Useful+Internet+Sites+&+Literature+List

**INTERNET SITES** //Native American Facts for Kids: Resources on American Indians for Children and Teachers// []

This is a great website for 4th and 5th graders learning about Native Americans. It has general facts on almost all Native American tribes that include: language spoken, name pronunciation, place of living, culture both now and then, clothing, home life and many more! Not only this but also facts on American Indians in general—these include: tribe names, houses, hairstyles, food, and state names. It’s an excellent reference for looking up key facts in a hurry!

//Native American Indian Facts and Histories //

[] This website offered many facts on the different tribes of Native America. The difference between this site and the last one mentioned is that this one broke things down differently. After listing each tribe in alphabetical order with links to the history and culture, it categorized groups by the first Native Americans, Early Native Americans, Native American Legends, Native American Treaties and Agreements, and online videos, museums, and interactive maps for students to explore.

//Mr.Donn.org Native American Lesson Plans, Games, Interactives, Power points //

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The title of the website pretty much sums it all up! The website is filled with facts, lesson plans for teachers, games (on the internet or games that could be played at home or in the classroom), power points, and artwork! It is in a more youthful language with lots of pictures for our struggling readers and ESL students.

//Georgia Tribe of Eastern Cherokee// [] This is the official site of the Eastern Cherokee tribes. This site offers information of important historical people and places, including museums, homes, and important sites. It has many links to Cherokee culture and beliefs, such as medicine dances, plants used for medicine, importance attached to names, and the gathering of nations. It also has links to Cherokee language lessons, organizations, and genealogical links to trace Cherokee roots in history.

//The Seminole Tribe of Florida// [] This is the official site of the Seminole tribe. It has culture links to art, beadwork, the eight clans, architecture, dance, and their dependency on the healthy everglades system. It includes a history link to the Seminole time line, historical people, battles, and their survival. It also has a collection of electronic copies of the Seminole monthly tribunes since 1996.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//National Geographic Education// <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">[] <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This is the National Geographic education Beta site for Kids. This link is to the Native American section, which includes photos, videos, maps, and Native American history. It also includes links to aboriginal artifacts in museums today.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//Native American Facts for Kids: Resources on American Indians for Children and Teachers// <span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">[] <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This website includes many resources on various Native American tribes, regarding types of clothing, different tribe names, unique hairstyles, and indigenous food. At first glance, the webpage does not appear to be too kid-friendly, however once you start navigating more, there are detailed pictures for the students to reference to, as well as descriptions to go along with those pictures. In addition, the website is pretty easy to navigate, therefore the students should not have an issue finding and utilizing all of the resources that they website has to offer.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//The Trail of Tears and the Forced Relocation of the Cherokee Nation// <span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">[] <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">One of the most graphic and disheartening occurrences to the Native Americans was the relocation of tribes to reservations, in particularly the Cherokee Indians in the movement known as the Trail of Tears. The new settlers to America were greedy and forced all of the Native American tribes to relocate onto designated land (titled “Indian territory”) out west. The most impactful tribe movement was that of about 100,000 Cherokee Indians, as they left their homeland and traveled the perilous journey to Oklahoma. Unfortunately, many Indians perished on this voyage, thus it is referred to as the Trail of Tears. This website properly addresses the topic in regards to fifth grade students and will be beneficial in teaching the children about the significant event.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//The Real Pocahontas// <span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">[] <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This webpage is extremely user friendly and is geared toward elementary school students. There are pictures of the animated Pocahontas and the real Pocahontas, along with several facts about the brave Indian princess. In addition, there are links to biographies of John Smith, John Rolfe, Governor Ratcliff, and other significant individuals during that time period. The text is easy to read and all of the resources can be navigated with ease. This webpage is vital as it allows the children to realize that there is some truth behind the animated movie, yet there are many misconceptions and several more facts than are shown in the Disney film.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//American Indians in Childrenʼs Literature//

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;"> http://www.americanindiansinchildrensliterature.blogspot.com / <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This blog is an interesting collection of articles, links, lesson plans, etc. It is written by <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Debbie Reese, who is an authentic Pueblo Native American. She often critiques the <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">appearance of Native Americans in childrenʼs literature and says why or why not <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">these depictions are accurate. This would be a great resource to find culturally <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">accurate lessons, books, and read about current events in the culture of Native <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Americans.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//Native Americans in the National Archives//

<span style="color: #00009a; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">http://www.archives.gov/research/native-americans/ <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This site is perfect for showing primary sources to students. There are messages to <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">congress, petitions, photographs, etc. The site would be great for incorporating actual <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">pieces of history (primary sources) into lessons. Actual pieces of history would spark <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">student interest and allow them to actually see things that happened, rather than <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">simply talking about them.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//Native American Facts for Kids//

<span style="color: #00009a; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">http://www.native-languages.org/kids.htm <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This site would be perfect for a center or to allow students to explore at their own <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">pace. Designed by a Cherokee Native American to preserve language and culture, it <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">is chock full of information about various tribes. It has information on tribes, homes, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">hairstyles, clothes, food, resources, and links to even more websites! It is an <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">extremely comprehensive website. I think students would have lots of fun exploring it!

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//iCivics// <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">http://www.icivics.org/ <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This website was extremely interactive which I loved for students that lose focus quickly because it had pop-ups, colors, and a lot of animations without being over the top. It had information on a range of government topics such as separation of powers, the constitution, and citizenship. They have a variety of games for every topic as well as current events and news articles.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//Social Studies for Kids// <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/ <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">I liked this website because it had a wider variety of social studies topics that we don’t normally see in elementary education such as archaeology, sports and the Middle Ages. There is also a section titled Explorers which allows students to pick specific ones they want to study. This website was also very helpful; because it provides additional links to sites pertaining to the topic you search.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//National Geographic: Education// <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">http://education.nationalgeographic.com/education/st/?ar_a=4 <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">One of my favorite things about this site was the “Homework Help” because so many times students can’t get any history or social studies help from parents so this is a nice tool for them. It lets them search for a topic such as hemispheres and provides pictures, videos, examples and definitions. The website also has a variety of maps and activities. I also liked this site because it was up to date like the previous with news that students can follow.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//Ben’s Guide to U.S. Government for Kids// <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">http://bensguide.gpo.gov/3-5/index.html <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This website was the most kid-friendly and broken down into grades with vocabulary and easy to read and follow sections packed with information. It gives the history of our entire government as well as important documents and how laws are made. In addition it has a glossary that is nice for children to reference back if they don’t remember a meaning. There is also a link to all sorts of government sites for ids on a multitude of subjects.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">**BOOKS** <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">__The Unbreakable Code__

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Sara Hoagland Hunter

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">A young boy is nervous about his upcoming move from a reservation to Minnesota with his mother, and soon to be stepfather. His grandfather tells him a story of a time when he too had to leave his home with several other Navajo men to help the US government during World War II. He reassure’s him that he will be fine on this new journey because he has the “unbreakable code”—the Navajo language, with him.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">__A Rainbow at Night: The World in Words and Pictures by Navajo Children__

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Bruce Hucko

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This is a colorful book of children’s paintings describing Navajo culture, artwork, and history. Each painting or drawing has a picture of the artist attached. Hucko helps children make connections to each picture and writing.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">__The Heart of a Chief__

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Joseph Bruchac

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This is a story of an eleven year old boy named Chris Nicola. He has lived on a reservation in New Hampshire his whole life and now he is forced to mingle in the outside world of a 6th grade classroom. Chris gets chosen to lead a group project on Indian names for Sports teams. Chris’s family, culture, and traditions help him persevere through life’s obstacles—including this one. It is an uplifting story that explains how Chris learns to be a leader and reach his full potential.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">__The Skeleton Man__

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Joseph Bruchac

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This is a story about a girl named Molly whose parents mysteriously disappear one night. Her supposed great uncle shows up and begins to care for her—although Molly has her doubts about him being family. Molly had until then taken her Mohawk heritage for granted. With some great detective work and listening to her dreams she finds the answers to the questions such as: why her “Great Uncle” locked Molly in her room every night, why he only let her go to school during the day, and why he never ate. It is an exciting story that will keep readers hooked till the end!

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">__Walking the Choctaw Road: Stories from the Heart and Memory of the People__ <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Tingle, Tim <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This book is a record of many oral stories that have been told of Choctaw tradition. It includes mystical oral stories and of families living today.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">__Children of the Wild West__ <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Russell Freedman <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This is an informational text that includes actual photos of life for both Native American and Pioneer children in the 19th century.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">__The Birchbark House__ <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Louise Edrich <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This is an historical fiction of the story of an Ojibwa girl in 1847. It includes the ways of her tribe and home life as well as her interaction with the land on Lake Superior.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//The Ransom of Mercy Carter// by Caroline B. Cooney (historical fiction-based on true accounts) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">In this novel, a young girl, Mercy Carter, and her siblings are taken from their home in Massachusetts and held hostage by the Mohawk Indians. The Indians kill both of the parents of Mercy Carter, as well as many of the other adults in their town of Deerfield. Along with several other kidnapped children, Mercy and her siblings travel deep into the woods, in constant fear of their fierce Indian captors. Eventually, they arrive in Canada and join the rest of the Mohawk tribe to be assimilated into the Native American culture. For years they live as adopted Indian children until the opportunity for ransom presents itself. Faced with a difficult choice, Mercy decides to stay behind with her new Indian family and watch as her brothers return to the life of American settlers.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//Indian Captive: The Story of Mary Jemison// by Lois Lenski (biography) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Based on the real life events, this book contains the story of Mary Jemison. At the age of twelve, she was kidnapped from her entire family and taken captive by the Seneca Indians. Unknowingly, the Indians murdered her entire family, leaving Mary as the sole survivor. The Indians brought her to their village where they renamed her and raised her as one of their own. For years, Mary lived as a Seneca tribe member, yet one day, she was offered the opportunity to leave the Indian encampment and return to an English settlement. Feeling as if she now belonged to a new family, Mary chose to stay with the Seneca tribe and continue her life as one of them.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//Sacagawea: American Pathfinder// by Flora Warren Seymour (biography) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This easy-to-read biography covers the life of Sacagawea, from her youth to her days of leading Lewis and Clark to the Pacific Coast. By including detailed facts of Sacagawea’s life and struggles that she (along with many Native Americans) faced, the reader becomes more aware of the brave personality of this young women and how she greatly helped the establishment of our nation. In addition, facts about her family life and Native American lifestyle help enrich the reader as they delve deeper into an important figure in American history.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//The// //New World// (DVD film: starring Colin Farrell and Q’orianka Kilcher; written and directed by Terrence Malick) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This movie is quite accurate in describing the life of the famous Native American, Pocahontas, and her friendship with the English settler, John Smith. Vivid details are included throughout the film and although some science may be too graphic or violent for a fifth grade classroom, many scenes depicting the Indian camps and lifestyle would be beneficial to show to the students. Allowing them to see a movie (or clips of a movie) that many have viewed in an animated format will give the students an opportunity to critique and analyze the difference between the two, thus search for the genuine facts.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">__Thirteen Moons on Turtleʼs Back__ by Joseph Brushac and Jonathan London, illustrated <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">by Thomas Locker <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This book tells gives an interesting look as a grandfather tells his grandson an <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">important facet of Native American life - the moons. The book goes through each of <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">the 13 moons, their names, and what happens during the time that these moons are <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">in the sky.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">__Spider Spins a Story: Fourteen Legends from Native America__, edited by Jill Maxx, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">illustrated by Robert Annesley, Benjamin Harjo, Michael Lacapa, S.D. Nelson, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Redwing T. Nez, and Baje Whitethorne <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This book is a compilation of interesting legends from many Native American tribes, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">including: Osage, Navajo, Hopi, Lakota, Cheyenne, and many more. Each tale has a <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">beautiful illustration with it, which were all done by artists of Native American descent. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">The book also gives the sources of the story. The fourteen legends all relate to <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">something that specific tribe believed.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">__As Long as the Rivers Flow: The Stories of Nine Native Americans__ by Paula Gunn <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Allen and Patrick Clark Smith <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">This collection of biographies gives a look into the lives of notable Native Americans <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">including Geronimo, Will Rogers, Senator Nighthorse Campbell, Maria Wellchief, and <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">others. It would be perfect to share with students to show the contributions of Native <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Americans in the past and present and how they have impacted our world over time. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">It also presents both male and female figures in history, which is important.


 * 1) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan//
 * 2) I would recommend it for older students although the vocabulary will be fine for some younger ones. The story is about a woman named Sarah that answers an ad in the paper to become a mother for a father and his two children after their mother has died. This is a nice historical fiction account to introduce students into a unit.
 * 3) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//Tales of Famous Heroes by Peter and Connie Roop//
 * 4) This book gives a chronological depiction of people that have made significances in our history such as George Washington, Rosa Parks, Ghandi, Winston Churchill, Nelson Mandela, Neil Armstrong, and Sonia Sotomayor. In addition to provide the dates of important times in their life, it gives a couple pages of a mini biography on every person.
 * 5) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//26 Fairmount Avenue by Tomie DePaola//
 * 6) Is the author’s biography told from the point of view of him at 5 years old. It is told in the form of a story and he mainly talks about his new house that his parents are building as well as historical references such as the Great Hurricane of 1938. it is an easy read even for younger kids if it’s read to them.
 * 7) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">//Migrant by Maxine Trottier//
 * 8) Is the story about a little girl named Anna whose family consists of migrant workers. She has to move twice a year when the harvesting seasons are over and wants to have her own things. it gives children insight to what some families and other children their age have to sacrifice in order to have a home and food.