Chipmunk and Owl Woman

 (time 9:53)

Big Ideas:

Educators are encouraged to focus on four dominant themes throughout their planning and study of the story Chipmunk and Owl Woman. The themes integral to the story are 1) storytelling, 2) cultural appropriation, 3) trust, and 4) gratitude. The following are suggestions and information that will assist educators in meeting their learning objectives for their students.

Backgrounder:

Teachers are encouraged to read the summaries and reflections found in the book Not Extinct: Keeping the Sinixt Way that reference and relate to this story. Several important topics and concepts are mentioned, such as:

• Ceremony – evolution, devolution, a fluid process;

• Contemporary efforts to conjure up ceremony – ultimate disrespect;

• Stories – keeping cultural perspective alive;

• Medicine Wheel;

• Burial practices;

• Huckleberry Ceremony – clues to carry forward;

• Vision Questing – youth, sumix, spirit power, song;

• Certain privileges or abundance can impact gratitude;

• Humility – knowing your place and how to exist; accountability;

• Impact of colonization and residential school – multi-generational trauma;

• Relevant artwork.

Language:
Sinixt: snίnaʔ (snee’nah) – Owl

snḱlip (sin klip) – Coyote

lim limpt (lim limpt) – thank you

q̓ʷəq̓ʷc̓wiyaʔ (kots-se-we-ah) – chipmunk

English: An introduction to some of the following words and phrases may be needed for younger students prior to, or after, listening to the story:

Cunning, in despair, tattler, persuaded, pitch, feast, charcoal, flattered, forked roasting sticks, perished.

Story Comprehension:

This story, along with the concepts referenced, tends to be slightly complex for the younger students. The following are suggested comprehension questions to help understand the story, the sequence of events, and the consequences that occur.

• Name the main and secondary characters in the story. – Chipmunk (q̓ʷəq̓ʷc̓wiyaʔ), Grandmother, Owl Woman (snίnaʔ), Coyote (snḱlip), Meadowlark, and small children.

• Chipmunk (q̓ʷəq̓ʷc̓wiyaʔ) and Owl Woman (snίnaʔ) met at Chipmunk’s favourite berry bush. Why was Owl Woman (snίnaʔ) carrying a basket of stolen children? Name some small animals that might be in Owl Woman’s basket. (Why were baskets very important in Sinixt daily life? – i.e. basket of soup, berry basket are mentioned in the story. Younger students could undertake a paper weaving project.)

• Snίnaʔ tried to trick Chipmunk. Why was it easier to believe that it was her Grandmother who wanted her to come home.

• Chipmunk decided not to climb down the branches of the berry bush. What did she do instead and what were the consequences of her decision? (jumped over Owl Woman – stripes down Chipmunk’s back were the end result)

• Explain why it was so difficult to hide Chipmunk. (under the bedcovers, in the basket, in the soup – Chipmunk has trouble keeping still.)

• Meadowlark becomes a significant character in this part of the story:

• How did Meadowlark help Grandmother hide Chipmunk? What payment did Meadowlark receive for helping?

• How did Meadowlark help Owl Woman (snίnaʔ) find Chipmunk and what payment did she receive this time?

• Do you think Meadowlark redeemed herself in the end? Explain. (Meadowlark helped bring Chipmunk back to life.)

• Owl Woman met up with snḱlip. What did snḱlip already know about snίnaʔ? (she was wicked). How did this information help Coyote with his plan?

• Owl Woman (snίnaʔ) was flattered by Coyote’s (snḱlip’s) attention. That made it easier for Coyote to trick Owl Woman in several ways. What were they?

• Coyote convinced Owl Woman that they would enjoy lunch together.

• Coyote talked Owl Woman into letting the small children free so they could help gather wood for the fire needed to cook their lunch.

• Coyote encouraged Owl Woman to paint herself with pitch and charcoal for the special feast.

• Owl Woman was told she was a good dancer so she danced until she was very tired and got too close to the fire.

• The story ends with a simple statement: Bad persons always must pay for the evil workings of their mind. How would you interpret this with respect to the story?

Storytelling – the Oral Tradition:

The stories told through the oral tradition were so much more than mere entertainment or hearsay. Stories were told and shared for a variety of reasons. Beside the entertainment factor, a story could save someone’s life, serve to ease a situation making it more tolerable, pass along details of a heroic or mighty deed, or relate how animals developed unique features. Hopefully students at some point begin making connections with the common threads running through these stories, i.e. family, loyalty, relationship, life skills, protocols, problem-solving, self-regulation, survival, and so on.

• While storytelling is a major feature related to all of the stories in the book, educators are reminded that storytelling was an important event within the following stories:

• Frog Mountain – storytelling to help pass the time while confined to the caves;

• Lemon Creek – when the people returned to the village, stories of adventures and experiences would be shared;

• In the Shadow of Extinction – past hunting stories helped pass along information through the family;

• Why Mosquitoes Bite People – stories help people to be more tolerant; and

• Critters Help the Helpless – storytelling to help pass the time while stranded in the mountains for the winter.

• Review stories previously studied that relate interesting details about animals. Examples:

• How the timber wolves came to be – Rattlesnake and Salmon;

• How the chipmunk got stripes down his back – Chipmunk and Owl Woman;

• How the bluebird got her small eyes – Coyote Juggles his Eyes;

• How whales were relegated to salt water – Whale, Fox, and Coyote;

• Why a salmon’s head has an arrow point – Rattlesnake and Salmon;

• Why the mosquito bites – Why Mosquitoes Bite People;

• How the water bugs got their colour – Coyote and Chickadee;

• How the coyote got pointy ears – How Coyote Made the Black Moss Food;

• How the turtle won a tail – How the Turtle Got His Tail;

• How small animals like the frog, packrat, and mouse can be helpful – Frog Mountain and Critters Help the Helpless.

Trust

Trust is often considered to be the most difficult virtue, but also a very important one.

• There are several instances in the story that pertain to trust. See how many ways trust surfaces in the story;

• Chipmunk – trusted Owl Woman (snίnaʔ) about her grandmother’s message;

• Coyote (snḱlip) – children trusted him to help them escape so they could see their families again;

• Owl Woman (snίnaʔ) – trusted Coyote (snḱlip), so she let the children go free to get firewood;

• Owl Woman (snίnaʔ) – did what Coyote (snḱlip) told her to, i.e. using pitch and charcoal on face, arms, etc.; danced;

• Grandmother – trusted Meadowlark to keep a secret.

• Have a discussion with students about their ideas of ‘trust’ and whether they have any set protocols to follow when they are away from their family members. Do they have a secret code word or security word that will signal they can trust someone?

• If one needs to ‘earn’ trust, what behaviours would help to build trustworthiness? Examples: keeping commitments; acting with integrity; being honest and transparent; demonstrating appreciation and gratitude; listening well; not taking people or relationships for granted; being helpful, etc.

• How does the world rely on trust/reliability? For example, we trust that:

• the sun will shine tomorrow.

• the sun always rises in the east and sets in the west.

• people follow the same rules and laws, i.e. when driving, riding a bike.

• Discussion/research topics for older students:

  • How can one trust that the sun will rise tomorrow? It has been proven in the past, but has not been proven in the future until the future becomes the past. This was a huge issue with Newton’s Laws of Motion. Introduce the concepts of predictability, logical possibility, logical deduction, laws of probability, and so on.

  • Residential School – Be sure to read the Settler’s Reflection in the book. Have older students make comparisons between the story and the residential school experience, i.e. children kidnapped; not allowed to see their families; must do what they’re told; work hard; suffer abuse; residential school experience left its mark on generations (multi-generational trauma) like the stripes on the chipmunk’s back.

Cultural Appropriation

In the story, Coyote (snḱlip) ‘uses’ a mock Sundance ceremony to flatter and trap Owl Woman (snίnaʔ).

• What is Coyote’s goal in using the Sundance idea? – to rescue the children

• Has Coyote (snḱlip) in fact committed an act of cultural appropriation in order to manipulate or lull another being? In other words, does the reason for doing it give it credence and approval? How might this be offensive to those who continue to practise the traditional sacred Sundance ceremony?

• What is cultural appropriation? Cultural appropriation is showing neither cultural appreciation nor respect for another culture. It is theft. It is taking an aspect of another culture and using it for one’s own personal interest, an inappropriate use of ideas, customs, or practices. In the book, cultural appropriation is described as demonstrating ultimate disrespect.

• What are some examples of cultural appropriation? Hallowe’en costumes, sports team mascots, team names, products with Native names, workshops run by non-natives offering a ‘Native’ experience for a price, and so on.

• A Sinixt Elder once said, “There is only a one letter difference between play and pray.” What might this mean in relation to cultural appropriation? Young students could do a fun exercise with words that have only a one letter difference.

Gratitude

In the book, mention is made of privilege and feeling gratitude for what you have. It is suggested that an overabundance of something can hold you back and serve to make you feel less grateful. For more on this topic, refer to the section on ‘Gratitude’ in the lesson plan for Critters Help the Helpless. The Sinixt word for thank you is lim limpt. Have a discussion regarding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in relation to gratitude.

Research Topics

The three animals featured in the story other than Coyote are Chipmunk, Owl, and Meadowlark. Students could choose one as a research project and add references from the story into their final report that pertain to the animal they have chosen. Ideas from the story:

Chipmunk (q̓ʷəq̓ʷc̓wiyaʔ)

• can’t keep still – ran around under the bedcover, rattled around in the basket, couldn’t swim in the soup;

• had no family except her grandmother;

• felt very close to his deaf grandmother with whom he lived;

• didn’t deal with fear very well, i.e. could only keep saying snίnaʔ snίnaʔ snίnaʔ when she got home after the confrontation with Owl Woman;

• was a good jumper; could jump over Owl Woman’s head;

• has soft fur;

• has marks down her back, clawed by Owl Woman, who ripped off strips of soft fur;

• future generations of chipmunks have carried those same marks;

• was Chipmunk gullible/trusting?

Owl (snίnaʔ)

• was cunning, a trickster, similar to Coyote; Is that why Coyote knew what would work best to trick/tempt/coax her?

• has sharp claws;

• had capacity for both virtue and treachery, just like human beings;

• what is the typical diet for an owl? This would tell you what kind of small animals were most likely in the basket for mealtimes.

Meadowlark

• research a meadowlark’s appearance to see what the necklace and bright yellow vest look like in reality;

• was unreliable;

• was a gossip and a tattler;

• couldn’t keep a secret;

• violated a trust; was not a good friend;

• didn’t seem to value Chipmunk’s life or her friendship with Chipmunk’s grandmother;

• accepted payments from both Chipmunk’s grandmother and Owl Woman; therefore, was a mercenary. The loyalty of a mercenary is always for sale.

Curricular Competency: (developed by the teacher creating the lesson plan in collaboration with the student(s) receiving the knowledge)

Communication:

Creative Thinking:

Critical Thinking:

Positive Personal & Cultural Identity:

Personal Awareness & Responsibility:

Social Responsibility: