Honoring our teachings: children’s storybooks as indigenous public health practice
IntroductionAmerican Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) communities continue to flourish and innovate in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Storytelling is an important tradition for AIAN communities that can function as an intervention modality. To support the needs of AIAN children and caregivers, we...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2024-02-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Public Health |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1354761/full |
| _version_ | 1797244398741749760 |
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| author | Tara L. Maudrie Fiona Grubin Maisie Conrad Jocelyn Velasquez Baez Jessica Saniguq Ullrich Joshuaa Allison-Burbank Lisa Martin Crystal Austin Joelle Joyner Marcella Ronyak Kristin Masten Allison Ingalls Emily E. Haroz Victoria M. O’Keefe |
| author_facet | Tara L. Maudrie Fiona Grubin Maisie Conrad Jocelyn Velasquez Baez Jessica Saniguq Ullrich Joshuaa Allison-Burbank Lisa Martin Crystal Austin Joelle Joyner Marcella Ronyak Kristin Masten Allison Ingalls Emily E. Haroz Victoria M. O’Keefe |
| author_sort | Tara L. Maudrie |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | IntroductionAmerican Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) communities continue to flourish and innovate in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Storytelling is an important tradition for AIAN communities that can function as an intervention modality. To support the needs of AIAN children and caregivers, we (a collaborative workgroup of Indigenous health researchers) developed a culturally grounded storybook that provides pandemic-related public health guidance and mental health coping strategies woven with Inter-Tribal values and teachings.MethodsA collaborative workgroup, representing diverse tribal affiliations, met via four virtual meetings in early 2021 to discuss evolving COVID-19 pandemic public health guidance, community experiences and responses to emerging challenges, and how to ground the story in shared AIAN cultural strengths. We developed and distributed a brief survey for caregivers to evaluate the resulting book.ResultsThe workgroup iteratively reviewed versions of the storyline until reaching a consensus on the final text. An AI artist from the workgroup created illustrations to accompany the text. The resulting book, titled Our Smallest Warriors, Our Strongest Medicine: Honoring Our Teachings during COVID-19 contains 46 pages of text and full-color illustrations. An online toolkit including coloring pages, traditional language activities, and caregiver resources accompanies the book. We printed and distributed 50,024 physical copies of the book and a free online version remains available. An online survey completed by N = 34 caregivers who read the book with their child(ren) showed strong satisfaction with the book and interest in future books.DiscussionThe development of this storybook provides insights for creative dissemination of future public health initiatives, especially those geared toward AIAN communities. The positive reception and widespread interest in the storybook illustrate how braiding AIAN cultural teachings with public health guidance can be an effective way to disseminate health information. This storybook highlights the importance of storytelling as an immersive learning experience through which caregivers and children connect to family, community, culture, and public health guidance. Culturally grounded public health interventions can be effective and powerful in uplifting AIAN cultural values and promoting health and well-being for present and future generations. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T22:55:02Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-20d3eebe7cde411392dc6842570f41c5 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-2565 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T19:10:23Z |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Public Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-20d3eebe7cde411392dc6842570f41c52024-03-26T10:59:19ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Public Health2296-25652024-02-011210.3389/fpubh.2024.13547611354761Honoring our teachings: children’s storybooks as indigenous public health practiceTara L. Maudrie0Fiona Grubin1Maisie Conrad2Jocelyn Velasquez Baez3Jessica Saniguq Ullrich4Joshuaa Allison-Burbank5Lisa Martin6Crystal Austin7Joelle Joyner8Marcella Ronyak9Kristin Masten10Allison Ingalls11Emily E. Haroz12Victoria M. O’Keefe13Johns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health, Baltimore, MD, United StatesJohns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health, Baltimore, MD, United StatesJohns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health, Baltimore, MD, United StatesDepartment of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT, United StatesInstitute for Research and Education to Advance Community Health (IREACH), Washington State University, Spokane, WA, United StatesJohns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health, Baltimore, MD, United StatesJohns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health, Baltimore, MD, United StatesJohns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health, Baltimore, MD, United StatesDepartment of Public Health, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, United StatesIndian Health Service, Rockville, MD, United StatesJohns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health, Baltimore, MD, United StatesJohns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health, Baltimore, MD, United StatesJohns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health, Baltimore, MD, United StatesJohns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health, Baltimore, MD, United StatesIntroductionAmerican Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) communities continue to flourish and innovate in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Storytelling is an important tradition for AIAN communities that can function as an intervention modality. To support the needs of AIAN children and caregivers, we (a collaborative workgroup of Indigenous health researchers) developed a culturally grounded storybook that provides pandemic-related public health guidance and mental health coping strategies woven with Inter-Tribal values and teachings.MethodsA collaborative workgroup, representing diverse tribal affiliations, met via four virtual meetings in early 2021 to discuss evolving COVID-19 pandemic public health guidance, community experiences and responses to emerging challenges, and how to ground the story in shared AIAN cultural strengths. We developed and distributed a brief survey for caregivers to evaluate the resulting book.ResultsThe workgroup iteratively reviewed versions of the storyline until reaching a consensus on the final text. An AI artist from the workgroup created illustrations to accompany the text. The resulting book, titled Our Smallest Warriors, Our Strongest Medicine: Honoring Our Teachings during COVID-19 contains 46 pages of text and full-color illustrations. An online toolkit including coloring pages, traditional language activities, and caregiver resources accompanies the book. We printed and distributed 50,024 physical copies of the book and a free online version remains available. An online survey completed by N = 34 caregivers who read the book with their child(ren) showed strong satisfaction with the book and interest in future books.DiscussionThe development of this storybook provides insights for creative dissemination of future public health initiatives, especially those geared toward AIAN communities. The positive reception and widespread interest in the storybook illustrate how braiding AIAN cultural teachings with public health guidance can be an effective way to disseminate health information. This storybook highlights the importance of storytelling as an immersive learning experience through which caregivers and children connect to family, community, culture, and public health guidance. Culturally grounded public health interventions can be effective and powerful in uplifting AIAN cultural values and promoting health and well-being for present and future generations.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1354761/fullculturally groundedAmerican Indian/Alaska nativestorytellingCOVID-19indigenous research |
| spellingShingle | Tara L. Maudrie Fiona Grubin Maisie Conrad Jocelyn Velasquez Baez Jessica Saniguq Ullrich Joshuaa Allison-Burbank Lisa Martin Crystal Austin Joelle Joyner Marcella Ronyak Kristin Masten Allison Ingalls Emily E. Haroz Victoria M. O’Keefe Honoring our teachings: children’s storybooks as indigenous public health practice Frontiers in Public Health culturally grounded American Indian/Alaska native storytelling COVID-19 indigenous research |
| title | Honoring our teachings: children’s storybooks as indigenous public health practice |
| title_full | Honoring our teachings: children’s storybooks as indigenous public health practice |
| title_fullStr | Honoring our teachings: children’s storybooks as indigenous public health practice |
| title_full_unstemmed | Honoring our teachings: children’s storybooks as indigenous public health practice |
| title_short | Honoring our teachings: children’s storybooks as indigenous public health practice |
| title_sort | honoring our teachings children s storybooks as indigenous public health practice |
| topic | culturally grounded American Indian/Alaska native storytelling COVID-19 indigenous research |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1354761/full |
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