I was honoured to present a very special reading of a handwritten, hand-illustrated book by Lavinia Richards, the last Barngarla member of the Stolen Generation to young Barngarla language learners.
During the reading, children engaged with Barngarla flora and fauna words from the trilingual program I present daily, reinforcing their learning through storytelling in a joyful and meaningful way.
This beautiful book is included in my PhD research, which focuses on a pedagogy I created to assist Barngarla community members in teaching their language through the Barngarla alphabet and workbooks, developed by Professor Ghil’ad Zuckermann and the Barngarla community. Bringing together art, story, and language learning, the experience highlighted the importance of creativity and culture in supporting the reclamation of the Barngarla language for future generations.
Included to the Book Week readings was a new bilingual text I created for young learners of endangered Indigenous languages, encouraging oracy and literacy through vibrant sequential art, inviting learners to explore language with imagination and purpose.
Grounded in community collaboration, each page offers more than translation, it tells a story that speaks to identity, connection, and revitalisation.