Sitting Bull: Lakota Warrior and Defender of His People

(Image taken from Google.com)

Sitting Bull: Lakota Warrior and Defender of His People 

Nelson, S.D. (2015). Sitting Bull: Lakota Warrior and Defender of His People. New York: Abrams Books for Young Readers.

Awards: 2016 Winner Notable Books for a Global Society, 2016 Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People 3–5, and 2016 CCBC Choices–Historical People, Places, and Events

Suggested Delivery: Read Aloud or Individual or Small Group

Lexile Reading Level: 860

Age Range: 8-12 years

Grade Level: 3-6

About the Book: Sitting Bull, who lived in the 1800’s, was one of the greatest Lakota warriors and chiefs. From his childhood to adulthood he was a leader who eventually protected his people from the U.S. Army. He was a critical player in the war against the invasive white men and was always leading the combat. He was the last Lakota to surrender their people to the U.S. government to live by their rules. This book is uniquely told in Sitting Bull’s perspective through his narrative and quotes from him and others.

Keywords: Multicultural, History, War, Government, Bravery

Electronic Resources:

http://www.sdnelson.net/

The author’s website can be visited to help students gain a better understanding of who the author is. S.D. Nelson also has a gallery of artwork on his website related to Native Americans that can be viewed as an extension of the book.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnPnWg-B2QY

This is a video clip from a documentary on Sitting Bull. It is of Sitting Bull’s grandson telling their family’s story.

Vocabulary:

-Tribe: a local division of an aboriginal people

-Perish: to die or be destroyed through violence

-Warrior: a person engaged in warfare; soldier

-Coup: a highly successful, unexpected stroke, act, or move; a clever action or accomplishment

-Treaty: a formal agreement between two or more groups in reference to peace, alliance, or commerce

-Trespasser: a wrongful entry upon the lands of another; an unlawful act causing injury to the person, property, or rights of another, committed with force or violence

Reading Strategies:

-Before reading the text, students can brainstorm a list of words that are associated with a word the teacher provides, such as: Native America, Tribe, or Warrior. This will help activate background knowledge and spark curiosity towards the text.

-During the reading of the text, students can complete a Semantic Feature Analysis. This strategy uses a grid with vocabulary words and concepts to help students explore how sets of things are related to one another. This strategy enhances comprehension and vocabulary skills, as well as helps students make connections.

-After reading the text, the students can look at the text features. There is an extensive author’s note and timeline, historical photographs, a map, a bibliography, endnotes, and an index. This could segue to a mini lesson on text features and how they enhance the text.

Writing Activity:

Students can pretend to be a Lakota tribal member. They can write a letter to the white men asking them to stay away. This letter should be written with the person of Sitting Bull in mind.