Valerie Parker is a student at Juniper Elementary School. “Kokum” is a Cree-derived word meaning grandmother.
I have many grandchildren here
she said smiling.
His teaching is rooted in his Cree culture and heritage. She shares chaga cedar tea with her students and offers them traditional craft projects.
A support room
A 14-year-old girl in a foster family visits her kokum almost every day. She could sew a regalia and a shawl for dancing.
She is like a mother to me. I feel more comfortable and safer here
entrusts to youth.
students need someone to comfort them. They never go to anyone else, but they come to me for that support
says Valerie Parker.
” The good life “
Mino Pimatisiwin means “the good life”. The program was implemented in two schools in the Mystery Lake School Division in northern Manitoba.
Sixty percent of the students in the school district are Aboriginal. According to the department’s assistant director general, Lorie Henderson, the program allows them to reconnect with their culture.
They don’t necessarily want a diagnosis. They want a place where they have space, where they can be supported, where they can experience the culture
she shares
A unique role
For her part, Shelley Cook, who was adopted by her husband from the Misipawatic Cree Nation, is Kokum at Burntwood Elementary School.
Her role is unique to her. As a certified teacher, she uses many similar techniques but adds unique support.
If anyone needs a ceremony, they can come to me. And if they have something more important to share, I have time to listen.
Children can learn to sing in Cree with Shelley Cook. They can play with dolls and stuffed animals while learning the seven tenets: respect, love, courage, truth, honesty, humility, and wisdom.
I know boarding schools were very hostile places and some of our relatives survived there. One of my main responsibilities is to be nice to the students and let them know how important they are.
According to Lorie Henderson, the school department is trying to recruit other grandparents to work at other schools in the area.
With information from Rachel Bergen
Total web buff. Student. Tv enthusiast. Evil thinker. Travelaholic. Proud bacon guru.
