The Way to Rainy Mountain/The Whale Rider by N. Scott Momaday/Witi Ihimaera

The Way to Rainy Mountain is rich in its organization and content. N. Scott Momaday’s landmark piece of Native American writing gives the reader a look into the Kiowa culture with his retelling of stories that were orally passed down from Kiowa elders and family. Themes include the sacredness of the earth, the importance of the oral history of a people, and the ties between individual and family. The text includes an assortment of genres: poetry, essay, autobiography, history, myth, and more.

The Whale Rider allows readers to experience the past and present culture of New Zealand’s Maori people. Witi Ihimaera’s poetic language, humor, and endearing characters build appreciation of his culture and remind us that there are ways in which all cultures are alike. By combining reality and legend, Ihimaera points out the importance of traditional beliefs. Themes include the human relationship with nature, equality for women, tradition vs. change, reality vs. supernatural, and unity.

About the Series:

Novel/Drama curriculum units contain complete lesson plans with preliminary and follow-up work, teacher notes with plot summary, background, and rationale, ready-to-use worksheets, and suggested answers for student questions. These study guides encourage the development of thinking, reading, speaking, research, and writing skills as well as critical thinking skills such as analysis, synthesis, and evaluation.