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Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

Many Trails of Tears: The Era of Indian Removal

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole. All were forced off their ancestral lands in the southeastern United States as part of the Indian Removal Act of 1830. Young historians research the tribes' reactions to this removal and...
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Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

Manifest Destiny: U.S. Territorial Expansion

For Teachers 8th
A close examination of John Gast's painting "American Progress" launches a study of the concept of Manifest Destiny used to justify United States' policy of westward expansion. Young historians read statements from persons with different...
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Activity
Curated OER

Te Ata Fisher: The Award-Winning Chickasaw Storyteller

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Storytelling is a time-honored way to keep a culture alive. Introduce middle schoolers to Te Ata Fisher, the famous Chickasaw storyteller who shared her stories, songs, and dances across the United States and Europe. Young historians...
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Activity
Curated OER

Food Traditions: Making Cherokee Bean Bread

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Imagine being forced out of your home and walking over 1,000 miles with only the things you could carry. How would you survive? What would you eat? After reading about the Trail of Tears and Cherokee resilience, middle schoolers are...
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Activity
Curated OER

Navajo Weaving: A Lesson in Math and Tradition

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Combine geometry and tradition with a lesson that spotlights Navajo weaving. The book, The Goat in the Rug by Charles L. Blood and Martin Link hooks scholars before watching a video of Navajo people tending their sheep and beginning to...
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Activity
Curated OER

Trickster Tale Comics: The Cunning Coyote

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
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...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Indigenous Peoples’ Day Lesson Plan

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Indigenous Land Guardianship, Settler Colonialism, Racial Capitalism. While the terms may be new to some, they feature in a lesson plan designed for Indigenous Peoples' Day. Young scholars investigate four concepts: Land...
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Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

The Conflict at the Washita River: The Indian Wars in Indian Territory

For Teachers 9th
"Battle" or "Massacre"? Words matter, especially when labeling historical events. That's the big idea in a lesson about the 1868 conflict at the Washita River. After examining two images of the event, groups read and discuss articles...
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Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Viewing History from Multiple Perspectives

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Celebration or protest song? The full text of Woody Guthrie's "This Land is Your Land" opens a study of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, the Louisiana Purchase, and Western Expansion from various perspectives. Middle schoolers examine...
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Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

Transcending Boundaries - The Kiowa Six: The Legacy and Contributions of Six Kiowa Artists

For Teachers 9th - 12th
The Kiowa Six, a group of Kiowa artists, are featured in the lesson that asks young historians to consider the importance of art in representing a culture and contributing to a group's legacy. After examining paintings by the group and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Dia de la Raza - What is El Dia de la Raza?

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students research and write about Christopher Columbus, his voyages, and his impact on the Native Americans. In this Christopher Columbus lesson, students work at stations where they learn vocabulary, perform Reader's Theatre, work with...
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Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

"What is it Like to be an Outsider?”: Building Empathy for the Experiences of Immigrants

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
This lesson highlights the struggles of immigrants and the importance of showing empathy. Beginning with a read-aloud of a book in another language and a poem, scholars take part in a thoughtful discussion. Then, the class examines a...
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Activity
Lee & Low Books

Classroom Guide for Sacred Mountain: Everest

For Teachers 4th - 8th Standards
The most famous climbers of Mount Everest could never have made it to the summit without the assistance of the local Sherpa. Christine Taylor-Butler's nonfiction children's book Sacred Mountain: Everest is the focus of an extensive...
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Worksheet
Read Works

Plymouth Colony

For Students 11th - 12th Standards
Read about the tumultuous beginning to the United States with an informational text passage about Colonial America. As young researchers peruse an article about the arrival of the Mayflower, the settlers' relationship to the neighboring...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

American Indians Heritage Series: The Inuit's

For Teachers K
Students become aware that people lived in America before Columbus came.  In this Inuit culture lesson, students discuss lives of the Inuits. Students listen to Mama Do You Love Me, A Promise is a Promise and The Polar Bear Son: Inuit...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Letters from the Japanese American Internment

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Young scholars 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...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Jim Thorpe's Bright Path

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students read about the life of Jim Thorpe and answer focus lessons about the book.  In this Jim Thorpe instructional activity, students celebrate the American Indian culture and learn of the hardships Jim Thorpe overcame.  Students find...
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Lesson Planet Article
Curated OER

Halloween Art Lessons: Explore the Mystery of Masks

For Teachers 2nd - 6th
Halloween art projects take a mysterious turn as students discover the mystery and magic behind mask traditions around the world
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Website
Other

Native American Heritage Month (November)

For Students 1st - 9th
Learn about the special events that take place during this celebration of Native American culture.
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Website
Other

Library of Congress: Native American Heritage Month

For Students 9th - 10th
Excellent resources for the study of Native Americans during their Heritage Month include art collections, traditions in dress, and Native American veterans. Choose Exhibits & Collections from the left-hand menu bar for many more...
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Website
Other

Defense: American Indian Heritage Month: Code Talkers

For Students 9th - 10th
Find out about the Native Americans who used their tribal languages as code during World War I and World War II. Includes information on Charles Chibitty, a Comanche code talker who was inducted into the Pentagon's Hall of Heroes.
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Activity
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of the American Indian: A Song for the Horse Nation

For Students 9th - 10th
This exhibit from the National Museum of the American Indian explores the close relationship of Native Americans and their horses through art, pottery, textiles, artifacts, and photographs. It traces this relationship from the 15th...
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Unit Plan
Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian Learning Lab: American Indian Heritage Teaching Resources

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Great online resource for finding teaching material to help students learn about American Indian Heritage Month. Features a wealth of information on Native American history, medicine, rituals, religion, art, and culture.
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Website
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of the American Indian: Infinity of Nations

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn about ten North and South American Native American nations by playing the Infinity of Nations Culture Quest game. Examine Native American crafts and artifacts that are part of Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian,...