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A Pueblo-Based
Educational Curriculum

Aims to strengthen the identity of Native American children in New Mexico by providing comprehensive K-12 unit plans on the complex history of the Pueblo Nations of New Mexico.

Our Mission & Vision

Our History & Core Values

The Indigenous Wisdom Project (formerly known as “100 Years of State and Federal Policy: The Impact on Pueblo Nations”) has a rich history that dates back to 2011. The curriculum was completed in collaboration with educators, leaders, community organizers, and elders from the nineteen Pueblo Nations as a political project in response to the centennial of statehood for New Mexico. To engage Pueblo People from across the state in a dialogue to provide guidance on a historic project to honor all those that have gone before us and to provide those to follow with a set of documented life experiences to understand and appreciate these life lessons, primarily over the last 100 years, to guide future generations of Pueblo people. With continued demand by teachers for culturally-relevant, Pueblo-based curriculum across the state of New Mexico and the United States far beyond the culmination of New Mexico’s centennial commemorations, the rebranding of the curriculum emerged as “Indigenous Wisdom.”

Pueblo core values serve as the foundation of Pueblo cultures that have existed since time immemorial. Core values form the basis of a way of life that Pueblo people recognize as essential to building and maintaining the interconnectedness that holds a community together. In this curriculum, each lesson identifies a core value that exemplifies a key aspect of Pueblo life and culture. As well, each lesson is meant to challenge students’ thinking about their own values and draw them into a deeper awareness of how Pueblo history and cultural perspectives compare with their own experiences.

 

Six core values have been emphasize in this curriculum. A brief definition is provided to illustrate each core value.

 

Love

Refers to the positive emotions that a Pueblo Nation and its people feel for the land, the water, the air, the ecology, the ceremonies, the people, and beliefs. This Love is not romantic, but rather Love motivates and inspires one to engage in the daily life of the community including its ceremonial life from a place of deep affection, devotion and respect.

Respect

Refers to acts of reverence towards Pueblo culture, elders, ceremonial life, the earth and its natural resources, the air, and the universe. It is at the foundation of how one addresses and treats all forms of life. This includes acts of reverence to the ecology, songs, prayers, and all elements of Pueblo life and culture.

Compassion

The expression of empathy, concern, care, and kindness towards the universe, the ecology, humanity, and all that breathes and that are connected to the earth. This includes acts of providing for those who are in need of sustenance, shelter, prayers, songs, and advice.

Faith

Trust in one’s family, community, and humanity-at-large for support, loyalty, and unconditional love. Faith is believing in a sacred way of life.

Balance

Refers to the act of maintaining a healthy equilibrium of the ecosystem and humanity, recognizing the finite or limited quantities of earth’s resources. We take only what is actually needed without depleting the supply. It is connected to the concept of sharing, replenishing and reciprocity.

Service

The act of helping one’s family, local community, and community-at-large. Acts of service sustain families in times of need, through cultural cycles, and during ceremonial life. The foundation of service is based on love of family and community; providing help and resources at all times which may necessitate personal time away from family, work, and recreation. It can also mean the opportunity to be with family and the community working together.

More about our Values & Story
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Browse our Curriculum Library

The curriculum serves as a counter-narrative to the presentation of the history of New Mexico presented in our schools today. This resource will guide instruction that enhances self-esteem and identity, encourages guidance by ethical considerations, acknowledges concern for others, and incorporates an overall global perspective.

Access the full Library
Change and Transition: Pueblo Life and Education Experiences: Joseph H. Suina and Christine T. Lowery
Explore the understanding of identity and culture, and how an educational experience changes one’s perception of one’s self and surroundings.
  • Compassion
Read Post
Pueblo and Commercial Agriculture
Agriculture has historically played a major role in the development of cultures and communities across the world. Ccompare and contrast Pueblo Indian agriculture with contemporary commercial agriculture.
  • Balance
Read Post
We March… Heroes of Bataan
Students will explore the 1942 U.S. historical event, the Bataan Death March, in which many New Mexicans including Pueblo soldiers were taken as prisoners of war in the Philippines.
  • Compassion
Read Post
Wellness Through Running and Dancing
Focusing on Native running and dancing and how they are used for healing, prayer, and storytelling. At the core of the lessons is the importance of maintaining an active healthy lifestyle.
  • Balance
Read Post
Poveka: A Pueblo Legacy
In historical times, Pueblo pottery was used for utilitarian purposes such as carrying water and storing items, water and food. One such potter was Maria Poveka Martinez, a woman from San Ildefonso Pueblo who lived in the late 19th century and early 20th century.
  • Balance
Read Post
Transforming art with math
As with most cultures, art plays an integral role in definition. It is no different in Pueblo communities. Students will describe types of transformations that relate points by the motion of reflections, rotations and translations and methods for identifying and creating symmetric figures
  • Love
Read Post
Origins of Democracy – Observing Ancient Civilizations in Modern Practices
In many ways, Pueblo practices of cooperation to care for the land and the people, are common in the development of civilizations across the world. This unit explores the concurrent development of ancient practices in democracy as ancient Pueblo people and ancient Greeks established principles of governance for their people.
  • Balance
Read Post
Pueblo Connections to the Land
Understand the physical features of the natural landscape, combined with accumulated knowledge of the wildlife, weather patterns and water sources were key to survival in the challenging environment.
Read Post
Creating a Movement Through Resilience
Explore how the resilience of the Pueblo people protected and maintained their communities through communication, resilience, and working together.
  • Balance
Read Post
What is Wellness?
Reflect on the four elements of wellness; emotional, physical, intellectual, and community. Students will assess their own lives and identify community concerns. Upon identifying concerns, the students will be able to create proactive ways to help their community to be healthy and well.
  • Balance
Read Post

What Educators say about our Curriculum

More stories

This IWC session has impacted me as a special education teacher in being inclusive to all. I love the core values of IWC. I understand more about the different Pueblo Languages across New Mexico, and how children need to be immersed in their languages/ dialects and not lose them. Also, when I teach, I really need to proofread my state provided curriculum to make sure that there isn't any micro aggression hidden in. It's very sad that these are sometimes overlooked by non native people and yet I now understand how damaging they can be. Thank you for allowing us to share and learn.

I find that attending all of the IWC sessions are so important and have a great impact in my Art teaching at the Native American Community Academy because it has helped inform the way that I approach my teaching. What I gained is the importance of being more aware of microaggressions how they can be undetected so much so that even accepted textbooks are full of them. It was also important to be critical of the HQIM material and the communities they serve and that really using the IWC as an resource for my curriculum is essential. Another aspect about the language PD is how I really want to use disciplinary literacy too with native languages in an art context to help reinforce native languages in my classroom.

At my school we have a higher than average indigenous population that I would like to be able to serve better. This session made me realize that there is so much more we can be doing for our students and gave me hope that there are amazing advocates leading the way that want to teach us how to be better. Thank you.<br />

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We offer professional development services through in-person or online platforms that can be tailored to your school’s needs. Sessions can provide hands-on activities and dialogues among attendees to share thoughts.

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