Sharing about First Nation Culture and Language

Stonecircle’s project with First Nations and Inuit Health Branch (FNIHB), Health Canada, for the Special Study on Language and Culture in Aboriginal Head Start on Reserve is almost finished. After nearly two years of research and data collection, Stonecircle has presented draft reports to the client. We presented a draft National Synthesis Report, which consolidated five regional reports, as well as a draft Community Popular report, which highlights the successes and interesting program ideas that Head Start sites are implementing to incorporate culture and language.

Pictured left to right: Kory Goulais, Shelley Thomas Prokop (Saskatchewan), Jennifer David, EJ Fontaine (Manitoba), Anika Altiman (Ontario), Isabelle Picard (Quebec), Greg Smith and Heidi Doxtator (FNIHB).

Pictured above are all of the First Nation regional evaluators that Stonecircle hired to join our team and to travel to First Nation communities. We were invited to make a presentation to FNIHB staff on our process and on the findings. While details about the findings will not be shared until FNIHB releases the report, we were able to share some of our stories about this project. One story is from Anika, our Ontario researcher, who travelled all the way from southwestern Ontario to Timmins, on her way up to a community on the James Bay coast, and got stuck for two days because of the weather. Unable to reschedule, she had to turn around and try to re-book her travel. Or Shelley, from Saskatchewan, who had to delay several visits because of severe winter road conditions. We shared about the realities of working with First Nations, particularly remote communities, and of adapting to our erratic Canadian winters. (Of course, everyone affiliated with Aarluk is nodding their heads because this is pretty routine for work throughout Nunavut!)

The evaluators spoke about the wonderful people they met in the communities and the inspirational work that Head Start is doing to teach children about language and culture. Thanks to everyone who was part of this interesting project.