Home to Medicine Mountain by Chiori Santiago
Title: Home to Medicine Mountain (.pdf lesson plan)
Author: Chiori Santiago
Grade Level: 3-5
Standards*
- Common Core: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.1, 3.2, & 3.3; CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.1, 4.2, & 4.3; CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.1, 5.2, & 5.3
- Virginia Standards of Learning: 3.5; 4.5; 5.5
Overarching Theme(s): Assimilation, Fairness, Point of View, Empathy, Inferencing
Timeframe: (45-60 minutes)
Summary
This story is based on the true event of two Native American boys who are forced to go to American Indian boarding schools away from their families and communities. At these schools, they must give up their Native American identities and culture, including language and dress, and they must take on American culture and customs. In this story, two brothers attending one of these schools run away and travel on train boxcars back to their home at Medicine Mountain.
Lesson Goals
- Identify feelings and motivations of characters
- Determine the fairness of American Indian boarding schools in their historical context