EVERYBODY PLAYS: LEAGUES OF PLAY

A circle of adults during a basketball coaching clinic with a rolling whiteboard in the centre.

In the 2022/2023 school year, Ever Active Schools and Canadian Tire Jumpstart entered into a multi-year partnership centered around the dream that everybody plays. Through this work, we are providing: 100% opportunity to participate so that everybody plays. Focus on priority populations so that everybody plays. Capacity building through grassroots approaches so that everybody plays.…

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EMPOWERED, INSPIRED AND CELEBRATED: STILL I RISE

The idea for ‘Still I Rise’ initially came to be in December 2020, when an insightful EAS team member working primarily in the Treaty 8 region recognized the need for Indigenous youth to receive messages of hope, perseverance and resilience in a time of uncertainty. From there the concept of a free virtual student event…

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LAND-BASED LEARNING: CONSIDERING THE FUNDAMENTALS

Written by Andrea Barnes. Originally published in GEOEC Connections Journal, October 2021. As an Environmental Educator with Alberta Parks and a classroom teacher, one of the silver linings of this past 1.5 years has to be the dramatic uptake and motivation for teaching outdoors. As we move into another year, hopefully, this energy and passion…

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OBSERVING THE NATIONAL DAY FOR TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION

Ever Active Schools will observe the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30th. We encourage other organizations, schools and communities to pause and also move to having September 30th as a public holiday, including the Government of Alberta.  True reconciliation involves reflection and truly listening to the positive actions that we can take…

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ACKNOWLEDGING THE PAST THAT ENSURED OUR FUTURE

Acknowledging the Past that Ensured Our Future Written by Apsipistoo (Evans Yellow Old Woman) Oki Niksokowa, nistoo’unohk Apsipistoo, nitohmto’to Siksikawa.  Hello my friends, my name is Apsipistoo, which is my Siksika name. It was gifted to me by my late great grandmother Koomakii, who hailed from the Blood Tribe. My name means White Owl.  My…

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CRAFTING MEANINGFUL LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Close up of green leaves from below with sunshine above and a sun spot creating an orange ring.

Beginning in September 2020, Ever Active Schools began to question our practice of territory land acknowledgements. The tipping point for some staff could be expressed in the words of Kay Ho: “Oftentimes, when non-Indigenous organizers make a territory acknowledgement, it is done hastily, and then discarded.” (2014, An Introduction to Settler Colonialism: Part Three) This…

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A TRADITIONAL FOODS CAMP IN ENOCH, ALBERTA

Written by Chelsea Cattroll, Ever Active Schools Once upon a time, in a not-so-distant past, Ever Active Schools and Edmonton Public School Board (EPSB) launched a project called Miyomahchihowin (“In Good Health” in Cree). This project aimed to support pathways to employment and post-secondary education for Indigenous youth. Fast forward a few years and new…

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MY HEART IS FULL: COMBATING COVID-19 THROUGH TRADITIONAL SKILLS

Written by Chelsea Cattroll, Ever Active Schools, with support from Dr. Kevin wâsakâyâsiw Lewis, kâniyâsihk Culture Camps We turn to the land when we are stressed to re-connect to ourselves and become grounded. During a time that can be perceived as stressful and turbulent, I have seen that many people are starting to return to…

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INDIGENOUS STUDENTS ATTEND SUMMIT TO STRENGTHEN RESILIENCE

MORE THAN 300 STUDENTS, TEACHERS, COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND ELDERS FROM FIRST NATIONS AND METIS COMMUNITIES ACROSS ALBERTA GATHERED AT WINSPORT IN CALGARY ON NOVEMBER 27 AND 28 FOR A SUMMIT ON HEALTH, WELLNESS AND RESILIENCE.  The two-day event began with a host of active icebreaker activities that saw students interacting with new faces right off…

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CELEBRATING NATIONAL INDIGENOUS PEOPLES DAY

It is our hope that every student in Alberta experience the diversity of Indigenous cultures on National Indigenous Peoples Day! Every year on June 21, schools all across the nation take the opportunity to celebrate Indigenous culture and history.

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