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Primary Sources and Protagonists: A Native American Literature Unit
Introduce your middle schoolers to the lives of past Native Americans. First, learners work together to put photographs in a sequence. Then, using their sequence, they create stories to share with the whole class. No matter how old your...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Native American Cultures Across the U.S.
Middle schoolers examine how American Indians are represented in today's society. They read stories, analyze maps, and complete a chart and create an illustration about a specific tribe.
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Native American Poetry
Identify text features, make inferences, and discover the cultural significance of Native American Poetry. Sixth graders read several Native American poems and use graphic organizers and literature response logs to record their feelings...
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Native American Culture
Students read a variety of Native American Literature and discuss the main idea by answering critical thinking questions about the poem. Students use context clues to understand the feeling of the Native American culture about the Earth....
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Native American History
Students examine how Chief Joseph attempted to challenge stereotypes about Native Americans. In this Native American history instructional activity, students read "An Indian's Views of Indian Affairs," and then paraphrase the selection....
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Music of the People - Native American Music
Third graders complete a unit of lessons on the singing, instruments, and dancing of Native Americans. They identify and play various instruments, complete worksheets, define key vocabulary, sing songs, and perform dances.
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A River, Dead or Alive: Native Americans and European Colonists' Treatment of a River
Young scholars write an expository paragraph about the uses of the Nashua River for the Native Americans and the European Colonists. In this river uses lesson plan, students determine the causes and effects of both parties using the river.
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Text Features of Fiction, Poetry, Drama: Story Matrix
How do novels differ from plays? Explore with your class the text features of fiction and drama by reading The Hidden One: Native American Legend and then performing a reader’s theater script based on the story. Class members create a...
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Early American English Lit Writing Assignment (Senior, Literature)
To better understand early American literature, which was usually written by Puritans coming to the new world, learners pretend they have just landed on Mars. They compose a letter home describing their experiences, the new landscape,...
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Examples of Sharing as Told Through a Native American Legend
Learners explore community problem solving. In this cross-curriculum literature and social studies lesson, students listen to The Legend of the Bluebonnet by Tomie DePaola and discuss how a Native American community problem was solved. ...
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Native American Dolls
Young scholars examine Native American dolls. They discover the connections between the dolls and the Native American culture and customs. They also use maps to locate the position of different tribes.
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Songs of Native Americans
Students listen to chapter from novel When Legends Die by Hal Borland, listen to traditional Lakota song, discuss feeling song induces and in what circumstance it may be used, and examine connection between cultural music and family...
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Comparing Cinderella and The Rough-Face Girl
Pupils examine similarities and differences between cultures. They'll see that literature, reading, and story telling is something all cultures have in common. They should construct Venn diagrams to help them compare and contrast the...
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William Apess and the Mashpee "Revolt" of 1833
Prompt your class with the following question: What was the status of American Indians in Massachusetts during Jackson's presidency? To answer this question, class members will read a series of primary source documents (attached),...
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Kumeyaay Indians
Useful for literary analysis, citing textual evidence, or summary skills, this activity about the Kumeyaay Indians would be a good addition to your language arts class. Middle schoolers read novels and summarize the literature in their...
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The American Wilderness? How 19th Century American Artists Viewed the Separation of Civilization and Nature
The attitudes of European settlers toward the American wilderness, as reflected in art and literature, is the focus of this resource packet designed for teachers. Included in the unit overview you will find lists or paintings and...
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Mosaic America: Paths To The Present
Seventh graders study the ideologies of life, values, love, peace and struggle of African Americans, Latinos and Native Americans as citizens of the United States. Authors and artists are used as tools to open the eyes of the students...
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Different Tribes, Different Times
Second graders study the different types of Native American culture groups. They, in groups, visit four different work stations to examine various culture groups and complete a Corn Cycle worksheet.
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Pass the Peace Pipe
Students investigate the history of smoking in the United States. In this history of smoking lesson, students read about the Native American influence on early settlers before researching the Internet for information about the history of...
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How Grandmother Spider Stole the Sun
Students explore U.S. history by reading a Native American tale in class. In this cultural storytelling lesson plan, students read the story How Grandmother Spider Stole the Sun and discuss the characters and themes of the Native...
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The Buffalo: A Way of Life for the Plains Indians
Eighth graders complete a KWL chart on the Plains Indians. After watching a video, they state the difference between legends and facts about the importance of the buffalo to Native Americans. They also practice their note-taking skills...
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Indian Removal: Does History Always Reflect progress?
Students explore the idea that progress for some might not mean progress for all. For this Native American lesson, students recognize different viewpoints about historical events through the study of primary documents. Students decipher...
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Anonymous Patriots: Songs of the Revolution
Give your class a deeper understanding of the context and meaning behind early American song lyrics. By reading the lyrics to "Yankee Doodle" and "Revolutionary Tea," high schoolers will practice analysis by examining the...
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Introduce Vocabulary: Mama, Do You Love Me? (Joosse)
Barbara Joosse approaches an age-old question through an equally traditional culture in her story Mama, Do You Love Me?, which helps budding readers explore Native American vocabulary in context. Here you'll find...