#MYRECONCILIATIONINCLUDES- A Day of Education for Truth & Reconciliation On June 8th, 2017 students and staff at St. Peter School embarked on a journey towards truth & reconciliation as our solid commitment to meeting the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action. We focused on learning Canada’s collective history of Indigenous peoples. St. Peter School learned through a variety of contexts through print, art, oral expression and faith with strong evidence of reconciliation. Students and staff at St. Peter School participated in the Project of Heart and Shannen’s Dream initiatives. Many activities were planned and taught to students about these educational programs leading up to this day. The Project of Heart is an educational program that commemorates the children that attended the residential schools through small tiles. These tiles were decorated by the students, signifying a child that never made it home, or a survivor of these schools. Each classroom picked one residential school in Sask. to commemorate those students at that school. In addition to the tiles, and in preparation of our guest speaker, who spoke to the school assembly about her experience at residential school, students prepared survivor cards. These cards were prepared prior to this day, and students decorated around a thank you message and a prayer that were inside the card. These cards were then sent back to Project of Heart and they will distribute them to residential school survivors throughout Canada. Students also took part in a national letter writing campaign. This letter writing is part of the Shannen’s Dream campaign. Students wrote letters to the Canadian Government and voiced their concerns and opinions about equality for all, and addressed the injustice of the educational funding gap that exists between First Nation Reserves and urban children’s’ education. During the last hour of the day we walked in solidarity for Shannen’s cause. St. Peter’s plan for June 8 – Our Day of Reconciliation – Our call to action.

By: Karen Goodon

Grade 5/6 teacher

St. Peter School