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National Day for Truth and Reconciliation-September 27, 2024

  1. The foci for our school story continue to be:
    1. 1. Checking on the Mental Health of our students and staff as we emerge from the pandemic
    2. 2. Improving student feelings of connectedness and engagement levels while at school
    3. 3. Becoming more aware and taking more action when it comes to learning about Indigenous Peoples and acts of Truth and Reconciliation.
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  3. On Friday, September 27, we hosted a second consecutive and very impactful ceremony in honour of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (which fell on Monday, September 30). A team of dedicated and knowledgeable staff created a series of lessons and discussion points for teachers to delve into with their classes from Tuesday, September 24 through the activity day on Friday, September 27. Included in the activities for classes was a PowerPoint about “daily acts of reconciliation” and what students can and should be doing to make the future a better place for all.
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  5. On Friday, September 27, all classes participated in the activity which began with a PA Announcement read by Musqueam Elders Shona Sparrow and Martin Sparrow. Then a lesson had teachers lead discussions about Daily Acts of Reconciliation that our students can commit to, and students were asked to write their commitment on feathers that would be placed on a Hawk logo outside the Library. There was also some discussion about the 94 Calls to Action, and students were encouraged to consider signing the petition asking the BC Government to erect a monument in Victoria to commemorate the Indigenous lives lost in Residential schools across Canada (Call to Action #82).
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  7. After thinking and writing out their Daily Acts of Reconciliation, students walked past the library display out to the field where concentric circles were formed and a moment of silence was observed before student were led back to class.
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  9. It was a very moving ceremony that resulted in lots of thinking and reflection as well as a commitment to doing more daily acts of reconciliation in the future. We would like to thank the team of educators as well as Musqueam Elders Shona Sparrow and Martin Sparrow who came together to plan this lesson and activity as well as all our students for being so thoughtful and engaged in this exercise.
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  11. The activity was so meaningful and important that it was featured in two recent Richmond News articles here and here.

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Updated: Wednesday, October 23, 2024