Engage Your Students with Indigenous Stories

 The Big Sky Film Institute is once again partnering with the Montana Office of Public Instructions Indian Education Unit to share films made by and about Native people. According to their Facebook post in the Teaching Montana History Facebook group: 

The 2023 season of the NFI Film Club [Native Filmmaker Initiative] presents "Celebrating Cultures & Honoring Traditional Practices," a triptych of films curated to engage Montana youth with unique and uplifting stories of Native and Indigenous individuals ... who are building strength through their communities and upholding traditional practices in the modern day. Our films are selected and ready for teacher registration, each one accompanied with an accompanied discussion guide, streaming link to view the film and an invitation to join our live filmmaker Q&A with film teams and OPI’s Indian Education Specialist, Mike Jetty.

Here's more from their website: 

The Native Filmmaker Initiative Film Club is a virtual youth education outreach program that screens a curated selection of Indigenous-made documentary films in classrooms across Montana. Following the screenings, filmmakers visit classrooms virtually for a live Q&A and discussion activities rooted in Montana's Indian Education for All Essential Understandings. Film Club discussions are led by the Big Sky Film Institute in collaboration with Montana Office of Public Instruction’s Indian Education Specialists as well as participating filmmakers to talk in-depth about the process of filmmaking....

Running October through December, each Film Club event will focus on diverse Indigenous subjects and topics. Consult the discussion guides to help adapt the Film Club activities into social studies, science, history or other areas of study. Films are available to view in advance of Film Club discussions and each classroom will receive access to discussion guides and instructions on how to join the live Q&A.

Visit the Native Filmmaker Initiative website to register your classroom to view one or more of this year's films. Registration includes a screening link to the film with details to join a live filmmaker Q&A and accompanied discussion guides. Email Director of Education, Julia Sherman, at julia@bigskyfilmfest.org for more information, or to be added to their Youth Programs email list.

Here are the three films they will be showing this fall (text from the NFI website): 

October 11: Snqʷeyłmistn (pronounced, SING-KWAY-SH-MEE-STOIN), 7 minutes

Following the native-led organization ​Snqʷeyłmistn, this short portrait follows key players behind the organization's mission and seasonal programming which aims to foster Salish community immersion for foster children of the Flathead Reservation in Montana. With programs and activities designed to empower, strengthen, and inspire generational change, the organization offers indigenized solutions for foster care issues across the Flathead Reservation and greater Indian Country.  RECOMMENDED FOR ALL AGES & GRADES

November 15: Shrampari: Legacies of the River, 16 minutes

In one of the most remote places in the Peruvian Amazon, an Ashéninka boy must overcome his fears to start his journey as an adult: catching a giant catfish using only a hook. RECOMMENDED FOR GRADES 3+ (DUE TO SUBTITLES, OTHERWISE SUITABLE FOR ALL AGES)

December 12: Jonathan Thunder, Good Mythology, 14 minutes 

Follow Anishinaabe artist Jonathan Thunder as he dives deep into the inspirations behind his surrealist paintings and animations. From the killing of an iconic American hero to critical perspectives of how Indigenous people were portrayed in early children’s cartoons, Thunder’s art prompts viewers to reexamine our shared mythologies. THIS FILM IS RECOMMENDED FOR GRADES 4+

On their website you can also find links to past film club films and discussion guides. These films cover topics that are sure to connect with your students: skateboarding, boxing, mountain biking, fly fishing and horse racing to bison restoration and the water protectors movement. They also have a film notetaking guide that could be useful for any film you watch with your students. 

If you are interested in bringing authentic Indigenous voices and perspectives into your classroom--and I hope you are!--this is an amazing resource.

P.S. Don't miss the first of our monthly Monday Meetups, September 11, 4:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m. where I'll be sharing an Introduction to Montana Historical Society Resources. Register to earn one Renewal Unit.      

Monthly Monday Meetups

Join colleagues on the second Mondays of the month, September-November and January-March, from 4:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m. for a series of online sharing sessions around a variety of social studies topics. These sessions will NOT recorded. Attend all six sessions to earn six renewal units or attend individual sessions to earn one renewal unit each. 

September 11, 2023: Introduction to Montana Historical Society Resources

In addition to curriculum for fourth grade and middle school, the Montana Historical Society has an abundance of lesson plans for every grade, most of which are interdisciplinary. Discover how MTHS’s varied and extensive resources can enhance your students’ learning across disciplines. Register.

October 9, 2023: Introduction to National History Day in Montana

National History Day is a grade 6-12 social studies and literacy program that teaches Common Core and social studies skills while teaching students to think like historians. Learn why you should bring National History Day to your school, the curricular resources available, and about National History Day’s contest model, including the upcoming competitions in Montana. Register.

November 13, 2023: Indian Education for All Resources

Find out what’s new on tap at the Indian Education for All Unit of the Montana Office of Public Instruction. Join OPI Indian Education Specialist Mike Jetty as he shares bad jokes and great resources to help you teach your students about Indian culture and history. Register.

January 8, 2024: Finding Primary Sources Online

We all know that a great primary source—a photo, a newspaper article, a letter—can bring history to life. So much is now accessible online, but how do you find what you need amidst the hundreds of thousands of pages of digitized content? Learn techniques for searching the Montana History Portal and Montana Newspapers, brainstorm uses for the primary sources you find there, and discover lesson plans that already incorporate primary sources. Register.  

February 12, 2024: Connecting Past and Present

History may not repeat itself, but it does rhyme, and many of the issues we face today were pressing topics in our state's rich and robust history. Let’s talk about how to use Montana history and MTHS resources to connect the past to the present and share strategies for making discussions and projects surrounding current events more deliberate and reflective. Register.

March 11, 2024: Incorporating Children’s Literature into Social Studies

Novels, memoirs, and picture books are a great way to excite your students about history. Bring your favorite titles to share and learn what other Montana teachers are using in their classrooms to teach Indian Education for All, U.S., and Montana history. Register.

Teaching about Montana’s Chinese Communities: A Workshop for Educators

 Everyone I talked to who went to Mark Johnson's workshop on the Chinese experience last spring raved about it. So I was delighted to learn that Mark was offering it a second time. Do yourself a favor and attend if you are interested in learning the history of Chinese Montanans, their struggles and contributions to the region’s development, and how they kept their culture alive on the Montana frontier. 

Note: To register, you need to contact Mark directly (not me!)

Saturday, Sept. 16, Butte, MT

12:30 – 3:45: Butte Public Library: New research and teaching approaches on history of Chinese communities in Montana

4:00 – 5:00: Tour of the Mai Wah Museum & Wah Chong Tai Mercantile

5:00: Dinner at the Pekin Noodle Parlor (the longest continuously operating Chinese restaurant in the U.S.)

Open to twenty teachers. Each participant receives:

• The Middle Kingdom under the Big Sky, new book on the region’s Chinese history
• $50 to help with travel expenses
• Entry to the Mai Wah Museum
• Dinner at the Pekin Noodle Parlor
• Five Professional Development Units toward certification renewal 
• Contact: Mark.Johnson@nd.edu to register

Welcome Back

 

Welcome Back

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Critical Race Theory

Someone asked me recently if our new fourth-grade textbook teaches Critical Race Theory (CRT). The answer is no--none of MTHS or OPI's Indian Education lessons teach Critical Race Theory. Some of them do teach about the history of discrimination, which is perfectly legal--and in fact required. Confused about what you can and cannot teach? Here's an FAQ sheet. 

Have you had parents ask if you are teaching CRT? Consider using the question as an opportunity to open a dialog. Since CRT means different things to different people, consider kindly saying, "explain to me what you are worried about, and I'll tell you if I teach it" and then address their specific concerns. (H/T to Teacher Leader in Montana History Dylan Huisken for this excellent advice.)

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