Native American Boarding Schools and Forced Assimilation

What was the primary goal of the U.S. government in establishing Native American boarding schools like the Carlisle School?

• To assimilate Native Americans into European American culture

• To preserve Native American traditions

• To provide higher education to Native Americans

• To promote Native American languages

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CCSS.RI.5.8

How did the U.S. government justify the forced relocation of Native American tribes onto reservations?

• To assimilate Native Americans into European American culture

• To protect Native American lands

• To promote Native American self-governance

• To establish trade with Native Americans

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CCSS.RI.5.8

CCSS.W.5.9A

What was the impact of the Carlisle School on Native American students like Plenty Horses?

• They felt isolated and like outsiders upon returning to their communities

• They became leaders in their communities

• They fully assimilated into European American society

• They maintained strong connections to their Native cultures

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CCSS.RI.5.8

CCSS.W.5.9A

What was the role of Richard Henry Pratt in the establishment of the Carlisle School?

• He was the founder of the Carlisle School

• He opposed the establishment of the school

• He was a Native American leader advocating for the school

• He was a student at the school

What was the educational approach used at the Carlisle School?

• Modeled after military life with strict discipline

• Focused on preserving Native American traditions

• Emphasized Native American languages and cultures

• Based on a traditional European curriculum

What was one of the long-term effects of the boarding school system on Native American communities?

• Generational trauma and loss of cultural identity

• Increased economic prosperity

• Strengthened cultural ties

• Improved health outcomes

What is the significance of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission established by the Canadian government in 2007?

• To allow First Nations people to share their stories of harm from boarding schools

• To promote economic development in First Nations communities

• To establish new boarding schools

• To celebrate the history of boarding schools

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CCSS.RI.5.3

Why did the U.S. government say they wanted to move Native Americans tribes onto reservations?

• to give them larger and better areas of land to live on

• to make sure they were protected from other settlers

• to assimilate them into European American culture

• to be able to trade for goods with them more easily

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CCSS.RI.5.3

CCSS.RI.5.8

Richard Henry Pratt opened the Carlisle Industrial School. What caused Pratt to do this?

• Pratt thought that white Americans had a lot to learn from Native Americans and the school would allow them to learn and grow together.

• Pratt thought that younger Native Americans could be taught the European American way of life, unlike older Native Americans.

• Pratt wanted to find a way for different Native American tribes to learn from each other and grow stronger so the U.S. government could not take their lands.

• Pratt was a teacher and wanted to make sure that all children living in or near the U.S. had a good education so he opened a school where he could teach.

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CCSS.RI.5.1

CCSS.RI.5.2

Read the following sentences from the text.

“Native American children were shipped hundreds, sometimes thousands, of miles from across the U.S. to the Carlisle school. They were ripped away from their natural environments, their communities, their families, and their languages, to attend the school. School life at Carlisle was modeled after military life. All forms of Native American culture were banned for students. Boys wore army-style uniforms, and girls wore dresses. Children wore shoes, not moccasins. Against tradition, their hair was cut short. Students marched to and from classes and dining halls. As far as language was concerned, the rule was English only. Reading, writing, and mathematics in the morning were followed by metalworking and carpentry (for the boys) or cooking and laundry (for the girls) in the afternoon. Music was also taught. Native American children were not allowed to practice their traditional religions. They also were not allowed to go home for vacations. Instead, they worked in homes of nearby white Americans.”

What conclusion can you draw from this evidence?

• Moccasins were too expensive to buy so children wore other shoes that the schools could afford instead.

• Children who attended Carlisle learned more than one language, including the Native languages their families spoke.

• Many parts of a child’s life were controlled at Carlisle in order to distance students from their Native cultures.

• Parents were allowed to visit their children at Carlisle once a month, on birthdays, and on every major holiday.

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CCSS.RI.5.1

CCSS.RI.5.2

CCSS.RI.5.8

CCSS.W.5.9A