Practica

Wá∙šiw (Washoe/Washo) Practicum

Wá∙šiw (Washoe/Washo) is a language isolate that spans the Great Basin and Sierra Nevada Mountains. In 2022, the Washoe Tribe of NV and CA declared a state of emergency for the language due to the continued loss of fluent speakers and to further highlight the importance of the Wá∙šiw language to the well-being of the people as a whole. This practicum will be led by the Washoe Tribe of NV and CA Culture/Language Resources Department and Wá∙šiw Elder Speakers. The goal of this practicum is not only to talk about the language but to speak the language together. Developing new materials, reviewing archival materials, working with elders and youth, and celebrating all things Wá∙šiw will be at the center of this time together.

This practicum may be limited by the number of available facilitators and is intended to support ongoing efforts within the Washoe Tribe of NV and CA to revitalize their language. 

Numu (Northern Paiute) Practicum

The Numu (Northern Paiute) language is indigenous to the northwestern part of the Great Basin. Numu belongs to the Numic branch of the Uto-Aztecan language family and consists of several mutually intelligible dialects spoken in an area that spans what is now Nevada, California, Oregon, and Idaho. Across this region, many Numu communities have undertaken numerous projects focused on maintaining and revitalizing the language for present and future generations.

One question that comes up frequently in these projects is the role that different dialects of Numu play in language maintenance and revitalization. This is a question that emerges for many language communities, and it raises many important points of discussion relevant for language teachers, cultural leaders, and linguists. 

The Numu practicum will be facilitated by the Language Culture Program at the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony. In collaboration with speakers from different dialect groups of Numu, participants will explore how attending to and honoring different dialects of a language can lead to an appreciation for what we have in common and for how our differences can also be a source of strength.

Participants from different backgrounds are welcome. They will learn from one another and from the different speakers as they engage in hands-on activities focused on different dialects of the Numu language.

Newe (Western Shoshoni) Practicum

The Western Shoshoni Language is part of the broader Shoshoni language group within the Northern Numic Branch of the Uto-Aztecan language family. Linguistic and archaeological evidence suggests that the ancestors of the Shoshone people have inhabited the Great Basin Region since around 2000 BC. Despite this deep historical continuity, the intergenerational transmission of the Western Shoshoni language has been significantly disrupted, creating an urgent need for intentional and community-centered language revitalization efforts. 

In conjunction with the 2026 CoLang Institute, a one-week Western Shoshone Language Revitalization Practica, led by Norman Cavanaugh, a first language speaker, and Antoinette Cavanaugh, a proficient writer of the Western Shoshone orthography developed by linguists Beverly Crum (Western Shoshone) & John Daley, offers an immersive opportunity to explore approaches for developing instructional tools that support English to Western Shoshoni language use.  

Participants will engage in hands-on workshops focusing on effective teaching strategies, resource development, and guided language practice. The program emphasizes collaborative learning, cultural authenticity, and practical methods for integrating the Western Shoshoni language instruction across diverse educational contexts, empowering participants to support language revitalization efforts within family, small-group, and community settings.