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Lesson 1:
Introductions
For the first couple of days, we will be getting to know one another or getting reacquainted with one another. Below is a link/button for an introduction sheet. Please be sure to fill it out and bring it to class tomorrow. We will be focusing on that and I will be going over the expectations/rundown for the quarter. We will also be getting our MS Teams stuff set up.
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This sheet is due next class.
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Lesson 2:
Introduction to Story
In this lesson we will be reading/listening to Thomas King. Please read and/or listen to the first chapter of The Truth About Stories and answer the questions.
Next class we will be going over the Truth About Stories and some of the key pieces found in that lecture. I will be talking about how stories are used in many cultures, especially Indigenous cultures.
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This work will set up the first project of the quarter (writing your own life story) and will also help us prepare ourselves for the novel.
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The Truth About Stories Ch 1. Audio on YouTube
Lesson 3:
Introduction to Story Pt. 2
In this section we will be looking at stories from this land - the stories of the journey of the first Katzie Ancestor, Swaneset - the first siam of the Katzie people - to the Sockeye Salmon people and their relatives. We will learn how these beings came to live in the rivers and streams of this land. We will also look at the Sto:lo story How the Coho Got His Hooked Nose by Sto:lo elder Teresa Michell. We will talk about how story helps us learn from the world around us and how we can learn how to be with each other in a good way through observing the creatures around us.
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This lesson will be discussion based, so it will be important for you to be in class if you can.
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Steve will also be sharing with us the story behind his salmon mural he is designing for the Cafeteria.
Lesson 3:
Introduction to Story Pt. 3
In this lesson we will be reading/listening to a story by Anishinaabe writer Drew Hayden Taylor.
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I will post the audio later so you can listen to the stories while you read.
I will also post the Life Story project in the next couple of days so you can refer to it as you work on it.
Lesson 3:
Introduction to Story Pt. 3
Isaac Murdoch's Creation Stories
In this lesson we will be reading/listening to a sample of Isaac Murdoch's collection of Anishinaabe stories of creation. Please read and/or listen to the following stories and make notes of what stands out for you/resonates with you. These points could be something that you hadn't considered before that the stories introduced to you or something you found interesting. What do you think the teaching or lesson is in these stories?
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I will post the audio later so you can listen to the stories while you read.
I will also post the Life Story project in the next couple of days so you can refer to it as you work on it.
Lesson 4:
Your Life Story
Below are the instructions for your Life Story assignment. We will be chatting about your story during appointed times on March 8, 9, or 10. Make sure you check in with me for your appointment time.
Lesson 5:
biidaaban (The Dawn Comes)
Below is a link to the claymation short film biidaaban, based on a collection of poems by Leanne Simpson. Watch the film 2 times and answer the questions. This prepares us for the novel in that there are many teachings in this piece about identity and our connection to the Ancestors through the land.
biidaabaan (The Dawn Comes)
there there by tommy orange
We have started the novel. Above is the audio recording of me reading the Prologue. It was recorded in March...the love sent can be for you, too. :)
Below are the PDFs of the text and the questions.
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You will need the charachter chart in the future. Feel free to download and type into it if that is easier.
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Tony Loneman
Part 1: Remain. The first character we meet is Tony Loneman.
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Below is the audio file of me reading the "chapter," the PDF of the text, and the questions. ONLY CHOOSE 3 QUESTIONS TO COMPLETE. Also, please remember to complete the character chart after each "chapter."
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Enjoy the chapter. Take care.
Audio file of Tony Loneman
Dene Oxendene
In the next chapter, we meet Dene Oxendene, a mixed race (half white, half Native) young man who is trying to get funding for his film project. I have highlighted 4 questions on the question sheet that I would like for you to look at and answer. If you feel like you want to do all of the questions, go ahead. Remember that there is no rush on getting the answers in...just give the audio a listen or give the chapters a read and let it all settle.
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Find below the PDFs of the Chapter (thank you again to Adrienne), the word doc for the questions, and the audio file of the chapter.
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Opal Viola Victoria Bear Shield
Below you will find the audio of the chapter, the pdf of the text, and the questions. ONLY CHOOSE 4 QUESTIONS TO ANSWER.
Opal Viola Victoria Bear Shield
Edwin Black
Below you will find the audio of the chapter, the pdf of the text, and the questions. ONLY CHOOSE 4 QUESTIONS TO ANSWER. There are only 4 chapters.
Bill Davis and Calvin Johnson
Below you will find the audio of the chapter, the pdf of the text, and the questions. ONLY CHOOSE 4 QUESTIONS TO ANSWER.
Jacquie Red Feather
Below you will find the audio of the chapter, the pdf of the text, and the questions. ONLY CHOOSE 4 QUESTIONS TO ANSWER. There are only 4 questions.
Orvil Red Feather
Below you will find the audio of the chapter, the pdf of the text, and the questions. ONLY CHOOSE 4 QUESTIONS TO ANSWER.
Interlude
Below you will find the audio of the chapter, the pdf of the text, and the questions.
"Return" - Opal Viola Victoria Bearshield (2)
Below you will find the audio of the chapter, the pdf of the text, and the questions.
Octavio Gomez
Below you will find the audio of the chapter, the pdf of the text, and the questions.
Daniel Gonzales
Below you will find the audio of the chapter, the pdf of the text, and the questions.
Blue
Below you will find the audio of the chapter, the pdf of the text, and the questions.
Thomas Frank
Below you will find the audio of the chapter, the pdf of the text, and the questions.
Final Project
You will make a medicine bag and fill it with medicines/treasures. See the PDF for instructions.
Beyond 94 -
Working with the Calls To Action
Beyond 94 web site
Hello, everyone.
Adrienne has found some great stuff that I have found really interesting and easily digestible for the last bit of the semester, leading us up to the end of course conversations.
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We will take a look at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action through a great site Adrienne found called “Beyond 94.” On this site, the guide for teachers has some great questions focusing on specific Calls to Action. We will look at a couple of these to wrap up the semester. Adrienne and I feel that these questions/activities fit in nicely with the conversations we were having about the “First Contact” series. Some of these activities extend the conversations and also allow you a direction to look to if you want to know more about residential schools and their impact.
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We will concentrate on only 2 or 3 activities and if you are in BC First Peoples and English First Peoples with us, you will only have to do the assignments once. These activities have more to them than meets the eye and, I have found, led me into many other areas outside of the questions themselves. If you love invitations to “rabbit holes,” welcome to it! 😊
Beyond 94 -
Working with the Calls To Action
Introduction to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and the 94 Calls to Action. This will be a reading/link to a video where Justice Murray Sinclair (the chair of the committee) will explain where the TRC came from and why the Calls to Action are important for Reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples across Turtle Island.
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THE HISTORY OF THE TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION COMMISSION
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The history of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission: What is it and where did it come from?
This information is taken from the following TRC site:
https://nctr.ca/about/history-of-the-trc/truth-and-reconciliation-commission-of-canada/
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“The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) was created through a legal settlement between Residential Schools Survivors, the Assembly of First Nations, Inuit representatives and the parties responsible for creation and operation of the schools: the federal government and the church bodies.
The TRC’s mandate was to inform all Canadians about what happened in residential schools. The TRC documented the truth of Survivors, their families, communities and anyone personally affected by the residential school experience. This included First Nations, Inuit and Métis former residential school students, their families, communities, the churches, former school employees, government officials and other Canadians.
The TRC concluded its mandate in 2015 and transferred its records to the safekeeping of National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR).
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The Work of the TRC
The TRC carried out extensive research, including hearing from Residential Survivors, their families, members of their communities, former staff of residential schools and others.
The TRC also hosted national events in different regions across Canada to promote awareness and public education about the residential school system and its impacts. The NCTR was also established as part of the TRC mandate as a permanent resource for all Canadians.
In addition, the TRC supported community events designed by individual communities to meet their unique needs. The TRC was also advised by a 10-member Indian Residential Schools Survivor Committee, made up of residential school Survivors from across Canada.
The TRC supported a Commemoration Initiative that provided funding for activities that honour and pay tribute in a permanent and lasting manner to former residential school students.
The TRC prepared a comprehensive report on the policies and operations of the schools and their lasting impacts. The final report included Ten Principles for Reconciliation and 94 Calls to Action that speak to all sectors of Canadian society.
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Through the TRC, the NCTR was also established as a permanent resource for all Canadians.
Throughout its five-year mandate, the TRC appreciated the patience and understanding of Canadians, particularly Survivors. They recognized that many Survivors were elderly and that they needed to move forward as quickly as possible to receive statements from anyone affected by the legacy of residential schools.
The TRC included ways of sharing that ensured people could describe their experience in a safe, respectful and culturally appropriate manner. For example, some people shared their experience through one-on-one interviews, some via written statements and others at public forums.
The NCTR is now the safe and secure space for the stories collected by the TRC and other Indigenous histories and materials for communities. We continue to invite Survivors, their families, and others whose lives have been impacted by residential schools to share your truths and experiences in any form you wish.”
Link to video about the history of Truth and Reconciliation on the Beyond 94 website. Scroll down page to video...there is no direct link to just the video. Sorry
Beyond 94 -
Working with the Calls To Action
Link to Survivors' Stories
Activity #1: “In Their Own Words” – hearing from survivors.
The recommendation from the folx who put together this work is that we hear from the survivors of residential school first. We will do that.
A) Go to the Beyond 94 website and locate the interviews with the nine residential school survivors. The link is posted above
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B) Choose a minimum of 2 elders from whom you would like to hear their story. I will include a PDF which is a run-down of each person’s story which include questions about their experience. This will allow you to manage your choices around your own experience with trauma so that you are not triggering yourself by hearing details which are too much for you. Please choose according to what you know you can hear today. Answer the questions relating to your chosen Elders.
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C) The folx who have put together this work have asked us to:
1. Consider the broad themes addressed by the TRC Calls to Action: Child Welfare, Education, Language & Culture, Health, Justice, Reconciliation
2. Note the connections you can make between the videos and the themes
3. How would you/could you use the videos to draw attention to the need to acknowledge Canada’s past – assuming that not many people have read the 94 Calls to Action. Make a point form list of your ideas and brainstorm more ideas.
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English First Peoples 12 2021/22
Please scroll down the page for
assignments.
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Welcome to English First Peoples 12
Hi everyone and welcome back to GSS! It has been a hot minute since we have been able to be together. Adrienne and I are really excited to welcome you back.
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This course will look at a number of Indigenous authors with the focus on the role of story telling and the use of story as ways to help us learn to walk in a good way with All Our Relations. We will be looking at how story controls our lives and how we can make our own personal narratives work for us. We will be using the following texts this quarter in our class, all of which will be supplied in class or posted here as PDFs. I also have audio files of all of the texts, either recorded by me or by the authors:
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The Truth About Stories by Thomas King (Chapters 1 and 5)
There There by Tommy Orange
Assorted short stories and poems by Leanne Simpson, Billy Ray Bellcourt, Jeanette Armstrong, Drew Hayden Taylor, Basil Johnston, and many more.
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We will examine the work using questions to guide discussions and through projects.
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I am looking forward to sharing with you the amazing writers and stories which I love. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.
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Beyond 94 -
Working with the Calls To Action
We know it is important for folx to know the history of this country and its attempted genocide and assimilation of Indigenous peoples through residential schools.For this reason, we have to become knowledgeable about where the residential schools were near our communities.
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As part of learning about the past in your area, research the answer to this question:
What residential school operated closest to where you live/work/go to school?
Beyond 94 has guided us to an interactive map to locate the residential schools nearest our communities. Go to:
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Make point form notes on the following questions:
1. What were the years of operation for that school?
2. Check to see if there are any images available for that school. If the school operated so long the school had to be rebuilt/re-located (like St. Mary’s did in Mission), copy and paste images of the “old” schools and the “new” schools.
3. How many “students” “attended” the school?
4. What communities did the students come from?
5. What other information, connected to this school, did you find out about. For example, at many schools, experiments were conducted on the students, torture devices (such as electric chairs) were discovered to have been used.
Check out these resources, used by the folx at Beyond 94 to create this section, to provide you with more information:
– Recognized Indian Residential Schools –
www.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/eng/1100100015606/1100100015611
– FAQ: A history of residential schools in Canada –
– Where are the children? Healing the legacy of the residential schools – http://wherearethechildren.ca/en/
Interactive map of residential schools across Canada
Info about the schools on this site
Activity #4: Calls to Action in Education – Finding Evidence, Analysis, and Recommendations
Across Turtle Island, schools have been looking to find ways to explore the truth about residential schools and are creating ways to bring awareness to the issues around the impact of residential schools by making this part of the school curriculum.
These changes are attempting to answer #62 in the Calls to Action from the TRC report. Specifically: “ 62. Develop and fund Aboriginal content in Education.”
HOW HAS THIS CALL BEEN ADDRESSED IN YOUR SCHOOL/SCHOOL BOARD/COMMUNITY/PROVINCE?
Answer the following questions in point form:
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Finding evidence: SCHOOL
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Do you do a land acknowledgement?
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List the names of Indigenous Studies courses offered in your school.
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List the names of other courses you have taken where Indigenous world views have been taught. What did you learn?
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Have you attended any events in your school where an Indigenous speaker was invited to come from Indigenous communities and speak with the class/school? Describe.
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Finding evidence: Community
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Using social media, analyze your community’s participation in truth and reconciliation. Has your community held events to draw attention to the Calls to Action?
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Access your local library (online). In what ways have they brought Indigenous world views as well as contemporary Indigenous issues to light? If the community library does not have enough information, look at your school library.
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Check out some websites in your community. Do they acknowledge or promote learning about Truth and Reconciliation?
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Finding evidence: Province
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Start with the basics. Does your province have a ministry which works with Indigenous peoples (eg: Ontario has a Ministry of Indigenous Affairs)?
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Broaden your search, how has your provincial government promoted awareness of Truth and Reconciliation?
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What other examples of reconciliation can you identify as having occurred in your area? Examples might include: a sports team name change, community event, returning artifacts to local Indigenous communities, and so on.
Analysis:
After reviewing educational activities/content already developed in your school, community, and province, how would you say improvements could be made?
With whom could you share these suggestions?
Beyond 94 -
Working with the Calls To Action
FINAL CONVERSATIONS FOR YOUR "GRADE"
In the doc below are the questions for you to prepare for your final conversation with Adrienne and I. DO ALL QUESTIONS. CHOOSE 3 THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO BEGIN THE CONVERSATION WITH.
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Please be sure to suggest a "grade" for your work. Check off all of the pieces you have completed or have been working on.
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If you are unsure of your meeting time and day, please email me to find out.
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Thank you. Looking forward to sharing these last few days with you!