Aboriginal Storytelling
Part 4: Supplemental Resources and Readings
PRINT
Kids Books – a Canadian publishing company site that offers several Aboriginal children’s books, organized by age group and focus. There are several sections that focus on Canadian Aboriginal books, including the Pacific Northwest, and British Columbia. http://www.kidsbooks.ca
Theytus Books – a First Nations owned and operated, leading North American publisher of indigenous voices for all ages. Available books range in reading level from early childhood to adult. The company is located in Penticton BC and Oroville, Washington. http://www.theytus.com/
Kegedonce Press – an Ontario based Aboriginal publishing company. “We are a First Nations – owned and operated publisher committed to the development, promotion and publication of Indigenous Peoples. Our books are beautifully crafted and involve Indigenous Peoples at all levels of production. High quality design, materials and production are the cornerstone of our aesthetic approach to publishing.” http://www.kegedonce.com/
Literature Review, “Storytelling by First Nations users in an online computer environment”, pages 1 to 38 at:
http://kihs.knet.ca/pn/documents/margaret-iterature-review.pdf
This literature review written by Margaret Fiddler explores the intricate process of Aboriginal storytelling from a historic and present-day perspective. The first two sections (the ones you will read) focus on storytelling in general and Aboriginal communication patterns. The third section (which you may find interesting to read as well) transposes Aboriginal storytelling into the online education environment.
ONLINE TEXT DOCUMENTS
Legends of the West Coast – This site offers a nicely presented collection of Aboriginal legends and stories from the Canadian West Coast, featuring Tlingit, Haida, Nuxalk, Squamish and other Coast Salish nation stories.
http://www.insquamish.net/legends/legends/west_coast/index.html
The Native American Bedtime Story Collection is presented in the Bedtime Story for the Busy Business-Parent section of the Home Office Mall website.Various stories from the Apache, Hopi, Iroquois, Navajo, and Lakota nations are presented.
http://the-office.com/bedtime-story/indians.htm
Kenneth Little Hawk, Native American Speaker, Storyteller, and Musician – Mr. Littlehawk is a Micmac/Mohawk storyteller who is an excellent example of the warm, animated, and wise Aboriginal Elder who teaches children through stories.
“He adapts the performance to the audience’s age level and interests. Whether it be with adults, students, or children, they all participate with great enthusiasm in activities such as learning Native American songs, dances, words and sign language.”
http://www.kennethlittlehawk.com/
Myths and Legends of the Sioux – This site presents 38 Sioux or Lakota stories, compiled by Marie McLaughlin in 1916 and presented by the University of Virginia Library’s Electronic Text Center.
The author wrote in the preface, “Having been born and reared in an Indian community, I at an early age acquired a thorough knowledge of the Sioux language, and having lived on Indian reservations for the past forty years in a position which brought me very near to the Indians, whose confidence I possessed, I have, therefore, had exceptional opportunities of learning the legends and folk-lore of the Sioux.”
http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/toc/modeng/public/MclMyth.html
Native American Lore Index Page – Another great collection of stories from various Aboriginal nations including the Blackfoot, Anishanabe, Maliseet, Algonquin, Inuit, Squamish, Mic Mac, Cheyenne, Iroquois, Navaho, Seminole, Cherokee, Hopi, Mayan, Pima, Seneca, Shasta, Apache, Yosemite, Yosemite, Sioux, Crow, and other nations complied by StoneE Productions.
http://www.ilhawaii.net/~stony/loreindx.html
Haida Legends – This collection of Aboriginal stories from British Columbia were collected and illustrated by Grade 4 students at Selkirk Elementary school in Whitehorse, Yukon. The site provides an excellent example of stories being captured and graphically portrayed through children’s eyes.
http://www.yesnet.yk.ca/schools/projects/haida_legends/
First Peoples – The Legends – This site offers over 1400 stories from a wide variety of nations. To view all of the legends, click on the link entitled Native Indian Legends: A-B. The menu will open to a submenu where you can select the other collections under C to Z.
http://www.firstpeople.us/FP-Html-Legends/Legends-AB.html
MULTIMEDIA
Dust Echoes is a multimedia site based in Australia that shares 12 dreamtime stories and Aboriginal insights into age-old traditions, at:
http://www.abc.net.au/dustechoes/dustEchoesFlash.htm
The stories were audio recorded from community members in Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory, then interpreted into animated movies, first screened on ABC TV, then integrated with Flash into a visually stunning website. To navigate through the stories, click on the small oval shapes that zigzag gently along the top of the page. The site also offers a glossary, desktop wallpaper downloads, and a study guide for teachers and parents.
AUDIO
Wisdom of the Elders – Presents audio selections of radio presentations of stories and teachings from a variety of nations, including the Salish people. The site includes three series of Aboriginal radio programs, one hour in length each that include oral histories, environmental science, storytelling, music, and other cultural arts at:
http://www.wisdomoftheelders.org
VIDEO
Native Storytelling – OnTrack Productions present this 3:46 minute Youtube video to introduce the topic of Aboriginal storytelling through the perspective of several storytellers, Perry Ground, Trudi Lamb Richmond, Kay Olan, Dave Fadden, and Joe, Marge, and Jim Bruchac.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEcGJFFYmqk
Two Hungry Bears (10:36 minutes). Storyteller Tamarack Song and artist Moses (Amik) Beaver combined their skills to produce Whispers of the Ancients with the University of Michigan Press, a book of Native American tales and legends, beautifully illustrated with original watercolours and accompanied by discussions of the origins and meanings of the stories. Here, Song discusses and reads a story aloud, “drumming” it in a Native American tradition, to a slideshow of the book’s artwork, in a video by the Press.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IX5SwFqZ9Vo
Teaching Storytelling in the Classroom – This 4:30-minute video introduces the value of telling stories for children. Teachers discuss the impact that storytelling has on class dynamics and student engagement and success. It also includes brief scenes of children actually telling a story and gives tips on how to support the process. One precaution: this video is developed from a non-Aboriginal perspective but it does give a great overview of the value of storytelling for children’s learning and literacy development.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrZc6eztoH4
IWOK Storytelling Workshop – Master Storyteller Ed Edmo, his daughter Se-ah-dom, and the Lewis & Clark Indigenous Ways of Knowing Program (IWOK) collaborated to offer a traditional storytelling workshop. This video introduces how colonization, residential schools and the reservation system interrupted storytelling. However, they also review how storytelling has survived through all of the ages.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPIqq1VqqoA
Elder Stories of Buffalo Hunting – The 8:38-minute video includes Jack Brink, the author of Imagining Head Smashed In: Aboriginal Buffalo Hunting on the Northern Plain and a Blackfoot Elder talking about the importance of storytelling for Aboriginal people.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bjY4xvMNYY
Haida Animation Flight of the Hummingbird – A beautifully illustrated and narrated short Haida discovery story, that expertly teaches how important it is for each of us to try our best and contribute to the community and the natural world.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vi5u7A9DRAc
The Loon’s Necklace – A short 10-minute film created in 1949 that tells the story of how the loon got a distinctive band around its neck, from a BC Aboriginal perspective (Interior nations). It is the story of Kelora, a once proud medicine man who is now neglected in his feeble old age and blindness. Having saved his tribe from many dangers, Kelora seeks out his totem, the Loon, and asks to have his sight restored. The Loon gives him back his sight and in return Kelora places his necklace of magic shells around the neck of the bird. West Coast First Nations ceremonial masks were used to illustrate the legend.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfUmSFVncPk
Salish Legend – The Great Flood – Stephen Sindoni shares a Native American story told by Salish elders about a Great Flood in British Columbia Canada on Mt. Cowichan. The Native oral story is quite similar to Noah’s tale.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJj_MyD-zJo
The Big Rock Story – A beautifully animated by Raven Tales – New Machine Productions, this story is told by Chris Kientz, illustrated by Chris Johnston and presented by the Museum at Campbell River, BC. “Found just south of the 50th parallel entering Campbell River, this 30 foot high rock could be a remnant of the Ice Age.”