Mnoomin maan’gowing / The Gift of Mnoomin

In this bilingual book, an Anishinaabe child explores the story of a precious mnoomin seed and the circle of life mnoomin sustains.

Book Genre:

Picture Books

Audience:

ages 3 to 6 / grades P to 1

Written by

Brittany Luby

Illustrated by

Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley

Translated by

Mary Ann Corbiere

Book Description
Written in Anishinaabemowin and English, the story opens at harvest time. A child holds a mnoomin seed and imagines all the life that made a single seed possible — Mayfly, Pike, Muskrat, Eagle and Moose, all had a part to play in bringing the seed into being. What will happen if the seed sprouts? Underwater leaves will shelter young fish, shoots will protect ducklings, stalks will feed larvae, in turn providing food for bats … until finally mnoomin will be ready to harvest again.

We follow the child and family through a harvest day as they make offerings of tobacco, then gently knock ripe seeds into their canoe. On shore, they prepare the seeds, cook up a feast, and gratefully plant some seeds they’d set aside.

This beautifully written and illustrated story reveals the cultural and ecological importance of mnoomin. As the author’s note explains, many Anishinaabeg agree that “wild rice” is an inaccurate term for this plant relation, since part of the harvest is sown every year to help sustain human and non-human beings. Includes a translator’s note.
Pre-Reading Activities/ Integrated Learning
Discuss Crops
- Besides mnoomin, what other crops can be harvested?
- What equipment or tools do you think you would need to pick mnoomin?
Post-Reading Activities/ Comprehension Strategies
Comprehension Questions
After reading the book, ask students the following comprehension questions:
- From what perspective is the author speaking in the book Mnoomin maan’gowing / The Gift of Mnoomin?
- What animals do we see in the story?
- In which season does the story take place?
Post-Reading Activities/ Integrated Learning
The Mnoomin Harvest
The Anishinaabe people still harvest mnoomin each year. There is a process to “knocking” the crop, and special tools are used. Ask students to make a list of crops that can be harvested.

Mnoomin picking takes place in late summer to late autumn each year. Ask students to outline the process of mnoomin picking by looking at the illustrations from the story and recreating the steps in numbered drawings.
Post-Reading Activities/ Integrated Learning
Life Cycle of a Seed
Plants come from seeds. Students can learn more about seeds by being introduced to the plant life cycle. Science lessons could include hands-on activities that examine the growth of a seed by having students plant a seed in potting soil, or in a ziploc bag with a moist paper towel, to be placed on a sunny windowsill.
Post-Reading Activities/ Integrated Learning
Tasting Mnoomin
In the story, students learn that Anishinaabe people harvest mnoomin. For a hands-on experience, students can taste mnoomin by trying it after it’s been fried in a pan (comes out tasting like popcorn) or they can sample mnoomin soup or casserole.
Post-Reading Activities/ Integrated Learning
Field Trip: Museum
Local museums are a wonderful source of information. If your local museum has an Indigenous/Anishinaabe Harvest Exhibit, this would be a great field trip for the class.
Post-Reading Activities/ Integrated Learning
Fall Harvest
Dagwaagwanii Maawindoosijigewin, or Fall Harvest, has always been a significant activity for the Anishinaabe. Late fall is the time they get ready for the long winter ahead. To experience what that time may feel like for the Anishinaabe, the class could recreate a class/school fall harvest that includes sharing harvest food and participating in activities such as jigging, storytelling and making crafts.
Post-Reading Activities/ Integrated Learning
Create a Cookbook
Harvesting food continues to be a way of life for the Anishinaabe. Students may want to share what dishes are important to their own families. Do they know the history or origin of those dishes?

The class can create a class Harvest Cookbook by sharing a family recipe.
Post-Reading Activities/ Integrated Learning
What do You See as a Seed?
The seed in the story sees so many animals. Have students pretend to be the seed. What do they see? Ask students to draw what they see as a seed in the water.
Post-Reading Activities/ Integrated Learning
Act Out Animals
The teacher can reread the story aloud to the class. On the second read, students will act out/imitate the animals that are named in the story. They will change actions when a new animal is called out in the story.
Post-Reading Activities/ Integrated Learning
Guest Speaker
Invite an Anishinaabe Elder or mnoomin picker to visit the school. Encourage students to brainstorm interview questions in advance.
Post-Reading Activities/ Integrated Learning
Interview an Elder
Students can engage in an independent or small group writing and interviewing project by interviewing a local Anishinaabe Elder or mnoomin picker. Students would first plan out the interview by researching Anishinaabe culture to create informed questions to ask the interviewee. The final project could be in the form of a video, podcast or written interview.