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Press Release
April 14, 2006
SHI TEACHES TLINGIT THROUGH INTERACTIVE FLASH MOVIES
Movies complement Native language clothing line
Sealaska Heritage Institute (SHI) has developed a series of interactive
movies that teach the Tlingit language using Flash Media software.
The movies, posted online, allow students to click on objects, hear and see the Tlingit words, then take a quiz. The movies are helpful to people of any age learning Tlingit but they are especially attractive to children, said Dr. Rosita Worl, president of SHI.
“Young students are attracted to computers and they are more engaged by interactive programs. We are accommodating that tendency by creating computer-based, interactive programs that incorporate vivid colors and imagery that appeal to youngsters,” said Worl, noting one of the institute’s priorities is to teach Native languages to children.
Teachers who heard about the movies by word of mouth already are using them to teach Tlingit to students in Juneau, Sitka and Hoonah.
“What great tools for kids to use and for us to have as teachers,” said Hans Chester, a Tlingit speaker and teacher at Glacier Valley Elementary School.
“My students love the Flash movies,” said Daphne Wright, a Hoonah school teacher. “Even the kindergarteners and first graders are using it. Some just like to click on the images, others like to repeat the words. Some of the little ones even like to take the quiz.”
The series so far includes:
- My House:
this movie allows students to navigate through an entire house to
learn the Tlingit words for household items. My House features an
outdoor scene, a foyer, living room, bedroom, closet, kitchen, pantry,
dining room and a porch. It also includes objects in a locked bentwood
box, for which students must find the key. This movie teaches 75
Tlingit words;
- Move the
Murrelet: this movie allows students to move a bird around a boat
to learn phrases such as “under the boat” and “above the boat”;
- Birds: this
movie teaches the Tlingit words for birds common to Southeast Alaska,
including eagles, ravens, and robins;
- Classroom:
this movie teaches the Tlingit words for objects commonly found in a
classroom, such as scissors, books and pencils;
- Ocean Animals:
this movie teaches the Tlingit words for marine animals, such as
seals, whales and sea lions;
- Critters:
this movie teaches the Tlingit words for nine creatures, such as
wolves, bears and frogs; and,
- Héen Táak: this movie teaches the Tlingit words for halibut, salmon species and other marine life.
SHI also has produced two t-shirts that incorporate the images from Critters and Héen Táak. People who buy the t-shirts during Celebration 2006 will get a CD-ROM of the movie that corresponds with their shirt.
The movies, which feature audio by fluent speaker John Marks, were produced in-house as a pilot project to measure the demand. SHI hopes to hear feedback from teachers and students and to eventually secure funding for the project on a larger scale.
The movies are posted on SHI’s language resources webpage at http://www.sealaskaheritage.org/programs/language_resources.htm
Sealaska Heritage Institute is a private, nonprofit founded in 1981 to administer cultural and educational programs for Sealaska Corp. The institute is governed by an all-Native Board of Trustees and guided by a Council of Traditional Scholars. Its mission is to perpetuate and enhance Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian cultures of Southeast Alaska.
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CONTACT: Rosita Worl, SHI President, 463-4844; Hans Chester, 463-1801 (w), 364-2860 (h); Daphne Wright, 945-3611 (w), 945-3306 (h)