Indigenous Children’s Picture Books

17 Nov Indigenous Children’s Picture Books

A list of Recommended Indigenous Children’s Picture Books

Dr. Judith Scott and Donna Scott

November 2020

Since this is Native American Heritage Month, and the Thanksgiving holiday and Native American Heritage Day is approaching, we thought it would be useful to compile a list of Children’s Picture Books written by and about Indigenous communities for use in your classrooms. Please note that most of them would also lend themselves to discussions with students in older grades. As we are Tsalagi (Cherokee), several of the books are written by and about the Tsalagi (Cherokee) people.  We want to highlight two books in particular that you might find useful in the coming week:

Sorell, Traci (2018) We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga

Swamp, Chief Jake (1997) Giving thanks: A Native American Good Morning Message.

A list of Recommended Indigenous Children’s Picture Books

Bouchard, David (2003) The Elders are Watching.

Bouchard, David (2006) Nokum is my teacher.

Boughman, Arvis (2010). Chicora and the Little People: The Legend of Indian Corn, A Lumbee Tale

Bruchac, Joseph (2018) Chester Nez and the unbreakable code: A Navajo code talker’s story

Bruchac, Joseph (2003) How Chipmunk got his stripes

Bruchac, Joseph (1998) The first strawberries: A Cherokee story

Campbell, Nicola L. (2005). Shi-shi-etko

Coulson, Art. (2018). Unstoppable:  How Jim Thorpe and the Carlise Indian School Football team defeated Army.

Flett, Julie (2014). We all count: A book of Cree Numbers.

Joe, Donna (2001) Salmon Boy: A legend of the Sechelt people

Joose, Barbara (1991) Mama do you love me?

Hunter, Sara (2007) The unbreakable code

Kalluk, Celina (2016) Sweetest Lulu

Kinew, Wab (2018) Go show the world: A celebration of Indigenous Heroes

Maillard, Kevin Noble (2019) Fry Bread: A Native American family story

Robertson, David (2016) When we were alone.

Ross, Gayle (1995) How turtle’s back was cracked: A traditional Cherokee tale

Rumford, James (2008). Sequoyah: The Cherokee man who gave his people writing.

Smith, Cynthia Leitich (2021) Ancestor approved: Intertribal stories for kids.

Smith, Cynthia Leitich (2020) Indian Shoes

Smith, Cynthia Leitich (2001) Jingle Dancer

Sorell, Traci (2018) We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga

Sorell, Traci (2019). At the mountain’s base.

Swamp, Chief Jake (1997) Giving thanks: A Native American Good Morning Message.

Tudor, Aslan and Kelly. (2018) Young Water Protectors:  A story about Standing Rock

Waboose, Jan (2002) Skysisters