TO WHAT EXTENT DOES CRITICAL PLACE-BASED LITERACY SUPPORT LITERACY AND INDIGENOUS CONNECTIONS IN THE EARLY CHILDHOOD ELEMENTARY CLASSROOM?
This PIP has been an incredible piece of professional and personal development for me. I have found that students have been able to make connections between their own worlds and what we are doing in class as well as create a welcoming and safe space. At the beginning of this project, only a couple of the students could recall information about the land acknowledgement of Treaty Seven and Blackfoot land from previous assemblies. By the midway point, students were able to recite the land acknowledgement poem and discuss the geography of Blackfoot land. However, there was still some confusion surrounding terms such as First Nations, Metis, Inuit and Indigenous. By the end of this project, students were able to describe the importance of a land acknowledgement to show respect and to educate others about Treaty Seven and Blackfoot land here in Penbrooke Meadows. |
Another big moment was when discussing the importance of pronouncing Blackfoot words correctly and correcting my own pronunciation of the work “Oki.” We talked about how pronunciation matters and is a sign of respect. One student spoke up and said that we had been mispronouncing her name. Critical literacy is about challenging systems of power, and for early elementary school students, their teachers are a type of “power.” So, to challenge and ask questions in their class is an essential part of critical literacy. We were then able to extend language pronunciation to a very real part of these students lives in correcting people when their name is mispronounced.
It has been exciting to see students be able to open up about their family’s culture and where they come from. Students are excited to share their place and community-based resources with the class and even teach other students’ pieces of different languages. An example of this is an Indigenous student who began the year by not recognising the land acknowledgement as something he could relate to. After a few weeks he realized the connection and shared excitedly, “I’m Blackfoot!” By December, this student was confident enough to share about his Blackfoot culture and even danced a powwow dance while listening to an Inuit throat singing and folk music song about the Northern Lights.
Personally, this project has been eye opening to me as a teacher constantly reflecting and seeing my students grow. I was continually impressed with how respectful students in the classroom were when discussing difficult topics, they asked thoughtful and caring questions and always encouraged their classmates and cheered for them too. Going forward, I aim to continue to reflect on critical, place-based literacy practices and keep on pushing myself to acknowledge privilege and systems of power within the classroom to be open and honest with my students. I have realized how receptive and kind children are and will continue to trust that they can handle difficult conversations.
It has been exciting to see students be able to open up about their family’s culture and where they come from. Students are excited to share their place and community-based resources with the class and even teach other students’ pieces of different languages. An example of this is an Indigenous student who began the year by not recognising the land acknowledgement as something he could relate to. After a few weeks he realized the connection and shared excitedly, “I’m Blackfoot!” By December, this student was confident enough to share about his Blackfoot culture and even danced a powwow dance while listening to an Inuit throat singing and folk music song about the Northern Lights.
Personally, this project has been eye opening to me as a teacher constantly reflecting and seeing my students grow. I was continually impressed with how respectful students in the classroom were when discussing difficult topics, they asked thoughtful and caring questions and always encouraged their classmates and cheered for them too. Going forward, I aim to continue to reflect on critical, place-based literacy practices and keep on pushing myself to acknowledge privilege and systems of power within the classroom to be open and honest with my students. I have realized how receptive and kind children are and will continue to trust that they can handle difficult conversations.