Zoom Event Details – Mark your Calendar:
- Zoom sessions will take place each Monday in February: 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd.
- Sessions will be jointly hosted by Solomon Ratt and Ramona MacKenzie
- Login links will be added here as soon as they are available.
- Each sessions will begin at 7pm Central Standard Time.
(7pm in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, 6pm in Alberta) - Click here (or record or bookmark this link) to join the session (on the appropriate dates):
(Optional) Preparing to Listen:
Truthfully? No real preparation is needed. Sol’s habit of alternating between Cree and English as he goes along is a great help to those (like me) who are struggling learners.
Of course, the stories differ with each telling: that is part of the story teller’s art. But part of my personal delight in Sol’s storytelling comes from knowing the stories well enough (at least in English) that, even as I listen to the Cree, I can follow the story’s structure, listen for the words I know well, understand the meaning of the hand gestures and sound effects, and (most importantly) be ready to laugh along with the real Cree speakers at the inevitable punchlines.
To make it easier to prepare (for those who want to), I’ve pulled together links to some of the most familiar stories here, all from assorted past Cree Literacy posts.
2016 Storytelling Videos
https://creeliteracy.org/2016/03/09/solomon-ratt-february-2016-storytelling-videos/
The Rolling Head
https://creeliteracy.org/2016/03/09/solomon-ratt-rolling-head-th-dialect/
Wisahkecahk goes South
https://creeliteracy.org/2016/12/20/wisahkecahk-goes-south-solomon-ratt-th-dialect-y-dialect-with-audio/
Wisahkecahk and the Dancing Ducks
https://creeliteracy.org/2016/02/15/dancing-ducks-th-dialect/
Wisahkecahk Seeks a Bride (Billy Joe Laboucan)
https://creeliteracy.org/2017/09/23/billy-joe-laboucan-wisahkecahk-seeks-a-bride-y-dialect/
Wisahkecahk and the Little Startlers
https://creeliteracy.org/2016/02/15/little-startlers/
Wisahkecahk and the Wihtikow
https://creeliteracy.org/2017/01/11/wisahkicahk-and-the-wihtikow-th-dialect/
Wisahkecahk and the Chickadee
https://creeliteracy.org/2017/04/19/wisahkecahk-and-the-chickadee-solomon-ratt-th-dialect/
Wisahkecahk and the Moose
https://creeliteracy.org/2017/01/13/solomon-ratt-wisahkecahk-and-the-moose-y-dialect-video/
What do our stories tell us? (An overview of the significance of storytelling in Cree culture and education)
https://creeliteracy.org/2019/02/21/kikway-kiwihtamakonaw-acathohkiwina-what-do-our-stories-tell-us-solomon-ratt-th-dialect-audio/
