Alaskool -- Online resources about Alaska Native History, Education, Language, and Culture

Interactive Language Tools
By Katie Eberhart
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Interactive Language Tools
Alaska Native Language
Building Your Own Literacy Tools

Introduction

While there is continued Native language decline, we have found few practical web resources promoting Native-language literacy available to Alaskan communities. Fortunately, Katie Eberhart, Alaskool's principal designer has made it possible for you to create your own dictionary via a language interactive forum for different languages. You can build your own database of words and definitions in Cup'ik, Yup'ik or Tlingit using this tool. You can easily change or modify words once entered in the database.

One of the project student contributors, Karle Kendall (refer to Tlingit dictionary) has "tested" this forum and built two Tlingit dictionaries: an online Tlingit dictionary of nouns and database of verb phrases and words. These tools have been created to enhance language literacy and are available to any organization interested in producing language material for a joint project.

These resources have been created especially with the hopes that communities would use them as examples for building literacy tools found in their own geographic and cultural area to share with students and others who want to learn more about their languages. We encourage communities to become actively involved in the process of language preservation by using these freely available resources.

Building Your Own Literacy Tools
 The interactive tools are easy to use and the structure can easily be adaptable to most other languages. Listing of language material are current works-in-progress, and have been used mostly in-house.

We invite you to take a look at our compilation of language resources created under this project. This forum will continue to be made available for future public access. If you are interested in producing online language material, please contact us. We would be happy to discuss our experiences with you and answer question about our resources.

Online Interactive Language Tools on Alaskool
Iñupiaq Audio Phrases of basic expressions & helpful words
Online Inupiaq and Tlingit Noun & Verb Dictionaries
Comprehensive Cup'ik Glossary of soundfiles
Free Fonts for Inupiaq & Unangam Tunuu (Aleut)
Athabascan (Deg Xinag) UAA Fall 2000 Class Notes

Other Language Resource Links
Yup'ik Children's Bilingual Storybook
Inupiaq Reader
Indigenous Literature from Tsimshian Peoples
Talking Books from various cultures
Tlingit Language Tools for students and teachers

The following pages are Katie's synopsis of what has been learned in the process of designing and creating the interactive language tools available on Alaskool, and the technology required.