September 30th is now a National Holiday in Canada.  Named the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, the day is meant to recognize and commemorate the legacy of residential schools where tens of thousands of First Nations children were taken from their families and forced to attend classes that separated them from their culture.

In recent years, September 30 has been known as Orange Shirt Day – a date chosen because it is the time of year in which children were taken from their homes to residential schools, and because it is an opportunity to set the stage for anti-racism and anti-bullying policies for the coming school year. The name comes from residential school survivor Phyllis Webstad’s story of her first day at residential school, when she had her new orange shirt, bought for her by her grandmother, taken away from her.

Our class will participate in Orange Shirt day by taking time to learn more about the legacy of residential schools to bring awareness to the history of Residential Schools and the impact on Indigenous children and their families.