Inquiring Into Indigneous Langauges
On this page you will find resources and curriculum connections to help you lead students through an inquiry unit on Indigenous languages and the importance of maintaining and revitalizing Indigenous languages, particularly Mi’kmaq. This project was inspired by the students of We’koqma’q Mi’kmaw School who made the following video. This video should be used to begin this unit.
What is Inquiry?
Inquiry is the result of human beings’ wonderings and curiosities about the natural or constructed world (Barell, 2008; Krauss, 2013). Our natural inquisitiveness is the driving force to ask questions and formulate means of authentic learning, and it is this inquisitiveness and passion that moves us forward (Krauss, 2013; The National Science Foundation, ND; Pahomov, 2014) and pushes our ability to think in critical, creative and divergent ways (Bateman, 1990; Krauss, 2013). IBL is a student-centred learning process that emphasizes the importance of motivating students to engage in and learn through the process of purposeful experiential investigations and research in order to better understand the world (Abuhimed, Beheshti, Cole, AlGhamdi & Lamoureux, 2013; Galileo Educational Network, 1999-2014; Kanter & Konstantopoulos, 2010; Prince, 2004; Rusche & Jason, 2011). Inquiry invites children to explore questions of interest to them related to a given topic. Through inquiry, students can cover a large number of curriculum outcomes through authentically exploring a topic of relevance to them.
Why inquire into Indigenous Langauges?
How do I connect this to Curriculum?
- Language Inquiry: Grade 4 (coming soon)
- Language Inquiry: Grade 5 (coming soon)
- Language Inquiry: Grade 6 (coming soon)
- Language Inquiry: Grade 7 (coming soon)
- Language Inquiry: Grade 8 (coming soon)
Check out a Langauge video by Rankin School inspired by this project.