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Growing up, all I ever spoke was English. I heard my mom often say odd words in other languages that I later found out were Cree and Inuktitut . My father hosted radio shows and always talked to my grannie in a language I never understood: Chipewyan. My father is a residential school survivor. He was shamed for speaking his language. He decided not to teach us how to speak Chipewyan for fear that… Read more.

Sì Stacey Sundberg Siyeh,  Semò Marò, Setá Brian, Ehtsì Mary Louise Drygeese, Ehtsè John Drygeese  Mahsì cho Elders always say the best way to introduce yourself is in your language, and always acknowledge your grandparents and/or your great-grandparents, so I always remind youth and children to do so also! The best advice is the elders’ advice!!  Dene languages in the North are our lifeline.… Read more.

Politicians loudly and proudly declare their support for language revitalization. CBC loves a good fluff story about a young person learning their language. The public school system claims they have integrated Dene and Inuit languages and culture into the classroom (Dene Kede and Inuuqatigiit). Yet I can only count a handful of youth my own age (24) who can understand, let alone speak, their… Read more.

In keeping with the theme for National Family Literacy Day, “Travel the World Together,” I want to describe how I travel in my work. As the Community Connections Coordinator, I run programs for immigrants to help them adjust to life in Yellowknife. Often, I learn as much from the participants as they might from me. At Global Cooking, I am in awe as I watch the newcomers prepare delicious food… Read more.

Each year on January 27th we celebrate National Family Literacy Day. In 1999, ABC Life Literacy Canada created National Family Literacy Day as a day of awareness and celebration of family literacy and families having fun and spending time learning together. Two decades later it is now celebrated across the country, as well as here in the NWT! This year our celebration will look a little… Read more.

“Traditionally, education was not schooling. Learning for survival happened during all the waking hours, each and every day, and all life long. Learning occurred through life experience—not in abstraction or set apart from on-going life activities.” -    Dene Kede [K-6], 1993, p. xxvi This year, the NWT Literacy Council is once again coordinating the annual Indigenous Languages Month (ILM),… Read more.

Each December, NWT Literacy Council staff members choose books that they will be giving as a gift, would like to receive and read over the holiday, or a favourite book they have been given in the past. This is the third group of our picks. Read our blogs from December 3 and 11 for parts one and two.   A book I am going to share this holiday season is The Last Story of Mina Lee by Nancy Jooyoun… Read more.

Each December, NWT Literacy Council staff members choose books that they will be giving as a gift, would like to receive and read over the holiday, or a favourite book they have been given in the past. This is the second group of our picks. Read our blog from December 3 for part one, and on December 17 for part three. I am giving The End of Everything by Katie Mack to my eldest daughter. One of… Read more.

Each December, NWT Literacy Council staff members choose books that they will be giving as a gift, would like to receive and read over the holiday, or a favourite book they have been given in the past. This is the first group of our picks. Read our blog again December 10 and 17 to see more.   My choice for this year’s book recommendation is The Wild Heavens by Sarah Louise Butler. It was… Read more.

Nine years ago, my boys and I came to Canada as newcomers.  We were, of course, excited about the new life that awaited us. However, within a few weeks, reality began to sink in, the excitement almost disappeared instantly, and the questions started popping up.  Will I get a job? Will my children be able to adapt to school knowing that English is a second language? Will we be able to adjust to… Read more.