16

Some of the animals at the gathering decided
to play the stick game.

First, they chose sides.

Chipmunk, Skunk, Porcupine and Beaver
sat on one side of the log.


10

Cottontail went hunting with the hunters.
He went fishing with the fishermen.

They killed many deer.

They caught many salmon.

All the animal people had a big feast.


20

Porcupine decided to teach Cottontail a lesson.
Whenever it was time for his side to hide the bone,
Porcupine would sing his thunder gambling song.
As Porcupine sang his song,
big streaks of lightning would strike from the sky.


(7 \)

How Cottontail
Lost His Fingers

s Z)



Booklets available in the Level I sequence are listed below. Numbers refer to the planned sequence of use as
outlined in the Teacher’s Manual. Materials developed by these tribes and others in the Northwest will
appear in the Levels II and III sequence.

1 Coyote and the Stars
The Confederated Tribes of the
Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon

2 How Wild Horses Were Captured
The Confederated Tribes of the
Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon

3 School
Blackfeet Tribe

4 Philene and Buttons
Northern Cheyenne Tribe

5 Insects Off to War
Northern Cheyenne Tribe

6 Why Bluejay Hops
Skokomish Tribe

7 Indian Festival

Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of the
Fort Hall Reservation

8 Helpers
Blackfeet Tribe

9 Far Out, A Rodeo Horse
Crow Tribal Historical and Cultural
Commission
10 Tales of Coyote and Other Legends
The Confederated Tribes of the
Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon

11 Birds and People
Crow Tribal Historical and Cultural
Commission

12 Chipmunk Meets Old Witch
The Confederated Tribes of the
Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon
13 My Name Is Pop
Crow Tribal Historical and Cultural
Commission

14 Santa Claus Comes to the Reservation
Crow Tribal Historical and Cultural
Commission

15 How Cottontail Lost His Fingers
The Confederated Tribes of the
Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon

16 Friends
Blackfeet Tribe

17 How Daylight Came to Be
Skokomish Tribe

18 A Little Boy’s Big Moment
Blackfeet Tribe

19 Skunk
Muckleshoot Tribe

20 Raven Helps the Indians
Skokomish Tribe

For order information and prices of the above booklets and the Teacher’s Manual, contact the publisher:

Educational Systems, Inc.
2360 Southwest 170th Street
Beaverton, Oregon 97005

(503) 649-7516


NA fe te.

Ai







em THE INDIAN READING SERIES:
‘% Stories and Legends of the Northwest


14

The stick game is a guessing game.
The players choose sides and form teams.
Each team takes a turn guessing

where the two sets of guessing bones are hidden.
Cottontail and his friends liked to play this game.
But Cottontail always cheated.


Cottontail learned his lesson.
From that day on he did what his grandfather told him.
But Cottontail had one more lesson to learn.




26

And so it was, Cottontail learned another lesson.
It is not fun to play with people who cheat.




When Cottontail was small, he was a very naughty boy.
He would not do as he was told.
One day as Cottontail was looking for clover,

he wandered away from the camp.






Ay



Ca ‘\)

HOW COTTONTAIL LOST HIS FINGERS

The Indian Reading Series

Level I Book 15


One day Cottontail’s grandmother, Old Raven,
took him to a gathering in a big village
beside the Columbia River.




28

That is why, to this day, the cottontail rabbit
has paws instead of fingers.




Cottontail’s grandfather, Old Coyote, had warned him
not to go out of the camp.

Cottontail, as usual, did not mind,
and his beautiful, long tail
was bit off by a monster!


18

Raccoon, Robin, Cottontail and Squirrel
sat on the other side of the log.

Every time Porcupine would guess,
Cottontail would cheat.

He would switch the bones when Porcupine
was not looking.


24

But Porcupine’s thunder song worked!

As Cottontail started to open his hands,
the lightning flashed out of the sky
and burned off his fingers!


Developed by the Pacific Northwest Indian Reading and Language Development Program
Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, 710 Southwest Second Avenue, Portland, Oregon 97204

Copyright © 1977 by the Northern Cheyenne Tribe
Allrights reserved.

The work upon which this publication is based was performed pursuant to Contract

No. 40-76-0048, with the Educational Equity Group/Multicultural/Bilingual Division
of the National Institute of Education. It does not, however, necessarily reflect the
views of that agency.

This publication is not printed at the expense of the Federal Government.
Published by Educational Systems, Inc., 2360 Southwest 170th Street, Beaverton, Oregon 97005
Printed and bound in the United States of America






a4

THE INDIAN READING SERIES:
Stories and Legends of the Northwest

How Cottontail Lost His Fingers
Level I Book 15

By members of the Warm Springs
Reservation Committee

Carol Allison, Illustrator
Nina Curtis, Consultant
William Frank, Illustrator
Rena Greene

Verbena Greene, Coordinator
Viola Kalama

Stella McKinley

Ada Sooksoit

Felix Wallulatum

Wilson Wewa

Illustrated by Carol Allison

Joseph Coburn, Director
Pacific Northwest Indian Program
Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory



22

The game went on.

The bones went to Cottontail’s side.

Porcupine, watching Cottontail very closely,
guessed correctly.

By switching the bones, Cottontail cheated again.


THE INDIAN READING SERIES: Stories and Legends of the
Northwest is a collection of authentic material cooperatively devel-
oped by Indian people from twelve reservations. Development ac-
tivities are guided by a Policy Board which represents the Indian
community of the Pacific Northwest. The Pacific Northwest Indian
Reading and Language Development Program Policy Board mem-
bers are:

¢ Warren Clements — Warm Springs
Chairman

¢ Morrie Jimenez — Klamath

¢ Joan Kennerly — Blackfeet

* Walter Moffett — Nez Perce

« Emmett Oliver — Quinault

* Bob Parsley — Chippewa

¢ Lloyd Smith — Warm Springs

¢ Max Snow

« Jeanne Thomas — Yakima


VERBENA GREENE

Verbena Greene, a member of the Confederated Tribes of
Warm Springs, Oregon, is the mother of eight children. She
attended Warm Springs Boarding School until the 11th
grade and later earned her G.E.D. She has served as Local
Coordinator for the Warm Springs Curriculum Develop-
ment Committee and was the Tribal Education Program
Liaison for more than seven years. She presently is serving
as Culture Resource Person for the Tribes, providing class-
room cultural instruction (legends, values, songs, etc.) on a
consultant basis to schools and community colleges. She
enjoys working with young people and is pleased that stu-
dents are now forming culture clubs and holding powwows
in the school environment.

CAROL ALLISON

Carol Allison has been closely associated with the Warm
Springs Tribes for 16 years. She works in several different
media, including water colors, cloth painting (shawls,
skirts), and cartooning. In addition to writing and illustrat-
ing children’s books, she has worked with Warm Springs
committees writing down tribal history and culture.






12

The animal people played many different games.
They played hunting games and ball games.
They played many running games.

But their favorite game of all was the stick game.