Educators should be mindful of cultural appropriation when teaching about other cultures and understand that Native American students in class may experience lessons differently than non-Native students.
Indigenous People’s Day Resources
The Zinn Education Project has lessons, books, and films to examine for teaching the truth about Columbus, “Indian Removal” policies, and Indigenous Peoples’ history.
Celebrate Indigenous People Lesson Plan (PDF)
In this activity from IllumiNative, elementary school students will make a booklet to celebrate the contributions of Native Americans.
Youth in Action: Conversations about Our Future Free Webinars
Hear from young Native activists and changemakers from across the Western Hemisphere working towards equity and social justice for Indigenous peoples. Topics vary each month. Hosted by the Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian, webinars are targeted to middle and high school students and available on-demand after airing.
Student-Centered Digital Learning Activities
Check out these digital education tools, lesson plans, and resources available for free and downloadable from the National Indian Education Association.
Living Nations, Living Words: A Guide for Educators
This guide offers teachers and other educators ideas for using U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo's signature project, "Living Nations, Living Words," in the classroom. The project gathers and highlights the diverse voices of 47 contemporary Native American poets.
Project 52 Online Gallery
Matika Wilbur created this multi-year national photography project dedicated to photographing over 562 federally recognized Tribes, urban Native communities, Tribes fighting for federal recognition and Indigenous role models in what is currently-known-as the United States, resulting in an unprecedented repository of imagery and oral histories that accurately portrays contemporary Native Americans.
Native Now: The Dos and Don’ts of Talking Respectfully about and with Native People from IllumiNative (PDF)
Find more resources for teaching about Native Americans at our American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month resource page.
Recommended Books About Indigenous Peoples from NEA and Read Across America
Share stories of Indigenous Peoples and cultures in your classroom with these titles and related resources.
ELEMENTARY AND PICTURE BOOKS
- All Around Us by Xelena González
- Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story by Kevin Noble Maillard
- We Are Water Protectors by Carole Lindstrom
- We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga by Traci Sorrell
- Chester Nez and the Unbreakable Code: A Navajo Code Talker’s Story by Joseph Bruchac
- Powwow Day by Traci Sorrell
MIDDLE SCHOOL
- Ancestors Approved: Intertribal Stories for Kids by Cynthia Leitich Smith
- I Can Make This Promise by Christine Day
- Healer of the Water Monster by Brian Young
- Notable Native People: 50 INDIGENOUS LEADERS, DREAMERS, AND CHANGEMAKERS FROM PAST AND PRESENT by Dr. Adrienne Keene
- The Rez Detectives by Steven Paul Judd
YOUNG ADULT
- An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States for Young People by Roxanne Dunbar Ortiz
- Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger
- Hearts Unbroken by Cynthia Leitich Smith
- #NotYourPrincess: Voices of Native American Women by Lisa Charleyboy and Mary Beth Leatherdale (editors)
- Living Nations, Living Words: An Anthology of First Peoples Poetry by Joy Harjo
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