Research Guides: Indigenous Children's Literature: Critical Indigenous Literacy

Acknowledgements

X̱wi7x̱wa Library would like to thank our fellow Indigenous Critical Literacy in Children’s Books working group members: Emily Fornwald, Stephanie Marston, and Wendy Traas from the UBC Education Library for creating this project and allowing our branch to adapt their work for our branch's needs. We would also like to thank Sajni Lacey from the UBC Okanagan Library and Natalie Trapuzzano for carrying this project forward at the Okanagan campus, and also allowing our branch to adapt their contributions to our needs. Lastly we would like to thank Lindsey Bennett who worked with our branch for this work.

Place Based Learning

Here you will find resources on locating the territory on which you live/occupy, place based learning, and how geographic location impacts relevant and meaningful learning.

X̱wi7x̱wa is often asked how people can ensure their work is meaningfully grounded and specific to the places and territories where the learning/teaching is taking place. It is important for instructions to adapt their lessons to their "local situation" so it is relevant (see page 8 of Aboriginal Education Enhancements Branch for more).

Native-Land.ca
This is a starting place to learning about whose territory you are on. Begin by entering your location. From there you are linked to community specific sites; to learn about definitive boundaries, contact the nations in question.
Siwal Si'wes Library: Place-Based Learning
Find videos and resources for place based learning.
Place Based Learning Examples
Find real examples of place based learning from multiple subject areas and geographic locations for various grades.

Place-Based Learning and Knowing: Critical Pedagogies Grounded in Indigeneity by Jay T. Johnson
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Publication Date: 2012
This paper seeks to discuss how through reading the places in the world as 'political texts,' one may engage in reflection and praxis in order to understand, and where necessary, to change the world.
Utilising place-based learning through local contexts to develop agents of change in Early Childhood Education for Sustainability by Diane Boyd
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Publication Date: 2018
The aim of this research was to consider how young children could develop an education for sustainable mind-set, through place-based learning within a local context.

Licensing

Critical Indigenous Literacy for Children's Picture Books by X̱wi7x̱wa Library is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

Getting Started

Critical literacy requires us to go beyond what we read on the page and to consider the larger narrative in which a text is situated, asking questions about who created a text and why. Critical Indigenous literacy asks us to think about authorship and identity in relation to the stories and teachings we trust as readers. It also asks readers to think critically about Indigenous representations (or lack thereof) within a text.

This page is intended for researchers, teachers, parents, and guardians learning about critical Indigenous literacy for children's resources.

This video was created by student librarian Xaanja Free for their LIBR 520 class. For additional resources on Indian in the Cupboard check out Debbie Reese's blog here. Free has also created a handout to accompany the video:

Rethinking the Canon Handout
This document accompanies the video above. We thank Xaanja Free for sharing her amazing work with us and others interested in this topic!

Critical Indigenous Literacy

Here you will find information on critical Indigenous literacy and a tool for reviewing potential bias in a resource. You will also find a resource on how to locate the traditional territory that you live on and/or are occupying.

Critical Literacy and Selecting Indigenous Literature
UBC Education Library's blog post on what critical literacy is and how to find authentic Indigenous resources in their branch.
Evaluating Bias Instrument
A resource developed by the Government of Nova Scotia that provides educators a checklist which can be used to systematically review resources for potential bias.

Xwi7xwa Library: Locating Ourselves
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This document sets out to assist researchers in learning how to locate the traditional territory they are on.
Xwi7xwa Library: Critical Indigenous Literacy for Children’s Picture Books
This document has been adapted from the work from Education Library. Learn about Xwi7xwa Library kits.

What is positionality?
Definition and further reading from gender and sexuality dictionary.
Social Identity Wheel
The Social Identity Wheel worksheet is an activity that encourages students to identify social identities and reflect on the various ways those identities become visible or more keenly felt at different times, and how those identities impact the ways others perceive or treat them.

#OwnVoices

Here you will find information about the relationship between authorship/storyteller, identity, and how to find Indigenous authored resources. Corinne Duyvis created the hashtag #OwnVoices “to recommend kidlit about diverse characters written by authors from the same diverse group”.

We understand that #OwnVoices has become a less favourable term as it has created unsafe spaces for some authors & creators to discuss their relationship to their work. Our goal is to prioritize resources that are authored by people who belong to the communities and experiences they are writing about; within this context we utilize #OwnVoices because it is the most accurate, meaningful, and respectful representation of an author's relationship to a community.

Annotated Bibliography about #OwnVoices Dialogue
Designed by UBC Education Library, completed by Tiffany Tse. This article summarizes various conversations that exist about the merit and problems of the term.

#OwnVoices
FAQ about #ownvoices from author Corrine Duyvis.
Authentic First Peoples Resources for Use in K-9 Classrooms
The annotated listings provided in Authentic First Peoples Resources, K-Gr.9 identify currently available authentic First Peoples texts that students can work with to meet provincial standards related to literacy as well as a variety of specific subject areas.
Finding Indigenous Perspectives
Xwi7xwa Library's tab on finding Indigenous authors within our collection.
Focused Education Resources
Resources on the provided link are filtered by Indigenous topics, approved resources are marked with turtle icon.
Indigenous Publishers & Distributors
This research guide offers an overview of Indigenous publishers, distributors, and news media, and also introduces alternative modes of publishing, such as zines and podcasts. The guide also provides links to bookstores in the Vancouver area with strong Indigenous collections.
Learning First Peoples Classroom Resources
The First Nations Education Steering Committee and the First Nations Schools Association, in collaboration with teachers and partners, have developed the following Learning First Peoples series of teacher resources to support English Language Arts, Science Social Studies and Mathematics courses.
www.strongnations.com
Strong Nations is an online retailer and a publishing house that specializes in Indigenous literature and art. Indigenous authored/illustrated resources on this site are flagged with a cedar branch logo and "Indigenous Text" label.

The Truth About Stories: a Native Narrative by Thomas King
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Publication Date: 2003 & 2011
Stories assert tremendous control over our lives, informing who we are and how we treat one another as friends, family and citizens. With keen perception and wit, King illustrates that stories are the key to, and the only hope for, human understanding, He compels us to listen well.
Imaginary Indian by Daniel Francis
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Publication Date: 1992 & 2011
"The Imaginary Indian" is a fascinating, revealing history of the "Indian" image mythologized by popular Canadian culture since 1850, propagating stereotypes that exist to this day. This is not a book about Native people; it is the story of the images projected upon Native people and the desperate uses to which they are put.

Worldviews & Protocols

Indigenous Peoples Worldviews (IPW)
Siwal Si’wes Library's resource page for IPW. Find foundational resources in beginning to understand Indigenous worldviews, history, and culture as they relate to the classroom.
Territorial Acknowledgement & Inviting Guest Example
PDF about acknowledging Aboriginal territories and protocols for inviting an Elder or guest to your classroom; provided by Laura Tait, Aboriginal Education.

Valuing Native American Tribal Elders and Stories for Sustainability Study by Kristine Gritter, Richard Scheurerman, Cindy Strong, Carrie Jim Schuster and Tracy Williams
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Publication Date: 2016
This article outlines a framework the authors have used to infuse sustainability study into humanities teaching at the middle school level. Native American tribal elders can act as co-teachers in such classrooms, and the place-based stories that shaped their views of the environment can serve as important classroom texts to investigate sustainable philosophies.

Elder Protocol & Guidelines
The Council of Aboriginal Initiatives from the University of Alberta has worked with Elders to create this handbook.
Stepping Stones: Elder Protocol
The Alberta Teacher's Associated has created this document to answer: What is the protocol to follow when inviting an Elder, knowledge keeper or cultural advisor to participate in your meetings or events? Click and find out!
Deepening Knowledge: Resources for and about Aboriginal Education
Dr. Nicole Bell from the University of Toronto has created this document to explain who an Elder is, what their role is, how to approach an Elder for guidance, and more.
Guidelines for Working with First Nation, Métis and Inuit Elders and Knowledge Keepers
The purpose of this document is to provide guidelines for working with Elders and knowledge keepers. This information is from the Carleton University.

Critical Indigenous Literacy Kits

In the boxes above you will have learned about: the traditional territory you live on and why this is relevant to you, critical literacy, critical Indigenous literacy, how you can invite an Elder or guest to your classroom, and place-based learning; now it's time to bring this together!

Here you will find X̱wi7x̱wa's Critical Literacy Kits to support young learners and those teaching them. The kits include suggested resources, further reading for instructors, and guiding questions for your classroom. If you have an idea for a kit that is not covered below you can adapt this document to your classroom or home on any given topic. For a list of children's books at X̱wi7x̱wa click here .

Xwi7xwa Library kits:

Critical Indigenous Literacy at UBC Okanagan Library:

To learn about the Critical Literacy Kit work from Education Library, Okanagan Library, & X̱wi7x̱wa Library please see:

Emily Fornwald, Karleen Delaurier-Lyle, Sajni Lacey, Wendy Traas, Stephanie Marston & Rio Picollo (2021) Repurposing Problematic Books into Critical Literacy Kits, Collection Management, DOI: 10.1080/01462679.2021.1905576

Critical Literacy Kits at the Education Library

Picture of Critical Literacy Kit

The Education Library has five Critical Literacy Kits available, each with a unique theme. The themes and books in each kit can be explored through the activities suggested below.

Critical Literacy Kit: Cultural Appropriation

The books and learning materials in this Critical Literacy Kit can be used to support discussion about the appropriation of Indigenous cultures in children’s literature and education resources, as well as the impacts of cultural appropriation.