Indigenous Education

Hello! My name is Melanie Neilson, and I currently serve as the Indigneous Education Support Teacher at Rockheights. It is with deep respect and gratitude that I acknowledge the Lekwungen peoples, on whose land I live and undertake my work, and the Songhees, Esquimalt, and WSÁNEĆ peoples who have lived in relationship with this place since time immemorial. I was born on Treaty 6 Territory and the Homeland of the Métis, in the place known today as Saskatoon, and my ancestors come from France, Scotland, and eastern Europe. My relationship with Lekwungen territory spans a short 2.5 years, and as a settler here on these lands, I recognize that I have much learning to do and feel a responsibility to seek out the (place-based) wisdom that teaches how to live well here. On this page, I hope you’ll find resources that support an increased knowledge, understanding of, and respect for the land that we live on, are connected to the First Peoples Principles of Learning, and nourish the body, heart, mind, and spirit. I welcome you to reach out and contact me at mneilson@sd61.bc.ca if there are specific ways I can support during this time, or if you just want to connect.

Book: We Are Water Protectors

Hi Rockheights Students! Here's a brand new book that was just released last month called We are Water Protectors. I was really looking forward to this book's release, and was so excited to finally hold it in my hands! It connects so well with some of the conversations and learning that we shared back at school around the pipeline going through Wet'suwet'en territory, and the resilience and strength seen in the examples of all those standing in solidarity with the Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs, including the Indigenous youth on Lekwungen territory. I hope you find this book as inspiring and powerful as I do.

Listen to the Story

Listen to author Carole Lindstrom, who is Anishinabe/Métis and tribally enrolled with the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe in Nebaska, read aloud and discuss We Are Water Protectors here.

Considering our Own Place

The book We Are Water Protectors highlights a young water protector's worldview and relationship with water. Water is sacred, water is alive, water is medicine. Water is something that connects us with all other living beings; "we are all related." Inherent within any relationship also lies responsibility. The young water protector describes her responsibility to "fight for those who cannot fight for themselves: the winged ones, the crawling ones, the four-legged, the two-legged, the plants, trees, rivers, lakes". Reading this book made me think about my own relationship with water in this place, Lekwungen Territory. Here are a few questions I've been asking, and which I invite you to ask and reflect on as well:

How am I relating to/with water (in this place)?
With whom am I connected in a web of relations on Lekwungen Territory?
What are my responsibilities to water (and the other living beings) in this place? How can I live these out?

An additional invitation: Spend some time by the body of water nearest to where you live (using safe physical distancing measures). What do you feel, notice, or wonder in this place? What Indigenous names, teachings, or stories (of the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations) are connected to this place?

Greetings from Meegan!

Hello from Meegan (otherwise known as Beacon Hill)! What a beautiful and special place to be able to spend some time. I am grateful to have learned from Cheryl Bryce, who is the lands manager and a knowledge holder within the Songhees Nation, that the name Meegan means “a place to warm your belly”. If you take a walk through Meegan this month, you may notice the beautiful purple flowers in bloom... these are camas flowers! As I understand from Cheryl’s teachings, camas (or Kwetlal in Lekwungen) is a very important plant to the Lekwungen peoples which thrives within the Gary Oak ecosystem.

A (Virtual) Walk with Cheryl Bryce in Meegan

As part of the Online/On Land series put on by Open Space Victoria, Cheryl Bryce takes us on a guided walk through Meegan. In this video, Cheryl shares many valuable teachings about the plants (including kwetlal) which call Meegan home, about practices utilized by her ancestors that were critical to maintaining and preserving these lands and plant beings, along with some traditional stories. I hope you enjoy this virtual stroll with Cheryl through Meegan as much as I did… I learned so much from her. Hay’sxw’qa, Cheryl, for so generously sharing your teachings and knowledge with us in this way!

Connecting with the Land

Dr. Bonnie Henry, the deputy provincial health officer, is encouraging families to get outside safely together, and a visit to Meegan is a wonderful way to do that while deepening your connection with and understanding of the land that is Lekwungen territory. While you are there, keep an eye out for Kwetlal and spend some time noticing and learning from this special plant.

Some questions I invite you consider:

What do you see, think, or wonder when you look at camas?
Why is camas so important to the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations?
What gifts does camas give?
What can camas teach us?
What can I do to demonstrate reciprocity or give back to the land in this place?

An additional invitation: You are welcome to document your visit to Meegan, and/or share any photos or reflections with me at mneilson@sd61.bc.ca. I will do my best to respond to each and every student I hear from! :)

Cindy Blackstock on Lekwungen Territory

Cindy Blackstock is the author of Spirit Bear: Fishing for Knowledge, Catching Dreams (which most Rockheights students read back in September). She is a member of the Gitxsan First Nation in B.C. and the director of the First Nations Caring Society of Canada. Cindy is someone I greatly admire and have a huge amount of respect for.

Back in March, Cindy Blackstock stopped in to visit and show her support of the Indigenous youth who were acting as land protectors on the steps of the B.C. Legislature (pictured in photo above). That same day, she also spoke with Victoria Mayor, Lisa Helps, as part of the City of Victoria’s Reconciliation Dialogue series. You can view the archived webcast of Cindy’s conversation from March 3, 2020 here.

Cindy’s Latest Work: Restoring the Legacy of Dr. Peter Bryce

Have you heard of Dr. Peter Bryce and the important role he played in Canadian history? Dr. Peter Bryce was the non-Indigenous doctor who sounded the alarm on residential schools through a report which called out the Canadian government for the harm being done to Indigenous children.

Alongside fighting for equal rights for Indigenous children and families, Cindy Blackstock has been busy working to restore the legacy of Dr. Peter Bryce, who is buried in a cemetery in Ottawa.

This highly fascinating article and 13 minute radio clip (from CBC Unreserved) tells about how Cindy has become the personal caretaker of Bryce’s grave, next to which she has planted a garden, and keeps in contact with Bryce’s family.

Cindy says this about Peter Bryce: "Courage is not a value - it’s an activator of values. (Bryce) had the moral courage to stand up for others, knowing that he might take a personal hit.”

I invite you to have a read and/or listen here.

"We all have a duty to our fellow human beings, to the land, the animals and to future generations to be morally courageous — to make sure that when we know better, we do better." - Cindy Blackstock, 2020

This article and radio clip sparked some questions for me, which I invite you to consider also:

What can we learn from Dr. Peter Bryce’s lived example?
What injustices towards Indigenous peoples continue to persist today, which invite our courage to address?

I would love to hear any thoughts, reflections, or questions this article/podcast sparked for you! Email your thoughts to mneilson@sd61.bc.ca - I will be sure to respond to each and every response that I get.

SṈIDȻEȽ: Place of the Blue Grouse

Have you ever visited Tod Inlet? Did you know that it has another name, and that this beautiful spot is a place of cultural significance for the W̱SÁNEĆ people?

Located on W̱SÁNEĆ (Saanich) Territory, SṈIDȻEȽ (pronounced sneed-kwith) is a sacred place to the W̱SÁNEĆ people. It was explained to me by Tsartlip Elder STOLȻEȽ (John Elliott Sr.) that SṈIDȻEȽ was the place of the W̱SÁNEĆ creation story and the site of the first W̱SÁNEĆ village. Commonly referred to today as Tod Inlet, the traditional name of this place, SṈIDȻEȽ, means “place of the Blue Grouse”. STOLȻEȽ tells more about the significance of SṈIDȻEȽ here.

A (Virtual) Stroll Through SṈIDȻEȽ with Sarah Jim

Who are the plant beings that call SṈIDȻEȽ home? Which plants can be used for food and/or medicine? What caused disruption in this place, and what is being done to restore harmony and balance at SṈIDȻEȽ?

While access to SṈIDȻEȽ is currently closed (due to COVID 19 provincial park closures), we have the opportunity to visit virtually!

As a continuation of the Online/On Land series put on by Open Space Victoria, Sarah Jim, an emerging artist and a member of the W̱SÁNEĆ nation from the Tseycum village, takes us on a guided walk through SṈIDȻEȽ. In this video, Sarah shares her knowledge of native plants, and highlights the important work being done by SeaChange at SṈIDȻEȽ to restore balance and health to the ecosystem.

An additional invitation: While listening/watching, I invite you to make a list of native plants that live in this place, then choose one to do further research on.

What an incredible gift we have in this opportunity to learn from Sarah in this way! HÍSW̱ḴE (thank you), Sarah, for sharing your heart, knowledge and teachings with us!

You can check out Sarah’s art at https://www.faroutart.ca/, or follow @faroutart on Instragram.

For anyone wanting to be part of the restoration work happening at SṈIDȻEȽ, check out Mysteries of SṈIDȻEȽ on Facebook.

The Story of SȽEMEW̱, the First W̱SÁNEĆ Man

A story that is of significance to the W̱SÁNEĆ is their creation story, which tells of the first human, SȽEMEW̱, who came to earth as a drop of rain in the place called SṈIDȻEȽ.

Recently, the story of SȽEMEW̱ was shared publicly in a beautiful (and non-traditional) format: A short video illustrated by Sarah Jim and narrated by Tiffany Joseph in both SENĆOŦEN and English. The video is available here.

As you watch, I invite you to consider the following questions:

What did you notice, think, or wonder as you listened to this story?
How is water significant in this story?
Why is SṈIDȻEȽ an important place for the W̱SÁNEĆ people?
What can I learn from this story?

HÍSW̱ḴE SIÁM to Sarah, Tiffany, PENÁĆ, and to all the W̱SÁNEĆ storytellers who kept this story alive, and for your generosity in sharing it with us.

Lekwungen: Place to Smoke Herring

This powerful video, directed and edited by Eli Hirtle and Brianna Bear (Dick), celebrates and acknowledges the land on which we live, learn, and work: Lekwungen territory. The name Lekwungen means “place to smoke herring”. As you watch, I invite you to consider the following questions:

What living beings are important to sustaining the traditional way of life for the Lekwungen?
What network of relations have been disrupted as a result of colonialism here on Lekwungen territory? What have been the resulting effects on the land (and living beings in place)?
What examples of resilience, refusal, and resistance can be seen in this video?
A number of stories and teaching are shared by Elders and knowledge holders in this video. What is one that stood out for you, and how might you apply this (place based) wisdom to the way you relate with other living beings in this place?
How do you understand yourself in relation to this place (Lekwungen territory), and what responsibilities do you hold (towards this place)?

PEXISISEṈ - The Moon of Opening Hands, the Blossoming Moon

Rather than having 12 months, the W̱SÁNEĆ calendar has 13 moons, which tell of changes in weather, as well as signal food gathering, spiritual, and social activities. In this beautiful video, my friend Jacqueline Jim (SEḰOḰELWET) shares with us the song of PEXSISEṈ - the moon of opening hands, the blossoming out moon. You will notice the song is not in English, but in SENĆOŦEN, the traditional language of the W̱SÁNEĆ people. The song was originally composed by composed by ȻOSINIYE I, J,SNIṈTEN. More information can be found on the moon of PEXSISEṈ in the description underneath the video. HÍSW̱ḴE, Jacqueline!!

The 13 Moons of the W̱SÁNEĆ Year

The book TŦE SĆELÁNEṈ EṮ W̱SÁNEĆ: The Saanich Year by Earl Claxton (YELḰÁTŦE) and John Elliott (STOLȻEȽ) offers a beautiful walk through the 13 moons of the W̱SÁNEĆ Year. This book offers teachings about the names and significance of each moon, and important knowledge about how to live well here alongside the other living beings in place. HÍSW̱ḴE SIAM, STOLȻEȽ and YELḰÁTŦE, for your generosity in sharing this important traditional knowledge of this place with us. The digital version of this book is available here.

An additional invitation: Using The Saanich Year book, I invite you to find out:

What is the name and meaning of the moon of this current season?

Hint: It is no longer PEXSISEṈ, but the moon when “good weather is the norm”, “people would spend more time on and around the water”, and “elder ladies knew to take their baskets to the beach and gather bullheads from under the rocks” (Claxton & Elliott).

The first Rockheights student to email me at mneilson@sd61.bc.ca with the correct answer to this question will receive a surprise in the mail from me! :)

Indigenous Music Artists

There is some incredible and inspiring music being produced by Indigenous music artists across Canada. Below are 3 artists (and their songs) I recommend you check out. As you listen, I invite you to consider:

What is the artist's main message?
What glimmers of hope or resilience (in words or images) can be found in this song?
Where does the artist draw strength from (or encourage others to draw strength) in the face of adversity?
What elements of culture are celebrated in this song?

JB the First Lady - "Still Here"

Jerilynn Snuxyaltwa Webster, known by her stage name JB the First Lady is a Vancouver-based hip-hop and spoken word artist, beat-boxer, activist, cultural dancer, and youth educator from the Nuxalk and Onondaga nations.

Logan Staats - "Fear of the Flame"

Logan Staats is a Mohawk, born on Six Nations of the Grand River Territory and was raised in the nearby town of Brantford, Ontario, Canada.

The Jerry Cans - "Ukiuq"

The Jerry Cans (Inuktitut: ᐸᐃ ᒑᓚᖃᐅᑎᒃᑯᑦ, Pai Gaalaqautikkut) are a band from Iqaluit, Nunavut who combine traditional Inuit throat singing with folk music and country rock.

Though sung in Inuktitut, the Indigenous language of the Inuit people, the English version of this song can be found here.

Multispecies Rituals: Video Game with a Decolonizing Aim

Are video games your thing? If so, check out Multispecies Rituals, a video game which calls us to consider and challenge the ways we are relating to the other-than-humans both within the game, as well as in the place we call home. It’s cool! Check it out!

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