TeachersFirst - Featured Sites: Week of Nov 13, 2022

Here are this week's features. Clicking the tags in the description area of each listing will present a list of other resources with this topic. | Click here to return to the Featured Sites Archive

 

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Indigenous Peoples of the Americas - The Kennedy Center

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K to 8
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This diverse collection of resources provides many opportunities to experience the culture of Indigenous Peoples of the Americas through visual arts, dance, music, and more. Resources...more
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This diverse collection of resources provides many opportunities to experience the culture of Indigenous Peoples of the Americas through visual arts, dance, music, and more. Resources include lessons for grades K-8 that focus on learning about indigenous people through integrating the arts with science, social studies, and language arts. Other resources include videos that feature Native Americans discussing their crafts through interviews and storytelling. The videos are hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable. Lessons correlate to National Core Arts Standards, Common Core, and Next Generation Science Standards.

In the Classroom

Print lesson plans during Native American Month, as a supplement to social studies lessons about cultures and states, or during geography lessons. Lesson plans are available in PDF format or as Google Documents; save any lesson to your Google Drive as a copy of the original document and edit it to fit your curriculum or adapt it as desired to fit current lessons. Use any or all materials found on this site as a personalized learning lesson for students to complete in person or remotely. For example, add a video, poem, and reflective activity, and additional materials to a SchoolStack, reviewed here, an activity that offers students a choice of learning materials and activities. Consider asking students to work in collaborative groups to research indigenous people based on their interests. For example, have a group explore dance, another their art and sculpture, and a group that researches geographic locations of the different tribes. Ask each group to share their learning by creating simple websites made with Telegra.ph, reviewed here. Telegra.ph provides simple website creation tools without all the distractions of backgrounds, templates, and other distractions. Easily add text, images, and links to any Telegra.ph site.
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Native American Heritage Collection - PBS LearningMedia

Grades
3 to 12
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Learn about Indigenous art, history, and culture with the PBS LearningMedia Native American Heritage Collection. This collection of teaching resources includes videos, lesson plans,...more
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Learn about Indigenous art, history, and culture with the PBS LearningMedia Native American Heritage Collection. This collection of teaching resources includes videos, lesson plans, media galleries, learning interactives, and more! Open each resource in this collection and find entire lessons already created for you. Share items quickly with your students with the share to Google Classroom or sharing links. Teachers can use the site's included Lesson Builder to create detailed lesson plans customized just for them. A free account is required to download and save resources.

In the Classroom

Use this collection during Native American Heritage month to dive deeply into studying America's Indigenous people and culture. Teachers can enhance learning by downloading videos and creating interactive questions using tools such as Edpuzzle, reviewed here. Resources from this collection include support materials that you can use with Kami, reviewed here, or upload to your learning management system. Many included resources have comprehension or discussion questions that classes can discuss digitally with tools such as Google's Jamboard, reviewed here.
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Native American Month Resources for Teachers - Library of Congress

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K to 12
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Start your search for Native American Heritage Month lessons and activities with the resources provided by the Library of Congress. This site includes a Teacher's Guide and primary...more
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Start your search for Native American Heritage Month lessons and activities with the resources provided by the Library of Congress. This site includes a Teacher's Guide and primary source resources from the National Archives, National Gallery of Art, and other national institutions. Lesson focus is on many different types of primary sources, including maps, artwork, and music.

In the Classroom

Bookmark this site to use not only for Native American Heritage Month but as a supplement for any lessons that include activities that teach about Native Americans. Take advantage of the many free primary source Strategy Guides available at Read Write Think, reviewed here, for teaching with primary sources. For example, search for the Inquiry Charts (I-Guide) Strategy Guide to download and use the printout that helps students focus on the content of any primary source. Create an inquiry chart using Google Slides, reviewed here, or Jamboard, reviewed here, for students to complete as a group. Enhance learning through the use of a video add-on tool such as edpuzzle, reviewed here. edpuzzle offers options to add comments and questions into videos to help students focus on important concepts. Extend learning by asking students to share their understanding of Native Americans using a variety of online tools. For example, ask students to use Google My Maps, reviewed here, to create maps sharing information of different tribes found around the United States. Another option is to use Adobe Creative Cloud Express for Education, reviewed here, and offer students options for creating videos Adobe Express Video Maker, or web pages sharing facts and information learned during your unit.
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Native Land Digital - Victor Temprano

Grades
6 to 12
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Native Land Digital is an interactive map of indigenous territories around the world. Click an area on the map or type in an address to find relevant tribes from that ...more
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Native Land Digital is an interactive map of indigenous territories around the world. Click an area on the map or type in an address to find relevant tribes from that area. Each tribe name includes a link to a page that tells more about the tribe or treaties referenced. Use the dropdown boxes to search by specific tribes, treaties, or languages. Be sure to go to the Resources area of this site to find a comprehensive Teacher's Guide that includes complete instructions for using the site and several map-related lessons.

In the Classroom

Bookmark and save this site for many purposes for geography lessons and lessons about indigenous people worldwide. Engage students in learning by finding indigenous people who lived in or near your location and then exploring the provided links to learn more about their way of life. Instead of using paper and pencil for suggested journal activities, use Telegra.ph, reviewed here to create simple websites that include student writing and images. Extend learning by asking students to create podcasts using Buzzsprout, reviewed here. Share podcasts that feature information about different indigenous tribes or focus on one tribe through a series of podcasts that discuss the land they lived on, their lifestyle, and the history of the tribe.

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Native Knowledge 360 Education Initiative - Smithsonian Institute

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K to 12
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Find support for teaching about Native Americans with the many resources found at Native Knowledge 360. Access live and recorded professional development webinars that feature guidance...more
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Find support for teaching about Native Americans with the many resources found at Native Knowledge 360. Access live and recorded professional development webinars that feature guidance on the proper use of primary sources, understanding problematic narratives about Native Americans, and much more. Browse through the lesson resources to view and use featured activities, handouts, digital posters, and more. The search feature includes tools to filter searches by grade level, subject, region, or format of resources. Several lesson options are available in Spanish. This website also offers free virtual field trips led by museum educators; advance registration is required. These events fill up quickly; sign up to receive newsletters and updates to receive notification in advance of event signups.

In the Classroom

Replace some (or all) of your current written Native America resources with the genuine artifacts and stories available for viewing on this site. Use Padlet, reviewed here, to organize important information and resources found on this site to share with students. As students learn about Native Americans, instead of written or oral presentations, ask student groups to create quizzes for their classmates using a quiz-creation tool like Baamboozle, reviewed here. Baamboozle is a quick and easy resource for creating and sharing quizzes for teams of two. As a final project, transform and extend student technology and learning by using Book Creator, reviewed here, to create class books sharing information about Native Americans. Book Creator is a digital book creation site offering the ability to add images, text, video, and more. Be sure to share student-created books on your class website or blog after publication.
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Native American Heritage Month - Described and Captioned Media Program

Grades
K to 12
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Each November, we celebrate American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month. This site provides a series of videos for students to learn about the history and stories of Native Americans....more
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Each November, we celebrate American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month. This site provides a series of videos for students to learn about the history and stories of Native Americans. The website features five video series, broken into the categories of A History of Native American Achievement, Native American Culture, Native American Folklore, Native American History, and Celebrate Native American Educators. Each video includes suggested grade level use and links to content standards. Most videos are available as a preview, register for your free account to view videos in full.

In the Classroom

Include these videos as part of your studies of American Indians and their heritage. Engage students by making the videos interactive using Edpuzzle, reviewed here, to add both teacher and student comments. Use Google My Maps, reviewed here, for extending learning when students create virtual field trips sharing locations and information found during their research of American Indians. Have students create interactive timelines using Timeline Infographic Templates, reviewed here, for younger students, or Timeline JS, reviewed here, for older students who can include music, photos, videos, maps, comments, and more.

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The Molly of Denali Podcast - PBS Kids

Grades
2 to 6
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Follow the adventures of Molly of Denali, an Alaskan native girl, as she attempts to discover the identity of the mysterious creature who stole her birthday cake. Shared over nine ...more
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Follow the adventures of Molly of Denali, an Alaskan native girl, as she attempts to discover the identity of the mysterious creature who stole her birthday cake. Shared over nine different episodes, listeners discover the ways of life in Alaska as she solves the mystery. Podcasts run just under 15 minutes per episode. Listen to all podcasts directly on the website or from most podcast apps. After landing on the site there will be a menu in the middleof the page listing all the podcasts. You can also access the podcasts from the Video tab at the bottom of the menu.

In the Classroom

Molly of Denali is perfect for including with any lessons or units on Alaska or Native Americans. Listen to podcasts together as a class pausing throughout the episode as needed to identify important information such as different modes of transportation used in Alaska, weather and climate indicators, and geographic locations referenced. Before beginning your unit, engage students by asking them to brainstorm what they know about Alaska or Native Americans using Padlet, reviewed here, where you can add columns for wildlife, transportation, weather, etc. Build upon students' knowledge and address misconceptions based on your brainstorming activities. Consider creating activities within a learning management system such as Actively Learn, reviewed here. Add videos and articles based on your students' ability levels and comprehension. Enhance learning further using Symbaloo, reviewed here, to share bookmarks for further learning and additional activities. To differentiate learning, create two or more Symbaloo's based upon student interest and/or ability levels. Extend learning by participating in a virtual field trip. Choose from several different options found at Gez.la, reviewed here, and then ask students to to choose and create their own podcasts featuring any destination using Molly of Denali as a model. Spotify for Podcastors (was Anchor), reviewed here, is one of several free podcasting services suitable for classroom use.

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Americans - Smithsonian Institution

Grades
6 to 12
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Take a virtual field trip to the National Museum of the American Indian Americans exhibit that features the American Indian identity since before the birth of the United States. Click...more
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Take a virtual field trip to the National Museum of the American Indian Americans exhibit that features the American Indian identity since before the birth of the United States. Click on gallery images to read and learn more about the artifacts shared including coins, dolls, posters, and much more. Additional links take viewers to videos and displays telling the story of Thanksgiving, Queen of America (Pocahontas), The Removal Act, and The Indians Win.

In the Classroom

Replace some of your current written Native America resources with the genuine artifacts and stories available for viewing on this site. Introduce the site to students on your interactive whiteboard to demonstrate the different features available and how to find them. After students have time to explore, create groups to do in-depth research within the four different featured areas. Create a Padlet, reviewed here, with four columns for students to share web and video resources found during their research. Instead of written or oral presentations, ask student groups to create quizzes for their classmates using a quiz-creation tool like Baamboozle, reviewed here. Baamboozle is a quick and easy resource for creating and sharing quizzes for teams of two. As a final project, transform student learning by using Book Creator, reviewed here, to create class books sharing information about Native Americans. Book Creator is a digital book creation site offering the ability to add images, text, video, and more. Be sure to share student-created books on your class website or blog after publication.

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Edward S. Curtis's The North American Indian - Northwestern University

Grades
9 to 12
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Between 1909 and 1930, photographer Edward Curtis set out to document the life and culture of the North American Indians, and this site shares his work. Like so many of ...more
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Between 1909 and 1930, photographer Edward Curtis set out to document the life and culture of the North American Indians, and this site shares his work. Like so many of his time, he viewed Native Americans as a "primitive" race of people whose customs were a source of curiosity. As westward expansion began to destroy the culture of indigenous people, Curtis wanted to record, through photographs and narratives, what he believed was a savage and mysterious world before it disappeared. While Curtis' work represented the popular viewpoint of his time, today we recognize that it is, at best, the impressions of someone who neither understood nor particularly valued what he was recording. This digital reproduction of the entire project needs to be carefully previewed and introduced so that we don't perpetuate this way of viewing Native American life. In fact, some of the images of the ceremonial life were never intended to be seen by "outsiders," and their use today is controversial. The site does a good job of setting the context for the use of Curtis's work and helps establish respectful boundaries.

In the Classroom

We have come a long way from the study of Native Americans as a single generic group. Careful use of the images and narratives from Curtis' work can help illustrate that outdated mindset and provide a contrast to today's understanding of the contributions indigenous Americans have made to US history and culture. Share these images on your interactive whiteboard or projector as part of a guided discussion.

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Carlisle Indian Industrial School - Dickinson College

Grades
6 to 12
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Discover the controversial legacy of the Indian School. In the last quarter of the nineteenth century, the US Government encouraged the establishment of so-called Industrial Schools...more
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Discover the controversial legacy of the Indian School. In the last quarter of the nineteenth century, the US Government encouraged the establishment of so-called Industrial Schools designed to "civilize" Native American children and prepare them for careers outside the reservations and within white society. Today the legacy of these schools remains controversial: did they provide children with useful skills, or were they a form of ethnic cleansing that robbed them of their culture, self identity, and heritage? The Carlisle Indian Industrial School is probably best known for being the home of internationally renowned athlete Jim Thorpe, but it is also part of the family history of many Native Americans today whose ancestors attended the Pennsylvania school. Dickinson College maintains this digital archive of student records, images and special collections for use by relatives of former students and by scholars doing research on the legacy of the Indian Industrial Schools. Search by student name, by nation, or within collections of school publications and other documents. The archive is an ongoing project and will continue to grow.

In the Classroom

Too often US history survey classes broadly consider Native Americans and their role in the original colonization of North America, or their role in Westward Expansion, without taking the time to understand the differences among nations, or the impact of European settlement on these pre-existing societies. Even if there isn't time for in depth study, consider asking students to study the individual record of one young man or woman approximately their own age who attended the Carlisle Indian School. How old was he when he left home? What skill was she trained in? What happened to him after he left Carlisle? Enhance student learning by having students use Fakebook, reviewed here, to create a "fake" page similar in style to Facebook about the individual they researched. This personal contact with the real life of another student from another time and another culture will reduce the tendency to stereotype Native Americans as they so often are during the study of US History. Of course, the site is also a wonderful resource for in depth research such as a National History Day project. Were the identities of these people stolen? Use the resources Analyzing Before and After Photographs... and the Telling Lives: The Lost Ones Documentary Film to discuss identity and whether or not that was taken from these students.
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Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum - 2012 Seminole Tribe of Florida

Grades
2 to 10
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The Seminole Tribe of Florida's Ah-TAh-Thi-Ki is a place to learn about Seminoles and a place to remember. The museum showcases over 30,000 unique artifacts. Even though the website...more
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The Seminole Tribe of Florida's Ah-TAh-Thi-Ki is a place to learn about Seminoles and a place to remember. The museum showcases over 30,000 unique artifacts. Even though the website includes information about visiting the actual museum, there is much to explore without ever going there. Find a Virtual Tour, Online Exhibits, and Podcasts of oral history about alligator wrestling, patchwork, beadwork, dolls, Civil Rights, Brighton Day School, and tribal leaders. To find the Podcasts, click Collections from the top menu and then Oral History. The Online Connections Collection features 2,500 books and periodicals. Besure to check out the Education tab at the top to find even more resources, curriculum, reading lists and fied trips.
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In the Classroom

Explore the Seminole Tribe through the online collections and museums. Use the sources as primary and secondary to supplement other class materials. Use the Seminole Tribe to compare and contrast the native American tribes found in your area. Explore the Seminole Tribe in your unit on Civil Rights. Use this site to discover the leadership that lead to the Seminole Tribe of today. Be sure to begin your study with an anticipation guide. End your unit with a post assessment dispelling the myths in the anticipation guide.
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Navajo Code Talkers - Navajo Code Talkers Foundation

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6 to 12
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The Navajo Code Talkers Foundation site tells the story of young Navajo men who transmitted secret communications on the battlefields of World War II. Their unbreakable code played...more
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The Navajo Code Talkers Foundation site tells the story of young Navajo men who transmitted secret communications on the battlefields of World War II. Their unbreakable code played a pivotal role in saving countless lives and hastening the war's end. Choose the link to the "Code Talkers" to read their story from beginning, through the battles, and coming home. Learn more about the code in that portion of the site by scrolling over words to view the translation and understand more about the only unbroken code in modern military history. Meet several of the code talkers through their bio and photos available on the site.
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In the Classroom

Share this site with your students on your interactive whiteboard (or projector) during your World War II unit or a unit on Native Americans. This would be a great link to share during Native American Heritage Month. Enhance student learning by replacing pencil and paper and use an online tool such as the Interactive Two Circle Venn Diagram, reviewed here, to create a visual comparison of the Code Talkers vs other World War II battle units or cryptographers. Put a link to Fun Facts For Kids on station computors or your website for your students to learn even more.

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Daria -World Music for Children - World Music by Daria

Grades
K to 5
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World Music for Children, though a commercial site, shares some simple treasures of music: song lyrics, audio files, and music-related craft projects to engage children with music at...more
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World Music for Children, though a commercial site, shares some simple treasures of music: song lyrics, audio files, and music-related craft projects to engage children with music at school or at home. Steer clear of the items for sale, and you will find songs to play for Martin Luther King Day, Hispanic Heritage Month, Native American Heritage month, Cinco de Mayo and more. This review directs you to the Teacher section where you can also find directions and photos to make simple percussion instruments from all over the world. The site is simple, but the options for making music are many. PDF files of song lyrics are available.
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In the Classroom

Turn up your speakers and try the limbo. Make simple instruments as part of your cultural heritage celebrations. Enhance learning by recording your class (or with older children - small groups) singing one of the simple songs using a simple tool such as Acast, reviewed here, or your computer's own recording software; then share the link to the recording on your class web page for younger students to sing along at home. During units on sound in elementary science class, make some of the instruments to explore how sound is created and transmitted. PE teachers can teach lessons using the song/dance options, such as the limbo. World language classes and world cultures classes may even find some of the ethnic instruments from other parts of the world interesting, despite the more juvenile appearance of this site.
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