Presented in English and Upper Kobuk Inupiaq Eskimo, the booklet describes and illustrates the skills necessary for the construction and the hanging of the fishing nets used by Eskimos. Description of net making includes gathering the bark; willow twine making; kinds of implements used in net construction (twine, shuttle, gauge, forked stick,…

This publication was developed to increase students' understanding of basic economic concepts and the historical development of Alaska's economy. Comics depict major historical events as they occurred, but specific characters are fictionalized. Each of nine episodes is accompanied by several pages of explanatory text, which enlarges on the episode…

Four simple "how" stories from Alaskan legend are presented in large type and amply illustrated. In "How the Caribou Lost His Teeth", Siqpik's only son is eaten by the sharp-toothed caribou, so Siqpik feeds the animal sour berries to make his teeth fall out. "How the Loon Got His Spots" relates how the raven paints…

Taken from Alaskan oral tradition, the five "how" stories are written in simple English prose. "The Four Qayaqs" explains why the porcupine has no fat on his stomach and the beaver has none on his back. "Ptarmigan and the Sandhill Crane" tells how the two very different birds come to look alike. In "Why the Dall…

For many years flowers and leaves formed the bulk of Alaskan Athabascan beadwork designs. Early Athabascan beadwork consisted primarily of simple geometric patterns, but after the advent of the French in Canada, elaborate floral designs popular in 18th and 19th century France were translated into Woodland Indian beadwork. In traditional procedure…

Written in English and Upper Kobuk Inupiaq Eskimo, the booklet presents several examples of Eskimo "old beliefs" to be taught to younger people providing them with a greater understanding of the elders and what governs their actions and behavior. Topics of "old beliefs" pertain to babies, women, young girls and boys, bears,…

Semi-dormant volcanoes, bombing by the Japanese, fierce storms, isolation, high fuel costs, and bureaucratic harassment are some of the conditions peoples of the Aleutian village of Atka, Alaska, have had to contend with in years past. In this illustrated booklet, printed in both Western Aleut and English, Lydia and Moses Dirks, lifetime residents…

Villagers on the Aleutian island of Akutan must share their island with a volcano, an active, smoking one that soils clothes hanging on the clothesline and in winter blackens the snow. Winters are particularly hard on the island. Strong winds blow and as ice clogs the creek the town's electric supply is cut off in February and March. Akutan is a…

In the summer of 1978, seven teenagers and several staff members from the Fairbanks Native Association-Johnson O'Malley program set out to record some of Alaska's past by interviewing a number of older Alaska Natives and writing their biographical sketches. Some of the students spent a week along the Yukon River taping and photographing people;…

Printed in both Inupiat and English, this 32 page booklet recounts stories of native life in Buckland, Alaska. It is printed in large type and simply written; illustrations accompany each short narrative. Several stories are told by Evans Thomas who remembers his boyhood days as he fired a shotgun for the first time, shot his first seal, broke a…

Intended for use in a bilingual education program, this document is printed in both Inupiat and English. It is a collection of 32 very short tales about life in Deering, Alaska, and was developed and prepared by Marie Karmun, an Inupiat language teacher. It is printed in large type, written in simple words, and illustrated. Most of the stories are…

A cross section of Athabascan life as related by eight inhabitants of Lime Village, Alaska, is given in this document. The short narratives are printed in English and in Dena'ina. Illustrations accompany the text. The stories tell of making eagle feather robes, birchbark or mooseskin boats, a raincoat from black bear intestines, and boots from…

Yup'ik Eskimo children from the fifth and sixth grades of St. Mary's Public School, St. Mary's, Alaska, wrote this collection of 28 short stories. The 55 page book is printed in both Yup'ik and English. It features large type and illustrations drawn by the children and is intended for use in a bilingual education program. Some of the stories deal…

Transmitted orally for generations until the Eskimo language became a written one, the eleven St. Lawrence Island legends compiled in this volume for high school students tell of feats that were accomplished through supernatural power. Meant for both entertainment and instruction, the tales convey wise council indirectly through the conversations…

This illustrated reader of traditional Gwich'in stories is intended for use in a bilingual education setting and is geared toward students who are competent speakers of Gwich'in Athabaskan with knowledge of the writing system. It consists of three traditional stories. (AMH)