In my last blog, I wrote about the obstacles to maintaining an immersion bubble. In this blog, I ask how the immersion bubble, as a kind of “language policy”, can further the interests of an Indigenous language community. There are two related benefits to immersion bubbles, as I see it. One benefit is that they… Read more »

The idea of creating an “immersion bubble” is probably nothing new in language learning. Nor is it new within the field of language revitalization in the 20th and 21st centuries; creating immersion bubbles has been a goal of many revitalization movements at least since the kōhanga reo pre-school immersion initiatives in Aotearoa (New Zealand) in the… Read more »

Take notes like a pro, or like a 5th grader, so long as you do it! In 2015, during my first summer with WAYK, Evan and Susanna gave me a hunting book to use for tracking the chinuk wawa I was learning. I’ll be honest: I didn’t really like or use it. I found it… Read more »

Summer Language Intensives have a lot going on. All the time. Whether it’s lesson prep, an important conversation to be had, hunting language from elders over tea, or even just keeping the coffee station running, there’s always something that needs to be done. How does one keep everything going smoothly, especially with a larger team?… Read more »

I first met Evan and Susanna at a handful of WAYK workshops, which were each about two to five days long: three workshops at the Alaska Native Heritage Center in Anchorage and one at the Songhees Wellness Center in Victoria, BC. Because of my attendance at these workshops, I was lucky enough to find out… Read more »

Learning a language is exciting, but it can also be scary. I get nervous when I stumble over new sounds, hoping no one nearby noticed. My cheeks feel hot every time I ask someone to pronounce a word so that I can understand and copy the sounds correctly. Suddenly it feels as if my ability… Read more »

Read Myles’ first post about linguistic terminology here. Working in the field of linguistics over the last few years, I have noticed some divisions in terminology that I would like to highlight in this blog. As North American linguistics begins to turns away from its roots in “salvage linguistics” and more towards collaborative community-based research,… Read more »

Before I arrived at the St. Paul Unangam Tunuu Summer Language Intensive, I wondered what we would do on a typical day. I knew that there would be no teacher standing at the front of the room, no textbooks. How would we fill our time from nine to five? I discovered here a variety of… Read more »

Picture this: I grab a beautiful blue egg shell, a white feather, and two model birds, and join my group at a table in the back room for immersion time. Without any discussion or planning, we five young women blow up an imaginary immersion bubble to bid farewell to English – from here on out,… Read more »

Have you ever watched a master teacher at work? As a student teacher walking into a master teacher’s classroom for the first time, it is easy to have the misconception that the students are magically doing what they are supposed to be doing. The truth is that the teacher is using techniques to seamlessly facilitate… Read more »

2017 WAYK intern Mary Leighton explains Technique: Full Sentences, a simple trick for getting more language out of your immersion sessions.

My name is Timothy A. Zaochney and I’m from Atka, Alaska. I’ve been doing the Niiĝuĝim Tunuu language program for three years. I’m joining the team this summer in Anchorage as an APICDA intern. I got involved in the language program when Evan came down to Atka for the first time in 2013. I’m interested… Read more »

Hi, my name is Junior Golodoff. I’m from Atka, Alaska. This here is my third year with the Summer Language Intensive. I’m joining the team as an APICDA intern. What got me involved with the language is my friends because without them I probably wouldn’t be here. What got me interested in the language was that… Read more »

My first introduction with Unangam Tunuu came during the fall of 2015, when I heard of classes at the Aleutian Pribilof Island’s Association building here in Anchorage. The need for understanding the words and the sounds was something that I was excited about. The classes at that time worked with my schedule, so I continued… Read more »

Hello, my name is Bobbi Dushkin. I got involved with the language project 2 years ago when Crystal came up to me at a Christmas party and asked if I would like to learn the Aleut language. So I went to Atka in 2016 and that was my first summer in the language project. Summer… Read more »

Hi, my name is Kira, and I live in Wasilla, AK, but I’m from St. Paul Island. Language has always been a part of my life since I was young; I got into the WAYK program three years ago with my mom and my brother. Since I got started, I have learned to teach beginners… Read more »

Hello, my name is Nathaniel. I am from Atka, Alaska. For those who don’t know where Atka is located, Atka is a very remote island westward on the Aleutian chain. I’m 16 years old and I currently live in Anchorage, Alaska. This fall I will be starting my senior year of high school. I have… Read more »

My name is Alex, and I am from Anchorage, Alaska. I am currently pursuing my Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing at the University of Portland, in Portland, Oregon. I have now reached my sophomore year of the program and will begin going through clinicals next year. I work as a language intern through the Aleutian… Read more »

I finally made it to Alaska. My journey with WAYK is 8 years long this year. It started in 2010, searching for ways to survive the language classes I was taking in school; since then, I’ve worked at WAYK projects in Oregon, California, Vancouver, Beijing…but never Alaska. At long last, in 2018, I made it!… Read more »

When I walked up to the immigration counter in Seattle, the officer looked down at my Canadian passport and asked me if I was heading somewhere sunny and 75. I laughed and said pretty much the exact opposite, I’m going to Anchorage. He laughed and told me that he was certain I was the only… Read more »