Kukugyarpak: a new book from MCC

A new book has been published by Math in a Cultural Context: Lessons Learned from Yup’ik Eskimo Elders. The ninth storybook, produced by MCC and told by Annie Blue, is the retelling of a traditional Yup’ik legend, an epic journey titled Kukugyarpak, a tale of fantasy, adventure, and strange people.

Kukugyarpak, separated from his family and village while hunting, goes on an amazing voyage. His travels take him to places where he meets people with big mouths, scary women, mouthless people, and giants. He encounters natural hazards, monsters, and magic. He helps the very strange people he meets and in turn is helped along his journey. Kukugyarpak is curious about the world he travels through, and, although warned against certain places, goes there anyway, sometimes resulting in narrow escapes. His adventurous journey is filled with peril.

People from different areas of Alaska know bits and pieces of this story. In Annie Blue's version, the tale is complete from beginning to end and has lessons for life – helping those in need, accepting help, coping with the unexpected with grace and dignity. Kukugyarpak was guided by his experiences; he didn't give up and he made his way back home. He learned to survive and to stay away from danger despite his curiosity. This story, appropriate for children and adults, mirrors the Yup'ik way of life, and, although it is an old tale, the lessons learned from it can be used in today's world. This recounting of Kukugyarpak's adventures provides a rare glimpse into an ancient way of life uniquely adapted to the north, and offers the reader another perspective on the universal human experience.

Storyteller Annie Blue (pictured at left), 93, lives in Togiak, Alaska, and enjoys sharing her people’s tales because she wants children to learn from them. Blue received the HAIL (honoring Alaska’s indigenous literature) award in 2008 and was presented an honorary doctorate in humane letters at the UAF graduation in May 2009. The book is illustrated by Fairbanks artist Putt Clark.

The story is an accompaniment to an MCC math module and is a bilingual book, written in English and Yup’ik, with notes explaining terms, cultural traditions and mores, and other things of historic or cultural importance. The program provides nine supplemental math modules for second to seventh graders and the training for teachers to use them in their classrooms. The modules are the result of collaboration of educators, Yup’ik elders and teachers, mathematicians, and Alaska school districts.

Jerry Lipka (pictured at right), principal investigator and editor of the MCC series, has been working for two decades to gather elders’ knowledge and put it to use in the classroom. By combining math modules and traditional stories, Lipka demonstrates the math inherent in the Yup’ik activities and crafts, offering a viable alternative to traditional math lessons.