By Melissa Thomas

Education for Reconciliation event takes lesson outdoors

Jun 1, 2016 | 5:00 PM

Grade 9 students of Prince Albert had an interactive history lesson today, June 1.

Hosted at Prince Albert Collegiate Institute, the Saskatchewan Rivers Public School Division (SRPSD) featured an Education for Reconciliation event.

All of the city schools and students from the Muskoday First Nation attended and got a hands-on look at a bit of Canada’s history.

The day began with a welcome and blanket exercise, which was a scripted re-enactment of the interaction between european settlers and First Nations at the time of colonization. It was the first mass blanket exercise held for the students aside from in-class activities.

“The blanket exercise is very dynamic in a way that the students can engage with the event and you can see a slow quieting of the students as they are seeing the impacts of centuries of government policies that have had a negative impact,” Jaimie Smith-Windsor, vice-chair of the SRPSD, said.

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Over the course of the day, the students participated in multiple events including sharing circles and smaller learning sessions to discuss reconciliation.

“It will impact our students for sure; a lot of them have personal connections with residential schools, so they have the impact right there for them, and it gives all of the students a better understanding,” Prince Albert Collegiate Institute Principal Dawne Adams said.

The event not only informs students of the historical events that occurred, but with it being a hands-on participation event, they got a more down to earth view of the struggles the people here before them had to deal with.

“The kids enjoy being out in the sunshine and learning is always better when you don’t realize that you’re learning,” Moira Harder, an educational assistant, said.

Smith-Windsor said plans for the event began earlier in the school year because of the final report being released by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.

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