Books in schchechmala children's series series

Zoe and her father are delighted to come across a fawn in the forest. But the fawn is alone―where is its mother? Join Zoe on her quest for the deer, as she encounters animals and learns their Okanagan (syilx) names along the way. Repetition of phrased questions will enhance success for beginning readers while creating a playful rhythm for young listeners. This sweet story is by Catherine Jameson, a mother who studied Children's Fiction Writing at the En'owkin Centre's Indigenous Creative Writing Graduate Program.

Based in Duck Bay, Manitoba, in the 1940s, an Elder shares his experience of packing up to go out to collect blueberries, a traditional gathering that took place every summer. He describes the journey and landscape with humor and such vivid imagery that readers will see themselves there with him, boarding the trail of wagons from surrounding communities and heading east toward the blueberry patch. The Elder's stories offer a journey back in time and are complemented by images of fields of plump blueberries, tall green grass, bannock baking over an open fire, clear freshwater streams and the tents the people slept in.Written in English and Anishinaabemowin.

A mother bear shares with her cubs how to be grateful for all they have in the natural world. The Bear's Medicine shows the interconnectedness of all things in the world they live in and how each season brings changes and blessings for the bears. It is a story of a mother's love for her children as she teaches them how to survive.Written in English and Dakelh.

Neekna and Chemai are two little girls growing up in the Okanagan Valley in the time before European contact. Through these two friends, we learn about the seasonal life patterns of the Okanagan First Peoples. The girls spend time with Great-Grandmother, who tells them about important ceremonies, and they gather plants with Neekna's grandmother. Grandmother explains how bitterroot came to be an important food source, and why the people give a special ceremony of thanks at its harvest. Grandmother also tells the story of how a woman was changed to a rock to watch over the Okanagan Valley. Neekna understands how important it is that she has received the knowledge passed down for generations, from great-grandmother to grandmother to mother.