The majority of the Houma people live in the southern portions of Lafourche and Terrebonne parishes in south Louisiana. This author grew up in the Houma community that had formed in lower Plaquemines Parish, about thirty miles north of the mouth of the Mississippi River. The Houma community there was centered near the town of Venice with extended…

This article offers ideas and activities to help develop a multidisciplinary unit that motivates students to learn about the languages, legends, and lifestyles of Native Americans. (DF)

A companion to The Mamook Book (ED 214 720), the student activity book teaches about Plains Indian cultures (in particular about Lakota life) through a series of activities such as: coloring panoramas of a Plains tipi encampment and a contemporary reservation; depicting historical and contemporary children; making a mobile; constructing a tipi and…

Examines history, philosophy, and programs of the University of Lethbridge in Alberta, Canada. Describes the university's American Indian projects and departments, including Native American Studies Department, department of Native American Studies Education, the Four Worlds Development Project, and a program directed toward Native self-management.…

These four books provide curricular materials for the study of North Dakota Indians at primary through high school levels. Issued on the occasion of the North Dakota centennial, they provide information about Indians that can be integrated into the school curriculum. The books at all levels begin with study of the centennial logo, pictured on the…

The document describes a summer archaeological excavation experience undertaken by seven Narragansett Indian high school students as a continuation of the Narragansett Tribe Ethnic Heritage Program (SO 012 527). Directed by an archeologist, the students researched written records, interviewed older members of the Narragansett Tribe, and received…

A student activity book about the Northwest Coast provides "to-do" activities, such as reading, coloring, cutting out and putting together, while learning about the Northwest Coast tribes, their language, legends, clothing and ways of living. A map identifies the tribes and their location along the shores of Alaska, British Columbia,…

Suggestions for teaching Native American studies in the outdoors or the classroom include using accurate instructional materials, integrating Native American studies across the curriculum, connecting traditional values and beliefs to contemporary life, respecting Native culture, challenging stereotypes, being aware of students' cultural…

Anishinaabe (Ojibwe or Chippewa) elder Maude Kegg relates stories of her childhood nearly 90 years ago on the Mille Lacs Reservation in central Minnesota. The Nonremoval Mille Lacs Band of Chippewa to which she belonged accommodated their way of life to altered land and new neighbors, but retained their rich religious and social life. Traditional…

A study examining the impact of ancestral cultural knowledge on student motivation surveyed 61 Mexican American students at a Southwestern middle school before and after a 3-day program on Mesoamerican culture. Findings indicated that students' sense of cultural awareness and voluntary reading preferences were enhanced. Culturally relevant…

This guide provides information and suggestions for teachers planning an American Indian study unit or American Indian Day activities. The first section lists contributions of American Indians in the form of foods, words, art, music, law, government, and traditional values. The second section provides ideas for classroom discussions concerning…

Native American languages have no equivalent for the word "art." Yet the objects Native Americans have used and still use suggest that they are a highly spiritual people who create objects of extraordinary beauty. In Native American thought, there is no distinction between what is beautiful or functional, and what is sacred or secular.…

A major aim of this source book is to provide a basic historical perspective on the Native American cultures of New England and promote a sensitive understanding of contemporary American Indian peoples. An emphasis is upon cultures which originated and/or are presently existent in the Concord River Basin. Locally found artifacts are used in the…

Describes the attempts of President Franklin Roosevelt's Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes, to establish a chair for American Indian History at a university. Discusses the responses of universities contacted after World War II. Includes information on the present state of American Indian studies and reasons for the failure of Ickes' efforts.…

In 1948, Library of Congress scholar William Gilbert wrote: "Indian blood still remains noticeable in our eastern States population in spite of the depletions arising from over 300 years of wars, invasions by disease and white men from Europe and black men from Africa." Noting that Virginia's surviving Indian groups tended to retain…