Root Word Method nêhiyawêwin within an Immersive Setting

3 credits · Undergraduate

This course offers an immersive, land-based exploration of nêhiyawêwin as a polysynthetic language. Students will learn the Root Word Method, focusing on how morphemes combine to form complete words and sentences. Learning will occur both in classroom and immersive settings, demonstrating how language is lived, spoken, and understood within community. Through participation in immersive activities such as tipi-raising, food preparation, and storytelling with Elders, students will encounter root words in their natural context. Each activity becomes an opportunity to analyze word structure, trace meaning, and build fluency through practice. The course emphasizes learning by doing, peer-to-peer teaching, and Elder-guided knowledge transfer, aligning with the nêhiyawêwin worldview of lifelong learning on the land.