Blog

This two-part blog is a reflection of some of my personal experiences while walking the path of truth and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples on Turtle Island where I am an uninvited guest.

In my public school and post-secondary education I was not given the background knowledge needed to understand the true history of Indigenous Peoples. I am now learning more about Indigenous culture, language and traditions so that I can build relationships with Indigenous Peoples and confidently work with my students when addressing the curriculum. I mention confidence because it can be intimidating to teach new understandings but students will benefit from my willingness to share my learning, even if I don’t know all the answers.

Resources

For me, the best way to learn about Indigenous Peoples is through building relationships and having guest speakers. When it’s not possible to have a guest speaker, I use books and videos that are created by Indigenous Peoples. The Indigenous department at the school board has been very supportive and helpful. They guide me to ensure I’m on a good path and being respectful. ETFOFNMI.ca has resources prepared, such as Healing Conversations.

Land Acknowledgements

I live and work on the traditional territory of the Williams Treaties nations which includes the First Nations of Alderville, Chippewas of Beausoleil, Chippewas of Georgina Island, Chippewas of Rama, Curve Lake, Hiawatha, and Mississaugas of Scugog Island. There is a wonderful book by Doug Williams, Michig Saagiig Nishnabeg, which has helped me better understand the history of the area through his oral history, passed down for generations.

Our school board has a standard land acknowledgement but when I am making that acknowledgement, I also relate it to my personal experience with the land and all of the natural world. For example, I could talk about what is happening to the plants and animals in the current season and how much I respect them for the gifts they have given. I also acknowledge the rights of Indigenous Peoples and that my journey includes learning about treaties, culture and language.

When I visit a class as an Occasional Teacher I can start the day with a personalized version of the land acknowledgement. I also can include in my introduction that I’m an uninvited guest and a first generation Irish Canadian. I find this to be a helpful way to start building a relationship with the students. I like to check in with students to see if they have any questions about the land acknowledgement and together we can look for answers.

Allyship is an ongoing learning process for me as I build my understanding of cultural appreciation versus cultural appropriation. For example, I had a class of non-Indigenous students wanting to learn about dream catchers. Our local Friendship Centre put me in touch with a First Nations woman who was willing and able to share the teaching. Previously, I have made some mistakes by rushing in with an idea and wanting to do a teaching myself but I have learned that it is not respectful to do so.

I continue to learn how to be a good ally. Here is a list of resources from ETFO that helps me. I hope you will find it helpful too.

Truth and Reconciliation (TRC)

This is the first blog in a two part series reflecting on my work to be an ally to Indigenous Peoples. With so many teachers  taking  this path of allyship there is hope for a better future on Turtle Island.

Listening and Reflecting

Many years ago, when I was lucky enough to have Anishinabe grandmother Kim Wheatley as a guest speaker she asked me to confirm the treaty area we were in and which Indigenous Peoples to acknowledge. This was in the days before land acknowledgements were common and I had absolutely no idea what to say. I apologized and she graciously carried on with an opening that covered all Indigenous Peoples.

That experience led me on a learning journey so that I could be better prepared to help students understand the true history of our area. We also started looking into local place names that come from the language Anishinabemowen.

Around that time I attended a professional development session organized by my school board on a First Nation. On that day we heard first hand accounts from a residential school survivor and we learned about intergenerational trauma caused by colonization and residential schools. This was well before Orange Shirt Day/National Day for Truth and Reconciliation was established. This was also before the 215 unmarked graves were located in Kamloops.

I didn’t know what to do to help. I turned to books and started reading. I listened to radio shows and podcasts teaching me more about the truth. I did the Kairos blanket exercise which added more perspective to the problems caused by colonization of this country.

The more I learned, the more action I wanted to take. With support from Indigenous Peoples here are some actions:

– adding new books to the school library with Indigenous authors and illustrators from an Indigenous owned and operated business;

– encouraging Orange Shirt Day recognition at my school, with school wide activities including readings, poetry and music;

-setting up staff purchasing orange shirts from a local Indigenous company;

-hiring guest speakers for speaking engagements, beading, gardening, and art activities.

Two of the most impactful non-fiction books I have read are: The Summary of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report, and Seven Fallen Feathers by Tanya Talaga. Both of these books opened my eyes to the true stories experienced by Indigenous Peoples.

When my ally journey began, the Indigenous department at my school board was quite small so I’m very happy to see more consultants available to help teachers with their learning now. The consultants have developed a Passport to Reconciliation which gives suggested activities for each grade. I’ve had very helpful conversations with consultants and I appreciate their patience while I learn how to approach this new learning.

In my next blog I’ll look specifically at how I help students understand land acknowledgements. Please stay tuned!

Growing up, I’d seen a lot of fun television shows about teaching.  At the risk of dating myself, there were some truly iconic shows in the 1970s and 1980s, such as  “Welcome Back, Kotter” and “Head of the Class”.  I watched them with my brothers, laughing together and loving the characters.  These shows made teaching seem fun and magical and even tough moments always wrapped up in a way that made sense. I knew that I wanted to be in those classrooms when I grew up to become a teacher. 

Back then, I did not yet know about tv magic – the amount of time, people, and unlimited energy it takes to create 22 minutes of seemingly easy fun. I didn’t necessarily connect this with my own classroom experiences which did not look so easy.  Even as a student watching my teachers, I could see how hard they were working. I knew that class conflicts existed amongst students, that life in schools wasn’t always perfect and easy and definitely did not include a well timed laugh track.  And yet, I still believed that schools could be beautiful places. 

And they can be.  Schools can be beautiful and magical places filled with fun and laughter – but it takes so much more than what we saw happening on a short sitcom. Just like in television, there are so many people who help to create those spaces where the magic happens.  From the classroom teacher to the designated early childhood educator to learning resource teachers to the educational assistants; it’s a whole cast of caring individuals who advocate for students daily.  It’s an entire team of educators who are working behind the scenes to try and make those 22 or 45 or 100 minutes of learning seem easy and magical. 

Sometimes the classroom laugh track is loud and fun and memorable, like when the classroom community comes together and students feel loved and experience joy.  Maybe it’s a funny joke someone shares or maybe it’s a moment where students see themselves and who they have the potential to be.  It’s also when we’ve worked hard on a concept, gone through a lot of emotions and tough learning before things finally start to make sense. 

It can happen during moments in the staffroom, too. It’s those moments at break time sharing treats or chatting about our lives when staff build a community of educators with one another. It’s truly special when colleagues lean on each other for support or rally around one another when sharing in celebrations. Though not always visible to students, that work is still meaningful to humanize one another as educators, push each other as learners, and build a staff that is a family. 

Creating this ‘magic’ isn’t easy. In fact, it’s a lot of consistent work and relationship building and intentionally making time for these important moments we can experience together.  Sometimes it’s making mistakes and forgiving them; other times it’s organically beautiful and just comes together with ease. While I now know about ‘tv magic’, I think about it differently these days.  Instead of framing those sitcoms as irrelevant because they’re fictional and fabricated, I see them as beautiful and idealistic.  Imagine a team of people who come together to bring a little joy, create some positive experiences, and help others learn about the world along the way.  It doesn’t sound so far off from what schools are, after all.

As teachers, we are natural collectors. We save things “just in case”. A lesson plan, a folder of half-used stickers, a set of bent booklets, because we might need them one day. I recently found myself doing just that. While switching grades, I decided it was time to declutter my classroom. I filled six whole boxes for donation and felt proud of my progress. But then I looked around and realized… I still had six boxes of stuff I couldn’t part with. I told myself I’d go through them again at home, that I would definitely use some of it “one day.”

But when I got home, those six boxes went straight to the basement. And they stayed there. For months. Untouched. Collecting dust.

Then, life stepped in with a not-so-subtle lesson: a water leak. Yep, right where those boxes were stacked. Some things were ruined, others were salvageable, but honestly? The real surprise was how relieved I felt to finally let it all go. What I realized in that soggy, musty moment was that  I did not need to save all that stuff. I wasn’t using it. I wasn’t going to use it. And I definitely didn’t miss it.

The “I might need it one day” mindset comes from a good place. We save things because we want to be ready for the unexpected grade change, student, the last-minute lesson, the what-if moment. But if we’re keeping everything, we’re often using very little of it well. Clutter makes it harder to find what we do need. 

Now, when I pick something up and think, “I might need this,” I ask myself, Have I used it in the last year? Would I even notice if it disappeared? Is this helping my students today? If not, I let it go. However, decluttering doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing job. Start with one drawer. Set a timer for fifteen minutes. Sort things into three piles: keep, donate, recycle. Be honest with yourself. If you forgot you had it, you probably don’t need it. Digitize what you can, let go of the guilt, and celebrate the space you reclaim.

Letting go of the “just in case” isn’t easy, but it’s freeing. So next time you’re tempted to keep something “just in case,” remember this, you are not throwing away your creativity or your effort.
You are choosing to carry less, so you can focus more on what truly supports your teaching today.

And if a box or two does make it home… maybe don’t store it near any pipes. 

In my previous post, I shared a definition of critical consciousness, along with insights on how it is similar and different from critical thinking skills. I also shared why I think providing meaningful opportunities for students to develop their critical consciousness is important. In this post, I’ll provide an example of how I supported students in exercising their critical consciousness while also helping them to develop their writing skills.

Years ago, while living overseas, I worked as an English foreign language teacher. During that time, I recall working with a diverse group of adolescent students who helped me to understand the importance of providing meaningful opportunities for students to exercise their critical consciousness. While working with this group of students, I routinely began classes with what I called, chats and check-ins. Our chats and check-ins involved engaging students in conversations about how they spent the previous evening, their plans for the week, or current events. This served multiple functions. Some of them included establishing and nurturing relationships with and between students; helping me gain an understanding of student interests, experiences, cultures, and identities so I could create a program that supported their learning needs; nurturing a community of care, and providing meaningful opportunities for them to practice their oral communication skills.

During one of our morning chats and check-ins, some students began complaining about the school facilities which sparked a whole class discussion. Students complained that the WIFI and other computer technology rarely worked, the textbooks we used were dated, the facilities appeared old and shabby, the washrooms were unclean, and the list went on. Listening to their concerns I empathized with them because their concerns were valid. I also knew that many staff members shared similar complaints. I recall one student questioning how he and others were expected to learn within an environment that lacked essential resources or be expected to academically perform within such an uninviting physical space?

Recognizing the validity of their critiques and wanting to support them in exercising their agency, I suggested they write a formal letter of complaint to the school administration. I explained to them that within communities, formal letters of complaint to political leaders had the potential to effect change due to concerned citizens taking the time and effort to draw attention to a community issue and demanding the issue be resolved. I also explained that identifying or complaining about the issue is not enough; they needed to identify what they want to see changed and recommend solutions. I concluded by saying, if they wanted to write a letter of complaint to our school administration, they needed to identify the issues, explain why the issues are concerning then request what they want to see changed and offer possible solutions.

They liked the suggestion. Then for the next week we spent most of our class time drafting, revising, and editing their letters of complaint. To support students, I helped them to define the success criteria, modeled the letter writing process and format, and provided both oral and written constructive feedback at all stages of their writing process. When all students had completed their letters, I delivered them to the school administration.

Weeks later, one of the school administrators visited the class to thank the students for their letters and further discuss their concerns. At the end of the conversation, she committed to working with the school administration team to rectify the issues. In the proceeding months improvements were made to the school. The WIFI worked more consistently, new and updated textbooks were added to the school, and the washrooms were regularly cleaned.

In one of our morning chats and check-ins following these events, we had a discussion where students shared that they were both happy and surprised to see that their complaints were taken seriously and that their letters worked to effect change.

From the experience, I came to better understand that adolescent students are often engaged in serious thinking about their lives, communities, and the spaces where they live and learn. They are also thinking critically about the inequities and injustices present within their lives and communities. The experience also taught me that students need support in understanding that the inequities and injustice they witness and experience need not be tolerated because they possess a critical consciousness that can aid them in effecting change. I see my role as teacher and the role of other teachers is to help student develop their critical consciousness so they not only think critically about the status quo but understanding they can change it through intentional actions.