Students will learn and apply respectful communication protocols when engaging with local California tribal communities. Students will incorporate Indigenous voices, perspectives, and feedback into their understanding and representation of local histories and cultures.
Students will examine the historical and cultural significance of land acknowledgments and analyze their use in educational and public settings. Students will identify the Indigenous peoples whose ancestral lands they occupy and begin to explore the importance of recognizing those connections.
In this 1.5 week long multimedia unit, students will learn about the Wiyot people through Baduwa’t Wiyot, Rick Bartow’s (1946-2016) family’s story. This unit personifies the tribe’s struggles and triumphs. Through Bartow’s story, students will learn how Wiyot people strengthened their culture and reclaimed ancestral homelands a century after their villages were displaced by settlers, who murdered their ancestors for their land and resources. Students will learn that Indigenous people have contemporary living cultures and practice art, language, and ceremony in both traditional and contemporary styles. Students will learn how Bartow utilized music to express emotion and feelings in the name of beauty and tragedy as a coping mechanism for historical trauma and personal trauma. (Bartow was a VietNam vet with PTSD who overcame substance abuse.) Students will learn how metaphors express meaning; imagery communicates emotion and story; and poetry and song provide what many Indigenous peoples call “good medicine” to help heal.
This three-part unit, Trauma and Resilience Through an Indigenous Lens, introduces students to the historical and contemporary impacts of trauma within Native American communities. Through a series of interactive lessons, students explore trauma as both a psychological and social phenomenon recognizing the significance of collective and intergenerational experiences. The unit begins by examining how historical events, such as colonization, forced relocation, and boarding schools, continue to shape the lived realities of Native communities today. Students engage with multimedia resources and participate in group discussions to reflect on how understanding this history is vital to addressing present-day challenges. In the second lesson, the focus shifts to intergenerational trauma, offering students insight into how trauma is passed down within families and how community support and cultural strength play essential roles in healing. This lesson emphasizes the importance of resilience-building within Indigenous communities and provides students the opportunity to begin creating personal, reflective responses through art or writing. The final lesson uplists celebration of Indigenous resilience, brilliance, and success. Students explore contemporary stories of Indigenous strength through video and discussion, and express their understanding through creative works such as poetry, storytelling, or visual art. A reflective sharing circle concludes the unit, fostering empathy, self-expression, and a deeper cultural awareness. Throughout the unit, students build critical thinking and empathy skills, while engaging with important themes of identity, history, and healing. Assessments include both discussion-based and a creative project that captures students’ personal understanding of trauma and resilience.
