13 copies

This book can be used to teach students about what was happening to Native Americans during this time period. ( )

Summary: In the 1880s, Young Bull belonged to the Cheyenne Indian tribe, but was taken from his family and his land and sent to an Indian-boarding school, where he would be forced to assimilate to the white man's ways. Young Bull struggled with his life while at the school, knowing that what was being forced upon him was challenging his cultural identity. He longed to go back to the golden plains and be reunited with the Cheyenne's once again, but this was only possible in his dreams. It was not until later that Young Bull would see a glimpse of hope, as his tribe began to resist the white Europeans, in defense of their land and heritage.

Personal Reaction: I enjoyed reading this book as it was quite informative about the actual occurrences that took place during this historical time period. It was resourceful and caused me to feel the sorrow and pain that Young Bull must have felt as he was being stripped of his cultural identity.

Extension Ideas:
(1. Have students split into groups of three and discuss various parts of the story, retelling the story and the significance that they learned from it.
(2. Have students make a gold feather pen that they can use throughout the school year, reminding them of Young Bull and the golden plains the Cheyenne's sacrificed their lives to keep.

Summary: This is a story about Cheyenne indians. The story starts out with the indians living on their own land. Then the white men come and take the kids to live at a new school. They have to basically become new people. The kids must learn new customs, different history, a new culture, etc. Thee boy tries to escape and go back home, but the white men come find him and bring him back. He has to be shackled up so he doesn't try leaving again. He starts talking to one of his teachers and she gives him hope that everything will be okay. He ends up dreaming about being Cheyenne again one day.

Personal Reaction: This book really made me think of our history here in Oklahoma. It made me sad and angry because this was a real situation for so many people. It makes me angry mainly because now the Cheyenne culture is losing its core values. The fact that people actually thought, and some still believe, that this was the right thing to do.

Classroom Extension Ideas:
1) Kids can ask their parents about their family history and bring information to class about it
2) Kids can have a Native American Day where we make headdresses and have snacks or food that Native Americans would have eaten back then.

Summary:
It's a story of a little Cheyenne Indian boy who was taken from his family and given to the U.S. Government to attend boarding school. The school taught them English, geography, math, and history in an attempt to turn them into productive citizens for the U.S. Government. He fought against giving up his heritage and was angry they were making him give it up. In the end thought he chose to remember his heritage while learning what they taught.
Personal Reaction:
It provided insight into the history of the Cheyenne tribe and what they were forced to do and give up. The U.S thought they were doing what was best, but they weren't nice or courteous about it and there were definitely other ways to handle the situation. I have been on both sides of this situation as far as being treated badly for being white living on the reservation and seeing how some white people treat the Indians on our Reservation back home in Washington State. As an adult my opinions are biased, but for kids especially here in Oklahoma where there is a reservation and the Comanche tribe its good for the kids to understand some of the history of the kids in their class. It comes down to having the kids treat everyone as they want to be treated and enforcing that.
Extension Ideas:
the students could do research on different Indian tribes and present to the class.
the kids could do research on their families and see where they come from. ( )