Mrs. Russell's Room

The Lie I REFUSE to Teach

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This week, I’ve been working hard on my third grade fluency passages for November.
I know that teachers will want a Thanksgiving passage, and I wanted to write one, but…to be honest, I’m just not selling some ridiculous story to kids about how Thanksgiving started.
Not. Any. More.
This country has a habit of white washing entire decades of time into some Shangrila that never existed.  The sad thing is, as time goes on…we end up believing it.
The reason why our country has problems is because our people refuse to learn from the mistakes of the past.  We refuse to embrace the truth that this country has done some racist, bigoted things.  Often times, wrapped up in the fluffy blanket of religion.
So…let’s take the image above for example.
Notice the Native Americans sitting?
Notice that they are being GIVEN food by the settlers?
The Wampanoag man receiving food seems to even have a smile on his face.
That is NOT the way things played out. Not in the slightest.
So…here’s the lie I refuse to teach.

Thanksgiving was not some warm fuzzy moment between the oppressors and the oppressed.

Educators…let’s stop perpetuating the myth that Native Americans and settlers had mutual affinity for each other and decided to share this wonderful meal together.  It just didn’t happen that way.
During this time, the native people were aware of people coming to their shores in ships and massacring them.  Entire Indian groups were killed off by small pox.  There was DANGER attached to these new pale faced settlers.  Mistrust was HIGH.
Many of you may be familiar with Squanto the Indian who helped the settlers?
Do you know how he learned English?  He was taken from his village as a slave.  When he finally came back to America, his whole village was gone.  Devastated by small pox.
True story.  You can read about that HERE.
The Wampanoag people were proud and brave.  Why on earth would they be bowing to the people that they were rescuing?  The settlers didn’t know how to do a thing for themselves.  Local tribes taught them how to build homes, how to grow crops, how to forage for food, how to treat common illnesses with roots and herbs.  They were basically like children trying to live in the forest.  Yet, the narrative we see out in the ‘real world’ is vastly different.  Teachers, I ask you…why is that?  Who does this narrative benefit? The answers to those questions are key to understanding how these myths persist.
There are tons of blog posts, articles and videos about the real story of Thanksgiving.  Both Brain Pop and Brain Pop Jr. offer videos, but the one on Brain Pop Jr. is FREE.

If you would like to view this short video, click HERE for the link.

Why do we not do research on it more and teach this topic with more fidelity?
Because we’ve EXPERIENCED it.
If you celebrate Thanksgiving, it really DOES feel like a happy time where families can get together, eat a meal, and talk about things that they are grateful for.  For many Native American families this time of year is a time of mourning for all that was taken from them.
As a primary teacher, teaching the warm and fuzzy Disney-fied Pochahontas version of the relationships between Indians and settlers is the easy way out.  Making paper bag vests with a bazillion symbols on them is NOT teaching Native American culture. Primary students are going into the intermediate grades thinking THAT is what Native People are all about.  They are so much more!  Their history and heritage is rich and full of amazing triumphs.
Finding a way to teach the tough stuff to littles requires more introspection and research.
That’s just HARD.
Here are some thoughts to keep in mind as you move forward with teaching this topic.

1.) Thanksgiving wasn’t something that started as a result of the settlers landing.

For generations before, indigenous people were having celebrations of thanks.  They were not inspired to do this by the landing of the Mayflower.  They still have traditions and celebrations that include ‘thanksgiving’ even today.

2.) Not all native people are alike.

Each tribe is unique. If you’re teaching about Native Americans who are part of the Thanksgiving story, long feathered headdresses and tepees are not part of the cultural dress of Wampanoag people. Make sure that if you’re creating things for your classroom to use that the images reflect the way that the Indians really looked.

3.) Honor the ethic realities of the time.

Don’t be afraid to confront the reality of the indigenous people.
Many Indians were killed or died from disease due to the arrival of the settlers.
Talk about the differences between the two cultures…and the problems that arose from those differences.  Have students think about the story from the perspective of the indigenous people and the settlers.  The stereotypes of Thanksgiving always benefit the oppressor rather than the oppressed.
Remember that our primary responsibility as teachers is to guide students to seeking out the answers.  This is a great time to support their discovery of the truth.

 

I used parts of these two books to teach my students about the Wampanoag people and the Seminoles, which are the Native Americans closest to where we live.  The students were really excited to learn about them.  Our new favorite word is ‘chickees’.  That’s the name of the homes that the earliest Seminoles built.  I was so excited to hear my students discussing why the homes had no walls!  Many recognized right away that it would be a great way to catch a cool breeze in the Florida heat!

It is never too late to teach yourself new things about the topics that you are teaching to your children.  Contemplating the ethnic realities of the Native Americans as I prepared to teach about them once again this year, reminded me of the beauty of their unique cultures and the great sacrifices of their people.  I’m humbled to be able to share their story.  My hope is that the way I teach their history would honor their story and help my young learners grow in their ability to empathize and self monitor for areas in which their impressions are based in stereotypes rather than truth.
Want to follow my classroom adventures more closely?  Follow me on Teachers Pay Teachers, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram.

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    1. gretta says

      I am grateful for the truth of your comment. I struggled with this “story” when my now adult children were young in the 80s. I gave them the truth at each age as they could absorb and comprehend. Bring compassionately truthful with children is essential to creating an intelligent society. Thank you so much.

      • Tamara says

        Yes, absolutely! 🙂 I have taught first grade for the last four years before this year. I wrote this post when I was teaching first. There are things that they can not know, but there are definitely things that they can, and where I can expose them to the integrity of the story to improve their educational experience, meet the standards, and prepare them for the challenges of the next grade, that is what I want to do. The key is knowing where the kids are and having compassion as you stated…in explaining difficult things. Thanks for your comment! 🙂

    2. Fawn says

      Thank you for putting this issue in the spotlight. For five years plus I haven’t been teaching the “myth” of Thanksgiving, and I am glad that your post has highlighted the important elements to introduce to our learners.

    3. Rachel says

      This is great! I actually taught my 5th grade students that technically the first “Thanksgiving” was held when Coronado crossed the Rio Grande. In his journal it mentions having a feast of thanksgiving. They were devastated that they had been lied to. When we got to the Pilgrims, I taught them all about how Squanto learned English and they were again horrified. I think that anyone teaching history should be doing so responsibly. Our students need to know the truth so they don’t repeat history or buy into the myths. Thanks for sharing!