January Special Message
Posted on January 10, 2023
First Nations Education Administrator’s Association (FNEAA) begins the 2023 calendar year by wishing their members, associates, colleagues, educators, and their families a very prosperous and productive new year.
Reflection and Storytelling
Winter is the season for replenishing the spirit. It is a quiet time with less activity which allows for reflection and growth. It also is optimal for strengthening family and community relationships. Sharing of stories and teachings huddled by the warmth of a fire is a cultural tradition still in practice. Modern acknowledgement of the benefits of storytelling has been recognized by awareness days including January 27th as Family Literacy Day. The richness of the intimate cultural practice of oral story telling can be transferred easily to educational activities within schools.
Educators can facilitate the storytelling practice by implementing some of the following suggested activities.
- Schedule a time to bring a grandparent to school for the purpose of traditional storytelling of relevant teachings and legends.
- Explore different ways to tell stories with the use of art, journals, blogs, social media, videos, dance, etc…
- Have students share their favorite story and dress up as their favorite character in the story.
- Have students write or talk about a day in the life of their favorite character, or a new adventure for their favorite character.
- Take the class to a storytelling event, or book a professional storyteller to come in, to tell a good story and give tips on how to tell a good story.
- Have students act out stories in small groups for their peers.
- Create a class newspaper by having students write about actual events, stories happening at school or in the community; similarly, have the students’ video a newscast with narration of actual events.
FNEAA Upcoming Events
- January 18th 1:00 – 3:00p.m EST – Gathering Circle Townhall “Best Practices in Adult Immersion for Language Revitalization” hosted by Frances Brown from the Heilsuk First Nation, BC.
- November 8 & 9, 2023. SAVE THE DATE – FNEAA National Gathering Conference, Winnipeg, MB.
- February 3rd 11:59 p.m. – Deadline for Storyteller’s Adisokewinini 2023 Awards.
- February 15th – 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. EST – Gathering Circle Townhall “Youth and Knowledge Keepers”.
- March 7th – 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. EST – Gathering Circle Townhall “Two-eyed Seeing”.
References
True Education Partnership (n.d.). “11 Classroom Activities for National Storytelling Week”. www.trueeducationpartnerships.