November is American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month

Written by: bmoeggenberg
Friday, November 13th, 2009

It would be wonderful to be able to travel to the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC to participate in all the great public programs to celebrate Native Heritage Month. “The theme is: ‘Living in Many Worlds,’ which explores the dynamic intersection of family, history, and cultural identity.” However, if you can’t get there, I’ve put together a list of resources that will give you a feel for the celebrations.

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In Middle:

Enter Museum of the American Indian into the keyword box
1. 2^nd one down is the Smithsonian Museum. Click on that. This is a one-stop website! Easiest way to get to great collections:
  1. Click Exhibitions in the red menu bar; then click Online Exhibitions in the red menu on the left hand side. Find 31 excellent Online Exhibitions. Some of my favorite are:
    1. Beauty Surrounds Us: breathtaking and culturally significant objects made by Native Peoples
    2. Identity by Design: dresses designed by Native women from the Plains, Plateau, and Great Basin regions. For these artists, dresses are more than simple articles of clothing. They are evidence of a proud and unbroken tradition, links to the generations of women who have gone before them, and bridges to the future.
    3. Legends of Our Times: Native ranching and rodeo life on the plains and plateau.
    4. The Language of Native American Baskets: Baskets serve as markers of cultural pride and inheritance. Some are used on religious occasions.
    5. I could go on and on, but it is so easy to become totally immersed in these beautiful exhibitions, that you will find your own favorites.
    6. Of course, we have thousands of websites on Native Americans throughout our subject areas. Here is an easy way to get the big picture of an outline devoted to Native Americans. In Middle, enter Native American into the keyword box. Remember how we talked in a past Trekking post that you can scan the results and look specifically at the taxonomy in the result box for clues about where these sites are living – so that you can find the outline itself? Take a look at the 2^nd one down. The taxonomy is: Social Studies>Sociology>Diverse Population Groups>Ethnic Identity in Multicultural World>Native American.
      1. Click on Ethnic Identity in Multicultural World. Now you can see how we set this outline up.
      2. Click on Native American. Now you can see all the categories that we have on Native American. A lot of these topics will speak to the heritage and culture celebrated during November.
      3. Click on Native American Current Culture. The first one: PBS: Circle of Stories. This PBS series site captures Native American stories told by the storytellers themselves. Students can also find information on language and land issues confronting Native Americans today.
      4. I’ll leave you with an absolutely great topic along this subject: Totem Poles! We have beautiful sites on these magnificent pieces of Native American art: Simply enter Totem Poles into the keyword box.
      5. Thanks!