Introduce middle schoolers to Poet Laureate Joy Harjo with a lesson that not only explains the role and duties of the Poet Laureate but also contains a video in which Harjo explains what she sees as her responsibility as a Native...

A 154-page anthology explores the life, culture, and history of Native Americans. Eight lessons follow the routine of introducing the reading, conducting the reading, discussing it, doing word work, then taking part in an extension...

How do you rebuild a language that has been banned for years? A short video introduces high schoolers to Marie Wilcox, A Wukchumni Native American from Central California who, for over 20 years, worked on comprising a dictionary of the...

The 2016-2017 protests over the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) motivated Camille Seaman to create "We Are Still Here," a photo essay featuring portraits of contemporary Native Americans who protested the pipeline. This eight-page...

Learners explore the connections between tradition and language. They examine the environment, history and culture of the Tlingit, Lakota and Cherokee tribes and identify the importance of maintaining languages for oral traditions.

Students research the Cree tribe of North America. In this Native American lesson, students will research on-line, then compare and contrast the differences between the Cree tribe and other Native American tribes. Students will break...

In this Native Americans worksheet, students read and discuss a 1 page article, fill in the blanks to 6 statements, match 6 vocabulary words with their correct definitions and answer 4 short answer questions referring back to the article.

Should researchers be able to excavate, examine, and remove Native American artifacts from historic sites? Should companies be permitted to build on sacred Native American land? After watching West of the West's documentary, The Lone...

What tools do archaeologists and anthropologist use to learned about what life was like in the past. After watching West of The West's documentary Once Upon a Time that details how scientists use artifacts to establish a...

A discussion of thankfulness opens a lesson followed by a read-aloud of the "Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address Greetings to the Natural World." Scholars answer questions and write down what they are thankful for in their home or...

The Hopi refer to corn as their children, demonstrating its importance to the Native American group. Class members consider the role of literal and figurative language by examining poetry from this indigenous group. The resource includes...

Archaeologists have discovered a cache of Native American relics. They want to preserve these relics by removing them from the rapidly eroding site to a lab where they can be studied. Native American traditions demand that the items...

Young scholars explore four Native American tribes from Nevada. In this Native American history lesson plan, students identify and generate important corresponding attributes of the Southern Paiute, Northern Paiute, Washoe, and Western...

Students investigate U.S. history by researching the Internet and taking a test. In this American Indian group instructional activity, students identify the many specific Native American tribes and their geographic locations. Students...

The trickster tale "The Coyote Places the Stars" tells how a coyote is sneaky but helpful. After listening to the tale, scholars use their imagination to create a trickster tale about a coyote, displaying their journey through a comic...

Go West, young man! Scholars use PBS video clips, slide shows, and interactive materials to create a picture of Manifest Destiny in the American West. Using a variety of primary and secondary sources, young historians learn about the...

Learners create a "legend" about an animal.  In this Native American legends lesson, students define the purpose and importance of Native American legends.  Learners read "Why the Possum's Tail is Bare" and "Earthmaker's Lodge"...

Fourth graders compare the tribal nations of North Dakota. In this tribal life lesson, 4th graders explore the many different tribes native to North Dakota. By the end of their study, students should be able to explain how the tribal...

After watching and discussing a video on the Voyage of Cabrillo, individuals craft their own origin story and design and build an artifact they feel best represents their history.

How did the environment and natural resources found on the Channel islands influence the culture of the Chumash? Archaeology meets technology in an activity designed for middle schoolers. After viewing West of The West's documentary Once...

As part of their study of the history of the Channel Islands, class members craft an informational article to post on a bulletin board that features the Chumash ancestral tradition of tomol paddling.

After viewing two documentaries about the history of the Channel islands, individuals craft an essay in which they compare the lives of Juana Maria, the Lone Woman San Nicolar Island, to Lester Holt and his family featured in the...

After watching West of the West's documentary The Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island, class members imagine how Juana Maria/Karana may have felt about living alone on the island for 18 years and craft a blackout poem or a narrative in...

Learners explore the influences that geography has on a Native American tribe's culture and lifestyle. They examine how the first encounters with Europeans affected that tribe.