ANCIENT ECHOES INTERPRETIVE CENTRE is nestled at the junction of the Coalmine Ravine and the Eagle Creek and offers both indoor and outdoor tours of our Palaeontology sites (dinosaur and fossil displays and dig), Prairie Grasslands Ecology (virgin prairie medicine and food plants, animals in the wild and taxidermy displays), and First Nations History (petroglyphs, rock formations, effigies, archaeological dig, teepee rings, buffalo jump, food processing site, tool artifacts and pottery making displays). A permanent art exhibition by Metis artist, Jo Cooper, expresses a visual and oral story with “The Disappearance and Resurgence of the Buffalo”. Additionally, sculptures outside the centre stimulate the imagination as well as humour.
Ancient Echoes is currently operating under their summer hours, which run from May 7th to August 31st. This means we are open Tuesdays-Sundays from 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM (closed Mondays). Bookings can be made by calling the Centre at 1-306-377-2045 or emailing anciente@sasktel.net. Our Valley View Tea Room is open every Friday from 2:30-4:30 PM in May-August.

Ancient Echoes is a popular site for School Tours throughout the year offering custom-designed programs for students of all ages in the areas of Aboriginal History, Paleontology, Ecology, and Archaeology.

Ancient Echoes also offers regular summer programs including traditional pottery making, drum making, ecology and palaeontology hikes, full moon walks, educational and craft days for children, as well as numerous other “ project” days. A video of the ravine walk is available indoors for “rainy days”, or for those who do not wish to hike.

Ancient Echoes has just recently added a beautiful art gallery space to their walls. Our new Prairie Echoes Gallery offers numerous exhibits throughout the year of new and established artists and photographers.

In 2008, a group called the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was made. Their job was to listen
to stories about residential schools and then write the stories down so we can learn from our mistakes.
In 2015, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission announced their 94 Calls to Action. These are 94
activities all governments, courts, businesses, schools, and people living in Canada can do to help fix the
mistakes of the past and present so that all children – including First Nations, Métis, and Inuit children –
can grow up happy, healthy, safe, and proud of who they are.

This booklet is written by Spirit Bear as a youth-guide to the TRC’s 94 Calls to Action. Each of the calls is outlined in student-friendly language that will give them a deeper understanding of Truth and Reconciliation process.

Applicable for Grades 3–6 and Grades 7–12.

The lesson plans in Treaties and the Treaty Relationship: Educator’s Guide are framed on the Historical Thinking Concepts and offer teachers interactive instructional approaches that foster engaged student inquiry. They are fortified with maps, weblinks, and supporting Blackline Masters.

Lesson plan themes explore Treaties across Canada from time immemorial to the present, making a concerted link between the past and the future.

As well, each learning activity offers adaptions and/or activities based on the lesson theme for exploring Treaties in grades three to six.

It is with the greatest appreciation that we thank the many contributors and supporters of the Treaties and Treaty Relationship: Educator’s Guide.

Go to the website to download the pdf package.

In this interactive online activity, you will explore the Canadian Arctic, the history of the Northwest Passage and the importance of maintaining a strong Canadian presence in the northern region.

Questions:

1. Identify four unique characteristics of the Canadian Arctic region.
2. Identify contributions made by some of the Arctic explorers who searched for the Northwest Passage.
3. To what extent did the Inuit culture in the Canadian Arctic help with the discovery of one of Franklin's lost ships?
4. What impact would climate change and the opening of the Northwest Passage have on the Inuit people socially, environmentally, and economically?
5. How might the opening of the Northwest Passage affect Canada’s claim to Arctic sovereignty and its relationship with other countries?
6. What are some of the ways Canada is getting involved in protecting the Arctic?

Sign up for a free account, allowing you access to all of Canada's National ballet School's courses and dance programs for kids.

Once you have signed up for an account, you can access the many cross-curricular dance units created by the National Ballet School. Note: If you are looking to access these units in French, please navigate to the "All course offerings" on the home page and you will find the French version of this course listed.

Great options to consider:
Grade 4: Rocks
Grade 5: Christine Friday Artist Study (Indigenous world-view)
Grade 6: Angela Gladue Artist Study (pow-wow and hip hop) (available in Cree as well)

Find speakers to come to your classroom in person or virtually, based on their specialty.

This resource aims to support educators, school administrators, and community members facilitate more culture-based learning on the land. It was created by four Dene and Metis education resource developers, hired by the Dene Nation in summer 2020.

The lessons in this document can be used as stand-alone activities to bring more cultural learning into classrooms and to get students learning outdoors during the regular school day. However, in order for students to build deeper connections with the land, culture and language, the ideal practice would be to bring them out on the land for more extended experiences. The lessons in this document can be used as part of multi-day culture camps, for example, or other outdoor excursions.

The “Camp Logistics” section of this document aims to facilitate this type of extended on-the-land learning. It provides sample gear lists, safety protocol suggestions for organizing a camp. Section A of the appendix also includes sample schedules or organization materials to help with this.

Lessons in this document can be used as starting points for a whole week of activities on the land, for example. Since each community is different, we encourage educators to reach out to cultural knowledge holders in their own community, to explore other activities that would connect with the ones described here. For example, the lessons on Labrador tea and sweetgrass in this document could turn into a week-long medicine camp, in which students learn about the protocol around harvesting and processing several different types of plant medicines with the guidance of local Elders.

Leah Dorion is a Metis artist who was born in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan.  This lesson gives you a few examples of books she has illustrated as well as goes through the art technique she uses. 

This unit plan overview provides links to all lessons along with links to accompanying teacher support materials that include: Student worksheets and answer guides for individual lessons; Inquiry activities with support materials. This unit includes 5 lessons that includes: Understanding Indigenous Symbols, Vocabulary and Literacy Builder activities, Medicine from the Land, "The Story of Sky Woman" and worksheets and activities to accompany the story.

Reconciliation is about exploring the past and choosing to build a better future. Sharing stories of understanding helps one another to build trust. We want to hear about your moments of reconciliation.

Head to the "Education" Tab to access resources.

A collection of resources for teachers to use with their classes, collated by the OTC.

For Grade 4 look for:
- Novel study for As Long as the River Flows
- PowerPoint- Treaty Game Show

For Grade 5 look for:
- Novel study for As Long as the River Flows
- PowerPoint- Treaty Millionaire Challenge

For Grade 6 look for:
- Novel study for As Long as the River Flows
- PowerPoint- Treaty Millionaire Quiz Show

Activities and lessons are available for Kindergarten to Grade 12.

Global and Canadian Defenders for human rights have changed societal conditions and provide inspiration for students. The overall goal of Speak Truth to Power Canada is to raise student awareness that advances in human rights come through the actions of individuals.

In this lesson plan on Truth and Reconciliation you will find:

- An interview with Chief Littlechild including his biography.
- Student activities that support the theme of this lesson, including reflection activities on Chief Littlechild’s life experiences, Residential Schools in Canada, the Truth and Reconciliation’s findings and recommendations on how to move forward.
- Three brief community defender profiles to expand the lesson and encourage students to identify with a variety of defenders for human rights.

To support the lesson on Truth and Reconciliation, you will also find:
1. Sections or articles of selected legal instruments that are tied to the theme of Truth and Reconciliation.
2. A student activity that links the Moments in Time timeline of advancements and setbacks in human rights from a Canadian perspective.

You can, of course, choose to use any or all of the suggested student activities.

Warning: All student activities are applicable to Grade 5 to 12 students, with viewer discretion warning. Teachers should review the suggested resources prior to undertaking with their students.

*This set of lessons is also available in Cree.

Early Years Tipi Teachings
Resources by Tipi Pole Value

This amazing resource looks at FNME from grades 1 to 9 with an inquiry approach. The key questions are examined for the grades including treaty relationships, spirit and intent, historical context, and treaty promises and provisions.

Following that a specific resource for each grade is included!

These Ministry of Education Treaty Education Learning Resource Guides outline:

Treaty Education - Key Questions for K-4, 5-9
Treaty Education Outcomes and Indicators
Inquiry Questions for each grade
Teacher Background Information
Suggested Resources

The Kindergarten to Grade 9 Treaty Education Learning Resource is designed for teachers to assist them in integrating the Treaty content and perspective with Saskatchewan’s curricula and is based on the inquiry method of teaching. It provides information about Treaties, First Nations people and the history of what is now known as Saskatchewan, as well as sample learning experiences, assessment ideas and suggested resource materials to support teachers in the development of their lessons.

Resources are organized by grade and outcome.

Visit the site to download the resource.

Saskatchewan has a Treaty history that has led us to the Treaty relationship we have today. The OTC Treaty Timeline below is a great way to learn more about that history.

A unit for students in grade 6 that explores the causes and consequences of residential schools in Canada.

"Our intention is not only to teach the history, but also to engage our learners in the critical thinking process
so it is no longer just the sharing of information, the critically thinking about what led us to this point in time, and intentionally planning for where we want to go in the future as we walk along the path to Reconciliation.

Reconciliation is both an individual journey as well as a collective journey. Our hope is that this resource will support our students in learning the history present within our community, create intercultural understanding of our complex communities, and help build the unknown future ahead."

The lesson plans in this resource are organized into three lines or units of inquiry. The lines of inquiry
are designed to develop students’ understanding and ability to respond to an overarching question and
challenge:

Overarching inquiry question: What might meaningful reconciliation look like?

Overarching challenge: Create a powerful representation to show what meaningful reconciliation means.

If taught individually, the lessons help students understand various aspects of residential schools and
reconciliation in Canada. As components of a unit of study, these lessons invite critical inquiry into a wider
range of topics and issues relating to reconciliation in Canada.

Each lesson includes detailed instructional strategies and required support materials. These include briefing
sheets, activity sheets, images, and source documents.

The PLEA (Public Legal Education association of Saskatchewan)publication outlines the history behind the First Nation treaties in Canadian history and their relationship to the law.