Category Archives: Grade 10
First Nations Storybook
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Perspective
Chinese New year is celebrated on February 16. This year (2018) is the year of the dog! In Richmond there was a celebration that took place. There was lots of traditional lion and dragon dance performances, pop-up flower and gift markets that sell floral arrangements and red and gold decorations. There was also a lot of food. In Vancouver there was also a parade that featured lion dances, cultural dances, marching bands, martial arts performances, and more. The parade had the largest assembly of traditional lion dance teams in Canada. This time of year is important to the Chinese culture because they are celebrating the lunar new year. By openly celebrating their culture
they find a way to maintain their culture even after moving to a new country. My family does not celebrate Chinese new year however we still know when it is and enjoy learning about it. I think by publicly teaching others about the culture can help it become more well know and will let the culture find a way to live on in other countries. https://www.visitrichmondbc.com/events/chinese-new-year/
Celebrating Chinese new year may be discouraged by people who are not interested in the culture. People who see the culture being celebrated may not be comfortable seeing the event. If someone didn’t know what Chinese new year was they would most likely judge the people who are celebrating it. Another problem that might occur is that people may just not care and they wouldn’t want to see the culture being celebrated. Citizens may just not be able to relate to the ways they celebrate their culture. https://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/festivals/chinese-new-year-why-of-new-year.htm
I think Canada is a multicultural country because we allow others to celebrate their beliefs
publicly and most of us would be interested in participating. Vancouver had a parade and Richmond had a festival. All over Canada Chinese new year was being celebrated. Canada welco
mes all cultures and allows them to share their culture with other citizens.
Canadian Identity
http://forums.canadiancontent.net/hot-topics/116757-what-does-being-canadian-mean.html
I chose this website because the descriptions are coming directly form Canadians. It is Canadians having a conversation about their country. You can tell how passionate about the conversation that they are having, and their love for Canada. When they have a conversation about how we welcome all and we can go out late at night and we can still be able to see our family, this talks about how welcoming and friendly we are. If I was a Japanese girl living in Canada during the 1940’s I don’t think I would agree with these comments because back then in Canada not everyone was friendly with each other and there was a lot more of discrimination.
I chose this picture because it uses the same words I would use to describe Canada. It uses great descriptive words to explain our country. I like how the word Freedom is big, bolded, and in the centre of the page. The picture is easy to understand and the more important words are bolded. When looking at this picture I reflect of the word freedom. I agree that Canada is a free country because everyone has a right to vote and they right to a safe life. If I was a Japanese girl living in Canada during the 1940’s I would definitely disagree with this picture. The Japanese were being taken out of their homes and put into camps, what happened during Canada’s past is not equivalent to what Canada is now.
Personal Goal
Education Goal
Synthesis essay corrections
How One Can Face Their Past
What effect did the residential schools have on Saul and Betty? Is there a reason bad things happen to good people? Humans can be cruel but, why would one want to make others change their beliefs? In the novel Indian Horse written by Richard Wagamese, a young boy named Saul is taken away from his family and is forced to live in a residential school. The setting takes place in Ontario during the 1960’s. In the residential school Saul was taught to be ashamed of his culture. The residential school wanted to “remove the Indian from our children”(47, Wagamese). This quote explains how they were treated; as if they meant nothing. Sugar Falls is a graphic novel written by David Alexander Robertson and illustrated by Scott B. Henderson. The setting takes place in Canada. Betty was a five year old girl, who was abandoned by her biological Mother. Thankfully a loving family took her in as one of their own. After finding happiness the despicable priest came and took her away “like he owned her” (14, David Alexander Robertson). In the residential school Betty was treated with no respect and was taught to forget her culture. Both Indian Horse and Sugar Falls show examples of abuse within residential schools. In Indian Horse Saul was sexually and emotionally abused, Saul was forced to keep quiet if he wanted to continue playing hockey. Betty was also sexually and emotionally abused. Although Saul was not open to share his past he was so used to keeping everything to himself he had to face his demons before he could be at peace with his own history. Whereas Betty was happy to share her past and even let high school students continue to tell her story. Regardless of their differences, one can learn how to recover from times of hardship by being able to share their past.
Saul faced abuse while he was enrolled in the residential school. Saul’s passion was to play hockey, he felt a sense of peace and happiness as he would glide along the ice. There was nothing Saul wanted more than to play hockey. Unfortunately, Father Leboutillier understood how much the game meant to Saul and he took advantage of the fact he could be the one who decides if he plays or not. Father Leboutillier made a horrific deal with Saul: “He’d given me the job of cleaning the ice to buy my silence, to guard his secret. “ (199, Wagamese). Father Leboutillier sexually abused Saul. Saul wouldn’t say anything because he wanted to play hockey, and he enjoyed the idea of having someone that loved him. Overtime Saul became really good at playing hockey, he was put onto a super high level of hockey, because of his First Nations background he was treated differently and was treated with no respect. Even the fans who would show up to the games would not support Saul. Eventually he was forced to quit and this led him down a dark path to alcohol and depression.
Betty had a rough start to her life, her biological mother was cruel and abandoned her at the age of five years old. A loving family took Betty in and loved her. They provided her with a childhood that she deserved. Eventually the unwanted priest came and took her away to a residential school. Betty was able to make friends in the school and this helped her to forget about all of the awful things that were happening to her. Sadly, Betty was badly abused in the school. One time she was talking to her friend in Cree, the Sister caught her and kicked Betty in the head which caused her to be deaf in her ear. The nun commands her: “get up, child. I’m only showing you what’s right” (Robinson, 29). The nun thought she was teaching the children a lesson but all she had accomplished was abuse. Betty was also sexually abused. Unfortunately Betty was not the only one who had to face this problem. Many of her other friends also had to suffer through this.
Because of Saul’s horrific past as the residential school it has caused him to turn into an alcoholic. Saul needed a way to escape from his past. Saul tells us that “In alcohol I found an antidote” (Wagamese, 180). Alcohol had a bad effect on Saul and it caused him to become dependent on the drinks. After becoming sober, Saul decided to visit the residential school. He felt as if he needed to re visit so he could “learn to share the truth he had discovered locked deep inside of him” (Wagamese, 207). Saul was raised to keep things to himself so for him to learn how to talk about his past was a huge step in the right direction for him. When it comes to Saul one will need patience. Thankfully his adopted parents had a lot. It had been many years since Saul had visited but when he did they still welcomed him in open arms. Saul came back to cope with his family. He had realized this is not the way he wanted to spend his life and had learned how to cope with his past. Finally, Saul had gone back to visit Virgil. This was a turning point for Saul because Saul has found a safe way to forget his past. He has learned to cope through family and playing the game that he loves; hockey.
As for Betty, she was happy to share her past. Betty’s granddaughter April had brought one of her high school friends over to do a project about Betty and the residential school. When April and her friend Daniel were welcomed into Bettys home, they were greeted with Betty holding an eagle feather and she had asked them to remove their shoes before entering “I am holding the eagle feather to honour the past and move forward with courage honesty and truth” (Robinson,5). Betty explains to her guests how she needed a lot of courage to move forward, she did not want to forget her past she wanted to honor it. By keeping her story alive, Betty hopes it will raise awareness of the past and make sure nothing like this could ever happened again. Betty copes by participating in her culture, although she was raised to be ashamed of it. When Betty is telling her story, she wears the bright coloured clothing because while she was in the residential school they only wore boring colours. Betty had also “taught Cree to others. Later she became a language consultant” (Robinson,38). By remembering her past and her culture Betty is able to be at peace with her horrific childhood.
In conclusion, residential schools had showed Saul and Betty how to recover in their own way. For Saul, the right path wasn’t always easy. He had so face his demons and bring himself to a realization of what he was doing was not right. As for Betty, the residential school has shaped her into who she is today; a proud First Nations Women. Although the residential school had similar effects on each character, they each grew up differently.
Things I did well:
1.) Combining and organizing my thoughts
2.) Punctuation
Things I need to improve:
1.) Adding more detail
2.) knowing when not to add too much detail
“What literature has taught me about the effects of racism”
Racism is seen everywhere, whether its from movies, books, or real life almost everyone has seen it. In the graphic novel sugar falls a young girl was taken from her home and put into a residential school. The purpose of the residential school was to make them feel ashamed about their culture. They were taught not to speak in their language and to praise God. They had to cut their hair and wear plain clothes. Residential schools would make a child feel ashamed to be who they really are. In the novel Indian Horse al Saul wants is to play hockey. When Saul plays hockey he finds happiness and peace. But because he is First Nations he is not allowed to participate on the ideal team. Racism prevents one from completing their dreams. After failing his hockey carrier and leaving the residential school, Saul becomes an alcoholic and this makes him go down a darker road. Racism ruined Saul’s future. He could’ve been an amazing hockey player and he could’ve had a happy life. Because some don’t see others as equals; because of their culture they are forced to have a tougher life. Saul’s mother grew up in a residential school this caused her to be shattered. His mother’s past affected his childhood and caused him to fear residential schools before even being put into one. In the poem, what do you remember of the evacuation by Joy Kogowa, it explains how Japanese citizens were forced to leave all of their belongings behind and go work in camps. Even if they were born in Canada they were treated differently because of the way they looked and the colour of their skin. The young child who is going to the camp wants to be white so bad: She says, “and I prayed to God who loves all of the children in his sight that I might be white” (Joy Kogowa). A child wants to change who she is because society is telling her that she is not right. In conclusion racism is seen way too often, it puts down a person and cause their lives to have unnecessary struggles.
Spoken Word – Lies you were told when you were a kid