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I really enjoyed this article and reading of of her journey with storytelling. What stood out was near the end of the article and her question of "which cultural rules apply to this story"because it was not a traditional First Nations story but a story that became everyone's through their emotions and spirit. The story became a way to communicate and share that incorporated indigenous knowledge. Being aware that it is okay to use non-traditional stories to help guide indigenous knowledge is okay. The key is the use of storywork, listening, respecting, engaging and allowing the power of the stories do its work. Secondly, the cultural differences between the literate and oral storytelling and finding the balance between the two to work harmoniously in the curriculum is beneficial, especially for beginner storytellers and people unfamiliar with storywork. I can understand how finding that balance could be tricky. Storywork is one way I would incorporate indigenous knowledge into the curriculum.

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Being a part of the small group discussion in front of the class was an incredible experience for me. There were so many great ideas discussed, and I especially liked Gurjit's comment about the silence described in the reading.

I believe that in today's day, silence may have such bad connotations and lead to misunderstandings, but it was interesting to observe how silence was used so effective tool within Indigenous Elders as a moment to ponder and take in what was said or asked. This is something I will surely apply in my classroom since sometimes all we need to do is allow children time to ponder on their own and comprehend their emotions and feelings.

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I appreciate the varying lenses we shared through this morning. I believe we each came in with wonderings but through dialogue walked away with a connectedness. We modelled what we'd learned and paused thoughtfully and with open minds before responding. At times there was silence but it was comfortable - we were not looking for the 'correct' answer.

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Tanya, thank you for sharing your story about pulling the grass as a child. Your story connects really well to the First People's Principals of Learning that: Learning ultimately supports the well-being of the self, the family, the community, the land, the spirits, and the ancestors and Learning involves recognizing the consequences of one’s actions. These are two Principals that really stood out to me today and thinking of ways to examine our own habits or behaviours that have a wider impact on the community or environment.

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Tanya, I synthesize with your point. I am such an oversharer, and I don't think our western society promotes this. Whereas Indigenous ways of knowing, doing, and sharing do. I often share that I'm suffering, and I never shy away from being honest about my life even its embarassing, or TMI. My family,especially my mom has always said 'Don't be nosy,' if I ask too many questions, but that is how my brain works- I want to know about peoples lives. Western society has very much engrained, "only speak when spoken to," as a narrative, which I believe is extremely problematic.

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Time and Patience for others stories as a way to bridge the polarization in today's society. I really like how Robert said that this doesn't mean the ideas aren't polarized but that the people aren't polarized. If we take the time to hear people's stories and the patience to actually listen and take it in- not to oppose them or prove them wrong but to listen. This would be really powerful. To listen to stories that make us free comfortable; to listen to people that have different opinions. This is a very powerful ability of stories.

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I agree with Tanya that we fear sharing about ourselves, our culture, our ways of being and this results in a lack of connectedness among our society, where it is everyone for themselves, but really we have so many connections to each other but do we rarely take the time to connect to people on a deeper level.

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Caitlin, your point about western societies limiting teachings and literacies by only using reading and writing is so valuable and true. Reflecting on my life and school experience, reading and writing were the only acceptable ways of sharing stories and what we learned in an English Language arts sense. This limits children and adults with diverse abilities as well. Inidgenous people value oral story telling, and I think that is a much more holistic and valuable way to share stories, and include people with various ways of knowing and doing.

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I really like that Caitlin said that with Indigenous stories we are able to take and receive different points of views based on who we are and our lived experience. That is so crucial to being able to perceive and understand the applicability of Indigenous knowledge to every identity. I would also like to note that individual Indigenous communities come with their own stories and way and being and understanding, and thus perceive stories differently as well among nations and communities. It's important not to Pan Indigenize Indigenous knowledge and ways of being! in fact, the way Indigenous communities are able to relate to stories and apply it to the lived practice in their own individual communities is a great example to what we should strive for within our classrooms.

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Indigenous resilience through humor and laughter. "We laugh so that we don't cry". I think this is so uncomfortable for many people- especially white westerns. Laughter is a way to find healing.

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I appreciate the point Gurjit made about the power of silence and importance of them in our conversation. Sometimes we forget that silence can be a powerful tool in our conversation. Often we are worried and uncomfortable with the silence that we are so quick to fill the silences but, it should not be seen as an uncomfortable space. We should value silences for the gathering our thoughts, being mindful before putting into the words and making our responses meaningful rather than quick.

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Expanding on Caitlin's point about students sometimes answering questions for the sake of answering, I think this is a consequence of the way schools have mostly tested students' knowledge in standardized, uniform ways. Teachers need to be mindful of this and really find ways to give students time to understand and process what they are learning - something that is probably quite difficult to do when there is such a time crunch in terms of how much content students are expected to take in. For myself, this is one of the reasons teacher reflection is so important. Teachers have to recognize students' unique abilities and interests as well as gauge where they are at in their learning. Doing so would avoid situations where teachers are operating at a pace dictated by the curriculum and students are intellectually left behind rather than supported and given the opportunity to meaningfully ask questions, take risks, and re-evaluate.

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Indigenous stories have layers of meaning; each person will get something different from it. It does not necessarily have the same western arc of stories- intro, middle, conflict, resolution- where all people are able to read it and recognize the same aspects. Indigenous stories may not have these aspects- there may not be a recognizable resolution. In western culture, we always want a resolution at the end of a story, but it takes patience to sit with a story with no great resolution.

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I like Shirley comment about the importance of silent and how silent can be miss-interpretated sometimes. 

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I like Shirley comment about the importance of silent and how silent can be miss-interpretated sometimes. 

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I love that Tanya points out that people often don't dive into the meaning of the stories, and that sometimes people try to enforce the meaning of the stories in other people. Each person has their own particular experiences and the stories can have different interpretation and meanings according to the listener background, experiences, beliefs, etc. GC

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Gurjit mentioned seeing the importance of silence and I really connected with that in the reading as well. In classes, we’re often so focused on talking all the time, and as Caitlyn said, we’re often searching for 1 perfect answer when our dialogue itself is making the meaning on its own - just like in this class. This dialogue also reminded me of our discussion circle and how I’m currently part of the witness circle. When we’re able to take the time to simply think and not have to speak, and we’re actually able to actively change our opinion about something as we listen to the dialogue and continuously change until we’re ready to say something out loud (or submit our response on the Padlet). It reminded me of the importance of simply being present and taking in what people are saying without feeling like we have to form an opinion right away and defend it.

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What resonated with me is when Caitlin was talking about how in the western culture we are always striving for more knowledge and having those answers provided. In contrast the Indigenous way of learning is that we should be able to intrinsically discover the answer and the learning. We are like chaperones that should be guiding our students to make connections with themselves, others, and the land so they are able to discover their own identities, their own interests, and their own learning.

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I think this group did a good job discussing the western view of always wanting an answer and not always being comfortable with silence. Caitlin brings up a good point of the importance of being able to FIND an answer instead of just having answers given to you. This weeks group really touches on the FPP of learning takes time and patience. Addressing that Western society is very fast paced is an important point because sometimes we do need to just slow down.

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I agree, silence after a question is not valued in our society. We expect students to answer right away, and approve of students who are willing to answer right away. I think that this is a western/white cultural value- but not of many other cultures. Silence is respectful. It is meaningful.

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Taking the time to think before we contribute to a conversation is something that I often think about too, Gurjit. I think there is value in respecting silence from our students and peers because they might be trying to formulate an informed response. Silence is valued in some cultures more than others so it might be uncomfortable for those who aren't used to it.

I can relate to Tanya's point about most of our conversations being surface level. The implications for social and emotional learning are such that we never really get to know one another if we don't open up. Weaving together our human experience helps us connect with those around us. Our celebrations, traumas, and life experiences can be shared with others which will then help us make more sense of the world around us.

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Tanya's comment of only advocating for your viewpoint and not listening to what someone else has to offer and say is really true of western culture. It is not a reflective and collaborative process and shows how much we only value what we believe and see as true and we are not willing to listen to others. We cannot understand that sometimes we may be wrong and there may be a better way to approach and recognize things.

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I liked Caitlin's point about how each story has core values but the way someone might interpret it or connect to it will be different. There will always be different perspectives, so I think it's important for us to always remember, that any lesson we teach can be interpreted in multiple ways depending on how the person's background knowledge and in turn how they make sense of the information.

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I really appreciate the comment made about silence and how important it is to take the time to think and reflect before responding. Silence can often be uncomfortable to sit with, but this silence can be used as a tool to create more meaningful and insightful responses. Patience and time is one of the First People’s Principles of Learning. It teaches us to to slow down, be flexible and create a learning experience that is reflective and more impactful.

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I appreciate the point that just because we may have a desire to learn something does not mean we are entitled to learn from people who hold that knowledge. As the group noted and according to the FPPL, knowledge can sometimes be sacred and can only be shared with permission or in certain situations. We do have a responsibility to learn for ourselves - when possible, depending on context - and if that is not possible, we may have to sit with an open mind and be patient until people decide to share out of their own free will the knowledge that they hold.

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I LOVE the point of silence being a powerful tool. This is so true. As a society we tend to have this inclination to fill the silence, to contribute our ideas, to create solutions to the problem, or to "save people" through our Western lens and Western solutions. Indigenous people know their people, Indigenous people know how to heal and what they need, in fact, they have been telling us for years! We need to simply listen and act.

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Caitlyn mentioned that every story has core values, but everyone may relate to the story in a different way which is a very important concept to note. Each person may need something different from the story to shift to a new view or understanding, thus the major takeaways for each person may vary. This can also be related to the classroom environment, when students are learning new concepts, certain aspects may stand out to some rather than others. Additionally, understanding that each student is starting from different points can be an asset when teaching to a large group. Each person has something unique to add to the conversation

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In the article I believe one of the Elders stated that they shouldn't consider changing something unless you've talked about it for 6 months.  This speaks to what Jas was saying about waiting and giving time to really understand the knowledge and how talk occurs in a communal way, not just individual to individual.

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The point of making meaning and having responsibility of knowledge is so important for learning and having a formed thought before addressing any topic. Taking the time to think, and wonder, and know is important when drawing connections to one's own experience.

I agree with the point of having the opportunity and space to make sense of the world through feeling takes time but can be rewarding and beneficial for learning.

The point on connecting through conversation and the ways it builds community is such a great point. I agree that we can connect to others through stories and our own experiences, doing so can be such an important lesson for all involved.

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I agree with the point that Gurjit made that we tend to think and respond quickly rather than meaningfully. We need to learn to take a moment to think about our words meaningfully. Once we have said something its out into the world and we can't take it back. Hence, we should be very mindful of what words we are putting into the world.

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The significance behind stories also have teachings, which are impactful. Indigenous oral stories from elders is an excellent example of how stories can shape and provoke one's thoughts, feelings, and motivates them to do social action. Listening has so many benefits - it enables children to deeply understand truths, critical decision-making, and relate to real life issues. Interweaving these important cultural traditions and knowledge of the natural environment and people are all interconnected, making curricular education enriching.

I admire the idea that not all stories are linear, it is about the quality of the content or producing knowledge that is being discussed with multiple people's voices.

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I agree with Gurjit's point of silence. We often associate silence with discomfort or awkwardness. We respond by responding quickly so that we don't have to feel our discomfort anymore. I think the ability to listen and to gift others with the opportunity to be heard is so powerful. I wonder how our daily interactions would be like if we all took the time to be mindful and listen before we choose to speak.

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I love what Gurjit said about silence in conversations and how the article welcomed that. I agree that our society jumps very quickly to fill silences and it is lovely to think about the value of silences and thinking space.

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I agree with Caitlin that the learning process is not a straight answer that we get once we ask it. Connecting back to the First Peoples Principles of Learning is that learning takes times and patience

I like Tanya's examples of bringing discussion back to human-human connection through SEL. We all have these connections woven within us. I think that sometimes we forget that others go through things (good or bad) and we can be the light and helping hand for all, no matter the differences.

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I really agree with Gurjit's point that in classrooms, we are encouraged to put up our hands and speak just for the sake of giving an answer, even though we may not take the TIME to reflect and think about our answers.

Tanya, that is such an amazing point. We know the subheadings that Indigenous knowledge "covers" but do not use the knowledge to connect to feelings in the present moment.

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I like how Gurjit mentioned the importance of silence and Shirley added that this goes with thinking before we speak. I think having silence is important for us to reflect on lessons and what our students have said. Jasmeen mentioned that the reading said that taking time to understand and be present with what someone is saying is important. I agree with this statement because we want our students to think deeply about concepts and make connection with themselves instead of looking for the 'right' answer.

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I really liked the thought of taking the time to talk. We should not only take the time to talk but we should take the time to listen. Changing a system or trying to understand a concept or trying to find the right answer doesn't happen overnight. It takes time to truly understand something and we need to be patient with that understanding.

Robert's point of what would the world be if we have the patience to take in other stories really stuck out to me. As humans we tend to value our own opinions and think that we are always right. It's good to value our own thoughts but how would our world be if we all value each other? Having that patience and that willingness to learn from others could make the world a better place.

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I really like the discussion surrounding the use of silence as a learning tool. So often in the West we rush to fill the space with words in fear of an "awkward silence" when really, we should be taking the time to think and reflect before we respond. I can't help but imagine how many misunderstandings we would avoid in society if we took the time to think deeply before speaking rather than rushing to fill the space. This makes me think, too, of 'waiting time' during lessons. We need to give our students to opportunity to think and formulate authentic and relevant answers and ideas, rather than rushing them to say the first thing they can think of.

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I like the comment Gurjit made which was understanding the silence and respecting the effect that silence has. Our western way is to "think quickly, not meaningfully", as Gurjit said, and there is something remarkable about letting the silence sit. We should look at IK and understand that there is power in silence, and we should take time to talk and to understand, and to be present.

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Gurjit, I love you comment about "thinking quickly and not meaningfully." I agree. It's interesting too because when we teach brainstorming we encourage students to cross off their first couple of ideas because it's usually the third or fourth idea that's most meaningful. It takes time to create a meaningful answer.

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Jasmeen's comment of taking time to talk and reflecting before we speak is a really great point and something that is so important. This is definitely something I want to practice during my practicum and something I want to teach my students.