Books:

1.  Aaseng, Nathan. (2002). Navajo Code Talkers. New York: Walker and Company. 96 pp.

Grade Range: 6-9 Genre: nonfiction

Nathan Aaseng's Navajo Code Talkers tells the heroic story of a special group who proved themselves to be among the bravest, most valuable, and most loyal American soldiers during World War II. To make this story even more incredible, these unlikely heroes were from a culture whose land was taken away and whose right to exist was threatened by the United States government just a generation prior to World War II. The Navajo's extraordinarily complex language proved to be the unbreakable code America needed to navigate its armies through the Pacific Island chains and jungles without Japan being able to intercept their messages. Four-hundred fifty Navajos were recruited to risk their lives to run the radio equipment in some of the most life threatening of circumstances.

Themes/Topics Friends and Enemies/Race, Ethnicity, and Culture/ Challenges and Triumphs/War and Peace/ The Individual vs. Society

2.  Code Talkers: A Novel about the Navajo Marines of World War Two by Joseph Bruchac
3.  Winds of Freedom: The Story of the Navajo Code Talkers of World War II By Margaret T. Bixler Darien, CT: Two Bytes Pub. Co., 1992 Paperback

4.  The Codebreakers Kahn, David New York: Macmillan, 1967 Hardcover

5.  Warriors: Navajo Code Talkers Kenji Kawano

Historical and contemporary photos from cover to coverincluding the first-hand testaments of the 75 surviving Navajo code talkers. 107pp, .Flagstaff, AZ: Northland Pub. Co., 1990

6.  The Navajo Code TalkersPaul, Doris AtkinsonPhiladelphia: Dorance, 1973 Paperback

Movies:

Windtalkers (2000) In the Pacific Theater during World War II, two Caucasian marines must monitor the activities of two Navajo marines responsible for developing and interpreting a secret code.

Glory (1989) Depicts the struggles of the first group of African American soldiers during the Civil War.

Dances with Wolves (1990) A Civil War lieutenant rejects his society and embraces the Sioux culture. This film also depicts the government's negative attitude toward Native Americans.

Midway (1976) Presents the Battle of Midway from the perspectives of both the American soldiers and the Japanese soldiers.

Other Lesson Ideas:

(1) "Cultural Differences" Navajo Code Talkers mentions many occasions were ethnic or cultural differences and assumptions led to miscommunications and distrust. Identify and describe any events from your life where differences or assumptions interfered with an objective or common goal. Were you able to overcome the differences? Why or why not?

(2) "Using Language to Construct Meaning" The book describes how the Navajo's use of language expresses a different way of looking at the world. For example instead of saying"I'm hungry," in Navajo you would say,"Hunger is hurting me." How is this a different way of looking at the world?

(3) "Subculture Relating to a Dominant Culture" Why were the young Navajo men so willing to fight for a country that fought their grandfathers and forced them to live on an unproductive reservation? The book does not address this question. Extra note: The Navajo do not have a word for patriotism.

Websites:

1.  Information about the Navajo Culture

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/mystery/american/navajoland/yestertoday.html

2.  In-depth information about Navajo Code Talkers and other WWII events

http://connections.smsd.org/veterans/wwii_sites.htm

3.  Honoring the Navajo Code Talkers Act

http://www.fas.org/irp/congress/2000_cr/s041200.html

4.  CIA Navajo Code Talker Information

https://www.cia.gov/news-information/featured-story-archive/2008-featured-story-archive/navajo-code-talkers/index.html