Bits and pieces

My Aunt came to visit this week which was really nice. She created the most amazing visual piece for my classroom - I will post pictures soon.

Friday was the CCC, also known as the Children's Cultural Celebration day. School started for them at 10:30 where they all gathered at the community hall. School started for me at 8:00 where I gathered at the school along with other staff where we communally made 600 sandwiches! The day was fabulous and consisted of the children performing for the village elders and their families. Dance, followed dance, and each one was a part of their cultural heritage. My favorite dance is probably the BBQ dance where the boys sit in the middle with fire sticks pretending to stoke the fire while the girls encircle them and pretend to be the fish on the grill continually being flipped so as not to burn. At the end of the day gifts were given by the children to members of the community. The gifts were all handmade by the kids and as such were very special reminders of these little people at this time in their lives. I *ahem* also danced in two of the traditional performances alongside the kids and other teachers, it was really cool to be performing beside my students. Our Heiltsuk language teacher loaned me one of her beautiful  traditional blankets to wear, mine had the red tree of life on the back embellished with mother of pearl buttons. These traditional blankets are referred to as Regalia.

This past week my Mother and I have been helping one of our friends here prepare for her family's  up-coming potlatch. I believe the last potlatch in the village here cost the family roughly 50,000 to stage. These events are hugely important cultural markers often staged to honour loved ones who have passed on. Our friend and her family have been so hard at work on their gifts and traditional wear for this celebration, I can't wait to see it all come to life on Monday morning! One of the projects we helped with was the silk-screening of several wooden screens and paddles that will be awarded as gifts at the end of the potlatch on Tuesday night.

As this school year draws to a close all kinds of exciting and fun events are coming up and academics are kind of going out the window. When the sun is shining and grass is green it seems almost cruel to keep the kids penned up inside.

Bunny Update: We have been given a second lion headed bunny, an immature female. The class voted and named this beautiful fluffy girl rabbit, Thumpra. I hate the name but the kids voted and while I campaigned heavily for Starr (the last name of the Teacher I am covering for) it just didn't happen.

We introduced Thumper to Thumpra and she tried to nurse from him and well he...

...he is now on an airplane to Vancouver to get his operation done. No baby bunnies for this grade four class thank-you very much. Thumper will be back as soon as he has been altered. We are really beginning to enjoy Thumper's personality, he adores being out in the class and is often hopping about while we do art projects on the floor. Some of the class murals or posters have his signature nibble decorating the edges.