Unity in Diversity

Inquiry Design Model (IDM) Blueprint™ “Unity in Diversity” | OSEU 6: Sovereignty & Treaties Compelling Question Can there be unity in diversity? Standards and Practices OSEU 6.4 – Identify and describe the impacts of US assimilation policies and programs on Oceti Sakowin people in education, language, culture, civil rights, and spiritual practice. 8.H.1.6 Describe the changing federal policy towards Native Americans after the Civil War. 8.H.4.7 Describe ways in which migration led to conflicts between Anglo-European and Native American cultures. Staging the Question How did the US government attempt to force assimilation of the Oceti Sakowin people? Supporting Question 1 Supporting Question 2 Supporting Question 3 Why did the US government send Native American children to assimilation boarding schools? How did Native American individuals resist assimilation? What ongoing impacts of the boarding school era can be seen today? Formative Performance Task Formative Performance Task Formative Performance Task Begin by viewing video interviews with Sydney Bird found at WoLakotaProject.org. Then have students read and summarize “Federal Acts and Assimilation Policies” from the following website: http://usdakotawar.org/history/newcomers-us- government-and-military/acts-policy Finally, have students read and summarize “Indian Boarding Schools” from the following website: http://usdakotawar.org/history/newcomers-us- government-military-federal-acts-policy/indian-boarding- schools Students may watch the video found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioAzggmes8c Have students read an excerpt from Ojibwe author Brenda Child’s book Boarding School Seasons, and an excerpt from Tsianina Lomawaima’s They Called in Prairie Light. These excerpts share first-hand experiences of the boarding schools. Students find and examine specific ways in which students fought to hold on to their identities (including story-telling, secret language retention, and secretly honoring tribal practices and celebrations). Using the excerpts from Boarding School Seasons and They Called it Prairie Light, and the article “Soul Wound: The Legacy of Native American Schools,” students find way(s) in which the government was successful in their assimilation efforts (language loss), ways in which the government was not successful (most students returned to home reservations to rejoin their communities), and unforeseen effects including the “Pan Indian movement.” Featured Sources Featured Sources Featured Sources http://usdakotawar.org/history/newcomers-us- government-and-military/acts-policy http://usdakotawar.org/history/newcomers-us- government-military-federal-acts-policy/indian-boarding- schools Brenda Child’s book Boarding School Tsianina Lomawaima’s book They Called in Prairie Light. Brenda Child’s book Boarding School Tsianina Lomawaima’s book They Called in Prairie Light. “Soul Wound: The Legacy of Native American Schools,” by Andrea Smith through Amnesty International. Summative Performance Task Argument The United States have been called “the melting pot” due to the many different groups of people who have settled here and brought their unique cultures with them. Divide students into 2 groups, one arguing the US government’s justification in trying to force assimilation of Native American tribes, the other arguing the justification for tribes to remain different from, and even possibly separate from, American society as a whole. Extension Students research authentic boarding school-experience accounts, and create a biography of one individual who attended a Native American boarding school. Taking Informed Action Students can research the UN Panel that is working to “undo the damage” caused by the boarding school policies; students can write letters of support to the UN if they agree with the ideas put forth by the UN Panel.