Native American Heritage Month

Native American Heritage Month is a time to recognize the histories, invaluable contributions and livelihood of American Indian and Alaska Native people in the United States. It is an opportunity to educate the general public about tribes, their cultures, traditions and languages. Use this time to highlight the unique challenges Native people have faced both historically and presently, as well as the ways in which tribal citizens have overcome these challenges.

One of the earliest proponents of a day honoring American Indians was Dr. Arthur Caswell Parker, a Cattaraugus Seneca born in 1881 and the director of the Rochester Museum in New York. Dr. Parker (Gawasco Waneh) was a noted anthropologist, historian and author whose great-uncle was secretary to General Ulysses S. Grant during the Civil War and the first American Indian to serve as Commissioner of Indian Affairs in the Department of the Interior.

However, the origins of Native American Heritage Month officially began in 1986 when Congress passed a joint resolution which authorized President Ronald Reagan to proclaim the week of November 23-30, 1986 as “American Indian Week.” In 1990 President George H. W. Bush approved a joint resolution designating the month of November as “National American Indian Heritage Month.” Congress chose November to recognize American Indians as this month concluded the traditional harvest season and was generally a time of thanksgiving and celebration. Additionally, in 2009, President Barack Obama signed legislation that established the Friday immediately following Thanksgiving Day of each year as “Native American Heritage Day.”

During Native American Heritage Month, find out what activities and celebrations are happening in local tribal communities. National Native American Heritage Month is celebrated with community gatherings, festivals and government and educational activities. Many schools celebrate the month by learning more about the history and contributions of American Indians and Alaska Natives in education, art, literature, government, sports, science and technology.

From the National Indian Council on Aging @ https://www.nicoa.org/national-native-american-heritage-month/

Resources in the OVMS Library

Throughout the celebratory period we have set up a special display for Native American Heritage Month, with dozens of books related to Native American voices, culture and history.

Please stop by and check it out! You can also click here to search the OVMS Library Catalog for our books about Native Americans!!

Resources in myPortal

Your teachers might have you do some activities in BrainPop or in Discovery Ed, but you can also find a lot of great information about tribal history and traditions inside the Media Center tile, using Kids Info Bits and World Book.

Resources Online

https://nativeamericanheritagemonth.gov/ - from the Library of Congress, one of our nation's official sites in support of Native American Heritage month

https://www.archives.gov/news/topics/native-american-heritage-month - from the National Archives, a wealth of resources are linked from there, especially primary sources

https://www.nps.gov/articles/taas-indigenousheritage-intro.htm - from the National Park Service, a good introduction to North American indigenous heritage

https://www.pbs.org/specials/native-american-heritage-month/ - from PBS, a rotating offering of documentaries about Native American cultures

https://www.nps.gov/trte/planyourvisit/maps.htm - from the National Park Service, a map of the Trail of Tears

https://www.history.com/topics/native-american-history/native-american-cultures - from History.com, good introductory information, plus a helpful timeline

https://www.biography.com/news/influential-native-americans-list - From Biography, learn about important figures in Native American history (and today)

https://americanindian.si.edu/nk360/lessons-resources/search-resources - from the Smithsonian Institution, use the drop-downs to search by particular nations, etc.

http://www.native-languages.org/florida.htm - specific information about tribes in Florida, but the site also has a great list of tribes and tribal histories, and a helpful FAQ

https://ailanet.org/school-library-resources/ - from the American Indian Library Association, a list of additional helpful resources

Maps of Native American Tribal Lands

Information about Current-Day Tribes

https://www.ncsl.org/legislators-staff/legislators/quad-caucus/list-of-federal-and-state-recognized-tribes.aspx - from the National Conference of State Legislatures, there is a state-by-state list of currently federally-recognized tribes

Some tribal nation official sites are linked below!

Blackfeet - https://blackfeetnation.com/

Cherokee (Eastern Band) - https://ebci.com/

Cherokee (Western Band) - https://www.cherokee.org/

Chinook - https://chinooknation.org/

Choctaw - https://www.choctawnation.com/

Comanche - https://comanchenation.com/

Hopi - https://www.hopi-nsn.gov/

Lakota - http://lakotadakotanakotanation.org/

Modoc - https://modocnation.com/

Mohican - https://www.mohican.com/

Mojave - http://mojaveindiantribe.com/

Navajo - https://www.navajo-nsn.gov/

Passamaquoddy - https://passamaquoddypeople.com/

Pawnee - https://pawneenation.org/

Penobscot - https://www.penobscotnation.org/

Pueblo - https://www.newmexico.org/places-to-visit/native-culture/pueblos-tribes-nations/

Seminole - https://www.semtribe.com/stof

Seneca - https://sni.org/

Shawnee - https://www.shawnee-nsn.gov/

Sioux - https://www.cheyenneriversiouxtribe.org/

Tuscarora - https://tuscaroranationnc.com/

Reading Native American Voices

https://americanindiansinchildrensliterature.blogspot.com/ - books for children written by Native Americans and featuring Native American characters and culture

http://booklists.yalsa.net/directory/results?q=AILA+Youth+Literature+Award - books for teens and young adults written by Native Americans and featuring Native American characters and culture

https://ailanet.org/activities/american-indian-youth-literature-award/ - even more books for teens and young adults written by Native Americans and featuring Native American characters and culture

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/collections/144560/native-american-poetry-and-culture - a selection of poets, poems, and articles exploring the Native American experience

https://poets.org/native-american-heritage-month - contemporary poems for Native American History Month

Bonus Link!
The Cherokee Alphabet (Syllabary) and How to Use It

http://www.native-languages.org/cherokee_alphabet.htm