Thorold elementary students danced to the beat of Indigenous drummers Wednesday night.
Swiftly spinning in circles, and simultaneously spinning five small hoops on various body parts, one male dancer did all this while occasionally mimicking riding a horse. A dancing girl’s movements made a mesmerizing sound caused by swishing silver cones sewn into her shimmery turquoise dress. Storyteller Joseph Swanana told the audience she was demonstrating a healing dance, described as “The newest style of dance we have on the powwow trail.”
He explained that when a woman was very sick, a medicine man made her a special dress with rows of cones, “and they took her to a powwow. The first time around, she had to be carried. The second time, she could walk, but held up by other people. The third time, she walked by herself, and the fourth time, she danced.”
Prince of Wales students have been studying various aspects of Indigenous culture, and hosted the celebration called, “Coming Together Hand in Hand.”
Social Studies teacher Pat Bishop told ThoroldNews that Indigenous books and storytellers have helped students understand the culture’s deep connections to family, and to nature. Kids are captivated, she said, by phrases like “Grandmother Moon” and readily relate to themes of cherishing the stars, and animals.
Many subjects can be taught by using nature as a backdrop; for example, math skills can be honed by measuring the circumference of a tree, she added.
Bishop said it’s beneficial to read “that they have normal families who go to the grocery store like other Canadians. There’s a better understanding of the struggles they have endured, but also their strength, their resilience; their beauty. So I hope this generation will grow up without the misconceptions some Canadians have. What we are trying to do is gently correct some stereotypes. Reconciliation is great when you say it, but where are the actions that go with it? People in those residential schools suffered from PTSD and cycles and generations of people endured broken families. We have youth growing up who are protesting instead of accepting these (government) decisions. They are learning how to fill out petitions online.”
For last year’s celebration, “All the kids made moccasins,” she said, “and our theme was ‘Walking Together to Reconciliation,’ and we put them around the gym.”
“Every student in the school sewed their moccasins,” said Principal Susan Lawrence. “Some of the older students did beading.”
Guided by a book called Aboriginal Voices in the Curriculum, “We’ve been working with our Metis resource teacher,” Lawrence explained.
“We have a mom who graduated from here and is our Indigenous consultant. She makes sure our processes are right.”
According to the Principal, 15 per cent of the school’s students are Indigenous.
They’ve enjoyed creating nature paintings and posters with sayings like, “End racism” and “Love Mother Earth.”
Birch bark baskets and other artifacts were also on display in the gym, including an “honour feather,” which in Indigenous tribes was “gifted to an individual who carries a good mind and heart, and who shows compassion and love to the world around them.”
Marie Ashourst and her husband Bryan brought a framed beaded wampum belt, which has been in her Ojibwe family for four generations.
“Wampum means beads,” explained Bryan, used to decorate money bags or belts. “Back in the 1800s, they were made from shells. The belts were worn front and back,” and decorated with symbols that signified something important.