Growing Together: Open Forum

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  • 1.  Ideas for Celebrating Indigenous Peoples' Day/Indigenous Practices

    Posted 09-29-2021 07:18:00 AM

    Hi all! Looking for some ideas for Indigenous Peoples' Day which is coming up soon (October 11th). How are you celebrating Indigenous Peoples' Day? Please share any experiences or resources that could help garden programs/home gardeners acknowledge and teach about, but not appropriate, indigenous practices that are relevant to their students and kids.

    Thanks!



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    Amelia Dupuis
    Kids Garden Community Manager
    KidsGardening
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  • 2.  RE: Ideas for Celebrating Indigenous Peoples' Day/Indigenous Practices

    Posted 09-29-2021 11:27:00 AM
    Hi Amanda,

    Sadly, we are having very few field trips this year, but we have several programs that dovetail with the Georgia Standards of Excellence and celebrate Indigenous People's Day.

    We start by doing a telling of the Aniyunwiya (Cherokee) story of the Three Sisters and why they are so important to plant together. The kids act out the parts of Corn, Bean, and Pumpkin as well as Crow. Then we have the kids each plant their own cup garden; we place Press & Seal wrap over them since it's fall and the cups will be in the classroom. They LOVE both the story and the mini-gardens. 

    I have another program where I start by talking about the Aniyunwiya farms and homes -- matrilineal, women "owned" the land and the house, and so on. Then I begin an interactive program on the crops they may have grown or traded for -- I have everything from a pumpkin, ear of flour corn, a jar of cranberry beans, a jar of rice, a chocolate bar, beef jerky, a milk carton, a bison figurine, and so on.  One at a time I will take each item to a student and ask that student if they think the Aniyunwiya might have had that crop or food when they lived on the land we are sitting on.  The student gives their answer and then the class votes on it before I reveal the answer.  I also have a map that I will stick an icon on for where each item originated.  The students learn about Aniyunwiya words for the Three Sisters, foodways, agriculture, and geography all at the same time.  It's really popular.

    --
    Michelle Zupan
    Curator 
    Hickory Hill & the Tom Watson Birthplace
    502 Hickory Hill Drive
    Thomson, GA  30824
    706-595-7777
    FAX: 706-595-7177

    Visit us at www.hickory-hill.org or on Facebook.
    Follow us on Twitter: HHEducation

    Historic homes of the Watson-Brown Foundation, Inc








  • 3.  RE: Ideas for Celebrating Indigenous Peoples' Day/Indigenous Practices

    Posted 09-29-2021 02:30:00 PM
    Hello Amelia,

    Thanks for throwing out such an important question! Although the Garden is not hosting an official celebration this year we have invited a local Akimel O'othom/Navajo basket maker to demonstrate their artistic practice that is connected to the plants that are found within the Garden and the desert. It's a start which we hope to continue to grow in subsequent years.

    Below are some of my favorite resources that I share with educators:

    Article highlights Indigenous contributions to the world which includes many foods we eat today.
    Fall 2004 | NMAI Magazine (americanindianmagazine.org)

    NMAI-Essential-Understandings.pdf (si.edu)

    Culture Card: A Guide to Build Awareness: American Indian and Alaska Native (samhsa.gov)

    NAJA_Reporting_and_Indigenous_Terminology_Guide.pdf (najanewsroom.com)

    Best,

    Sharah
    Children's Education Manager
    Desert Botanical Garden
    snieto@dbg.org

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    Sharah Nieto
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  • 4.  RE: Ideas for Celebrating Indigenous Peoples' Day/Indigenous Practices

    Posted 10-10-2021 07:26:00 PM
    Thanks for these great hands-on ideas and resources, Michelle and Sharah! Our Education Specialist, Lily, just shared a great blog last week that lists many related resources including some Indigenous Peoples and organizations to follow on Instagram (added below). Does anyone know of other accounts that are great to follow on social media?



    ------------------------------
    Amelia Dupuis
    Kids Garden Community Manager
    KidsGardening
    ------------------------------



  • 5.  RE: Ideas for Celebrating Indigenous Peoples' Day/Indigenous Practices

    Posted 10-11-2021 08:50:00 AM
    Hi Amelia,

    Follow the Nations themselves.  Most of the Nations have websites and social media, many have cultural centers doing wonderful work.  You can learn a great deal about the stories, history, lifeways, foodways, art, and current events. 

    Just to name a few.....

    Western Cherokee  https://www.ukb-nsn.gov/
    Pueblo Indian Cultural Center  https://indianpueblo.org/


    --

     
    Michelle Zupan
    Curator 
    Hickory Hill & the Tom Watson Birthplace
    502 Hickory Hill Drive
    Thomson, GA  30824
    706-595-7777
    FAX: 706-595-7177

    Visit us at www.hickory-hill.org or on Facebook.
    Follow us on Twitter: HHEducation

    Historic homes of the Watson-Brown Foundation, Inc