Colonization encompasses many difficult concepts, including slavery, disease, wars, and death. It can be intimidating and overwhelming to teach about such a complex topic – especially when you want to be respectful to the various backgrounds and cultures in your classroom. To help with this, I have compiled a list of 8 simple and meaningful tips for talking about colonization with middle school students.
When Teaching About Indigenous People
1. Honor indigenous land and knowledge.
Acknowledge the land and the people who have always called it home. If possible, learn about the land and culture straight from the source! Have someone from a nearby tribe come speak to your class – or maybe even invite someone to speak to your class virtually!
Check out this website for more suggestions.
2. Use correct terminology.
There is no single Native American culture or language. Native Americans are both individuals and members of a tribal group.
Whenever possible, identify Indigenous people by their specific community name, rather than referring to them in general terms (ex. Native American, Native, American Indian, Indian, etc.).
The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian teaches that while the terms American Indian, Indian, Native American, and Native are all acceptable, the terms American Indian or Indigenous American are preferred by many Native people. However, not all Indigenous people agree.
3. Discuss the vocabulary used to describe Native Americans during colonization.
When speaking about Native people in the classroom, it is important to be cognizant of the vocabulary you are using. Here are a few suggestions from The Burke Museum:
- Rather than always referring to Native Americans in the past tense, discuss Native Americans as contemporary people who are involved in the world today and practice living traditions.
- Encourage students to think critically about the words they see. For example, why are words like “uncivilized” and “savage” offensive? Teach students to use phrases like “pre-contact” or “pre-European settlement” instead.
4. Use literature written by Indigenous People.
It is important to represent Native perspectives in the history we discuss. Here are a few resources I have found that are written by American Indian authors.
Disclosure: The book links below are Amazon affiliate links. This means that I may earn commissions for purchases made by clicking the links.
- Books that show the humanity of Indigenous people before introducing the idea of enslavement
- Books about Indigenous storytelling
- Books about Indian Removal and the Trail of Tears
- American Indian History, Culture, and Language Curriculum Framework from the Minnesota Department of Education’s Department of Indian Education. This document details an entire unit about oral traditions in Indigenous cultures.
5. Reflect on what you were taught.
There are many misconceptions about Indigenous history. We often find ourselves teaching this history the way we were taught it. Unfortunately, this is often from a narrow point of view. Here are a few things to consider when teaching about Indigenous history:
- Emphasize resilience over victimization.
- Recognize that the interactions with Europeans and Americans brought accelerated and often devastating changes to Indigenous cultures.
- Emphasize that Indigenous people played a significant role in the history of the Americas. Many of these historically important events in the Americas have shaped the modern world.
- Teach that indigenous cultures and people are fully engaged in the modern world.
- Incorporate resources that speak from Indigenous perspectives when teaching about American Indian history.
- Encourage students to think critically about Indigenous history. For example, what was the effect of colonization on Indigenous people? Were Indigenous people enslaved? Did they fight back?
In my research of Indigenous history, I have found these incredible resources! I recommend printing the frameworks out, studying them, and keeping them somewhere you can reference them often.
- Native Knowledge 360: Framework for Essential Understandings about American Indians – This resource outlines 10 key concepts that will help you better understand the “rich and diverse cultures, histories, and contemporary lives of Native Peoples.”
- Teaching Hard History: A Framework for Teaching American Slavery – These frameworks are a comprehensive guide to develop an understanding of the role slavery played in the history of the United States. Including how Indigenous people were enslaved during colonization.
- Teaching Hard History Podcast – The first two seasons dive deep into the topic of slavery in America – including Indigenous enslavement. I loved listening to this podcast and learned so much!
When Teaching About Slavery
6. Consider your own biases and life experiences.
Take the time to analyze your own identity, culture, biases, and life experiences. How have they shaped the way you view the world?
In Zaretta Hammond’s book Culturally Responsive Teaching & The Brain (affiliate link), she asks several questions to help us reflect upon our own cultural reference points.
Here are a few of them:
- How do you and your family identify ethnically or racially?
- Where did you live growing up?
- What’s your family’s story? Have they been where you are for decades or just a few years?
- Who are the heroes celebrated in your family or community?
According to Zaretta Hammond, understanding our own cultural identity, as well as that of our students, allows us to better teach to their knowledge and ultimately help them to reach their full potential.
Another great resource for analyzing your personal identity is this professional development course created by Learning for Justice.
7. Evaluate your activities.
While a simulation or game might seem like a fun way to engage students and get them to connect to a history lesson, recreating traumatic events in history can actually cause more harm than good.
This blog post, Think Twice Before Doing Another Historical Simulation, opened my eyes to the way different activities might be perceived by our students. In fact, because of the things I have learned, I have modified several activities and even taken out some simulations from my interactive history units.
If you need help coming up with activities, Facing History has excellent ideas that are engaging, culturally responsive, and help students with critical thinking skills.
8. Commit to continual reflection and growth.
As knowledge and resources are constantly changing and progressing, it is important to regularly self-reflect on your own teaching practices. Taking the time to reflect creates a space for genuine growth and change.
There are many resources available online to help guide you in the self-reflection process. One that I really like is Culturally Responsive Teaching – A Reflection Guide by New America. It outlines important aspects of culturally responsive teaching and provides meaningful questions for you to consider as you reflect on your own practices.
Read more tips for talking about slavery with middle school students.
Culturally Responsive Teaching in the Classroom
I hope these tips for talking about Colonization with middle school students help you to feel empowered as you teach US History in your classroom. If you are interested in learning more about the importance of being culturally responsive in the classroom, I recommend reading Culturally Responsive Teaching & The Brain by Zaretta Hammond.
Culturally Responsive US History Resources
With all that you have on your plate as an educator, it can seem impossible to find high-quality, engaging, and culturally-responsive resources for teaching US History. That is why I have created these interactive units. With high-quality content and engaging lesson plans and activities, these all-inclusive units will help you bring history to life in your classroom!
- Age of Exploration
- 13 Colonies
- Declaration of Independence
- American Revolutionary War
- US Constitution
- Westward Expansion
- Civil War
Disclosure: The book links above are Amazon affiliate links. This means that I may earn commissions for purchases made by clicking the links.
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