Ribeirão Preto (Brazil). On 11 May 2021, the pupils of the 6th year of the Primary School of O. L. Help of Christians School of Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, of the O. L. Aparecida Province (BAP), had a video call meeting with the indigenous writer Daniel Munduruku.
As part of their Portuguese language studies, the students explored the journalistic genre of the interview and met several native authors. The meeting was born from the pupils’ desire to interact with the author Daniel Munduruku, who shared his personal experience and answered questions about travel traditions, the main activities and customs of indigenous and Brazilian culture.
Daniel Munduruku is a Brazilian writer and educator, a member of the Munduruku indigenous people. His children’s books deal with the life and tales of the indigenous tradition and have received numerous awards. A Salesian past-pupil, he attended the Salesian University Center San Paolo (UNISAL), in Lorraine (Brazil). He has been a teacher and is involved in many organizations promoting the culture and literature of the indigenous people of Brazil.
“I was very happy to be able to listen to him personally, even if in a virtual way. He was there, he told his stories, answering our questions”, said a pupil, satisfied to have learned a lot of information about the indigenous people.
Another pupil appreciated the dialogue, especially when the author taught the class to say “good morning” in the indigenous language. “Both the insights and the conversation with Daniel brought new words to my vocabulary. I found that some expressions can be disrespectful and, therefore, we should get to know this culture better”.
