Nuu~ciu Strong is a resource for fourth-grade educators to utilize as a support guide in teaching the history, culture, and present lives of the Ute people. This resource was developed in collaboration with the Southern Ute Indian Tribe, the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, the Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs, the Colorado Department of Education, History Colorado, the Denver Public Library, the Denver Art Museum, and educators statewide.
Nuu~ciu Strong is from the perspective of the Tribes. The generosity of the Tribal Nations involved are in the stories, illustrations, and traditions shared throughout the lessons. The lessons in Nuu~ciu Strong are divided into five different units:
- Ute History
- People, Places and Environment
- Cultural Heritage and Diversity
- Cultural and Social Structures
- Citizenship
Access the Nuu-Ciu Strong Fourth Grade Resource Guide Lessons about the Ute People of Colorado
In September 2021, the Kwiyagat Community Academy opened its doors to 28 smiling faces, ready to begin either their kindergarten or first-grade school year. Each student became a part of history, as the Kwiyagat Community Academy is Colorado’s first public charter school on Tribal land. “Kwiyagat” [KWEE-yah-gut] means bear, appropriately named considering the strength, courage, and actions the Ute Mountain Ute People have taken to preserve their language and culture in an ever-changing world.
These lessons were developed in collaboration with K-1 Colorado educators and members of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe. Each lesson is aligned to the most current Colorado Academic Standards to provide teachers with a description of what students need to know, understand, and be able to do. The most recent social studies standards (2022) now include knowledge of the Southern Ute Indian Tribe and the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, the two federally recognized Tribes with jurisdiction in Colorado. The lessons have one central theme, the Circle of Life, by which the Ute People live.