Subsistence: Our Way of Life

A film by Alberta Demantle of Akiak, AK.

This film explores the importance of subsistence in Western Alaska in the Yup’ik village of Akiak. The film explores the historic and modern-day practices of cutting fish and the subsistence way of life.

This film was created at See Stories’ Professional Development Retreat for Educators in Homer Alaska, in June 2024 as part of the Digital Storytelling as a Culturally Responsive Teaching Tool course.

Lesson Plans

Subsistence: Our Way of Life

In this lesson, students will understand that subsistence is an important cultural tradition, although times are changing families still subsist […]

Classroom Guide

Essential Questions

How does your family participate in subsistence?
What is a favorite subsistence activity for you?
What is your favorite subsistence food?
Do you prefer food gathered from the land or food from the store? And why

Standards

Alaska State Standards W.4.2-2. Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly W.4.4-. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development and organization are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. LS.4.1-Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience in an organized manner, using appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details to support main ideas or themes; speak clearly at an understandable pace
Alaska Cultural Standards C1- perform subsistence activities in ways that are appropriate to local cultural traditions; E5-Culturally Knowledgeable students demonstrate an awareness and appreciation of the relationships and processes of interaction of all elements in the world around them. 5) recognize how and why cultures change over time;

Workshop Info

These films were created at See Stories' Professional Development Retreat for Educators in Homer Alaska, in June 2024 as part of the Digital Storytelling as a Culturally Responsive Teaching Tool course.