Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Ft. Vancouver the Fur Trade: A Skin for a Skin

For Teachers K - 4th
Students study Fort Vancouver. They discuss trading and what is meant by "a skin for a skin." They complete math story problems that represent possible trading scenarios. They explore the Chinook Jargon trade language.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Coming To America

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students investigate the history of America with the help of children's literature. The story is structured as a timeline that begins at the time of Columbus and progresses to the present. The teacher reads the story with the class and...
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Prestwick House

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
Sherman Alexie's coming-of-age social commentary is the focus of a review worksheet. Learners use clues from The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian to complete a crossword puzzle about the novel.
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Dream of a Nation

Writing Interdisciplinary Essay

For Teachers 12th Standards
The Grapes of Wrath. The Jungle. Native Son. The Things They Carried. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian. To address a current social, political, economic, or environmental issue, class groups pair the reading of a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sor Juana, la monja y la escritora: Las Redondillas y La Respuesta

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Sor Juana, considered one of the first feminist writers and a great Latin American poet, is the topic and inspiration for this excellent lesson. Use the introduction, guiding questions, and learning objectives to lead your class into a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Reader Response: Keith Gilyard and Mourning Dove

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students respond to Mourning Dove's Coyote Stories by discovering Native American storytelling. They create a traditional lodge and write their own stories.
Lesson Plan
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Comparative Folktales

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students analyze Mongolian and Native American folktales and compare the two types. They discuss the importance of storytelling in nomadic cultures and read a story in small groups. Following the story, they answer questions and...
Lesson Plan
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Defining Culture

For Teachers 2nd
Second graders define the term culture and are exposed to a variety of cultures from around the world. They read books, play Native American games, develop a class book that examines their own culture and, after examining currencies from...
Lesson Plan
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Cinderella Trilogy

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Young scholars look at three different versions of the Cinderella story. In this comparative literature lesson plan, students read the Chinese version "Yeh-Shen", the Egyptian version "Rhodopis," and the Native American version "The...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Shoes and the Backyard Landscape

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Your shoes get a lot of mileage in familiar places. Represent the places you have traveled the most with an art project based on a print of Indian People Wear Shoes and Socks by Juane Quick-to-See Smith. Kids trace their shoes and...
Lesson Plan
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Legends of the Navajo People

For Teachers 2nd
Second graders are read a story in which they begin to examine Native American legends. Using different legends, they discuss how they affected the future people of native peoples. They write a short story on the information they gathered.
Lesson Plan
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Friday and Friends: A Prospectus of the Mexican Family through Children's Literature

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
Pupils use literature to examine how the structure of families in Mexico has changed over time. In groups, they examine how their life now relates to their ancestors and the Spanish conquest of the area. As a class, they are read...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Tribal Diversity within the Indigenous Peoples of the North American Continent

For Teachers 4th - 11th
Pupils, after brainstorming what they already know about Indians, explore and analyze the tribal diversity within the Indigenous Peoples of North America. They recognize that American Indians have their own unique language origins,...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Nineteenth- Century America in Art and Literature

For Students 5th - 6th
In this historical letter writing worksheet, students choose an aspect of 19th century American life that is of interest. Students write a letter from the point of view of a person in this time. Students exchange letters with a partner...
Lesson Plan
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It's All Part of the Story

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students explore storytelling through pantomime, improvisation, and dramatization. They watch an online video, discuss Native American earth stories, role-play various situations, explore websites, and present an oral story to the class.
Lesson Plan
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Weather and Dialect

For Teachers 5th - 7th Standards
What's the difference between an accent and a dialect? Examine the difference between the two with your scholars. In groups, they compile a dialect dictionary. They interview adults to gather information about accents and ethnic words....
Lesson Plan
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Women in India: Tradition vs. Modernity

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students explore cultural aspects such as gender roles and their impact on Indian culture and compare and contrast issues associated with those roles in America through literature.
Lesson Plan
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The Genre of Captivity Literature

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students make reference to previously presented material,
Lesson Plan
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Views of the American West: True or False?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers explain that a landscape painting may or may not accurately represent a specific place. They identify techniques that create the illusion of three-dimensional space on a flat surface.
Lesson Plan
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Native American Poetry

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders locate the poetry section of the LMC. They produce a hand written transparency based on the poem Hiawatha by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Students illustrate a poem from their poetry section. It is a mystery to them what...
Lesson Plan
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Myth and Truth: The First Thanksgiving

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Encourage learners to think critically about common myths regarding the Wampanoag Indians in Colonial America. They discover that behind every myth are many possible explanations—and that learning more about American history helps them...
Lesson Plan
McGraw Hill

Study Guide for Island of the Blue Dolphins

For Teachers 4th - 6th Standards
Dive your class into a reading of Island of the Blue Dolphins with this in-depth study guide. Breaking the novel into three parts, the resource begins each section with a focus activity that identifies a specific theme or question...
Lesson Plan
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Letters from the Japanese American Internment

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students make deductions about life in an internment camp by reading and comparing letters written to Clara Breed. Along the way, they consider the advantages of looking at a historical event from the multiple points of view of...
Lesson Plan
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The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush: Native American Life

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students read," The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush" by Tomie dePaola and discuss the way legends are passed down orally. They then create their own legend and illustrate it on a simulated "Buffalo Skin" made from brown paper.