Finding Contemporary Voices of Native Americans Through Critical Reading in the Classroom

In this article, we share literature for children and young adults that represent contemporary lives of Native Americans as well as activities that foster critical reading of the books. The activities seek to help students 1) develop critical awareness of their own socially constructed knowledge about Native Americans; 2) deconstruct stereotypes and misconceptions about Native Americans and connect to them by understanding varied and complex voices and perspectives of Native Americans; and 3) relearn Native People as whole human beings, examining multiple perspectives and questioning social and political contexts where students (and Native Americans) are situated.