Circle of Life
Levelled Little Books for Grades K–6 build knowledge and understanding of Indigenous culture and traditions while developing literacy skills.
Key Features
Engaging, Authentic Content
Authentic stories and illustrations in every book from the Indigenous Education Coalition.
Worldviews and Principles
Stories connect thematically to teachings and principles from Indigenous Worldviews.
Robust Teacher Support
Access professional development videos and documents for teaching support.
Circle of Life Series
About the Indigenous Education Coalition
The Indigenous Education Coalition (IEC) is a nonprofit education organization in Southern Ontario comprised of 12 communities that include Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee, and Lenape Nations as well as two Friendship Centres. The IEC is committed to providing culturally relevant educational opportunities and support to communities and First Nations schools. To support this commitment and share First Nations stories in classrooms across Canada, the IEC has partnered with Nelson Education to bring you and your students the Circle of Life series.
What is an Indigenous Worldview?
About the Indigenous Education Coalition
Watch the videos to see Susie Jones, Elder from Walpole Island First Nation, speak about the Indigenous Worldview and learn how it is reflected in the Circle of Life books.
Download these helpful documents for incorporating the Indigenous Worldview into your classroom:
- Indigenous Worldviews and Principles Classroom Poster
- Indigenous Worldviews and Principles Explained
This document explains the various principles and teachings from the Indigenous Worldview
About the Books
Learn about Circle of Life Sets 1–3 and Sets 4–6 levelled books for guided and independent reading. This collection of narrative and nonfiction books offers unique content that engages your students, and deepens appreciation and understanding of Indigenous cultures and traditions.
Download Sample
Sets 1–3: Learning from an Elder
- Guided Reading Levels A–M
- 33 levelled books (11 books per set)
- Narrative titles
- Embedded teaching notes for before, during, and after reading
- Key features include:
- Authentic Illustrations that support text
- Level-specific text
Sets 4–6
- Guided Reading levels N–W
- 24 levelled books (8 books per set)
- Narrative and nonfiction titles
- Separate teacher’s Lesson Card for each book
- Key features include:
- Before and after student activities
- Chapter Book format and nonfiction text features
- Glossary with phonetic pronunciation
Teaching with Circle of Life
Robust Teacher Support
Each Circle of Life set of Little Books is supported by a Teacher eSupport DVD that includes:
- Interactive eBooks with read-along text-highlighting and embedded audio
- Illustrations Bank
- Blackline Masters
- Teacher’s Notes (for Sets 4–6 only)
- Professional Development videos
In Your Classroom
Circle of Life Cross-curricular Connections
- See how these books connect with science and social studies topics
View the series resources below