At Tinkergarten, we have been studying and learning about a practice called "land history acknowledgement" or "land acknowledgement" as a means to better learn about and genuinely respect the Native people who are the original stewards of the land on which we live, gather, explore and play.
This tradition of land acknowledgement dates back for centuries, and our approach is a curious, humble nod to this important practice. Each season, we goal ourselves to acknowledge and share about native people as we share in big moments like the first class of a new season or special events like our annual Lantern Walk.
September 24th is Public Lands Day, a day in which people all over the country celebrate our beautiful public lands and volunteer to do their part to help conserve these special spaces. In honor of Public Lands Day, we encourage our community to enjoy the beauty of their public outdoor spaces and to stay curious to past and present day stories of the land. So many of our wondrous public spaces have many layers of complex history, including the displacement of Indigenous people. Every one of us who is genuinely curious can learn to take steps to remember, honor and know the history of Native people in our area. Here are some steps to try.
This activity is featured in our September Activity Calendar. If you do not yet have your free copy of the calendar, visit tinkergarten.com/calendar.
The Guide
Step 1: Learn who is native to your local land:
A great place to start is by researching which native people or peoples are indigenous to the land where you live. You can try using an app like https://native-land.ca/ to enter your zip code and find out which Indigenous People live, or historically lived, in your area. You can let kids know that "We live on the ancestral home of" whichever people or peoples you discover.
Step 2: Learn more about these People(s):
If you don't know about those native to your area, do some online searches to find out more about the specific peoples. Learn about where the names of local rivers, valleys or other land features came from and what they mean.
As an adult, also make time to find out what happened to them and their relationship with the land, as so often forced relocation and harsh treatment displaced and diminished thriving communities and whole peoples.
Step 3: Focus on the present with kids.
For young children though, a great starting place is the present — using present tense and the thriving, vibrant cultures of today. Here’s an example of how you can start this conversation with children. “Native people today, and all of (our/their) family and ancestors before (us/them), have always lived here on the land where our country is built. The Tonkawa tribeis from the land where we live.”
You can also share with kids what you learn about the strengths, talents and unique ways of living of the people native to your area. Start by connecting to the festivals, celebrations and happenings within Native communities today by visiting sites like indiancountrytoday.com, a news site with current events from across various Native communities.
In many places, the names of important places or natural features like rivers, mountains or even whole regions come from native languages that were spoken in the region, and the meaning behind these names can help us learn more about the land, too. For example, we live in a valley cut by the Connecticut River—a name that we discovered comes from an Algonquian word meaning “land on the long tidal river.”
Step 4: Acknowledge.
Whether you are kicking of a holiday, celebration or other type of special gathering—or even as you are about to take a family hike, take time to acknowledge land history in a way that feels authentic to you.
Not sure where to start? You may say something like the following:
“Since today is a special moment, I'd love to take time to express our thanks for the land on which we live and play.
An important part of the land on which we each live is the history of that land and the history of who has cared for the land before us.”
“I live in {{city, state}}. And, I recently learned that the land here in {{city, state}} has been lived on and cared for by the {{name of People(s)}} for generations. I would like to say thank you to the {{name of peoples}} for taking such wonderful care of this land.”
—OR—
“I am a member of the {{name of People(s)}}, and my people have lived on {{this land/land around X}} for {{generations, hundreds of years}}. I would like to say thank you to the {{name of peoples}} for taking such wonderful care of this land.”
Watch our Tinkergarten Teammate, Erika McLemore introduce land acknowledgement in this recent IG reel.
Step 5: Learn More!
Read more about land history acknolwedgement on the Museum of the American Indian site.
Tinkergarten teammates, Erika McLemore and Cholena Smith-Boyd collaborated with us to select these beautiful picture books to inspire learning. Erika is both Muscogee Creek and a citizen of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma. Cholena is a member of the Shinnecock Indian Nation of Long Island, NY and the former Education Program Manager of the Shinnecock Nation Cultural Center and Museum. Learn more in our blog article, How to Make Native American History Part of Your Outdoor Adventures, full of great insight by our teammate, Erika McLemore.
Why is this activity great for kids?
It's never too early to help children develop a strong sense of their own culture as well as a genuine curiosity, awareness and respect for different cultures and people. Learning about how different people live or have lived also helps children take another person's perspective—a key component of empathy. Finally, when kids do confront either stereotypes about Native American People or learn the devastating history Native American People endured, they will have strong, positive and more fully formed understanding of these people and can better understand and commit to making sure that history is neither forgotten nor repeated.
People use critical thinking skills to gather information, evaluate it, screen out distractions and think for themselves. These skills help us identify which knowledge to trust and how to use new and old knowledge together to decide what to believe or do. People also use these skills to develop arguments, make decisions, identify flaws in reasoning and to solve problems.
Also referred to as “higher-level thinking,” critical thinking draws on many other skills that matter (e.g. focus/self control, communication, making connections, and even empathy). Kids won’t fully develop critical thinking until adolescence or even adulthood, but remarkably there is lots that you can do to help your kids build its foundation during preschool and early school ages.
How do little kids build a base for such a complicated set of skills? A key building block to critical thinking is the ability to develop theories about the world and to adjust your theories as new information becomes available. Kids can practice this as they attempt to solve mysteries or actively wonder about why things are as they are. As a family, the more you ask questions, make predictions and allow kids to take active part in discovering the answers to their questions, the stronger you make their foundation for critical thinking. As kids grow out of the 3-to 5-year-olds' freewheeling relationship with reality, you can also train them to question information and see the inconsistencies or flaws in certain ways of thinking.
Why does it matter?
In a world that is increasingly saturated with media messages and where information comes from a wide range of sources that differ in quality, critical thinking is more important than ever. Kids need this skill in order to be informed and empowered consumers, to either suggest or evaluate new solutions to complicated problems, to make decisions about our society and its governance, and to form the beliefs that guide their personal and professional lives.
Curiosity
Category:
Thinking Skills
What does it mean to develop Curiosity?
Curiosity means the ability and habit to apply a sense of wonder and a desire to learn more. Curious people try new things, ask questions, search for answers, relish new information, and make connections, all while actively experiencing and making sense of the world. To us, curiosity is a child’s ticket to engaging fully in learning and, ultimately, in life.
Why does it matter?
As a parent, this skill is, perhaps, the easiest to grasp and has the clearest connection to a young children’s learning. We all want my children to wonder, explore and drive their own learning and, better yet, to experience the world fully. Most teachers would agree that the curious children so often seem more attentive, involved and naturally get the most out of time in school. Even the research suggests that being curious is a driver of higher performance throughout one's life, as much if not more than IQ or test scores.
Empathy
Category:
Social Skills
What is Empathy?
Simply put, empathy is the ability to think and care about the feelings and needs of others. The good news is, the more we study, it appears that children are empathetic by nature. All we need to do is nurture it in them—that of course is now always easy. Even though young children are simply working on gaining control over their emotions and won’t learn to really think about their emotions and the cause and effect of their behavior on others until their school years, they can start to develop the foundation for empathy much earlier. Taking actions (and watching adults take actions) that benefit other people, caring for animals and their environment and even just wondering how other people or creatures are feeling helps build both positive habits and a strong base for the development of empathy.
Why does it matter?
Empathy is at the root of what psychologists call “pro-social” behavior—behavior that people must develop in order to develop a conscience, build close relationships, maintain friendships, and develop strong communities. Empathy also helps kids avoid bullying, one of the most worrisome social challenges young kids face. Being able to think and feel for others can keep kids from becoming either bully or victim and equip them to stand up for others who are bullied. Imagine if all kids had such tools!
Age: 3 to 8+
Time: Under 1 hour
Materials: various
