Braiding Sweetgrass For Young Adults
Read the adaptation of Robin Wall Kimmerer’s best seller that teaches young adults about the plants and animals in our world and what they can teach us if only we listen.
Themes: Traditional knowledge, nature, self-reflection
About the Author
“Robin Wall Kimmerer is a mother, scientist, decorated professor, and enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. She is the author of Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants and Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses. She lives in Syracuse, New York, where she is a SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor of Environmental Biology, and the founder and director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment,”
Bio from Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Website.
About the Adapter
Monique Gray Smith is a proud mom of teenage twins, an award-winning, best-selling author and sought after consultant. Monique’s most recent novel, Tilly and the Crazy Eights was long listed for Canada Reads 2021.
Monique has 9 books ranging for readers across the life span. Monique’s books are used to share wisdom, knowledge, hope and the important teaching that love is medicine.
Monique is Cree, Lakota and Scottish and has been sober and involved in her healing journey for over 32 years. She is well known for her storytelling, spirit of generosity and focus on resilience.
Bio adapted from Monique Gray Smith’s website.
Honored Guest
About the Illustrator and Honored Guest
“Nicole Roessel Neidhardt is a Diné (Navajo) of Kiiyaa’áanii clan on her mother’s side and a blend of European ancestry on her father’s side. Her Diné family is from Round Rock, Arizona and she grew up in Santa Fe, NM on Tewa territory. She has her Master of Fine Arts from OCAD University in Toronto, ON and a Bachelor of Fine Arts and Business minor from the University of Victoria. Her Diné identity is the heart of her artistic practice which encompasses Indigenous Futurisms, Diné Storytelling, and children’s book illustration. She works in a variety of media and contexts such as: illustration, mylar stencilling, installation, mural painting and design, hand-poke tattooing, and facilitating community-engaged art.”
Bio taken from Nicole Neidhart’s website.
Discussion Questions
- One of the major tenets in “Braiding Sweetgrass” is the importance of reciprocity with the earth. What are ways you can practice reciprocity in your life?
- How would viewing natural resources as gifts alter our interactions? Are there ways you can start utilizing this perspective now?
- What are the major lessons of the Three Sisters, and how can you apply them to your own experiences of and with the community?
- “Through unity, they have survival” is written on page 37 of “Braiding Sweetgrass”. What are ways that you can practice unity within your community for the survival of all?
- Think of a time you only used one of your senses to understand your environment or situation. How would expanding your senses have helped your perception?
Learning Activities
- Using Kimmerer’s lessons on using all of your senses to pay attention to the entire environment, take some time to explore and fully engage your surroundings and write down things you haven’t noticed before.
- Think about something you have learned using traditional Western science. How would incorporating or using Indigenous knowledge benefit your understanding?
Explore More
- Listen to the Kitchen Table Talk between Robin Wall Kimmerer, Nicole Neidhardt and Monique Gray Smith where they discuss their process and working to create and adapt the book!
- Explore the already published and upcoming books from Robin Wall Kimmerer, Nicole Neidhardt, and Monique Gray Smith!