Author:
Heather Kolde
Subject:
World Cultures, Elementary Education, Reading Informational Text, U.S. History, Anthropology, Cultural Geography, Ethnic Studies
Material Type:
Activity/Lab, Diagram/Illustration, Lesson, Lesson Plan, Primary Source
Level:
Middle School, High School, Adult Education
Tags:
  • Federal Policy of Assimilation
  • Indian Boarding Schools
  • Native American
  • Native American Education
  • Off-reservation Schools
  • Wind River Reservation
  • License:
    Creative Commons Attribution
    Language:
    English
    Media Formats:
    Graphics/Photos, Other

    Indian Boarding Schools and the Wind River Reservation

    Indian Boarding Schools and the Wind River Reservation

    Overview

    This resource will provide multiple primary source documents of photographs for an initial activity and extension activities as well as secondary source article and teacher resource documents. Students will conduct inquiry into the federal policies of assimilation of Native Americans in the late 1800s and early 1900s and the imipact of these policies on Native American communities, in particular the people of the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming.

     

    Indian Boarding Schools and the Wind River Reservation

    Crossroads of History Icon

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    Activity Plan Template- Educator

     

    Program TitleIndian Boarding Schools and the Wyoming Wind River ReservationInstructional LevelGrades 6-12Target AudienceSecondary Students/Pre-service teachers
    TPS Western Region LocationWyoming    

     

    Resources UsedSocial Justice Standards     Diversity Anchor standards will be addressed.  Focus will be particularly on standards 9 and 10:8. Students will respectfully express curiosity about the history and lived experiences of others and will exchange ideas and beliefs in an open-minded way.9. Students will respond to diversity by building empathy, respect, understanding and connection.10. Students will examine diversity in social, cultural, political and historical contexts rather than in ways that are superficial or oversimplified.
    Facing History and OurselvesS-I-T: Surprising, Interesting, Troubling | Facing History and OurselvesS-I-T Strategy for exit ticket for each student individually after the discussion ends.  
    Library of Congress Teacher Resources C3 Teachers: Inquiry Design ModelCommon Core StandardsAdditional sources:

    Helpful notes for teachers prior to the activity:  Teacher's Guide: Analyzing Photographs & Prints | Teacher Resources - Library of Congress (loc.gov)

    Notes for extension or alternate activity: Teacher's Guide: Analyzing Political Cartoons | Teacher Resources - Library of Congress (loc.gov)C3 StandardsD2.Civ.13.6-8. Analyze the purposes, implementation, and consequences of public policies in multiple settings. D2.Civ.13.9-12. Evaluate public policies in terms of intended and unintended outcomes and related consequences. Stripling Model of Inquiry used with the Student Inquiry Notes pdf.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.9
    Analyze the relationship between a primary and secondary source on the same topic.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.9
    Compare and contrast treatments of the same topic in several primary and secondary sources.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.11-12.9
    Integrate information from diverse sources, both primary and secondary, into a coherent understanding of an idea or event, noting discrepancies among sources.

    Speaking and listening standards: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.6,7,89-10,11-12.1.B  From Wind River to Carlisle: Indian Boarding Schools in Wyoming and the Nation | WyoHistory.org

    Additional Optional ResourcesNative American Boarding Schools  |  Classroom Materials at the Library of Congress  |  Library of Congress (loc.gov)

     

    Introductory Text/ Program justificationThe strain between Native American communities and the federal government continues to impact our lives in Wyoming and across the nation.  Additionally, Native American students are statistically the least likely to graduate high school and attend post-secondary education of all marginalized groups in the nation.  The foundations and historical issues that have contributed to these issues in the United States must be fully understood to move toward workable solutions. The history of “Indian Schools/Boarding Schools,” and federally funded reservation schools and policies are rarely discussed and little known. This lesson will attempt to shed some light on the subject and attempt to provide some historical context for the current educational difficulties of and distrust by many Native American communities.
      

     

    Materials needed: 
    TechnologyDigital platform for students to view photographs. Devices for digital inquiry notes if not using paper copies(Optional) Drawing/Graphics program used to create a political cartoon extension
    Consumables & Copies1 copy each per group of 3-4 students (Print or digital form)
      

     

    LOC Primary Source links
    1. Sioux boys as they arrived at the Indian Training School at Carlisle Barracks, Oct 5th. Photograph. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2012646816/>.
    https://lccn.loc.gov/2012646816Photo: Sioux boys as they arrived at the Indian Training School at Carlisle Barracks, Oct 5th 1879 (loc.gov)
    1. Johnston, Frances Benjamin, photographer. Carlisle Indian School, Carlisle, Pa. Chapel service. Photograph. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2004676455/>.
    https://lccn.loc.gov/2004676455Photo: [Carlisle Indian School, Carlisle, Pa. Chapel service?] (loc.gov)Additional Extension Activity Primary Sources
    1. Educating the Indians--a female pupil of the government school at Carlisle visits her home at Pine Ridge Agency / from a sketch by a corresponding artist. Photograph. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/90712911/>.
    https://lccn.loc.gov/90712911Photo: Educating the Indians--a female pupil of the government school at Carlisle visits her home at Pine Ridge Agency (loc.gov)
    1. Levering, Albert, Artist. The American Indian Past. Present / / Albert Levering. Photograph. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2002720336/>. Photo; The American Indian Past. Present / / Albert Levering. - digital file from original print | Library of Congress (loc.gov)
      

     

    Entry Activity/TaskHook question/Activating schema:  What is a boarding school? As a class, brainstorm your background knowledge of boarding schools. Guided Questions for Whole Group Discussion:  
    • How or why do you think people generally decide to send their children to boarding school?
    • Is there a certain type of person that goes to boarding school?  If so, explain.  
    • Do you think that people would send their children to a boarding school that would teach them to be different from their families of origin? Why or why not?
    • How would you feel if the government pressured your family to make you go to a boarding school, especially one far from home?  
    Focused Activity/Task
    1. Divide students into groups. It is recommended to have groups assign jobs to each team member.
    1. Recorder- Records the group’s thinking and answers on the documents provided either digitally or in printed form.
    2. Discussion Leader- Moderates discussion and ensures that all students participate, prompting students as needed.
    3. Reader- Reads materials aloud to the group.
    4. Spokesperson/Materials- Retrieves any materials needed by the group (May be divided up and combined with another position for groups of three)
    1. Students will be presented with photographs 1 and 2. (See primary sources 1 and 2) Consider clipping the photos for the original analysis to avoid the possibility of captions being read.
    2. Student groups will begin to complete the Student Inquiry pdf, being sure to include details they notice comparing/contrasting the two photos.  Students will focus particularly on the Wonder section of the organizer at this stage.
    3. Groups will choose a team member to share out their thinking with the whole group.  This will be the Materials/Spokesperson for groups of four.
    4. The teacher will inform students that these photographs were taken within just a few years of one another at the Carlisle Indian Boarding School in PA. The Carlisle school was an off-reservation school that housed/schooled many students from the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming as part of the United States Federal Government’s Native American assimilation and education policies of the 1860s to about 1930. You may show the original unclipped versions of the photos at this point.
    Conclusion Activity/Task
    1. Students will read and annotate the secondary source article, adding to the group’s inquiry notes as they read.
    2. Students will complete the inquiry notes and come to a consensus on one question they still have and will continue to research in the future.
    3. Each individual student will complete a personal S-I-T exit ticket.  Based on today’s learning, what is one thing they found surprising, one they found interesting, and one they found troubling.

     

    Assessment of Student Learning
    1. Students will be assessed on their ability to analyze the primary sources, completing all sections of the Student Inquiry pdf with supportable reasoning and evidence appropriate to grade-level expectations.
    2. Students will also be assessed on their ability to have a collegial, open-minded, discussion of the issues at hand, speaking respectfully and empathetically about the experiences of the Native American peoples.
    Rubrics are included for both objectives above.
      

     

    Student Learning Accommodations & ModificationsScaffolded support:
    • Students may use voice-to-text to record their notes.
    • Use Immersive Reader on the Edge browser for reading the article to support struggling readers or ELLs (English Language Learners).
    Going Deeper: Students may analyze the second two primary source documents and infer their possible messages. The guidance on the included political carton analysis tool may be referenced. Extension activities:
    1. Create an original political cartoon based on your learning. Cartoons may be designed for the turn of the 20th century or for the modern day. Students may choose to utilize a digital design platform (Canva, for example) or one of the many drawing programs if technology is available.
    2. These types of illustrations or cartoons are designed with a particular message and perspective in mind.  Sketch or describe in detail how one of these illustrations might be different had it been created by someone with a different perspective on the issue than that of the original artist.  Support your decisions with evidence and cite your sources.
    3. Create a list of potential connections between today’s learning and current events in your community.  Are you able to find other reliable sources of information that clarify the validity of those connections? If so, explain your evidence, remembering to cite your sources. Did you use both primary and secondary sources?
    Additional Links for Further Study:

     

    Multicultural ConsiderationsNative Americans may be likely to have some personal family history with this lesson, potentially causing upset or anger. Non-Native American students may lack knowledge of Native American culture and the differences between it and the Western/European culture of the United States, particularly in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Students new to the country may have little understanding of the historical issues Native Americans have experienced in the United States.  They may be able to make connections to marginalized people groups from their own cultural backgrounds that are similar to those addressed in this activity.  Encourage them to share these valuable connections with the class. An additional extension for SEL would have students reflect on the following questions:
    1. How does this new knowledge make me feel?
    2. Is there any action that this knowledge makes me want to take?  Is there any change I can effect today to help with the current state of things for Native Americans in my region?
    3. Are there other people groups around me today that might be experiencing similar types of prejudices and attitudes about their culture?  If so, who are they?  Is there anything that I can do to try to effect change for these people?

     

     

    Adapted from template by Creator: Morgen Larsen for NCCE.org

    Except where otherwise noted, this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International LicenseA black and white logo

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