For families exploring difficult moments in history, this book sensitively unpacks the forced assimilation of Native American children into boarding schools, highlighting their resilience.
A parent might reach for this book when helping their child understand a difficult, often hidden, part of American history. This powerful non-fiction work uses archival photographs and firsthand accounts to explore the forced assimilation of Native American children in government-run boarding schools from the late 1800s through the mid-1900s. It directly addresses the painful emotional themes of loneliness, loss of cultural identity, and systemic injustice, while also highlighting the incredible resilience of the children who endured these experiences. Appropriate for older elementary and middle school readers, this book is an invaluable tool for starting conversations about cultural identity, fairness, and the real-world consequences of historical policies.
The book's entire subject is a system of forced assimilation rooted in racist beliefs.
ViolenceMild
Mentions of corporal punishment as a school practice, but not described in graphic detail.
Character DeathMild
It is mentioned that many children died at the schools from disease and poor conditions.
Sensitive Topics
The book's approach to sensitive topics is direct and historical. It deals with systemic racism, cultural erasure, and emotional abuse in a factual, unflinching manner. It mentions physical punishment and death from disease. The resolution is realistic, not neatly hopeful. It acknowledges the profound, lasting damage of this policy but also emphasizes the survival and resilience of Native peoples and cultures. The perspective is entirely secular, grounded in historical records.
Ideal Reader
The ideal reader is a 10 to 14 year old who is beginning to engage with complex social and historical issues. This child is ready to move beyond textbook summaries and can handle a direct look at injustice. It is particularly suited for a young person interested in social justice, American history, or who is exploring their own cultural identity and the challenges that come with it.
Parent Prep
Parents must preview this book. The content is emotionally challenging and the photographs are stark. Parents should be prepared to discuss concepts like assimilation, cultural genocide, and historical trauma. Key passages to review include descriptions of punishment and the emotional toll of family separation. This book requires conversation and contextualization; it should not be handed to a child to read alone without preparation. A parent seeks this book after their child comes home from school with questions about a simplified or glossed-over lesson on Native American history. The child might ask, "What really happened to the Indians?" or express a sense of unfairness, prompting the parent to find a resource that tells a more complete and honest story.
Age Experience
A younger reader (9-10) will likely connect with the personal stories of the children: the sadness of leaving home, the confusion of a new environment, the unfairness of the rules. An older reader (11-14) will be better able to grasp the systemic nature of the policy, understanding the political motivations behind the schools and the long-term societal impact. They will engage more deeply with the themes of institutional racism and cultural resistance.
What Makes It Special
Compared to fictional accounts or memoirs that focus on a single experience, this book's unique strength is its function as a concise, heavily illustrated, non-fiction overview of the entire boarding school system. It acts as a documentary in book form, using primary sources and a broad historical lens to make a complex and painful topic accessible to a middle-grade audience.
Read plot summary
This non-fiction book documents the history and impact of the United States government's Indian boarding school policy. Using a direct, reportorial style supplemented by numerous archival photographs and quotes from students, it covers the founding philosophy of leaders like Richard H. Pratt, the harsh daily realities for students (including having their hair cut, names changed, and being forbidden to speak their native languages), the curriculum designed for assimilation, and the lasting trauma these institutions inflicted on individuals, families, and entire cultures. It also touches on the students' acts of resistance and the eventual shift away from these policies.
This overview was generated by AI based on the book's content and reviews, and may not capture every nuance.
Discussion Prompts
1
The founder of the Carlisle school said his goal was to "kill the Indian in him, and save the man." What do you think he meant by this? Based on the book, what were some of the ways the schools tried to do this?
2
Look at the 'before' and 'after' photographs of Tom Torlino on page 33. What changes do you see? How do you think he felt about these changes? Why do you think the schools took these kinds of pictures?
3
The book describes how children secretly spoke their own languages or practiced their traditions. Why was it so important for them to hold on to these parts of their culture, even when it was risky?
4
After reading about what happened in these schools, what do you think is the difference between 'education' and 'assimilation'?
5
This book was published in 1999. Why is it important for people today to learn about the history of Indian boarding schools?
