Source: National Gallery of Canada
Focus: Secondary Students
Summary: This lesson plan presents Canadian contemporary artists of Aboriginal ancestry. All of the works are in the collection of the National Gallery of Canada.
Six Aboriginal artists in Canada examine their past and present culture, and explore their place in the contemporary milieu.
Source: Council of Ministers of Education (CMEC)
Summary: CMEC has posted a collection of 25 publications all related to Aboriginal Education.
Source: Indspire, Linda Simon – Researcher
Summary: The Mi’gmaq community of Listuguj is located in the southwestern part of the Gaspé Peninsula (Québec) bordering the province of New Brunswick. Listuguj has a population of 3,786, of which 2,066 Mi’gmaq people live in the community and 1,720 live off reserve. Just over half of the population is under the age of thirty; however, most Mi`gmaq speakers are over the age of fifty.
Formed in 1992, the Listuguj Education Directorate operates a Nursery to Grade 8 School. Students graduating from Alaqsite’w Gitpu School in Listuguj, Quebec then go on to Senior High School in Campbellton, New Brunswick. The school follows the curriculum of New Brunswick, and includes both French and Mi’gmaq Immersion programs in addition to the regular program of study.
The success of this Immersion program is due to a core of people at Listuguj Education Directorate who share a long-term vision and commitment to immersion; capable personnel at the community, school, and classroom level; a plan for certification for teachers from the commu-nity; strategies for development of curriculum and teaching materials at the community level; and partnerships with other Mi`gmaq communities, universities and other bodies with expertise in developing immersion programs such as McGill and Concordia University Linguistic Departments.
The project reached the planned short term goal of students learning basic reading and writing skills in Mi’gmaq Language, and conversing in Mi’gmaq in the classroom by Grade 2. But, unpredictably, students who completed the full immersion program were seen to have greater confidence through improved self-identity, and student achievement.
The Grade 2 students were able to demonstrate greater language fluency and improved literacy rates compared to their peers as demonstrated on standardized tests such as the CAT 4 (Canadian Achievement Test), the province of New Brunswick Literacy tests, and the Ontario (OWA) Writing Assessment.
The results of the Immersion Program in Listuguj can be corroborated by similar findings in other Immersion programs in the Atlantic region which include fluency, identity, and student achievement.
Source: Saint Elizabeth Health Care
Summary: A Public Health Agency of Canada supported project to adapt the Canadian Physical Activity Guidelines for a First Nations, Inuit and Métis audience. The resource is available both in an on-line handbook and story work format (similar to a video but more interactive). The funding did not include print copies but we have arrangements with a Manitoba-based First Nations print company for interested parties to print copies. Details are on the website. The resource has had an extremely positive response with over 100,000 visits to the site and numerous print copies ordered. It is being used in communities, schools, universities and hospitals.
Source: Manitoba Education
Focus: Grades 9 & 11
Summary: From Apology to Reconciliation: Residential School Survivors was developed in response to the Government of Canada’s formal apology to Aboriginal people who attended residential schools. The project was created to help Manitoba students in Grades 9 and 11 understand the history of the residential school experience, its influence on contemporary Canada, and our responsibilities as Canadian citizens.
Source: Smithsonian – National Museum of American History
Focus: Junior students
Summary: The Tracking the Buffalo website is designed for students in Grades 3 to 6 to explore the relationship between Plains Indians and the buffalo. In the “You Be the Historian” activity, students explore a buffalo hide painting and use related primary sources to better understand the meaning of the buffalo to the people of the Plains and the effect of new settlers on life on the Plains. In the “What Can You Make from a Buffalo” activity, students play a matching game to learn how American Indians used parts of the buffalo for everyday items. The site includes book suggestions, links to related material, and a guiding worksheet for students.
