Squanto and Pocahontas... 2 of the First American Heroes!

I went to a family reunion when I was little,

and one of my Great Uncles got to talking about how

we were related to Pocahontas....

being around 9 years old, I believed every word!

As I've grown older and wiser, I can now say:

I'll believe that one when I see it!

By the way, (at that same family reunion) they also talked

about how we were all "bastard" descendents
of King Henry VIII and some mistress
he had that he sent off to Ireland with their twin sons....
.......uh......
OK.

Dang girl!
Sounds like an episode of Jerry Springer!
Just sayin...

Can you say.....Malarkey!

Oh the joys of family gatherings and tall tales!

Henry VIII didn't leave
much of an  impression...
even at that young age,
I knew he was the one that
killed off his women.
Can you say:
"Selfish Psycho?"
So...who wants to be related to him?
Again, sounds like
a reality TV show plot.
But Pocahontas....
Heroic, Indian Princess...
Rescuer of John Smith???
Can I get a woot, woot
for Girl Power?!

She has always been near

and dear to my heart ever since then.
The True Story of Pocahontas

What 9 year old girl can resist fantasizing that

she's related to royalty!
Uh, MOST 9 year olds
think they ARE royalty!

Last year I made this PowerPoint
Pocahontas And Squanto: She, He, They...

to help my students compare and contrast
the historical figures of  Pocahontas and Squanto.

Let's Read About Squanto 

My PowerPoint also helped us practice
our sight words "he, she, & they".

My kids love to read this after we have read some

non-fiction literature about both of these amazing people. 

I pulled the images off of the web, 
and I'm not sure who they belong to....
but this is for educational purposes only, 
so I hope they don't mind!
The children LOVE seeing the sketches
and paintings of these two individuals

 My girls LOVE this slide:

 I had to adjust Pocahontas' top on the next picture
(my apologies to the artist),
but I just couldn't show a picture
to my 5 year olds that may get me on Bill O'Reilly!
"Now, why exactly Queen Chaos did you feel the need to.....?????"
Aw snap!
Hate when that happens.

My boys, of course, love seeing the pictures of Squanto!

 I always like to point out to my students how
Squanto was almost a slave.
Later on in the year, we also talk about
how St. Patrick actually was a slave.
I don't want  my students to think that slavery
relates only to African Americans
when we learn about African  American history
in January and February.
I know how impressionable
young minds can be.
(Can you say, "Pocahontas"?)

I don't want ANY of my 5 year olds
leaving my class feeling different
about themselves in a negative way.
This has really helped my students to
form stronger bonds with one another.
After all, in the history of the WORLD, 
slavery has seen no boundary
when it comes to skin color.
(Egyptians had slaves, Romans had slaves,
Africans had slaves, Native Americans had slaves, etc. etc. etc.)
 Slavery is bad....no matter what color you are!

My kids really thought it was funny
how John Smith and John Rolfe were both called "John".
A lot of them thought that Pocahontas married John Smith,
because of the first Disney movie.
Disney did make a second movie
(I own it for my own children)
that shows her with John Rolfe.
Most of my students have never seen the second one...
and they won't see it in my classroom.
I typically don't show movies in my class,
so my students were really interested in seeing this next picture.
(I seriously had to leave it up on the big screen
for a few minutes while they looked at it.)

 This is another of my classroom's favorites.
My Kindergarteners love seeing Pocahontas' son!

This PowerPoint can be used completely on its own,

so don't feel like you have to purchase what I made

for my own classroom to go with it.

I'm just sharing so that you know what I ended up doing,

but you can take the PowerPoint and make your own activity

for your classroom!
Love it!
What a simple but appropriate way
to go over he, she, and they
in November.
More importantly,
what a great lesson on
comparing these two
Native Americans.
Well done friend!

I made a double bubble map for my students
...of course you did...

to complete after the Power Point, and a graph

for them to discover which historical figure was

the class favorite! (It was close!)
Can't wait to do this
with my class!

My students really enjoyed this lesson...

and I hope that your students enjoy the PowerPoint!

I hope that everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving,
and the same to you!

and that we all remember to give thanks

for all of the little things in our lives that make it worth living!

AND.....PLEASE keep a watchful eye (and ear)
on any of your crazy, older relatives
who may want to spin some tales to your children!
After all, it can leave a lasting impression...
do you see that "Queen" in front of my name?