The Lakota Summer Institute continues to blossom as the creative possibilities for language learning emerge.  This year, our attendance was over 100 for the first time.  Besides our regular curriculum of language study and second-language teaching method trainings, a linguistic conference for scholars in Siouan and Caddoan Languages took place at Sitting Bull College concurrent

LLC Board member Kevin Locke has long hoped to promote the traditional sound of the Lakota flute as he learned it rather than the commercialized sound that became popular in the 1980s.  Last year Kevin met Richard Dubé, a Canadian flute-maker and respected music educator working with at-risk children in Canadian urban schools.  Locke saw

Two Plains tribes now have a common project – language revitalization.  Eight members of the Crow Nation came to LSI from Montana for an introduction to their own new Level 1 textbook – which is modeled on the Lakota K-12 curriculum created by LLC.  LSI Lakota instructor Junior Garcia, of the Native American Community Academy

Crow, Lakota and other Plains tribes have long shared a common sign language that allowed trade and culture to be shared peacefully across the Great Plains.  Dr. Lanny Real Bird (Hidatsa Crow) taught “Lakota-Plains Indian Sign Language” at LSI. This week-long class was filled with adults, elders and children, who learned nearly 200 hand-signals shared

The 33rd Annual Siouan-Caddoan Languages Conference met at Sitting Bull College on June 13-15, concurrent with LSI. This annual conference of linguistic scholars, teachers and students - specializing in Native American and Canadian languages such as Lakota-Dakota, Crow, Hidatsa and Mandan - moves around the Plains region for its meetings.  Last year the conference was in Kansas,

UC-Berkeley student Simon Gertler had the summer of his life as an intern at the Lakota Summer Institute this year.  Simon’s environmental science studies turned into an enthusiasm for current issues in Native American cultures after one of his instructors suggested he contact LLC about coming out to help with LSI. Simon first helped build

The LSI shut its doors June 21, but LLC had lots more to get done.  From June 24-27, six Lakota fluent speakers joined LLC staff at Makoché Studios in Bismarck, to record 20,000 Lakota words for the New Lakota Dictionary-Online.  This audio component of the NLD-O, which will allow users to hear a Lakota word spoken correctly

The film crew working on the documentary film Rising Voices/ Hótȟaŋiŋpi made two visits to Lakota Country this June and came away with what they called outstanding results. In their first visit, they recorded scenes and interviews with participating families and staff at the Sitting Bull College Language Immersion Nest. The personal stories of those