Even though I’m on maternity leave with this little bug till after Christmas, it’s still important for me, as a teacher, to acknowledge that today is Orange Shirt Day. Today we honour the survivors of residential schools and commit to doing good in the school system.

This means adopting a culturally sustaining pedagogy and taking a critical look at things we wouldn’t normally take a second glance at. This means actually talking about residential schools, the 60ies, scoop, the role of the RCMP, and MMIWG.

This also means thinking long and hard about the guests we invite in our classroom.
Do they lift up Indigenous pupils or put them down?

Finally, it also means to familiarize ourselves with the many things there are to celebrate about Indigenous cultures and histories. Reflecting back on my career so far, I need to focus on this more. Here’s to trying harder every day!