Appreciating Native American Struggles, Philosophy, and Culture

November is American Indian Heritage (Native American) Month. Despite the existence of hundreds of different tribes of Native Americans in North America, they have a common philosophy that relates to their appreciation and respect for nature.

Here are some Native American pearls of wisdom:

• The Earth is our Mother, care for Her
  
• Honor all your relations
  
• Open your heart and soul to the Great Spirit
  
• All life is sacred
  
• Treat all beings with respect
  
• Take from the Earth what is needed and nothing more
  
• Do what needs to be done for the good of all
  
• Give constant thanks to the Great Spirit for each day
  
• Speak the truth but only for the good in others
  
• Follow the rhythms of Nature
  
• Enjoy life's journey, but leave no tracks

American Indian Heritage Month started out at the turn of the century as an effort to gain a day of recognition for the significant contributions made to our society by the first Americans.

One of the original proponents of an American Indian Day was Dr. Arthur C. Parker, a Seneca Indian, who was the director of the Museum of Arts and Science in Rochester, N.Y. He persuaded the Boy Scouts of America to set aside a day for the "First Americans" and for three years they adopted such a day.

In 1915, the annual Congress of the American Indian Association formally approved a plan concerning American Indian Day. It directed its president, Rev. Sherman Coolidge, an Arapahoe, to call upon the country to observe such a day. Coolidge issued a proclamation on Sept. 28, 1915, which declared the second Saturday of each May as an American Indian Day and contained the first formal appeal for recognition of Indians as citizens.

In 1990 President George H. W. Bush approved a joint resolution designating November 1990 as National American Indian Heritage Month. Similar proclamations have been issued each year since 1994.

Activity


ProQuest BookCarts are a great way to save time when assigning mini-research activities for students. Teachers and librarians have their choice of several ProQuest models to copy and use for student research on Indian Heritage Month: American Indian History and Culture; Native American History and Heroes; and Native Americans of the Southwest (includes a sample QuizCart).

Pathfinder to copy one or all of these ProQuest BookCarts:

• Open your eLibrary Teacher Edition
  
  
• Click BookCart Admin at the top right
  
  
• Click the ProQuest Carts tab
  
  
• Select the Ethnic Culture and Interests folder
  
  
• Click the Copy icon for American Indian History and Culture, Native American History and Heroes, plus Native Americans of the Southwest
  
  
• Return to My Local Carts

Copied BookCarts will appear with "Copy of" as a title prefix. Click the BookCart Title to open the Editor, then remove "Copy of", add your name in the Author boxes, then save your new BookCart.

All three BookCarts contain models of essential questions for critical thinking to guide your students to use higher order thinking in their reports and presentations. They also provide a place to include Student Directions for the assignment and Pathfinders to correlated print resources, providing students with a complete lesson plan including resources.

PowerPoint presentations are becoming a popular way for students to present the conclusions of their research activity. ProQuest has created a student model template to help them organize and prepare their reports, ensuring they address essential questions and integrate critical thinking.