Grades
PreK - 8
Classroom Children’s Books About Native Americans
Use these wonderful resources to teach your students about Native American history and heroes.
Rooted in rich history and tradition, Native American culture dates back thousands of years, long before European colonizers set foot in this country. Unfortunately, many Native American contributions to American history and culture have been largely overlooked. November marks Native American Heritage Month, so it’s a great time to highlight Indigenous voices and stories in your lesson plan.
These inspiring children’s books for every grade level celebrate and shine a light on Native American culture and identity. Your students will love learning about Indigenous-led movements, the amazing stories of Native American service members, the traditions of different Native tribes, and modern-day Indigenous heroes.
Younger students will love the traditional tales found in the Native American Voices book pack, which includes Rabbit’s Snow Dance, an Iroquois folk tale about patience, and Chukfi Rabbit’s Big, Bad Bellyache, a Choctaw story about a clever trickster.
If you have nonfiction fans in your classroom, these books bring light to the unique tribal traditions of different Native groups, such as the Navajo, Wampanoag, and Iroquois people. They're filled with fascinating facts, photographs, and illustrations that will keep your students immersed in the pages.
In the lyrical picture book Buffalo Bird Girl students learn about the Buffalo Bird Woman, a Hidatsa native born in 1839. Children will get a glimpse into her everyday life in the Dakotas, from doing chores to playing with friends and being a part of her community. It’s a Native American family story for all students.
Books that are based on the real-life experiences of Native American people are also great resources for teaching young readers the Indigenous perspective about different historical events.
For example, in the action-packed true story Code Talker, students will learn about the Navajo Marines who used their native language to speak in code and send messages for the Americans during World War II.
I Am Sacagawea tells the inspiring story of the brave teenager Sacagawea, a Lemhi Shoshone translator and explorer who helped the Lewis and Clark expedition charter and explore the Louisiana Territory. Sacagawea traveled hundreds of miles with her newborn baby son strapped to her back, teaching her fellow explorers about the land and how to survive on it.
For a detailed look at the significant impact of Native American contributions, share this fascinating collection of biographies in Native American Heroes.
These books are ideal for any time of year — and particularly perfect for Native American Heritage Month. Whether it’s through a picture book or a chapter book, understanding the history and traditions of Indigenous people is essential for teaching students about how we have come to live on Native land.
Shop children’s books about Native Americans below! You can find all books and activities at The Teacher Store.
Osceola, Cochise, and Tecumseh are three Native American heroes who fought valiantly for their land and for their people. This book is divided into three parts, each part recounting the life of one of these great heroes.
From Anishanabe artists making birch bark bowls to Zuni elders saying prayers for the day that is done, the diversity of Native American cultures is presented simply in this unique and beautiful alphabet book.
After years of standing against the U.S. government, the great warrior and spiritual leader Geronimo's life is coming to an end, as his grandson visits him where he is imprisoned, in Fort Sill, OK in 1908.
This moving adaptation of the classic children's story Cinderella tells how a disfigured Algonquin girl wins the heart of a mysterious being who lives by the lake near her village.
A compendium of biographies of barrier-breaking First Nation men and women including astronaut John Herrington, the first Native American to fly in space.
Seven plays for children introduce Native American tales, heroes, and tricksters to classrooms. “An excellent extension of American Indian studies for elementary students.” -Booklist
This fascinating picture book biography tells the childhood story of Buffalo Bird Woman, a Hidatsa Indian born around 1839. Through her true story, readers will learn what it was like to be part of this Native American community that lived along the Missouri River in the Dakotas, a society that depended more on agriculture for food and survival than on hunting. Children will relate to Buffalo Bird Girl's routine of chores and playing with friends, and they will also be captivated by her lifestyle and the dangers that came with it.
Here is the story of Sacajawea, written especially for beginning readers. More than 200 years ago explorers went across the Northwest, trying to find a route to the Pacific Ocean. With the help of this strong, young Native girl, the trip was a success.
There was once a poor boy in an Indian camp who longed for a pony more than anything. So he dug the wet earth and shaped a pony out of mud. He loved his mud pony and took care of it as though it were real.
One day, when his village broke camp for a buffalo hunt, the boy was left behind. "My people!" he cried out. "I will never find you! I am all alone!" That night he dreamed that his pony was alive and speaking to him.
"You are not alone," the pony said. "Mother Earth has given me to you." And when he awoke, remarkably, his mud pony had indeed come to life.
Ken Robbins tells in words and historical photographs the amazing yet tragic story of a magnificent and truly American creature: the buffalo. It is the story of numbers so vast, it might take days for one herd of buffalo to pass a particular point on the prairie. It is the story of a harmonious, balanced relationship with Native Americans who revered and even worshiped the huge animals that gave them almost everything they needed to survive.
Thirteen-year-old Salamanca Tree Hiddle's mother has disappeared. While tracing her steps on a car trip from Ohio to Idaho with her grandparents, Salamanca tells a story to pass the time about a friend named Phoebe Winterbottom whose mother vanished and who received secret messages after her disappearance. One of them read, "Don't judge a man until you have walked two moons in his moccasins." Despite her father's warning that she is "fishing in the air," Salamanca hopes to bring her home. By drawing strength from her Native American ancestry, she is able to face the truth about her mother.
As the United States continued to grow in the early nineteenth century, its people began to covet the land of their native neighbors. This greed led to a horrific forced relocation that we now call the Trail of Tears. This title explores the buildup to the relocation, the terrible conditions the natives were forced to suffer, and the events impact on U.S.-Indian relations in the following years.
