Indigenous Ways of Knowing

Sharing oral stories to teach lessons, culture, ceremonies and spiritualities to the younger generation.

• Orally transmitted stories
• Sharing stories that honour Indigenous people and pass on Indigenous knowledge and worldviews
• Stories told collectively (in a group setting)
• Teachers a moral or life lesson
• Personal connections made
• Honouring the seasons of stories being told when telling traditional stories (during certain moon phases, six seasons of the Plains Cree, etc.)

Important members in the Indigenous communities. Elder’s provide life-long learning and teachings.

• Knowing how to follow proper protocol for inviting an Elder
• Elders can be invited in to speak on certain topics, please check what topics they would like to speak on. If they cannot provide a teaching for your topic, ask them if they would know an Elder they would recommend.
• Prior to the Elder speaking, let them know the time frame they have. Always allow them to finish their story or teaching.
• Elders can be a presence in the room to add a sense of belonging and welcoming.

Incorporating a work or words of an Indigenous language into your lesson. There are 8 Indigenous language groups in Saskatchewan.

• Introduce an Indigenous language app. Most Indigenous languages such as Cree, Northern Michif and Dene have apps to help learn the language.
• Ways to implement Indigenous language
• • Word of the week
  • Switch an English word with an Indigenous word in a story
  • Use books that use Indigenous language
• Invite into the classroom, an Indigenous language speaker

Students sit in a circle as they take turns speaking and listening to each other.

• Each participant has an opportunity to share towards the topic
• Their time is valued when they have the object (object should be relevant to the place)
• Participants can pass if they do not want to contribute
• Judgment free environment
• No questions asked
• Safe pace (nothing leaves the circle)
• Everyone is equal
• All knowledge is valued
• Listening is important and a skill to be practiced
• Finding a space where a circle can be formed
• Speaking should go in a clockwise order
• Teacher facilitated- role to help guide group (more applicable to early years)

Modelling & Demonstration

Students learn from the teacher or presenter modelling a lesson or demonstrating a skill. Students use observation to acquire the new learning.

• Includes hands on or physically showing something in that moment that students can try themselves following the demonstration
• Students are engaged, asking questions and are interacting with the teacher or presenter.
• Using Indigenous languages at appropriate times
• Real world connections are being made.
• Outdoors when possible
• Following protocols
• Involves Elders and other community members
• Virtual or video to accommodate and involve as many as possible

Students learn by being hands on, by doing.

• Students leading the learning
• Teacher is a facilitator, learning alongside the students during the experience
• It’s about communication and peers learning from peers
• Inquiry based, attached to student interests
• Re-enacting the history (Blanket exercise, Treaty and Metis simulations)
• Feeling uncomfortable and choosing to do it anyway (learn with students)
• Accepting you don’t know and working through it with your students
• Learning by doing
• Time for reflection

Learning from the land.

• Land-based learning is pedagogy
• Cross curricular teaching
• Connecting with Mother Earth and the importance of relationship with the land
• Students develop their own relationships with the land
• Students interact with their environment and community
• Students engage in authentic experiences
• Students develop an understanding and appreciation of different relationships with the land
• View the land from a holistic, interconnected perspective
• Hands on sharing of learning values for self, others and the environment
• Stewardship
• Increased engagement from students and community
• Learning that is connected to the curriculum
• Mother earth as life giver

Learning from community members.

• Knowing the community and its history, especially the history of Indigenous peoples of the area
• Being mindful of hat your community members/Elders are knowledgeable in (what’s there area of expertise?)
• Being respectful of protocols
• Accommodating of their time
• Engaging families to share their knowledge or to participate
• Building relationships and authentic connections

Authentically infusing indigenous content into the lessons.

• Materials have been reviewed/shared by experts in the area (Elders/knowledge keepers)
• Work hard to ensure accuracy
• Builds on knowledge the students already have
• Represents different worldviews and perspectives
• Engaging age-appropriate students with timely and current issues and content that they can connect with
• Cross curricular
• Authentic and not forced
• Connects too current events, not just historic connections
• Reflects Indigenous achievement in all areas of the curriculum