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Did you know several of our titles have accompanying teacher guides? You can use these guides to bring Indigenous informed pedagogy into your classroom, ensure heavier topics are hitting the right mark with your students, and help plan your lessons. Some even include curriculum correlation charts! If you’re a little nervous about discussing Indigenous issues in your classroom, these resources are worth checking out.

Each one of our teacher guides makes an excellent companion to its respective book. Best of all, some guides are free to download in a printable format (PDF).

Read about some of our newest guides below!

Children's Books

Teacher Guide for Heart Berry Bling
by Jerica Fraser
for grades 1–8

Written by Rotinonhsón:ni (Kanien’kehá:ka) educator Jerica Fraser and reviewed by author Jenny Kay Dupuis, the Teacher Guide for Heart Berry Bling offers support for exploring themes of social justice, cultural continuity, and resilience through art in Heart Berry Bling.

Practise cultural appreciation, provide context when introducing Indigenous stories, and engage learners using the suggested activities, questions, and ideas for inquiry in this teacher guide. Activities are most appropriate for grades 1 to 8 and can be used in a range of subject areas including English language arts, visual art, social studies, and history.

Find it here.

Teacher Guide for Sk’ad’a Stories
by Katya Adamov Ferguson and Sara Florence Davidson
for all teachers

From the creators of Potlatch as Pedagogy: Learning Through Ceremony, the Sḵ'ad'a Stories series brings intergenerational learning to life. Haida children learn important life lessons from their Elders through real-life situations, cultural traditions, and experiences out on the land.

Written by Sḵ'ad'a Stories author Sara Florence Davidson and educator Katya Adamov Ferguson, the Teacher Guide for the Sḵ'ad'a Stories helps teachers engage their students through the lens of intergenerational learning and authentic experiences. This guide outlines and shows how to use the Sḵ'ad'a principles in your classroom and explains the significance of this series as part of Haida cultural resurgence and preservation.

This teacher guide is appropriate for all grade levels. Find it here.

Siha Tooskin Knows Education Guide 
by Charlene Bearhead
for grades 3–6

The Siha Tooskin Knows Education Guide supports learning about and discussing the teachings, practices, and values of Paul Wahasaypa’s Nakota family. The guide helps readers explore learning through storied experience, visual representations of teachings, values, and relationships.

Both the Siha Tooskin Knows series and the education guide aim to support readers in exploring the cultures of Siha Tooskin and relating his experiences, values, and practices to those of their own families and communities.

Order the guide on our website today. 

Graphic Novels

Teacher Guide for Sugar Falls
by Christine M’Lot
for grades 9–12

Sugar Falls is a story of strength, family, and culture that shares the awe-inspiring resilience of Elder Betty Ross. Taken away to a residential school, Betsy is forced to endure abuse and indignity, but her father’s words give her the strength and determination to survive.

Written by Anishinaabe educator Christine M'Lot, the Teacher Guide for Sugar Falls: A Residential School Story offers support for teachers discussing the history and legacy of residential schools in their classrooms. Infusing Indigenous pedagogical practice while using trauma-informed practices, lessons and activities maintain a respectful and dignified approach.

Sugar Falls: A Residential School Story includes sensitive topics (e.g., abuse, trauma); therefore, it is most appropriate for grades 9–12. The activities in this guide are suitable for courses such as English Language Arts, Social Studies, History, Global or Contemporary Issues, as well as Current Topics in First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Studies. They could be adapted for use at the university or college level.

Order your copy here.

Teacher Guide for A Girl Called Echo
by Reuben Boulette
for grades 6–8

The A Girl Called Echo series tells the story of Métis teenager Echo Desjardins, who is struggling to adjust to a new school and a new home. Readers follow Echo as she travels through time and experiences pivotal events from Métis history, gains new perspectives about where she came from, and imagines what the future might hold.

Written by Anishinaabe educator Reuben Boulette, the Teacher Guide for A Girl Called Echo will engage students’ understanding of Métis history and culture and encourage reflection on the importance of learning Indigenous histories.

Find it here.

This Place: 150 Years Retold Teacher Guide 
by Christine M’Lot
for grades 9–12
Updated to include a lesson for the CBC podcast

The groundbreaking graphic novel anthology, This Place: 150 Years Retold, explores the past 150 years through the eyes of Indigenous creators. Beautifully illustrated, these stories are an emotional and enlightening journey through Indigenous wonderworks, Canadian history, and time travel. 

This teacher guide is meant to be a no-prep resource for educators to use for stand-alone lessons or a complete unit plan. Many activities in this guide infuse Indigenous pedagogical practice, such as by having students work collaboratively or take on the role of expert and teacher. 

This graphic novel deals with sensitive topics such as racism, suicide, violence and abuse, the child welfare system, and even cannibalism. This guide aims to help students understand complexities and embrace worldviews that may be different from their own.

Order your copy of the guide now.

Surviving the City Teacher Guide

by Christine M’Lot
for grades 9–12

Tasha Spillet-Sumner’s graphic novels, Surviving the City, Vol. 1 and From the Roots Up, Vol. 2, tell a story of kinship, resilience, cultural resurgence, identity, and the anguish of a missing loved one. 

The Surviving the City Teacher Guide provides support for addressing sensitive topics in the classroom (such as racism, caregiver illness, grief, navigating identity and relationships, the child welfare system, residential schools, and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls and Two-Spirit People) when reading the Surviving the City series. 

In this teacher guide:

• Students will be learning about, exploring, researching, and presenting on essential themes that arise in the graphic novel.
• The lesson plans are formatted using the Activate, Acquire, Apply, and Assess (AAAA) format for ease-of-use.
• Activities throughout the lessons infuse Indigenous pedagogical practice.
• This teacher guide is best suited for use in grades 9–12 classrooms such as Grades 9–12 English, Grade 12 Global Issues, and Grade 12 Current Topics in First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Studies.

Purchase the guide on our website today.

For Older Readers

Teacher Guide for April Raintree and In Search of April Raintree
by Christine M’Lot with Dr. Karlee Fellner
for grades 9–12
COMING SOON!

In Search of April Raintree embodies author Beatrice Mosionier’s personal struggles for identity and finding a place in this world. First published in 1983, this Canadian classic presents a heart-rending and powerful account of the harsh realities that Indigenous and Métis peoples face in today’s society.

Written by Anishinaabe educator Christine M’Lot with psychologist Dr. Karlee Fellner, the guide supports teachers utilizing In Search of April Raintree and April Raintree, an adapted high school edition, in creating compelling learning experiences for their students, while maintaining a respectful and dignified approach to Indigenous topics.

Would you like to be notified that the guide is available? Subscribe to our e-Newsletter here.

Pre-order the Fortieth Anniversary Edition here.

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While these books and their accompanying guides make great tools, this is only a shortlist of what is available to you. You can find many more titles for teaching Indigenous histories and perspectives in our catalogue. Browse our full collection of resources on our For Teachers page. We’re always developing new educational materials—don’t forget to bookmark it to check back for new content! 

Purchase these educational guides and more on our website today!

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