Outlines a six-week unit on contemporary Native American literature at the secondary level, presenting themes, reading materials, ideas for individual student projects, and other possible resources. (MM)

In this activity, elementary students analyze and discuss photographs of an American Indian tribe--the Minnesota Dakota family--and compare and contrast the Dakota family with their own family. They learn that families are alike in their basic structure. (RM)

This book compiles stories about the formation of American Indian/Native American studies in 12 mainstream university settings. Common elements of these successful programs include a highly committed core of Indian and non-Indian faculty and students who believe in the intellectual and nation-building agenda of Indian/Native studies; a strong…

Compares Minnesota elementary school teachers' attitudes toward teaching about Native Americans in 1977 and 1981. Finds classroom materials better in 1981, but a majority of teachers still feel inadequately prepared to teach about native peoples. Makes recommendations for teacher training institutions, in-service programs, interaction between…

Describes the findings of a study of Native American Studies in the State University of New York Community College System. Details information on specific courses offered and their enrollments; coverage of Native American topics in broader courses; and reasons for lack of courses. Includes the questionnaire. (WL)

Recognizes the importance of using high-quality children's literature when studying cultural diversity. Stresses the need for accurate information in text and for authentic illustrations. Contains an annotated bibliography of six American Indian books with suggested activities to encourage discussion about Native culture. Lists eight additional…

Suggests that to prevent acceptance of racial or cultural stereotypes, children must construct positive images of present-day Native people, in addition to learning about historic American Indian leaders. Discusses ways to restructure the knowledge base of teachers. Offers suggestions for developing positive cultural images of Native Americans.…

Tips for teaching students about Native Americans include reading poems that lead to the study of certain tribes, studying the present day as well as the past, having Native Americans visit the classroom, reading culturally sensitive books on Native Americans, and acknowledging differences between tribes. (SM)

Reviews two books on issues of Native American education: (1) "Light of the Feather: Pathways through Contemporary Indian America" (M. Fedullo); and (2) "Teaching American Indian Students" (J. Rehner). (ME)

Critiques the writings of historians Frederick Jackson Turner and Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., arguing that the experiences and viewpoints of Native Americans are largely absent. Describes the inaccuracies of the eurocentric view common to typical presentations of American history and calls for integration of Native Americans into the nation's…

Cornell University's American Indian Program is a multidisciplinary intercollege program that includes 18 courses, a residence hall, publications, research, and student activities and support services. Cornell's full-circle approach helps Indian students to remain culturally intact while receiving a university education and to return to their…

The American Indian Studies program at Cornell University resembles other area and ethnic studies programs academically but also has components concerned with American Indian student recruitment and support, agricultural extension and research activities in reservation communities, and publications. Thirteen courses are briefly described, as well…

Indian schooling in colonial America was continuously immersed in the exchange between cultures that involved religion, land ownership, disease, alcohol, and warfare, and was molded by trade in furs and hides, and Indian slaves. In the past two decades American scholars have begun to reinterpret colonial North American Indian history and the…

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…

A study of American Indian practices and beliefs is useful as a counterpoint to the assumptions of western technological societies. American Indian culture includes a spiritual heritage that integrates both a tribe and individuals with the universe. It emphasizes harmony with all aspects of life and provides a model for redefining the…