We are excited to offer conference attendees the opportunity to participate in a field experience to connect with the culture, history, and landscape of Southeast Alaska. There is no extra cost to attend. You may participate in one field experience that will take place in the afternoon session of August 4th and rank up to three choices in your registration form.
Alaska State Museum Tour
Explore the stories carried in the collections of the Alaska State Museum in a guided interpretive tour. This workshop will focus on connecting educators to educational resources available through the network of museums throughout Alaska and at the State Museum in Juneau. You will meet the team behind the Children’s Exploration Center, a new section within the Alaska State Library, Archives, and Museums. This team aims to nurture imagination and empower young minds to explore the world around them by engaging with collections from the Alaska State Library, Archives, and Museums.
Natural and Cultural History Experience
Discovery Southeast
Nature education organization, Discovery Southeast, will lead an exploration-based learning experience with culturally responsive practices as a framework for learning about our landscape and its people.
This activity will involve walking on rugged, inclined terrain off-trail, so appropriate footwear, water, and suitable clothing for the weather is recommended.
Weaving One Square Inch of Ceremony
Lily Hope, Addison Mallott
Participants will learn two-color finger twining, as used in historic and contemporary Ravenstail weaving, by constructing a one-square-inch keychain with an historic pattern. Clip your finished art to your Coach bag or Fjällräven, and bring the ceremony into your every day. Be inspired to bring this project to your own students.
Sharing Knowledge Through Storytelling
Qualicum First Nation Cultural Program
This hands-on workshop invites educators to learn how ancestral knowledge was passed down through storytelling. In the workshop we will explore Indigenous legends featured in 3 of Sealaska Heritage books. Participants will design and build creative, play-based, and engaging storytelling tools such as prop boxes, felt stories, playmats and other interactive materials that bring these traditional stories to life for young learners. The session highlights ways to respectfully introduce indigenous narratives while supporting language, imagination, and cultural understanding in the classroom. Best suited for early childhood and elementary educators, the workshop offers practical resources that can be used to enrich literacy and storytelling activities.
Kootéeyaa Deiyí - Totem Pole Trail Interpretive Tour
Ricardo Worl
Ricardo Worl offers a cultural tour of the Kootéeyaa Deiyí (totem pole trail) lining Juneau’s waterfront. The 13 totem poles showcase the works of master artists from Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian tribes across Southeast Alaska and provide an in-depth look at the region’s cultural landscape. Learn about the artistry, history, and cultural significance of these stunning works of art.
The tour involves walking approximately 2 miles outdoors over uneven surfaces on Juneau’s boardwalk.
Canoe Trip with Carving & Dugout Demonstration
Goldbelt Heritage Foundation
Join Goldbelt Heritage Foundation for a canoe journey around Auke Bay recreation area and a paddle carving activity to learn about the significance of dugout canoes in Northwest Coast Indigenous cultures. Participants should come prepared for the elements for this experience involving moderate physical exertion.
Cedar Weaving: Mini Berry Basket Making
Xhaawk'w Tłáa Yolanda Fulmer, Raelhiya Fulmer
Join Yolanda Fulmer for an introduction to traditional cedar weaving. Spend three hours learning the foundations of cedar weaving as you create your own miniature berry basket. Participants will be guided through simple plaiting and twining techniques while connecting to the beauty, purpose, and cultural significance of cedar. This hands-on class offers a meaningful introduction to a timeless art form.
Printmaking
Abel Ryan
Join Abel Ryan, a Tsimshian artist originally from Metlakatla, Alaska, who has been a working artist for over 30 years and a teaching artist for over 20 years. You will learn hand printing using block printing techniques to help your students learn new ways to share ideas through imagery. Together, we will explore the use of Northwest Coast Form line Design to create a design to carve and print a small edition by hand using tools that can be put together in a classroom.
Engaging Students in Meaningful Monitoring of Plankton
Sooktushaa Patty Dick
The Tlingit have been Stewards of this land and sea since time immemorial! Herring eggs are zooplankton! As climate change rushed toward us, we need to teach our students critical thinking skills to enable them to anticipate the change and adapt their survival skills. Plugging our students into monitoring plankton helps them understand Native science of focusing on relationships of life in the marine ecosystem. Teachers in this session, learn to gather plankton, examine it, and record it and teach their students to do the same!
Hike and Plant Harvesting
Calling all adventure types! Get out on the land, possibly find some berries and appreciate the beautiful scenery Juneau has to offer. Learn about your surroundings, native plants as you venture. While you take in the landscape, hear about the lives that occupy the land and their cultural significance. Come prepared for a solid afternoon of hiking with roughly 1-2 miles of terrain to cover.