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Primary Source Sets

American Indian Boarding Schools

American Indian Boarding Schools

Throughout the nineteenth century, boarding schools were established to educate and assimilate American Indian children according to US cultural standards and values. These schools, predominantly run by Christian missionaries, were often funded by the federal government and worked to “civilize” Native American children, forcing many to abandon their names, cultures, and identities in the process. This collection of photos and documents shows what life was like for the many children enrolled in American Indian boarding schools.

Created By

Hillary Brady, Digital Public Library of America

Time Period

The Development of the Industrial United States (1870-1900)

Subjects

Chicago citation style: Hillary Brady. American Indian Boarding Schools. 2015. Retrieved from the Digital Public Library of America, https://production.dp.la/primary-source-sets/american-indian-boarding-schools. (Accessed June 2, 2023.)
APA citation style: Hillary Brady, (2015) American Indian Boarding Schools. Retrieved from the Digital Public Library of America, https://production.dp.la/primary-source-sets/american-indian-boarding-schools
MLA citation style: Hillary Brady. Retrieved from the Digital Public Library of America <https://production.dp.la/primary-source-sets/american-indian-boarding-schools>.

Note: These citations are programmatically generated and may be incomplete.

Discussion questions

Compare the “before-and-after-education” photos. What do these images say about the mission or goals of the Carlisle Indian Industrial School and the experience of its students?
Using the vocational school catalog from New Mexico, identify how the classes offered might affect Navajo artistic practice?
Examine the items in the set and describe some religious images or references you find. Why do you think Christianity was a crucial aspect of the boarding school movement?
The Word Carrier newspaper describes what it takes to be a “good Indian.” What do you think that meant to a Native American reader? What do you think that meant to a white teacher at a boarding school?

Classroom activities

The Word Carrier newspaper mentions that some Native Americans, after attending boarding school, chose to return to their traditional way of life, while others adhered to the roles they learned in school. Write a diary entry of a Native American student at boarding school considering his/her options. What are some reasons this young person might choose either of these options? What are some challenges, tensions, fears, etc. he or she might face leaving for school and returning home?

About This Guide

This teaching guide helps instructors use a specific primary source set, American Indian Boarding Schools, in the classroom. It offers discussion questions, classroom activities, and primary source analysis tools. It is intended to spark pedagogical creativity by giving a sample approach to the material. Please feel free to share, reuse, and adapt the resources in this guide for your teaching purposes.

Created By

Hillary Brady, Digital Public Library of America

Teacher Tools

Primary source analysis

For each source, ask students to indicate:

the author's point of view
the author's purpose
historical context
audience

For inquiry-based learning, ask students to:

explain how a source tells its story and/or makes its argument
explain the relationships between sources
compare and contrast sources in terms of point of view and method
support conclusions and interpretations with evidence
identify questions for further investigation

Additional tools

These sets were created and reviewed by teachers. Explore resources and ideas for Using DPLA's Primary Source Sets in your classroom.

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