Indigenous Science

Science teaching resources by Indigenous educators

• Bell, S. Grade 5 science project leads to water quality testing at a school in northern Quebec.  https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/cree-science-indigenous-water-quality-traditional-1.6785143. 

• Coyote Science. https://coyotescience.com/en/home/. "Showcasing dozens of Indigenous scientists, Coyote Science shows youth the immense possibilities open to them—they too can become ethnobotanists, mathematicians, geologists and engineers." Games, mini-episodes, and teaching resources available. 

• Indigenous Science Education K-12 Resources. (2023). The University of British Columbia Library. 

• Indigenous Steam. (2020). ISTEAM Collaborative. https://indigenoussteam.org/. Land-based educational resources that foreground Indigenous knowledge systems in teaching and learning. 

• Learning in Places. http://learninginplaces.org. Family and classroom resources for land-based science learning. 

• Montreal Science Center - Indigenous Ingenuity and Celebrating the Ingenuity of Indigenous Peoples. "The ingenuity of First Peoples from North America is all around us. Through an interactive quest, discover how indigenous science is timeless. With a bear and a trickster as your guides, take part in a virtual canoe race, build an igloo, test a kayak’s centre of gravity, and discover interactive frescoes. Observe nature, listen to knowledge bearers, experiment with scientific principles, and transmit and share your experience with others!" Features a unique and interactive online game. 

• Nā Hopena A‘o - Indigenous Hawai'ian Learning Outcomes. https://www.hawaiipublicschools.org/TeachingAndLearning/StudentLearning/HawaiianEducation/Pages/HA.aspx. Overview of K-12 learning outcomes centering native Hawai'i: Belonging, Responsibility, Excellence, Aloha, Total Well-Being, Hawai'i.  

• Snively, G. & Williams, W. L. (2016). Knowing Home: Braiding Indigenous Science with Western Science. https://pressbooks.bccampus.ca/knowinghome/. 

• Water First Education and Training. https://waterfirst.ngo/what-we-do/indigenous-schools/education-resources/. Their printable learning packs explore foundational concepts in Water Science, as well as humans’ impact on water systems. These resources were also created in consultation with teachers and principals working in the First Nations education system with the intention of complimenting Indigenous pedagogical values and approaches.

• Water, the Sacred Relationship. (2022). Native Counselling Services of Alberta. Lesson plans  (designed for grades 5-6, adaptable for 7-12) on water informed by Aboriginal elders, leaders, and western scientists from across Alberta.   

Research-based resources: 

• Chapter 5: Indigegogy: Using Indigenous Ways in Teaching by Stan Wilson in Teaching in the Anthropocene: Education in the Face of Environmental Crisis Edited by Alysha Farrell, Candy Skyhar, and Michelle Lam.  https://books.google.ca/books/about/Teaching_in_the_Anthropocene.html?id=H6nwzgEACAAJ&redir_esc=y 

• Wilson, A. & Loutitt, S. (2021). Queering Indigenous Land-Based Education. (pp. 219 - 231). DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-65368-2_11. This chapter focuses on the philosophical and pedagogical praxis of queering land-based education, learning from experiences designing and teaching a graduate level course called Queering Indigenous Land-Based Education, and  aims to demonstrate the importance of our relationships with water, land, and place in order to disrupt and reorient our education and knowledge systems.

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Cover photo: Rancho maleku tafa uríjíf , Palenque El Sol, San Rafael de Guatuso, Costa Rica