{"id":5347,"date":"2023-03-02T13:38:50","date_gmt":"2023-03-02T21:38:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/?p=5347"},"modified":"2023-03-02T13:38:52","modified_gmt":"2023-03-02T21:38:52","slug":"babies-learn-hupa-language-through-immersion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/babies-learn-hupa-language-through-immersion\/","title":{"rendered":"Babies Learn Hupa Language Through Immersion"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hupa as a First Language<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><em>By Allie Hostler, Two Rivers Tribune<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While some children wake up on Saturday morning to watch cartoons and relax after a long<br>week of school, a handful of others gather for breakfast and a Hupa language immersion session<br>with their moms, dads and tiny peers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The most recent Hupa Language Immersion Nest session for babies age 0-2 concluded last<br>Saturday, December 17. Since the group first met more than nine weeks earlier, several of the<br>babies have grown from infants to toddlers, are now crawling, walking, talking and singing in the<br>Hupa language.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-3.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"904\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-3-1024x904.jpg\" alt=\"Two adults sit in a classroom next to a young child. The adults are holding open a book for the child.\" class=\"wp-image-5349\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-3-1024x904.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-3-300x265.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-3-768x678.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-3-600x530.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-3.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>During the two-hour immersion session, it was easy to see which songs caught the attention of<br>the babies, each of whom had their name worked into the chorus of a welcoming song sang in<br>the Hupa language. Toddlers ran in circles and sang along. Babies\u2019 eyes brightened with smiles<br>and their legs bounced back and forth as they danced in their moms\u2019, grandmas\u2019 and aunts\u2019 arms.<br>\u201cI can tell they feel really loved,\u201d Muriel Ammon, one of the class instructors, said. Ammon<br>explained how she grew up speaking some Hupa with her father, Danny Ammon, who also<br>teaches Hupa language at Hoopa High School. \u201cBut, it could have been more. I see these kids<br>and think about what we\u2019re doing for these kids, it\u2019s really special.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This group of babies is the first to have Hupa language taught as a first language in a very long<br>time\u2014several generations. Dr. Sara L. Chase Merrick, the project lead, said they hope to continue immersion activities with this same group of babies as well as add additional cohorts as<br>their program grows into an immersion pre-school. \u201cWe\u2019re building a line of first language<br>speakers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Chase-Merrick, in partnership with the Hoopa Tribal Education Association, was awarded a<br>$400,000 Spencer Foundation Research-Practice Partnerships grant. This grant project builds<br>from previous Hupa Language Immersion programming research-practice collaborations with<br>expert speaker Verdena Parker, mentor Hupa Language Teachers and the Hoopa Tribal After-<br>School Program. It is centered around the question: How can we expand current short-term<br>language and education resurgence efforts into an effective long-term program?<br>The project addresses these areas of expansion: 1) Curriculum 2) Learner-Teacher Training 3)<br>Planning and Outreach 4) Previous Research.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-2.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-2-520x1024.jpg\" alt=\"An adult stands in a forest speaking to two young children\" class=\"wp-image-5350\" width=\"386\" height=\"760\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-2-520x1024.jpg 520w, https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-2-152x300.jpg 152w, https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-2-600x1183.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-2.jpg 761w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 386px) 100vw, 386px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Mother and participant Starlene Bussell said she plans to stay involved with the Language Nest<br>with her son, as well as a new baby she is expecting in February. \u201cI love the books and other<br>materials they gave us, as well as the new songs to sing with our babies. The songs are what<br>really held my son\u2019s attention,\u201d she said. \u201cPlus they did a lot of interactive activities that kept my<br>son busy and involved. My son loved being able to play and learn with the other babies that were<br>there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Hupa Language Nest It is grounded in the specificity of the Na:tinixwe (people) and<br>Na:tinixw\u2019 (place), yet have implications for Indigenous contexts across the world, endangered<br>language communities, and education research-practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWith this grant we are hoping to create a user-friendly Hupa language curriculum archive, learn<br>from other Indigenous communities who have established language immersion programs, gain<br>community support and awareness of the work we are doing, and continue to build the fluency of our Hupa Language Learner-Teacher cohort. Our ultimate goal is to launch a pilot full-time four-<br>hour per day, four days per week Hupa Language Immersion Nest for pre-school aged children<br>in the fall of 2023. Our Nohk\u2019isdiyun Noho\u0142 (baby group) sessions are the beginning of our<br>recruitment of students and families for this program and gain more community support,\u201d Chase<br>Merrick said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The immersion school concept is well-underway and the hope is that the new education building<br>will provide a place where the school and its students can thrive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cOne of the things about the Nest that gave me the most joy is knowing that my son will have<br>partners to speak the language with as he grows,\u201d Bussell said. Fortunately my two older kids are<br>really interested in our language and we use it daily in our household. A huge plus is that they<br>have a grandpa, Gordon Bussell, who teaches them at the house as well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe kids really crave the language,\u201d Jenna Hailey, who also helps instruct the class, said. \u201cI\u2019m<br>learning as an adult and it\u2019s so awesome going through this with these babies\u2014to see the<br>language be a part of their life, as if they\u2019ve never known life without it. We\u2019re building our<br>fluency together.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Erika Tracy serves as the Language Nest\u2019s Communications Specialist. \u201cStarting a pre-school<br>has always been a goal. We\u2019re working with the After School Program to make that happen. We<br>have four teachers and we\u2019re going through all of our material and always creating more<br>material.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-4.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-4-989x1024.jpg\" alt=\"A hand holds up a book titled "Why Coyote Has the Worst Tail, Language Learner's Edition"\" class=\"wp-image-5351\" width=\"323\" height=\"334\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-4-989x1024.jpg 989w, https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-4-290x300.jpg 290w, https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-4-768x796.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-4-600x622.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/hupa-as-a-first-language-4.jpg 1448w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 323px) 100vw, 323px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Over the years, posters, songs, videos, books and other classroom materials have been developed<br>to make the language more accessible to the community and especially to young pre-school aged<br>children. Hupa language immersion projects began some years ago. Chase Merrick\u2019s first organized immersion project in Hoopa was in 2013, then in 2017, she received a Dreamstarter<br>grant that helped solidify summer immersion camps as a mainstay in the community.<br>\u201cMy overall dream remains the same,\u201d she told Dreamstarter in 2017 . \u201cMy initial Dreamstarter<br>project gave my community and I the opportunity to being building towards this dream. The<br>XontehL-taw Language Immersion Camp is now an annual event in the community.\u201d<br>\u201cIt\u2019s very important to lay a foundation for these kids to help revive the language and keep it<br>going,\u201d Lovie Sanchez said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThank you [teachers], this is truly our happy place,\u201d Viola Marshall, a teacher and participant<br>said. \u201cEveryone is truly inviting and I got to watch my granddaughter learn and grow in Hupa<br>language. It was the best experience I could ask for.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Marshall uses the Hupa language with her 11-month-old granddaughter Melody aka Milimil<br>(flute in Hupa) daily at home to reinforce what they\u2019ve learned in the Language Nest. \u201cShe<br>seems to understand. She lights up when hearing and speaking Hupa.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The core group of teachers and contributors includes: Sara Chase Merrick, Erika Tracy, Lovie<br>Sanchez, Jenna Hailey, Shelly Carpenter, Muriel Ammon, Danny Ammon, Ginger Rogers, Viola<br>Marshall and Verdena Parker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Follow the Hupa Language Nest Immersion on Facebook at <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/xontehLtawhupa\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/xontehLtawhupa<\/a> or on Instagram <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/hupalanguageimmersionnest\/\" target=\"_blank\">@hupalanguageimmersionnest<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hupa as a First Language By Allie Hostler, Two Rivers Tribune While some children wake up on Saturday morning to watch cartoons and relax after a longweek of school, a handful of others gather for breakfast and a Hupa language immersion sessionwith their moms, dads and tiny peers. The most recent Hupa Language Immersion Nest…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":5348,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[453],"tags":[],"yst_prominent_words":[133,156],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5347"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5347"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5347\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5352,"href":"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5347\/revisions\/5352"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5348"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5347"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5347"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5347"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hoopa-nsn.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=5347"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}