It's all over

I am back in Nova Scotia and I have just completed my first day of our seminar week. It's an odd feeling being back. Everyone's life continued while I was gone, so it doesn't really feel like I left...maybe it was all a dream?

The four students who went to Nunavut (Tracey, Jennifer, Mandy and me) have to present our trip to our classes on Thursday. We have 30 minutes to sum up our one month experience. It's impossible to explain our trip because you really had to be there. I'm glad I kept a blog because it has kept all my memories fresh. I may consider writing one on all my teaching experiences. I would have to do it under a secret name, but I think it's a great idea. I could be like Bridget Jones - or like that movie Julia and Julia. If I ever do this I'll make sure to send you the link.

Since I will no longer be using this, I would like to thank you for following me while I was away. It was extremely heart warming to see the number of views. It was nice to see that so many of you care. I hope you enjoyed my blog and liked reading about my adventures.

Final Day

Today was really my final day because tomorrow is an "all day" Heritage Fair. Each student has worked very hard on preparing their projects, and I will post pictures of their projects tomorrow.

Today Co-op teacher and my class surprised me by throwing a little party. They made me a beautiful card and a cake, and Donna bought me a beautiful necklace in Iqaluit. I teared up - I don't know why I'm crying all the time now - and I was really thankful for all the love they gave me. It was really touching. I found it really hard to leave my kids at Ridgecliff, but I had been with some of them since September. I have only known these kids for a month, and I'm amazed at the bond we have formed. I'm going to find it really hard leaving them. They are a wonderful group of kids and they all want me to return as soon as possible.

Something really touching happened to me today. After my party, the class had to go to their CTS class (similar to family studies and industrial arts, but with an Inuit feel) and one of the girls, Judy, stayed back.

"Would you like a souvenir from me that I made?"

"Of course Judy."

She shows me a knitted hat

"Oh Judy, I can't take your hat!"

"Yes, I want you to have it. It says my name and middle name in Inuktitut."

"I can't take it. It's yours."

No, please have it. I want you to. ... when are you leaving?"

"Saturday morning."

"I'll come to the airport and wait with you."

"Judy you don't need to do that! It will be early!"

"I'll see you at 7 am."

Soooo sweet. I wanted to grab her and hug her. I took it home and washed it and I will wear it like a crown tomorrow. I have experienced such kindness today. She gave me the hat right off her head.

Some of my students playing "Midnight Madness"

The card my students made me. Each
posted note is an individual card from my kids.

Me with part of my class.

My gifts

My necklace

Emotions

Some of my students. They
are relaxing while they
watch Mr. Bean.

My time here in Pond Inlet, Nunavut, is quickly coming to an end. I am working through my final week at Nasiviik, and I'm starting to feel emotional at the thought of leaving the kids. Will I be able to go back to teaching in a school where I don't hear my name being called throughout the hallways? "Hello Sarah!" "Sarah!" "Hi Sarah". It's nice being so popular.

The students I am with really value their teacher. She is the one constant in their young lives. I heard one of the students remark that her hair wasn't as fluffy as it usually is. Even that small amount of change set off fear and discomfort for them.

I had a member of the community who was subbing at our school remark that they weren't feeling like their self. I should have wished them a speedy recovery, but I asked them what's wrong.
"Oh, are you sick?"
"No."
"Tired?"
"No, I'm hungover."
- I was dumbfounded. Why was she telling me this? Just yesterday I heard her say she was behind in a years worth of laundry. Now she is confessing that she is hung over.
"My students said they could smell it off of me."
- I'm mortified. I'm looking around the staff room for someone to hear this and pull me away.
"Ah. Well it's self-inflicted. No sympathy from me then! (Smile to show you're not freaking out) Better have some coffee."


I later found out from my Co-op teacher that she is the mother of one of my students. At that point my heart had broke and all I could do was cry. I cried for these poor young people who are in a cycle of abuse. Because their parents or grandparents were abused when they were sent away to residential schools; Because their parents or grandparents were ripped away from their families and never learned how to become parents; Because "hitting" was not the Inuit way and it was something they learned through the qallunaat (the term all outsiders are given, but it is directed at whites) - because of all those reasons and more, a lot of my students are experiencing things that I have never. They are experiencing things I couldn't even imagine, and yet they come to school as often as they can because here at school they are safe. At school they are taken care of. At school they are told that they matter.

It is a lot of responsibility to take on, especially at the age of 23. I really respect my Co-op teacher. She fully understands her students, and yet she doesn't make excuses for them. She loves each and every student, and she strives to make each child feel special. Is this something I can take on in August/September? Am I mature enough to take on their issues? How can I worry about the curriculum when I hear what my students are going through? Can I teach during the hours of 8-4, be everything they need me to be, and then leave that all behind when I exit the school doors? These are all questions that I am trying to answer.

It was a really emotional day for me.  I have a new respect and love for these kids. I hope they see how much I like them.

I survived

Okay, so a weekend without internet was not life or death because the internet was coming in and out since Saturday morning. While its down periods I started reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Since I have started, I have been able to put it down. I know how it ends since I have already read it, but I wanted to re-read it before I watch the final movie.

So what did we do on our down time?

Friday:

At the end of the day we had an assembly for Students of the Month. Each teacher hands out perfect attendance awards, good attendance awards and a award for Student of the Month. The assembly began with a guy from Iqaluit singing a song about the second coming of Christ. Even though he sang like an angel, I thought how odd it was to have this performed at school. That would NEVER happen back home. We're not even allowed to "Christmas Tree", it is now "Holiday Tree." I found it weird, but to end the assembly he sang "Amazing Grace" in Inuktitut. Most Inuit seem to be very religious because every Monday, our school day begins with a Inuktitut prayer. This is a very unique place.

Two of Mandy's students came to Pat and Dave's house and spent hours here, playing with lego and eating their raisin bread. It was weird to have these kids here and I was relieved that they were not my students. I wouldn't be comfortable with people just dropping by and spending hours in my house - especially if I was alone. It's an intrusive custom, and I doubt students from NS would ever drop by to spend an evening with their teachers. 

Saturday: 

Our big adventure for the day was to go to the dump. It was neat. I took some pictures. It reminded me of all the trips I took with Josh to see old cars. But, instead of old cars, there were old snowmobiles and four wheelers. People throw them out, then other come to strip them for parts.  We also saw the sewage pond. Mandy fondly named it the "poop pond" and it has stuck with us. It was a neat trip, but I found no treasures. 

Sunday:

I read all day while watching shows about fitness. Now I feel fat, but there is nothing I can do about it. I better sign off so I can go eat a brownie.

_____________________________________________________________________

The sunset around 9:00 pm.

Another view of the sunset. The night remains "light" until about 11.

The dump, a.k.a "Canadian Tire"

A lot of junk - or is it treasures? 

Pond's Poop Pond - nicknamed by Mandy

The gas station. The price of gas is set at $1.14.

Where the gas attendant waits for customers.

Narwhal
This picture doesn't accurately show the size of this thing.

Probably the closest I'll get to a seal

A fashionable dog with his little booties.

This coat is called an "amauti" I am very happy
whereas she is unimpressed. 

Ugh

As I write this entry, I am not impressed. I have had a crappy day (news wise) and have been chanting the serenity prayer all day.

1. Fire alarm: Not sure if it was a drill or a prank, but there was no fire. Just before 12 the fire alarm went off. I was in the computer lab working. As the alarm went off I have few seconds to decide what I should take with me, or shall I just leave. I left incase it was a fire, but I reluctantly left my laptop behind. So out I go - no jacket, no boots - into -34 weather, -45 with the windchill. I wanted to die. My teeth began chattering. My knees were knocking. The sensation in my toes left me completely. Students were fine without jackets and shoes (yes, some were in sock feet), but they felt my pain as my lips began turning blue. Anisa offered me her jacket. I took it without thinking, but then I looked as she was now in short sleeves, and honestly, I didn't even think of refusing the jacket. She proudly exclaims, "I can take it. I'm from Pond Inlet!" and I happily walked away with her jacket. We were out there for about 10 minutes before the fire trucks arrive and it was proclaimed safe to return. I was pushing my way in, not because I had pneumonia, but because my laptop was left unattended and I couldn't imagine losing it...
2. ...well I could have lost my laptop because now I don't have internet until Monday. I heard this new over my lunch hour. The internet will be down at our house until Monday so the network can perform some updates. I'll be able to check my email while at school, but during the weekend I am cut off from the outside world. I know that people have survived hundreds of years without running water, electricity, telephones, internet, etc. - but I'm not one of those people. I have grown up with these luxuries and it is hard to give them up now. I have dealt with not having my cell phone for the 18 days, 3 hours, 45 minutes, but now I am completely cut off from friends and family for an entire weekend...

Guess you won't hear from me until Monday or Tuesday.

Whirlwind Adventures

I haven't been keeping up to date in my blog because I have been very busy. I'm quite the celebrity around here - mostly because Mandy teaches all kids between 4-12, so when they see her they yell, "Hey Mandy!"- so I'm famous through association. Mandy was asked if I was her older brother, and I don't know how to take that.

Thursday:
It was another stressful day teaching paragraphs. It seems like such an easy subject to teach, but since English is their second language, and most of them do not like to think on their own about given topics, it was like pulling teeth. I tried to give topics about things they were familiar with or interested in: seals, caribou, hip-hop, breakfast at school, and the light season. It didn't go as according to plan, and my Co-op teacher felt that they were being disrespectful once again. I need to develop my teacher voice and peripheral vision. I felt like I was doing a good job because students kept calling me over, but what I soon realized was that the students who were asking for help did not need it, so all my time was devoted to them instead of the kids who really needed my attention.

The kids were wired because this was the last day before a four day weekend. Friday was a holiday known as Hamlet Day, and Monday was a Personal Development day for the teachers. I frequently asked the students what Hamlet Day was, or what could I expect, but no one seemed to be able to tell me.

Thursday evening Mandy and I took it easy. We watched TV and ate junk food. We had to rest up for our strenuous weekend.

Friday:

This is called Bannock. It's a type
of bread. There are many different
ways of making it.

Mandy and I started our holiday by sleeping in. Once we decided to get up, Dave was making pancakes for us. They were so buttery and delicious - such a great way to start our day. After that until about 2 o'clock, Mandy and I watched TV. Everything we watched seemed to be about weddings. At 2 o'clock, Anisa, Dave and Pat's daughter, picked us up and took us to the pond to experience Hamlet Day. Once we arrived, Mandy's celebrity status became clear.  Kids from all over started yelling her name. As she waved to all her "sweethearts" I began walking a shitzu mix. "Buddy" belongs to Dave and Pat's song, Abbas. As soon as the leash was in my mitten, little Inuit children began chasing him. I spent the rest of my Hamlet Day experience following the dog as children ran after us, attempting to pat him. The climax of this event was when a sled full of children came out of nowhere and hit me. The scene was 4 Inuit children with a shitzu on their head and me leaning over on top of all of them. Once this happened, I was ready to go home. I had had my fill for the time being.

My receipt from shopping

We went to the Northern Store (the grocery store) because Mandy and I have been craving snacks. We bought a bag of chips, and KD each. We split a bag of Reeses Pieces Eggs. The price wasn't listed, and once I bought it I could see why. For a 255g bag - $8.99 PLUS TAX! For that price I had hoped that eggs tasted like gold - and they did. It was costly, but sooooo worth it.

Later that night Anisa came to pick us up again for the adult games at the C Hall. Mandy's celebrity status became clear once again. Children kept asking her I was, so soon I had kids coming up to me saying hello, touching my hair, tickling me, and telling me stories that ended with "April Fools." After all of this I knew that choosing a career in secondary school was the right path. I hated every moment of the kids latching on to me.

A game that required dancing

The adults were playing games. I was told to join, and I was about to, when I realized the games were in Inuktitut, and since it was a "Simon Says" sort of game, I thought I had better sit it out. Good thing too. One of the actions was to go neck to neck. If a stranger had grabbed me to go neck to neck with me, I would either begin laughing hysterically because I'm ticklish, would I would have turned my head to receive a kiss. I'm still learning about this culture - maybe I would have allowed someone to kiss me and then that would have started a fight!

It was a lot of fun to watch, but I felt overwhelmed by all the children.

Saturday:

Our activity on Saturday was my idea. In honour of Lohnes Demont, I wanted to go see the graveyard. We should have asked for directions first. Our trek started out well - following a path between two enormous hills, but when the path continued on, I figured out that the graveyard must be on top of the "hill." It was like a mountain. When we reached the top, we were exhausted. We lay in the snow and stared at the sky. It was so quiet and peaceful. There are two graveyards, an Anglican and a Catholic cemetery. We had found the Anglican cemetery. It was larger than the Catholic one, but it isn't too large for the size of the town. There were a lot of young people buried at this cemetery. It was very heartbreaking walking past these graves and seeing 20 year olds, 17 year olds and children. It didn't seem fair that they were taken at such an early age. I don't know the causes, but I said a little prayer.

Sunday:

This was the big event. On Sunday, Mandy and I went on a dog-sled! We were nervous because we were told how vicious sled dogs are, but we had no problems. We bundled up because we didn't want our toes to fall off. As we arrived out on the ice awaiting our chariot, we saw our driver, Jacob (the Mayor of Pond Inlet), prepare his sled. He and his grandsons led the dogs over one by one. The dogs were tied in a fan fashion, not two-by-two. There are obvious advantages to the two-by-two method if you have trees, but since we are very north of the tree line, this was not a concern. Some of the dogs tried to bite one another, or start fights. Other dogs howled/screamed in anticipation. To keep them behaved they were whipped. This at first made me cringe, but it was something I had to suppress since I'm in a new culture.

Once we started out it was very relaxing. We headed towards the iceberg we had visited a week earlier. We soon caught up to another dog-team. We had several close crashes, but Jacob knew how to handle his team. At one point we stopped and conversed with the other dog team riders. It just happens that they were flying back to Pond Inlet when we arrived, so they remembered us from the plane. The woman told us that they were looking after the dog-team, and that one of the dogs was named Gaddafi. I tried to make a joke "Did they name him that because he's a dictator?" (I'm very political if you didn't know), but the joke fell flat. Turns out he was named that because the owners hate him (the dog...and maybe Gaddafi too).

Monday:
Our PD day began with an icebreaker since all the teachers from the two schools were in attendance. We had to find a partner and then play rock-paper-scissors. Whoever the loser was, they had to then follow the winner onto their next game. While they played you needed to cheer that person on. As more victors emerged, the supporters grew as well. By the end there were two people with a whole line of people behind them. It was fun. A lot of people had no idea how to play rock-paper-scissors since most were Inuit and over 50.

The theme of our PD day was Inuuqatigiitsiarniq (concept of respecting others) Policy. The policy is a method of establishing agreements about the way we live and work together in schools. It is all based around the principles and concepts of Inuit Qaujimajatunqangit (IQ). It may sound confusing because of all the long words, but it is really a great idea and it is something the south should adopt.

The purpose of the PD was to make teachers familiar with the policy and to get their opinion and feedback. My Principal (Rob from Truro) is going on the radio tomorrow night (Wednesday) to explain this policy to the community so they know their roles as parents and visitors to the school. It helps get everyone on the same page to help support our students to succeed.

What I found out from this PD Day:

• The opinion of the elders with very important
• Parents seem to have a lot of say in how the school is run (maybe too much)
• Parents have a lot of responsibilities
• Teachers feel that parents are passing their parenting responsibilities to the teachers
• I learned my rights as a teacher
• All adults should be models for the students - teaching staff, administration, janitors, hall monitors, visitors, parents, EVERYONE. 
• Parents need to know the correct chain of command.

It was really informative, and I feel that it will help me in my career - wherever I am.

Tuesday:

Today I taught English and Science. Totally aced it. I used this video:

This kids loved it. I hope to play it each day so they learn the song. It's very catchy!

Here is another video from my dog-sled experience. Turn up your volume so you can hear the dogs!