I recently began teaching my students about the American West through our ELA curriculum, and the books my students are exploring refer to Native Americans as "American Indians" or "Plains Indians", which we know is incorrect. It was addressed by the school district after the curriculum was already being taught, but I already took it upon myself to make sure I updated the term when reading the books to my students. I also educated myself, in front of my students, to not only show them that it's important to always stay educated, but to know why exactly they were ever referred to as Indians in the first place. I was taught in school that the terms were interchangeable, that Christopher Columbus was great, and the pilgrims and Native Americans all sat together and shared a feast at the first Thanksgiving.

Now, hopefully most adults recognize this as a fallacy, that the textbooks we got our information from were written by white historians and were whitewashed to make it seem like America was taken over with peace and harmony instead of villainizing Europeans. I personally never really learned the truth about American history until I began to ask questions in college or read about it on my own. There is so much history that has been purposely rewritten to paint a narrative that makes white people out to be heroes and victims, when largely that is not the case. I have actively chosen to not sugarcoat the truth, and for this current topic, to teach my students the truth about Native American history. I think teaching students (developmentally appropriate) reality is essential to helping cultivate a generation of more culturally aware and compassionate leaders for the future.

Developmentally this lesson is appropriate for secondary education because of its depth of knowledge. It could even be appropriate for upper elementary school if done correctly.

What I found outstanding about this lesson plan was the engagement. Right from the start when the teacher organized a gallery walk through black and white photos of internment camps, the students became interested. It then lead into President Roosevelt's Executive Order and the detainment of Japanese Americans. So this is where the inquiry began. The students began asking questions. Where were the Japanese Latin Americans? They had evidence showing them as part of Internment. The students were making connections to the story. The teacher then laid out a role play/reader's theater where individual students and groups of students played different parts of this history. They all wanted to be heard and had their own stake in the results. This lesson plan transcends time and place. This very concept, in ways, could be seen in America today.

I think the majority of parents would support the teaching of this topic. Although in today's political climate it's hard to say. You may have parents question the validity because of being unaware of its history. And that could be quite challenging. It could depend largely on the state you live in and who is making the decisions on what is being taught. Another challenge is the sensitive subject. It could bring strong feelings/emotions out in the students. As a teacher, you want to prepare yourself for all possibilities.