I really enjoyed reading this book. It is very educational for kids to learn about this very difficult time were there was forced assimilation for those of different cultures. ( )

This book is about two Native American children who are forced to go to residential school. The children will not be able to interact with each other at the school because they are related and one female, the other male. The story follows their time at this school. Before leaving the children want their father to build them a canoe. The father makes a tiny toy wooden canoe for them. When they return from school, they are reunited with their father and a life size canoe that he made for them.

Age: 3+
Source: Pierce County Library
Book was used for strategy instruction: Synthesizing for Adv Lang and Literacy Methods Class at Pierce College

Two siblings are taken away to a residential school and they will be away from their family for most of the year. They are not allowed to talk to each other while at school and have to use their English names. The sister tells her younger brother that he must remember and when the salmon return in the summer is when they will return home. When they get home the father has a surprise.

Age- 3+
Source- Pierce College Library

Shin-chi's Canoe by Nicola I. Campbell, illustrated by Kim La Fave and published by Groundwood Books is a beautiful sequel story to Shi-shi-etko.
This story follows the two siblings who are heading off to residential school, Shi-shi-etko for year two and Shin-chi for the first time. When the cattle truck arrives to which them away, Shi-shi-etko tells her brother of all the things he must remember and keep in his heart until he gets to return home again. He wants his father to build him his own canoe and as they get to school, Shi-shi-etko presents him with a miniature canoe made by their father. Their days are spent going to lessons, mass, cleaning, and work but once the salmon run, they will return to the bosom of their family to a joyful reunion and surprise.
Once again, Nicola Campbell weaves the tale of the hardships experienced by our First Nations people being forced to enter residential schools. She describes the pain and the perseverance of these people to remember their homes and themselves in the harshest of circumstances. I love Kim La Fave's bold illustrations! They make such an impactful statement in their uniformity and sameness in certain sections of the story.
This book is perfect to share with your children as early as preschool. The more we share these stories the more we will learn and grow to towards understanding and reconciliation. ( )

Summary:
This book opens up with an Author’s Note about how Native children in Canada and the U.S. were forced into schools to learn European ways and severe ties with their traditional cultures. The book tells the story of a brother and sister who are forced to leave their family and attend an Indian Residential School during the academic year. It is the young boy’s first year away at school, and his sister tries her best to help him. The book ends with the children returning to their home for the summer.

Personal Response:
Because of the tough subject matter, this book made me feel somber. I wasn’t sure which genre to label this book, but it includes facts about the running of the schools along with the fictional story of the brother and sister. I was intrigued from the start, and I found the language of the text to be simple to follow yet powerful.

Curriculum Connections:
It is important for all children to develop an understanding of different cultures and ways of life. Although this story is very against the “colonization” of the Native people and sheds a very negative light on Indian Residential Schools, it also provides facts about this time in our history. This book would be appropriate for middle elementary grades.