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Children's Fiction Native Canadian

Mii maanda ezhi-gkendmaanh / This Is How I Know

Niibing, dgwaagig, bboong, mnookmig dbaadjigaade maanpii mzin’igning / A Book about the Seasons

by (author) Brittany Luby

illustrated by Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley

translated by Alvin Ted Corbiere & Alan Corbiere

Publisher
Groundwood Books Ltd
Initial publish date
Mar 2021
Category
Native Canadian, Seasons, General
Recommended Age
3 to 7
Recommended Grade
p to 2
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9781773063263
    Publish Date
    Mar 2021
    List Price
    $19.99
  • eBook

    ISBN
    9781773063270
    Publish Date
    Mar 2021
    List Price
    $16.95

Classroom Resources

Download Teacher’s Guide

Where to buy it

Description

An Anishinaabe child and her grandmother explore the natural wonders of each season in this lyrical, bilingual story-poem.

In this lyrical story-poem, written in Anishinaabemowin and English, a child and grandmother explore their surroundings, taking pleasure in the familiar sights that each new season brings.

We accompany them through warm summer days full of wildflowers, bees and blueberries, then fall, when bears feast before hibernation and forest mushrooms are ripe for harvest. Winter mornings begin in darkness as deer, mice and other animals search for food, while spring brings green shoots poking through melting snow and the chirping of peepers.

Brittany Luby and Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley have created a book inspired by childhood memories of time spent with Knowledge Keepers, observing and living in relationship with the natural world in the place they call home — the northern reaches of Anishinaabewaking, around the Great Lakes.

 

Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.4
Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.1
Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.5
Describe the overall structure of a story, including describing how the beginning introduces the story and the ending concludes the action.

About the authors

 

BRITTANY LUBY (Anishinaabe-kwe, atik totem) est l’une des nombreuses arrière-petites-filles du chef Kawitaskung, un chef Anishinaabe qui a signé le Traité de l’angle nord-ouest en 1873. D’un coup de crayon, Kawitaskung a accepté de partager des parties de ce qui représente aujourd’hui le Nord-Ouest de l’Ontario avec des colons et leurs descendants. Grâce à ses grands-pères exceptionnels, Brittany croit au pouvoir de l’encre et des mots, c’est pourquoi elle écrit en faveur de la justice sociale. Elle est aussi professeure d’histoire à l’Université de Guelph, spécialisée dans l’histoire de l’Amérique du Nord.

 

BRITTANY LUBY (Anishinaabe-kwe, atik totem) is the many-greats granddaughter of Chief Kawitaskung, an Anishinaabe leader who signed the North-West Angle Treaty of 1873. With a pen stroke, Kawitaskung agreed to share parts of what is now Northwestern Ontario with settlers and their descendants. Because of her many-greats grandfather, Brittany believes that ink is a powerful tool. The words we write lay the foundation for our future. Brittany writes for social justice. She is also a history professor at the University of Guelph, specializing in Indigenous history in North America.

 

Brittany Luby's profile page

MANGESHIG PAWIS-STECKLEY is an Anishinaabe illustrator and a member of Wasauksing First Nation. He illustrated the award-winning picture book Mii maanda ezhi-gkendmaanh / This Is How I Know and Mnoomin maan'gowing / The Gift of Mnoomin, both by Brittany Luby, and is the author and illustrator of Boozhoo! / Hello! He lives in the unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples (Vancouver) with his wife Maria and daughter Mino.

Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley's profile page

ALVIN TED CORBIERE and ALAN CORBIERE, father and son, are Anishinaabe from M'Chigeeng First Nation. Alvin's first language is Anishinaabemowin, aka Ojibwe, and Alan is learning it as a second language. They collaborate to produce curricular materials in Anishinaabemowin for learners of all ages. Alan Corbiere is an assistant professor of Indigenous history at York University in Toronto.

Alvin Ted Corbiere's profile page

ALVIN TED CORBIERE and ALAN CORBIERE, father and son, are Anishinaabe from M'Chigeeng First Nation. Alvin's first language is Anishinaabemowin, aka Ojibwe, and Alan is learning it as a second language. They collaborate to produce curricular materials in Anishinaabemowin for learners of all ages. Alan Corbiere is an assistant professor of Indigenous history at York University in Toronto.

Alan Corbiere's profile page

Awards

  • Winner, Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children’s Book Award
  • Commended, CCBC Choices
  • Winner, Indigenous Voices Award
  • Commended, Cooperative Children’s Book Center Book of the Week
  • Short-listed, Governor General’s Literary Awards for Young People’s Literature — Illustrated Books

Editorial Reviews

[D]istinct, clean lines and appealing use of colour.

Postmedia

Luby subtly shows that asking how a child knows a season has changed … creates a more personalized, meaningful learning experience. STARRED REVIEW

Quill & Quire

Brittany Luby’s (Anishinaabe) exceptional text is perfectly complemented by Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley’s (Ojibwe) gorgeous art.

Cooperative Children’s Book Center

A powerful story that models how to build love and respect for the land and environment.

Toronto Star

Inviting readers into a beloved locale, this book is recommended for all picture book collections, especially those seeking more titles highlighting Indigenous people, their languages, and their artwork. STARRED REVIEW

School Library Journal

Highly recommended for home, school and public libraries as a lovely story, but also as an introduction to Indigenous worldview and the Anishinaabemowin language.

Canadian Children’s Book News

[H]ighly recommended for being a simple and charming tool to teach and learn about various forms of Indigenous knowledge: language, artwork, and traditional ways of learning and knowing.

CM Review of Materials

[B]oth a celebration of the seasons and a close look at the natural world.

Globe & Mail

The story reveals the love they have for nature and for each other.

Calgary Herald

A warmhearted depiction of the seasons and intergenerational closeness.

Horn Book

[A] triumph of art, literal and graphic.

CanLit for Little Canadians

In this lyrical, bilingual story, a grandmother’s knowledge reveals wonders.

Kirkus Reviews

Aimed at younger readers but a pleasant read for anyone.

Windspeaker

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