National American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month November 2015 Miami-Dade County Public Schools

National American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month To recognize and honor the significant contributions the first Americans made to the establishment and growth of the United States, the nation celebrates National American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month each November. Students are encouraged to honor and celebrate the cultures and traditions of the over 5.2 million American Indian and Alaska Natives in over 560 recognized tribes.

National American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month   American Indians were the first people to live in the Americas. Scientists believe that they had been living in the Americas for at least 15,000 years before any Europeans arrived.   The early ancestors of American Indians likely crossed into North America across a bridge of ice covering the Bering Strait during the last Ice Age.   By 12,500 years ago, American Indians had spread throughout the Americas and were living from the Arctic in the north all the way to the southern tip of South America.

National American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month   As American Indians spread across North, Central and South America, they developed many different languages and rich cultures.   As American Indians met and interacted with European explorers and later with settlers in the Americas, they often faced great hardships. Violence, broken promises, and a lack of justice caused the American Indian way of life to suffer greatly.   Through generations of challenges, American Indians have strived to maintain their languages and cultural heritage. They are the proud First Americans.

National American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month November 2015 Miami-Dade County Public Schools