Counting Coup- Book Review

 

Counting Coup is a nonfiction book written by Joseph Medicine Crow. He grew up when the white people had just begun to take control of the Native Americans, so he experienced life in the tribe, and life in the "white man's world," though he lived on the reservation for most of his life. In this book, Joseph Medicine Crow tells stories of his family, life on the reservation, and his accomplishments outside of the reservation. He wanted to make the most of his life, so he attended boarding school to learn English, for he knew it would be important for his success. He wants the history of his people to be told, and he enjoyed learning more about his people throughout the years. He lived a successful life on and off the reservation. Counting Coup is an engaging read for anyone who wants to understand the everyday challenges of the Native Americans.

Native American Documentary-2010

"Reel Injun" is a short documentary tracing the portrayal of Native Americans in the media. Native Americans have been included in the media for years, but the image shown is not always flattering or accurate. This film illustrates that Native Americans are either portrayed as "ruthless savages with no sense of honor, or fools who were lost without the help of the white man." This film looks at the past, present, and future of Native Americans in films, including interviews of actors who speak about their own experiences.

Native American Documentary-2008

"American Outrage" is a 2008 documentary about two sisters of the Shoshone tribe. In this documentary, the filmmakers question why these two sisters are being prosecuted for allowing their horses to graze on the open range outside of their private ranch. The case brought against these two women goes all the way to the Supreme Court. The two sisters insist that the government is prosecuting them because the land they ranch is right on top of the second largest gold producing land in the world. It is a short documentary that shows the continuing tension between the Native Americans and the United States Government.

Wars

Over the years, there have been many conflicts between the Native American people and the white settlers who have come to settle in the United States. The while settlers were continually trying to push the Native Americans further west and take away their land. The white settlers saw nothing wrong with what they were doing.

There are different accounts for who started various different conflicts, however, no matter which side reacted first in different instances, the white people were still trying to take away the land that the Native American tribes had lived on for as long as they could remember. Their ancestors had grown up on that land.

It seems in our history books that there is and always has been conflict between the white people and the Native Americans. Usually we are taught that it is the Native American's fault. I came across a book called Lies My Teacher Told me: Everything your American History Textbooks got Wrong by James W. Loewen. It is about how many history textbooks are based on patriotism rather than what the facts really are. It has sections about what happened with many of the Native American tribes. Reading this could help us to identify what we know and what we thought we knew. It could show us what happened in a whole new way.

The Reservation

A bit part of Native American history is the reservation. Reservations are areas of land that are managed by specific tribes under the United States Government. There are about 310 reservations in the United States but over 550 recognized tribes, so some tribes don't have their own specific reservation. The tribal council makes the laws and rules on the reservation, and the American government doesn't generally have any say over it.

The United States government began forcing Native Americans onto reservations in the 1800s when the Indian Appropriations Act was passed. The government moved the tribes from the places where their people had always lived so that more white settlers could get the land that they wanted. Many people at first tried to ignore the orders for them to move, and ended up being forced into new land where they had no desire to be. This often lead to wars with the Native Americans.
Many things have changed over the years, and there have been many laws and acts passed by the American government, however the majority of Native Americans still live on reservations today. The reservations are in places where the land is not necessarily good for farming and where there are not a lot of places for them to get jobs. While things may have technically changed for them legally, I'm not sure if much has really changed for them.

Wounded Knee

The Battle of Wounded Knee took place on the Pine Ridge Reservation in western South Dakota. The white soldiers were trying to convince the people of the Oglala Lakota tribe to give up their weapons, but the Native Americans would not. They had been promised certain things that would help take care of them by the government, and had not received any of those things. A shot was fired, and we do not know who fired first. It resulted in a bloody battle on the 29th of December, 1980. There was a lot of confusion, and many people may have died because of friendly fire. The battle lasted for less than an hour, and at least 150 Lakota people died and 50 had been hurt somehow. Only 25 American soldiers died with 39 people wounded.

Navajo Code Talkers

The Native Americans have an expansive history. Some of their history is more well known than other parts. Something that is quite well known and that made a difference for our country were the Navajo Code Talkers who are credited with helping win World War II. These young men had grown up being oppressed and not allowed to speak their own language in their schools, then the government decided that it was useful after all. They were taken away and put through boot camp, then they came up with several different versions of their code so that it would not be easy to figure out. They were efficient and nobody was ever able to crack their code. After the war, they went home, but were unable to tell anybody about what they had done because the American government didn't want to lose the use of their code. Years later they were allowed to talk about it and share with their people the contribution that they made to the United States.

Dancing My Dream

I read the book "Dancing My Dream" by Warren Petoskey. The book is a collection of many of Petoskey's memories from growing up. He talks about his life when he wasn't living on a reservation, his life when he was living on a reservation, and how all the different dynamics of where he lived and what he did affected him. Most of the book confronts how he was treated and how he overcame it. Petoskey is proud of his heritage as a Native American and wants to share that through his book. To learn more about it, he has a website called "Read the Spirit" that is very interesting. He talks about himself and there are new things you can learn about from it. There is also a blog. The URL is posted below.


http://www.readthespirit.com/dancing-my-dream-book/

Teaching Strategies

This site offers a few really great teaching strategies. Browsing around this site was really interesting, as it also gave some information about how Native Americans learn, assessing, and even example lesson plans!

My favorite part about this information on teaching strategies is that it explains how and why it is applicable. Looking at how it is applicable, it's great to see the similarities in that teaching Native American students doesn't have to be completely different than teaching white or any other students. Sure, they are different and there are some aspects that might be more appealing to them, but that's the same with every student. Students are diverse, no matter if they are from different cultures or not. Not only was this informative but also encouraging to read.

http://www.fourcornerslearning.org/edresources/NA/nastrategies.htm

Book Report:Julie of the Wolves

"Julie of the Wolves" by Jean Craighead George gives us a glance into the life of a modern day Eskimo. Miyax, whose English name is Julie, finds herself, after a series of events, out living on the vast tundra of Alaska. With nothing more than the traditions of her people and a pack of wolves to keep her alive, she some how struggles for life every single day she is out there. Throughout the book we see Miyax/Julie fighting to keep her traditional values. She is constantly trying to decide what things she must keep and what things need to be changed and we are invited into that inner struggle as the reader. After reading this book the reader will better understand the Eskimo's, and other native people's, plight to keep up their traditions while living in a very different world from the one where their traditions were born.

Native American Learners

I found some main points on the website listed below regarding how Native American students learn best and they were:

• Native Americans tend to regard concepts holistically and visually/symbolically
• Native Americans value "wait" time
• Native Americans tend to observe before acting or questioning
• Native Americans tend to speak softly and avoid eye contact with authority
• Native Americans tend to respond well cooperative learning environments
• Native Americans tend to not challenge authority figures

Although these descriptions will obiviously not apply to everyone from this group it does help us understand where they are coming from more. For more detailed information on the previous points I welcome you to further explore the website which I took them from which is listed below.

http://www.fourcornerslearning.org/edresources/NA/nalearning.htm

History of Native Americans

I found a 4 part history of the Native American people. I only watched part 1 so far, so will share the link to that first, but you are more than welcome to check out the rest of it! I believe it does a pretty good job at portraying their history. Growing up around Native Americans, I wish I would have been more informed about their history from this sort of perspective. I think it would benefit my students greatly to watch something like this, that is, if I teach in an area like the one I grew up in.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YR2FgxalCU

Native American Art: Kachina Dolls

Kachina Dolls come from the Hopi Native American tradition. These dolls embody the spirit in whose likeness they were fashioned. There are many different Kachinas which all represent either the spirit of an animal or conceptual ideas. "Each year Kachinas come, they walk upon the earth and they dance to bring life and renewal. When the Kachinas return to the spirit world at the end of the planting, they return with prayers of the Hopi that we might all continue on this earth for another round in the circle of life." These dolls are given as gifts as a sort of well wish for health and wealth in the next year.

http://www.pueblodirect.com/kachhub1.html

Native American Art: Totem Pole

The totem pole is a traditional Native American artwork that comes from the tribes of the Pacific Northwest (PNW). Totem poles are unique to the PNW because unlike the Inuits and Plains Native Americans, they had large enough trees to create such pieces of art.

Most totem poles tell a story of either legends, lineage of a clan, or even significant events that took place. The order in which the totems or images are also significant with the most important being at the top and the least at the bottom although this is not always the case. The images on each pole are inspired by the people's natural surroundings with different clans owning particular designs.

http://www.support-native-american-art.com/Native-American-Totem-Poles.html

Night of the Full Moon

Night of the Full Moon by Gloria Whelen is a story about two girls (one Potawatomi and one white) who are trying to escape from forced relocation. The American government wanted all the Native Americans who lived on the east side of the Mississippi River to move to the west side of the Mississippi River and President Andrew Jackson signed the Indian Removal Act in 1830. Most were forced to move because the white people wanted their land or thought they were 'uncivilized'. Today, we have Reservations in the western part of the United States because of this forced relocation.

The Story of Wounded Knee

RC Stein wrote the book The Story of Wounded Knee. It tells the story of the events that lead up to the final battle between the while people and the Lakota Sioux Indians. In the battle, about 200 men, women, and children were killed by the United States cavalrymen on December 29, 1890 near Wounded Knee Creek, where the battle gets its name from. The US government had been trying to get the Lakota's land from them for years, and the Lakota Sioux had been resisting. The Lakota people and the white people tell different versions of the story of the battle and how it started, but no matter how it was started, the Battle of Wounded Knee is one of the most well known battles between the Sioux Indians and the white people.

Native American Flute Music

Not all Native American music has words, though when we think of their music, we may associate it with singing. The flute is a popular instrument, and it is simple, constructed with about five or six holes. The sound is clear and haunting, and it imitates the human voice. R. Carlos Nakai is of the Navajo tribe, and he plays traditional flute. He also experiments with the flute in several other genres. This piece, "Shaman's Call" is a traditional flute song, and the flute is unaccompanied. It creates a peaceful and relaxing sound.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-DOKrlAcD0&feature=related

Native American Vocal Music

Music has been important to Native American culture for their entire existence. The Native American people use music for dancing, playing games, ceremonies, retelling history, and more. This song, "Grandpa's Teachings," sung by Jay Begaye is a traditional Navajo song. It is used for prayer and honor. There are no instruments, and his beautiful vocals give the song a somber and beautiful sound.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fi1e6rvfxho&feature=related

The Drumbeat

The site I found both of these poems on has a lot of really great poetry (easy to understand as well). It's fascinating to me that almost all of the poems I read focus on one of two things: the hardships of the Native American people because of white men, or nature.

This poem, "The Drumbeat" emphasizes both of these.

http://opossumsal.homestead.com/Native/TheDrumbeat.html

"We the First People"

Here is a poem I found about the first people-- Native Americans. It describes the emotions involved with the people who "found" them and "saved" them from their culture. It expresses the pride they feel, and yet all the anger and hurt that was caused on them when white men came to these lands. Very touching poem.

http://opossumsal.homestead.com/Native/FirstPeople.html