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Come Walk in My Moccasins Newsletter
June 2023
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In this Issue:
Books: Animals & Their Babies, Berry Song, Heart Berry Bling, "A Child of the Indian Race" - A Story of Return Our Music: Wishita Song Our Words: Let's Practice Kanyen'kéha
Our Stories: The Story of the Strawberry Our Traditions: Sharing Berry Fast Teachings Recipe: Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp |
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Animals & Their Babies
Infant & Toddler
Animals & Their Babies was created by father and daughter Coast Salish artists Francis Horne and Simone Diamond. It is the first Indigenous board book that features baby animals and their parents. Through this board book, young children can learn the names of baby animals while being introduced to traditional, authentic Coast Salish Indigenous art at an early age. Animals & Their Babies is Simone Diamond's first board book ever written. (excerpt from Goodminds.com)
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| Berry Song
Preschool & Kindergarten
On an island at the edge of a wide, wild sea, a girl and her grandmother gather gifts from the earth. Salmon from the stream, herring eggs from the ocean, and in the forest, a world of berries.
Salmonberry, Cloudberry, Blueberry, Nagoonberry.
Huckleberry, Snowberry, Strawberry, Crowberry.
Through the seasons, they sing to the land as the land sings to them. Brimming with joy and gratitude, in every step of their journey, they forge a deeper kinship with both the earth and the generations that came before, joining in the song that connects us all. Michaela Goade's luminous rendering of water and forest, berries and jams glows with her love of the land and offers an invitation to readers to deepen their own relationship with the earth. (excerpt from Strongnations.com)
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| Heart Berry Bling
Primary
On a visit to her granny, Maggie is excited to begin her first-ever beading project: a pair of strawberry earrings. However, beading is much harder than she expected! As they work side by side, Granny shares how beading helped her persevere and stay connected to her Anishinaabe culture when she lost her Indian status, forcing her out of her home community—all because she married someone without status, something the men of her community could do freely.
As she learns about patience and perseverance from her granny’s teachings, Maggie discovers that beading is a journey, and like every journey, it’s easier with a loved one at her side.
In this beautifully illustrated book, children learn about the tradition of Anishinaabe beadwork, strawberry teachings, and gender discrimination in the Indian Act. (excerpt from Strongnations.com)
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"A Child of the Indian Race" : A Story of Return
Adult
An adoptee reconnects with the Lakota family and culture she was born into— and nurtures a new tradition that helps others to do the same.
In the 1950s, when Sandy White Hawk was a toddler, she was taken from her Lakota family on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Her adoption papers identify her as “a child of the Indian race,” and her adoptive mother never let her forget it, telling her she was unwanted and shaming her for being “Indian.” White Hawk medicated her traumas with drugs and alcohol. At age twenty-eight, she gained sobriety and reconnected with her birth relatives. As she learned what it means to be Lakota, she also learned that thousands of Native adoptees shared her experience—left to navigate racial and cultural complexities as children, with no way to understand what was happening to them.
Mentored by a respected elder, White Hawk began to work with relatives who also had been separated by adoption and foster care, taken away from their families and communities. Fighting through her feelings of inadequacy, she accepted that she could use her voice to advocate. Ultimately, White Hawk founded the First Nations Repatriation Institute, an organization that addresses the post-adoption issues of Native American individuals, families, and communities.
White Hawk lectures and presents widely on the issues around adoption. She exposes the myth that adoption is a path to protecting "unwanted children" from "unfit mothers," offering a child a "better chance at life." Rather, adoption, particularly transracial adoption, is layered in complexities. “A Child of the Indian Race” is Sandy White Hawk's story, and it is the story of her life work: helping other adoptees and tribal communities to reconcile the enormous harms caused by widespread removals. This book contains 25 black and white photos, including Appendixes. (excerpt from Goodminds.com)
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Wishita Song
This video is part of the Ontario Native Women's Association's Virtual Drum Book. The video opens with a teaching about the origin of the song. Listen and practice singing along. There may be different versions of these songs and teachings throughout Turtle Island. (2:53 minute video)
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Let's practice Kanyen'kéha!
In this video by Tsi Tyónnheht Onkwawén:na, have fun practicing saying the names of fruit in Kanyen'kéha (Mohawk)! (1:05 minute video) |
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| The Story of the Strawberry
"It's the strawberry moon, and the berry holds sweet meaning to Indigenous culture. Videographer Audra Brown speaks with Elder Duke Redbird about the heart berry's story and significance." (1:56 minute video)
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| Sharing Berry Fast Teachings
"Many nations across Turtle Island celebrate with a ceremony the rite of passage of girls who reach womanhood. Not only is the onset of menstruation a transformation in social status within a community, but it also can include a change in roles and responsibilities." Read more about Berry Fast Teachings and personal stories on The Kwek Society's website.
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| Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp
Another delicious recipe from the Indigenous Diabetes Health Circle's Recipe Collection Book. |
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Indigenous Language Resources |
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Tsi Tyónnheht Onkwawén:na provides Mohawk language and culture programming at the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory (the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte). They run several programs, including Totáhne (At Grandma's House) for preschool children, Kawenna'ón:we Primary Immersion (K-4) and Shatiwennakará:tats, a year long program for Adults. |
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| Kingston Indigenous Language Nest invites you to engage in language revitalization with Dibajimowin: Urban Indigenous Languages Revitalization Project. The centerpiece of this website is a collection of thirty digital stories about culture and language made by community members. Each personal story shares insights into the barriers to language learning and cultural connection as well as the many ways we are resilient and relentless. For each story, we pulled out key themes to create new language learning resources such as vocabulary lessons, creative activities and cultural teachings. We have sorted the stories in different ways: by digital story, by language and by cultural teachings. Explore and Enjoy! |
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Free Anishinaabemowin printable resources, lesson plans, and videos to help learn the language |
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| Toronto Zoo- Turtle Island Conservation Toronto Zoo's Turtle Island Conservation programme (TIC) respectfully shares the hopes and goals of First Nation partners in our committment to the preservation of biodiversity. TIC partners with First Nation communities to preserve community knowledge and significant natural and cultural landscapes.
Resources available in Ojibwe and Mohawk. |
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Aanii.org Resource website for Anishinaabe culture, history and language |
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| Beauty in Movement: An Indigenous Guide to Physical Activity Pamphlet about the importance of physical activity and ideas to get children moving
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| Gathering Communities Making Connections A list of resources and services for people of Indigenous
Ancestry, and for those who work with them |
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Sources for Indigenous books:
Indigenous Book Lending:
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Napanee Drum Circle, Napanee, ON
Thursday, June 1
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| Kingston Drum Circle, Kingston, ON Wednesday, June 14 & 28 |
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| Indigenous Peoples Day Celebrations, Kingston, ON Wednesday, June 21 |
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An Evening with Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, Kingston, ON
Wednesday, June 21 |
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| | Digging Roots, Kingston, ON Wednesday, June 21 |
| | | Indigneous Day Celebration, Ottawa, ON Wednesday, June 21 |
| | We need YOU!
Help us become more inclusive of the many First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples among our readership. Share an Indigenous recipe, song, or traditional art through Come Walk in My Moccasins. Contact aflccanada@gmail.com if you are interested in becoming a guest contributor.
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| | Indigenous Family Literacy Circle Partners:
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| Come Walk in My Moccasins is created by the Indigenous Family Literacy Circle and sponsored by Journey Together through Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte. |
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Copyright 2016 Indigenous Family Literacy Circle 465 Advance Avenue, Napanee, Canada | |
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