The Blanket Exercise: Building awareness about First Nations
On Wednesday, February 17th, as part of a grade 7 and 8 focus on Citizenship, we met with Sara and Ami Anderson, two Rockway alumni sisters who work and study in the area of Indigenous Peoples of Canada, their current and historical relationship with Canadians, including Mennonites. The purpose of their visit was to build awareness of this historical perspective for our grade 7 and 8 students.
Sara and Ami began by sharing their own history and background with us. This was interesting because they grew up with a First Nations father and a Mennonite mother.
After reviewing some basic terminology, such as Aboriginal, Indigenous and First Nations, we participated in a “Blanket Simulation” exercise. We all stood on blankets spread on the floor, representing the Indigenous population on Canadian land. We were then assigned roles and readings and, as Sara and Ami unfolded Canada’s history over the past 500 years, we watched as the blankets shrunk in size and even disappeared, representing loss of land for Canada’s indigenous peoples. It was sobering to see fewer and fewer people occupying the blanket space. The removal of people from the blankets represented the high numbers of Indigenous peoples who died from disease, malnutrition, abandonment and other effects of European settlement.
It was helpful to participate in a Talking Circle at the end of the blanket exercise. This provided opportunity for us to share our thoughts or ask more questions.
The experience challenged us to think about Canadian History from a different perspective and it will be important for us to carry this new understanding into academic study and also the living out of our own Canadian citizenship.
Lynette Gossen, teacher
