
• What territory did they occupy?
• How did the Iroquois get their food?
• What were the main crops of the Iroquois?

Organizer 2: At the same site, follow the link for THE THREE SISTERS. Use the information on this page to answer the following questions

• What were "the Three Sisters?"
• Why were they so important to the Iroquois?
• Who did the farming in Iroquois society?

Organizer 3: At the same site, follow the link for IN THE FOREST. Answer the questions below.

• What were the roles of men in Iroquois society?
• What animal was most important to the Iroquois as a source of food?

Forest and Clearing

Organizer 4: Find out about Iroquois homes and answer the following questions.

• What was an Iroquois home called? Why?
• What was an Iroquois home made from?

Organizer 5: Explore an Iroquoian village and answer the following questions.

• Why were villages built on plateaus?
• What is a palisade?
• Where were the corn fields?
• Why were villages built near water?

The Iroquois Confederacy

Organizer 6: Different groups of Iroquois joined together into a "league" or "confederacy." They united to bring peace among themselves and be strong against their enemies. Look up the meaning of the words league and confederacy, as they would be used in this context. Remember that sometimes one word may have more than one meaning. Be sure to get the definitions that would make sense when we speak of "the Iroquois Confederacy" or "the League of the Six Nations!"

When you have found and recorded the answers to these questions, use the Back menu to return to this page.

Return to our first site. Click on the link for Sovereign People, and then the link for Iroquois Confederacy to answer the question below.

• What were the names of the original five nations (tribes) of the Iroquois Confederacy?

 Return to the home page for this site. Follow the link for SOVEREIGN PEOPLE to discover the answer to the following question:

• What is the name of the last member to join of the League of the Six Nations?

	This WebQuest was created by Tedd Van Duyne as an introductory activity to the study of the Iroquois for students on Team 7D, Newark Middle School, Newark, NY. Send comments or questions by clicking on the icon to the left.
Click on the banner to the right to visit the Newark Central School District Web Site.