Group Lesson Plan – Modified Indicators!

During this group lesson plan, the first challenge we encountered was o choose a TreatyEd outcome that ‘fit’ with our original social studies outcome.  After finding that outcome I would say that things went pretty smoothly…or so we thought.  We were tasked with creating a modified indicator that would represent what we would be ‘teaching’ that class.  However, this proved more difficult than we thought.  We originally had one down, but after further review (by Katia) we realized it was far too vague.  The goal of a modified is to be as specific as possible with regards to what you will be teaching in that specific lesson plan, and well, we just did not have ours quite ‘there’ yet.  After a little more tweaking we were satisfied that we had a detailed, and to the point modified indicator.  The kind of modified indicator that a substitute teacher could walk into the classroom and know exactly what she will be teaching that day.  The type of modified indicator that other indicators are jealous of!

From this assignment/lesson plan I really took away how important modified indicators are.  I love how you can adjust listed indicators so that they are more specific to a particular lesson plan.  This way there is no question what you will be teaching that day.  In addition to that, by making a modified indicator you are essentially also writing down what will be assessed – the modified indicator!  I have no clue why it took me this long to catch onto what exactly a modified indicator is, but it did!  Now that I know I can pretty much guarantee they will be found in every single one of my lessons from now on.  I feel like they just make lesson planning easier, and just make more sense!

Museum Visit

Prior to visiting the RSM with my class I would definitely have a few supplemental lessons leading up to the visit.  These lessons would focus on TreatyEd, but specifically they would cover what is not covered in the museum.  This would be the negative relationship with the European settlers.  I do not mean this to be harsh, but the museum portrays the Europeans settlers as almost ‘saviors’ to the First Nations – giving them vaccinations, giving them formal education, etc.  I think it would be important to give the students this knowledge prior to the visit and then let them look for these connections at the actual museum.  I would also be sure to point out this lack of ‘truth’ portrayed at the museum, and the the students to discuss the issue.

I do not think I would use the hand out that we completed in class.  I feel this takes away from the ‘exploring’ that I believe visiting museum should be about.  Also, from a practical stand point, it is not very effective as certain displays become ‘backlogged’ with many students making it hard for other patrons to views the displays.

I would allow my students to enjoy the museum at their own pace focusing on what really interests them.  I would likely have some type of assignment tied to the visit, but it would not be detailed questions regarding specific displays.  Instead it would involve a bit of inquiry learning where students would critique a particular exhibit of their choice.  Explaining the flaws and strengths of the exhibit and how they may have changed either the display or the supplemental reading that goes along with the display.

A New Kind of Brave

Today I had the privilege to hear Laura Budd speak. To say this woman has been on a scary and yet brave journey would be an understatment.  She spent more than the first half of her life living a ‘lie’ to fit a mold.  SHE was living as a biological male, a role she knew she was never meant to ‘play’.  She has since taken the long, hard, sad, tiring, and brave steps to becoming who she was truly meant to be.  However, this suggests that her ‘journey’ is over, when I think she was trying to say that it is just beginning.

Even after going through her own long time struggles with her identitiy and working up the courage to not only being true to those around her – loved ones, colleagues, friends -but to also be true to herself, she still has the courage and passion to want to make people aware of her story and shine a positive light on sexual identity.  Whether this means talking with classes of students, or parents or just being an ear to listen, she wants to make every person feel comfortable in their own identitity, their true identity.

Although it may not have been her main point, I do not know either way as I simply did not ask her, but I think she simply wantedto get across that everyone should and has the right to be true to themselves and respect who they are as individuals.  She made a great point in saying that, “in a world with 7.5 billion people on it, there is no ‘nomral.  What is my nromal may not be your normal.”  Strong words from a strong woman.  I love this concept and I think if everyone truly lived this way everyone would become happier, if if just a little bit.

Be SAFE!

The SAFE conference proved to be another great opportunity for me to learn and grow, especially regarding Treaty education and First Nation education/knowledge.  My mind was once again blown but what I had not known and what I had learned for the very first time!

A couple ‘talks’ that stood out for me was the key note speech by Chelsea Vowel and the session done by Mike Cappello and Claire Kreuger.  Chelsea’s keynote speech made me look at the racial issues in Saskatchewan and Canada on a different level and even from a somewhat different perspective.  Although my perspective can only ever technically be a ‘white’ perspective, she made me realize that as a white person I do not need to lead the charge, nor does anyone probably really want me to.  I just have to be better myself and put in work to try and do what I can to make a difference in these sad racist views I see every day.  It is definitely important to teach students from a young, but it is equally important to influence and teach their parents these same lessons.  Or at least that will be my own small goal.

Mike and Claire’s talk really stood out because it seemed so raw.  I think this was partly due to the ‘fishbowl’ discussion at the end, and partly because they recalled an actual classroom event that impacted both of them from different sides and perspectives.   I love that Mike had the humility to admit that there was no ‘right’ way to present his past lesson, and that he took the risk anyway.  I truly respect that in an educator.  I also give mad props to Claire for having the, ummmmm, guts to call Mike out on what she thought was wrong with his past lesson.  This is is something I respect greatly in a student.

I am not sure how I would incorporate this into my classroom, as I, myself, am still in the early learning stages of it.  However, I think I will definitely stress to my students to open their minds, and just genuinely do what they can to help prevent the pattern of racism that I see firsthand in this province.  To encourage them to educate their parents/grandparents.  And to make them realize that this is not just a First Nation problem, but a problem for all of Canada, and we should all be doing our part to solve it.  Sometimes that may mean just ‘doing the dishes’ and sometimes that may mean ‘leading the charge’.

Treaty Ed Workshop & Camp!

Treaty Ed Workshop was a great experience for me.  It opened up my eyes to a whole new ‘world’ of knowledge!  I feel embarrassed to say that nearly everything we learned that day was brand new to me!  I wish I could blame the fact that my school never even attempted to educate us on First Nations culture, but I cannot.  I have had the means to learn all of this on my own, but I have not yet, truth is, it never even crossed my mind.  I can honestly say that I learned more about First Nations in the two days at Treaty Ed Workshop than I have in the previous 30 years!

During one of the Treaty Ed Camp Sessions, this issue kind of came up.  We were asked to write a short ‘essay’ titled, “How Am I a Treaty Person?”  I stated the obvious in that I currently reside on Treaty 4 land and have spent most of my life living on Treaty 2 land, but aside from that I really did not have much to say, as I did not really know how I can identify myself as a Treaty person (other than the above obvious).  However I then realized the answer to the question, at least for me, is just beginning.  Although I may not quite know how I am a treaty person right now, I am on the path to finding out, and I am enjoying every minute of it!  This session really made me think about long term goals regarding Treaty Education and how I can incorporate into my teaching and my ‘everyday’ life.

A main question I have continually had since learning about Treaty Ed is, “How I am going to teach this?”  This questions was partially answered during the first session I went to.  The presenter had a little bit of an ‘off-beat’ approach that emphasized asking the ‘uncomfortable’ questions and using current events to relate back or parallel past events.  His own personal method was to present this all in a very relaxed environment in which students can be open about their thoughts/feelings.  He also talked about that since he is a white male, he cannot always truly relates to his First Nations students, so he finds other ways to bridge the gap.  A simple but powerful example that occurred in his class was that one of his First Nations students mentioned that he always gets followed by security (even when with his mother and young sibling) whenever he goes into a store.  The presenter admitted neither himself nor his wife or kid has ever had this happen to them.  He simply asked the students why they thought this was so.  It just really made me think about all  the racial profiling and uneducated racism (whether intentional or not) that happens to First Nations every single day.  Things I cannot even begin to truly understand, yet they deal with it like it is no big deal.  It is really eye opening and is making me realize that even though we are all a part of this province/country, we live in completely different worlds.  I think these worlds need to start to work in harmony instead of fear.  Easier said than done, but I think Treaty Ed is a great starting point.  I know it has already helped me!

Overall I had a great experience, albeit sometimes hard to hear, regarding not only Treaty Ed, but hearing personal stories from educators and elders on what they are doing and what I can do to make a difference!

 

Pipe Ceremony – A New Experience!

When I first heard I would get to attend a traditional Indigenous Pipe Ceremony I reacted the way any ‘newbie’ would.  I was nervous and a little bit scared that I would have no clue what I was doing, and that it would show during the ceremony!

I also felt very excited and eager for the experience.  In general, I have always been intrigued by other cultures, specifically, their religious practices.  Perhaps it is because I do not believe in religion, or really understand it for that matter, or perhaps I am just searching for the ‘one for me’, and learning about all types is the best way to do it!  Regardless, this Pipe Ceremony was no different.  It would be my first Indigenous religious ‘experience’, and well, actually first anything having to do with Indigenous culture.

Luckily, the ceremony was not scary at all and I was nervous for nothing!  The Elder, Noel, was very calm and clearly knew what he was doing, as he ‘directed’ the whole thing like it was second nature to him, never making anyone (in opinion) feel out of place or uncomfortable.

Not afraid to sound too naive, I was honestly surprised that non-Indigenous people were even allowed to participate in a Pipe Ceremony, let alone smoke the sacred Pipe itself!  With that, I was a bit sad that this was a male pipe only, and I would not get to participate in the actual pipe smoking.  However, the Pipe Ceremony itself more than made up for my brief moment of self-pity sadness!  The part I found most intriguing was when Noel spoke of how females are viewed in his culture.  They are POWERFUL!  They are RESPECTED above all else.  And they are even FEARED!  Of course I am referring to, when during the orientation, Noel mentioned how they ‘threaten’ children’s ‘bad’ behavior with the ‘Old Lady’ spirit.  Although I did not think Indigenous culture disrespected females, I had no idea they held them in such high regard.  I was very pleasantly surprised!

Again, not trying to sound too sheltered and naive, I was also surprised that with the exception of Noel’s intricate beaded slippers, he and his ‘helper’ (for lack of better word) wore simple, ‘everyday’ clothing, and were not adorned with what I would call typical ‘tv’ Indigenous attire.  It is clear that may knowledge of Indigenous people is sadly not very wide.  I am hoping over the next two years of being in the education program, and then becoming an educator, that I will add to my Indigenous knowledge immensely!  I look forward to more opportunities like this one.

 

 

Introducing C2! (Chelsey Croft) – September 13, 2016

A little bit about me.  Let’s start out with getting a little bit personal! I will be celebrating my fourth wedding anniversary this Thursday! I have one beautiful daughter, Leighton, whom is two and a half years old, and I am due to have my second child on March 26, 2017! I have been working as a petroleum wellsite geologist for the past five and a half years, and recently just obtained my professional status in the field (P. Geo).  I also have two crazy Boston terriers, named Ziggy and Xena thought round out my crazy little family!

My girl Leighton. Here I told her she looked like a mermaid, and she immediately lit up with this smile!

Now for the ‘fun’ stuff! My favorite bands are The Beatles and Marilyn Manson.  I love tattoos, and if I could afford more, I would probably be covered with them! I have self-diagnosed myself as having a minor case of OCD and I love symmetry and order.  In fact, it drives me crazy to think how I have a part sleeve on one arm but not the other, and don’t even try to change the TV volume unless you do it in increments of five!  I love to lead an active life style, which includes playing hockey, fastball and golf!  However, my true passion is everything chocolate and desserts!  And just to clarify, a dessert DOES NOT have fruit in it, or anything else that may be considered ‘healthy’! Also, in case these first two blogs have not made it clear, I have a very dry and sarcastic sense of humor, probably something I should work on changing.

Jumping into a new degree in the third year has already proved to be a bit challenging and gives the feeling of already being behind the eight ball.  With that, my three goals for the semester are 1) to get to know you all better! (I genuinely mean that!), 2) to gain confidence in my teaching and prepping abilities, and 3) find a way to balance both a family life and school life in such a way that neither suffers!

 

 

 

Weird Body Stuff – ECS 301 First Class (Sept. 8, 2016)

Yesterday in class we did an exercise that involved each class member having to share something ‘weird’ about themselves.  I shared the fact that I am 30 years old and have NEVER had a sip of coffee or coffee-related drinks in my life.  This is pretty weird, especially given the fact that I have worked ‘graveyard’ shifts for the past 5.5 years!

I guess everyone has a different interpretation of weird weird is, because, well, things got real weird real fast!  Given that I am new to the faculty of Education and am horrible with names, I do not remember who things weird ‘body things’ belong to, which is probably a good thing (all I keep thinking about is that third nipple, or ‘nubben’ as Chandler Bing would say!).

Anywho…..the weird body stuff included, yes, a third nipple! It also included a half (vertical) baby toenail, a ‘midget’ baby toe, an ‘extra’ part of a pinky finger that was later sliced off (ouch!), and fingernail that now grows weird because of a miter saw accident.

I think a part of me wants to see, with my own eyes, each of these, ummmm, what should I call them, body anomalies?  But another part of me is afraid they will scar me for life and I will forever look at the owner’s of these ‘body anomalies’ in a very different, weird light! Only time will tell what path I choose to walk along.

So just a heads up to any of my fellow classmates that fall under the ‘body anomaly’ category, if I ask to see your feet, or even nipple area, it is strictly for curiously purposes, and I am not being WEIRD!