Kara Smith was nervous at first, hearing a class of big- city kids from Vancouver would be visiting her tiny Island First Nation for three days.
“Then I got excited,” said 11-year-old Kara. She started to look forward to having new people to play sports and share her culture with.
Kara is from Penelakut Island, a First Nations community of about 300 people in the Southern Gulf Islands.
Most days after school, Kara hangs out at the longhouse or with friends. Last week, she joined her classmates at Penelakut Island Elementary School and community at the ferry dock to welcome a class of Grade 5 and 6 students from Bayview Elementary School in Kitsilano to their island.
“I think children nowadays have a lot more to gain and learn from each other,” said elder Margeurite James. “The awareness that comes from this kind of interaction will help us get along and work together.”
During the stay, children from both schools slept in the gymnasium, learned about local culture and nature from elders, made fry bread, played traditional games, wrote a hip-hop song and took part in a drum-making workshop.
They also learned about residential schools. One of the most notorious was on Penelakut until the mid-1970s.
Community members have struggled with the affects of abuse for decades, battling addictions, violence and depression, and trying to regain their traditional knowledge.
The cultural exchange between the students was proposed by Bayview teacher Gina Wane after one of her students suggested visiting the island.
“The theme for the year has been Coast Salish culture,” said Wane.
Her students have learned about the Cowichan knitters, studied First Nations language and read the novel Counting on Hope by Sylvia Olsen.
The book details the early days of colonization on and around Penelakut, which was called Kuper Island until 2010.
“My hope is that each student will have one thing they can take away and keep in their heart to teach somebody else. Maybe this will break barriers for other people who have stereotypes,” said Wane, who would like to see the Ministry of Education make such cultural exchanges part of the curriculum for all students in the province.
Bayview student Hannah Robinson, 12, said the trip was a dream come true for her class.
“It’s been amazing,” she said. The most poignant moment for her was hearing about residential schools from elders. “They said, ‘You won’t read about this in a textbook.’ ”
Tina Walker commutes each day from Nanaimo to teach Grades 5 to 7 at Penelakut Elementary School.
She was hesitant at first about the children coming to visit, but after speaking with elders and the community saw a benefit for her students as well.
“As a teacher I wanted my students to have a sense of cultural pride in their community and to build relationships to help them dream big,” said Walker, noting that all but one of the students at Penelakut are from the First Nation. The Bayview students are from all over the world and none had visited a reserve before.
“For the Bayview students, I wanted them to really see First Nations people in Canada so they’ll stop and say hi and be respectful, and see their stories not stereotypes.”
Walker said her greatest hope for her students is that they finish high school and go on to a post-secondary education.
Penelakut Elementary goes to Grade 7. After that, children go to Chemainus for high school.
Walker would like to see her students go to Vancouver Island University, her alma mater and a school that has fostered a welcoming environment for aboriginal students, teachers and community members.
“I know they will be looked after there,” Walker said.
“I want to see them go to post-secondary schools and bring their skills back to the community, in education, health economics and community development.”
Smith has plans to be one of those students who leaves Penelakut to go to university one day.
“I want to be a lawyer,” said the fifth grader.
“I don’t know why. I just want to. It’s a good job.”
After three days on Penelakut, all the students visited Victoria for a day to see the museum, legislature and eat lunch at the Old Spaghetti Factory.
In May, the Penelakut students will go to Vancouver to visit Bayview school, the Museum of Anthropology and to view the Coast Salish territories from the big city.
