American Indians in Children's Literature is pleased to share our annual year-end list of books we want you to know about. We'd like multiple copies of them to be in every classroom, school, and public library.

On October 27, 2023 CBC News published Who is the real Buffy Sainte-Marie? and The Fifth Estate did a segment, Investigating Buffy Sainte-Marie's claims to Indigenous ancestry. In Native networks, people were asking questions in the days leading to the broadcast.

the American Library Association announced its annual book awards. Below a list of the winners of the American Indian Library Association's Youth Literature Awards, given every two years (even-numbered years). Soon, all these books listed below will have the AIYLA seal on them! The photo below is from the AILA website and shows a selection of the books with their seals.

Uncover the meaning and historical origins of the popular idiom “the bee’s knees” with this video from Say What?! Travel back in time and discover how people used whimsical expressions like "the bee's knees" to describe excellence during The Roaring Twenties. With this video, students will gain insight into the intriguing world of idiomatic expressions, language evolution, and the stories behind the sayings we use every day!

This resource includes teaching tips, discussion questions, vocabulary, and a "Bee's Knees Hive" activity.

a thread of books by Native writers and illustrators slated for release in 2024.

Uncover the meaning and historical origins of the popular idiom “crocodile tears” with this video from Say What?! Explore the connection between crocodiles and fake crying, as well as how the idiom has been used throughout history, including in the works of the legendary playwright, William Shakespeare.

This resource includes teaching tips, discussion questions, handouts, vocabulary list, and a "Cry or Lie" activity.

Near the frontlines in Eastern Ukraine, a safe haven provides refuge for children who have been temporarily separated from their parents. A House Made of Splinters chronicles three displaced kids who, despite the perils surrounding them, find moments of joy and friendship, with the aid of dedicated social workers who work tirelessly to protect them from harm.

In this lesson, students will explore how people define a family and a home in the aftermath of war?

Learn about the risks involved for members of the French Resistance and the civilian communities in which they operated, in this excerpt from World on Fire | MASTERPIECE. Pretending to be a seamstress, a French Jewish woman in the Resistance finds a way to support the movement and fight against Nazi occupation in France.

In Headlines and High Water, players take on the role of a young journalist in the fictional town of Twin Lakes, where the annual Cherry Festival is thrown into chaos by a catastrophic flood. The player is tasked with interviewing locals and writing stories to keep the town informed—all while staying safe during the town’s worst flood of the century.

Throughout the game, players build trust with the townspeople and interview a cast of quirky characters—like Birdie, the aptly-named nature conservationist, and Fred Finkler, the gardener who’ll talk your ear off. In the end, the player’s reporting will determine if Twin Lakes is still around a year from now, or if future floods wash the town right off the map.

As of today there are 29 different books, many of them challenged or banned in more than one location. The 29 books are by 31 different Native authors and illustrators from 22 distinct Native Nations.

The Iliad is one of the foundational works of Western literature and thought. It’s an old story that continues to resonate in our time and has been given new life in a translation by distinguished classical scholar Emily Wilson. She spoke with Jeffrey Brown in Philadelphia for our arts and culture series, CANVAS.

Published in 2021 by Scholastic Press, it offers teachers a Native perspective--not just on Thanksgiving--but on history.

A timely depiction of a newsroom in crisis, While We Watched follows tormented journalist Ravish Kumar for two years as he battles a barrage of fake news, falling ratings and the resulting cutbacks. Are there viewers for fact-based analyses anymore? Will his show survive or become a swan song of reason – drowning out in sensationalism, misinformation, and ratings-driven editorial decisions?
In this lesson plan students will explore the relationship between an independent free press and a democracy.

Dive into the meaning and history of the idiom “it’s raining cats and dogs” with this video from Say What?! Explore possible origins featuring Vikings, sailors, poets, straw roofs, and old English.

Support materials include teaching tips, discussion questions, vocabulary, and an activity where students create a corresponding image and caption for one of the origin stories from the video.

Kim Rogers (enrolled member of the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes) told us that Just Like Grandma won the 2024 Charlotte Zolotow Award! Here's her screencap:

Explore the meaning of the idiom “let the cat out of the bag” through present day conversation examples alongside a look into the past, in this video from Say What?! With visuals and a story that takes students to “Ye Olde Marketplace,” students discover this idiom's possible origin. Huzzah!

This resource includes teaching tips, discussion questions, vocabulary, and a critical thinking activity where students practice comparing and contrasting and using descriptive language.

Trace the role of messenger birds throughout history and learn the meaning of the idiom “a little bird told me,” in this video from Say What?! From Ancient Egypt to World War I, this video combines conversational use of the idiom with written stories and legends to showcase its meaning.

This resource includes teaching tips, discussion questions, vocabulary, and a research and writing activity that prompts students to reimagine the “messenger bird.”

I recommend books in which Native kids see themselves. Native kids are at the center of my work. I imagine myself, back in a classroom, handing a child a book and saying "this author is from the same tribe you are from!" And then I imagine myself trying to figure out what to tell that child when I learn the person is not who I thought they were. I could ignore it but that wouldn't be ethical.

Examine how Nancy, who serves as a mother figure to Oliver, contradicts 19th-century England’s conventional thinking that the poor are morally corrupt, in this excerpt from Oliver Twist | MASTERPIECE. Dickens created a complex character in Nancy, who is a victim of circumstance. She cannot escape criminal ways and an abusive partner, yet her care and concern for Oliver reveal the complexities of her character.