Quinte Mohawk School

 
I am so glad I had the privilege of visiting Quinte Mohawk today. I learned so much more than I ever thought I would and I really enjoyed it so much. I felt so welcomed by the staff and students, it was easy to tell that they really appreciated us being there. When I first arrived at the school we got to hear the thanksgiving address and look at the beautiful mural that was painted to represent the Thanksgiving Address. Afterwards we had a tour of the school. I started out at the sensory room. I was really interested in it and had a lot of questions to ask. I was shocked to find out that the room cost around $80 000.00!

After seeing the school, I went into the gym to join in the dancing for the harvest festival. It was a bit awkward at first but I soon had two intermediate girls showing me how to do the dances. I was really interested in the Women’s Dance, and the girls showed me how to dance, and told me that the song honoured all the women and their relationship to the Earth. They told me that the English translation of the song meant “Good Job”. Another Dance we did was the Duck Dance which was very joyful and a lot of fun to do!

 I then had the chance to go into a grade four and five split classroom to help them with their crafts. The class was making longhouses, and there was hot glued involved so they all really appreciated the help.

At recess we got a chance to interact with all of the kids in the school. I played tag, sidewalk chalk and Play-Doh. Afterwards, my fingers were sore from opening almost forty containers of Play-Doh for the students, but I am happy they enjoyed it. After recess we played Lacrosse with the same class. I am not a sports person and it was hard for me to try to make a goal on a student because I did not even want to throw the ball at him, even after them reassuring me it was okay.

After everything, the staff had put on a delicious thanksgiving meal for us to thank us for coming, when I was thinking we should be the ones thanking them! I would love to have the opportunity to work with such an awesome group of kids again.

Thanksgiving Address

Above is the link to the Thanksgiving Address, it has both the Mohawk and the English translation. The Thanksgiving Address is said every morning at Quinte Mohawk. It gives thanks to every single aspect of our world. The plantlife, the wildlife, the trees, the weather, the wind, the night time, the day time, the fish, the waters and the birds. It is a very inclusive way of being thankful for what we have been given and I would assume that it humbles people and makes sure that they do not take anything they have for granted.

 

 

 

First Nations, Metis, Inuit and Innu Cultural Reflection

I am so happy to have had the privilege of hearing Andy Leggett speak about his experiences in his career as the clinical director at Broken Arrow. His insight into the different cultures that he has worked with was very eye opening for me. I had the chance to learn a bit about some of these cultures during high school, particularly about gas sniffing, but not in the same depth or context as what Andy had spoke about.

The biggest lesson I learned throughout Andy’s presentation to us was that when working with other cultures you do not have to know everything about a culture to be successful, you just need to be respectful and curious. Curiosity communicates to others that you are interested in them and that they are worthwhile and important.

Another important lesson was Andy’s idea of the “click” of building relationships. The perspective he gave us when talking about bids for attention was invaluable since it is going to be very common to have children say things that are not particularly nice. After hearing Andy talk about the statements as bids for attention and using them in a positive way to help form a connection with a child, I feel more confident in working with youth that are likely going to say things to test me. It is definitely a perspective that supports growth and looks at positives instead of focusing on one more negative action.

After hearing Andy speak about the First Nations, Metis and Inuit people, there were some things that I really wanted to find out more about. The first was to research more in depth about the culture and maybe find some more pictures. The second was that I wanted to research more about gas and propane sniffing and what is being done to help the youth that take part in it. The last thing I wanted to research was the Inuit rap. I ended up finding one rap group Inuit Rap Productions. They are actually really good rappers! There are some links below to my research and the rap videos.

How I Feel- Cull and Sammy V., IRP(Inuit Rap Productions)

Ride to This- Inuit Rap Productions

The following is an article about youth that engage in gas and propane sniffing in Natuashish and the debate about whether or not they should be removed from their homes.

CBC News- Natuashish Kids Gas Sniffing


Below are some pictures I found of the Natuashish community.

People walking in Natuashish



Inuit Woman and Baby



Inuit Man on a Skidoo



Natuashish





Davis Inlet



Children Sniffing Gas

Some of the homes in Natuashish

Innu Men

Innu Children in Natuashish

The Northern Lights

Cultural Issues and Diversity Reflection: Stepping out of my Comfort Zone

  

I am excited to be taking Cultural Issues and Diversity this semester! It is a course that I have looked forward to since first hearing about it early last spring. This blog will follow me on my journey through the Cultural Issues and Diversity course. I will use this blog to post my thoughts, feelings, experiences, questions and further research on each topic that interests me from the course. My goals for Cultural Issues and Diversity include becoming more aware of the many unique aspects of different cultures, learning how to interact appropriately with members of cultures different from my own and to have fun!

One thing I am really looking forward to this semester is completing my “Stepping Outside my Cultural Comfort Zone” assignment. I debated several ideas of what I should do with this assignment, and I don’t think I could have come up with a better plan. Next weekend I will be heading to Toronto’s LGBTQ community to participate in several events which will help me to learn about the LGBTQ culture and open my eyes to many new things. The main focus of the trip was to go to a Drag Queen show. I have wanted to do this for a while, however when we had the chance this summer everyone chickened out. I am not judgemental of this culture in any way, however it does make me slightly uncomfortable just because I have never experienced it. I am not homosexual so I feel like I would be the one being judged for being there. After doing a bit of research, I found some really neat things to do in the Church and Wellesley LGBTQ  community. I plan to start by going to the 519 Center, this is a community center which offers support (family, poverty and newcomers), advocacy and community resources. The center offers programs for students, including an anti-homophobia workshop and a tour around the community with special attention to the AIDS memorial. The AIDS community is very misunderstood and faces a lot of stigma, so it is of particular interest to me. I am planning to spend the day in the Church and Wellesley community and ending the day by attending a Drag Queen show, which was the inspiration of my trip! Below is the link to the 519 Center’s website.

·         http://www.the519.org/