LEAP
Language Exposure through Alutiiq Place-Based Curriculum
Cama’i, and welcome to LEAP!
The Language Exposure through Alutiiq Place-Based Curriculum is a collaborative effort to support Sugt’stun/Alutiiq language education among Pre-K-3rd grade students in Bristol Bay. Alaska Peninsula Alutiiq is the style spoken in Bristol Bay, so that is the variety this curriculum focuses on. LEAP weaves language into everyday routines so that students begin to hear, see, and use Alutiiq in familiar settings.
Rooted in place-based learning and Indigenous educational values, LEAP helps normalize heritage language in schools while building academic confidence, cultural pride, and stronger connections between families, communities, and educators.
LEAP was developed through Teaching Culture, Honoring Heritage (TC2H)—a regional language empowerment initiative funded by the Alaska Native Education Program and carried out in partnership with Bristol Bay Foundation, Bristol Bay Borough School District, Lake and Peninsula School District, Igiugig Village Council, local families, Elders, and community Knowledge Bearers.
“The goal is not perfection. The goal is presence.” This guiding belief shapes every part of the LEAP curriculum. Students and teachers learn together through practicing and discovering language in ways that feel natural, welcoming, and culturally grounded.
The Curriculum
LEAP was designed for teachers of all backgrounds, including those new to the Alutiiq language. Its structure is simple, predictable, and flexible:
Short sessions: three 10-15‑minute sessions per week
Easy routines: “I Do → We Do → You Do” scaffolding that builds confidence
Clear supports: vocabulary cards, posters, audio recordings, and more
Teaching materials: available through downloadable files, and an audio library on the LEAP website.
Every lesson emphasizes exposure rather than mastery. Students connect language to movement, stories, land, weather, foods, family, emotions, and everyday classroom life. Over time, these repeated, positive encounters help students build familiarity and cultural pride.
Ready for the classroom.
LEAP Curriculum is classroom ready. Implement entire Units or individual lessons. Pull from our vocabulary list or audio library to enhance each language learning session.
LEAP Level 1 is organized into eight thematic units, each building language through place-based exploration:
Welcome to the Classroom
Berries and Counting
Health and Human Body
Days of the Week and Weather
Family and Feelings
Plants and Animals
Geography and Transportation
Salmon
Each unit contains four lessons, and each lesson has three sessions designed to introduce, practice, and apply vocabulary through hands‑on activities, movement, discussion, and journaling.
Want to understand how to get the most out of the curriculum? Check out the Educator Manual at the orange button below.
Curriculum Map
Each of LEAP’s eight units are separated into four lessons. Each lesson includes three sessions. Each session has a curriculum guide for you the educator and a slideshow that is designed to share with students.
Supplemental materials including posters, cards, and more provide additional experiential learning opportunities. Each curriculum Unit chapter describes which supplemental materials support which lessons and sessions and provide input on how to use them.
While the curriculum is scaffolded so each unit builds upon the next, we encourage educators to creatively engage with all components of the curriculum in a way that meets their classroom goals and engages their students.
These resources are for you, and we hope you use them in a way that best fits your teaching style and supports your students on their language learning journeys.
Vocabulary audio recordings support student learning. Recordings are embedded in each slideshow and available on each unit web page.
Vocabulary cards reinforce memorization and support visual learners.
Get in Touch
If you have questions for our team or want to share your experience using lessons from the LEAP curriculum, please send us a message.
Contact our TC2H Grant Manager, McKinley Alden, directly at mckinley@bristolbayfoundation.org.
If you have questions or need support on curriculum components or have language questions, reach out to the following respectively:
Curriculum questions: Learning Initiatives Manager, Miles King, directly at miles@bristolbayfoundation.org.
Language questions: TC2H (Alutiiq) Curriculum Specialist, Marissa Vinberg, directly at marissa@bristolbayfoundation.org.
