Full blown arctic blizzard!

The storm has turned into a full blown blizzard meaning that school has been cancelled for the morning.   Unlike in the South, here school can be cancelled for the morning and resume in the afternoon.

I never expected to have a "snow day" in the North as I expected everyday to essentially fall into the category of a southern snow day. However, upon watching the blizzard progress it is clear that any expectation of having small children venture outside to walk to school would likely result in them blowing away. Even the typical noises of the morning snowmobiles, water trucks and sewage trucks I have become accustom to are missing and replaced with large gusts of wind. It makes me think about how it must have been for Inuit living on the land during a blizzard.

I'm sad I will miss the morning with the students. I feel like so many things have happened that have limited my time with them.


                                            This is the typical morning view I wake up to.

This is the blizzard view I woke up to this morning.

Last night the blowing snow made the Valley look really cozy and quaint. 

Polar Bear Dinner -Update - I blame the boiling.

I gave it an honest attempt, got a piece of the meat in my mouth, but was unable to swallow it. The smell of it boiling left something to be desired and I haven't been able to get past that. Though it looks like roast beef, I'm not quite in agreement that it tastes like it.

Terin worked very hard in the kitchen to prepare it, and I feel awful that I couldn't enjoy it as I usually have no issue trying anything and I do greatly appreciate her taking the time to do so. I feel as though had I not been around during the cooking process where the smell of boiling meat filled the house, the outcome of the dinner for me would have been different. Perhaps I will try it tomorrow when my nostrils have cleared. When I am back south I am curious to boil a bit of a roast beef and see if I have the same aversion to that smell as I did to the boiling meat today.

Polar Bear Dinner

So Terin and I were kindly given some of the polar bear meat from the one shot the other day. Terin was a trooper and figured out a way to cook it as I seem to have developed an aversion to cooked meat.  The verdict is...

It had to be boiled for two hours...which caused a very unique smell to permeate the whole house.

It looks like roast beef and if you swallow it I've been told it tastes like roast beef. I haven't gotten there yet, but will let you know.



                                                   The gift from our new friends.

Yup, that's polar bear in a pot

Terin swears it tastes like roast beef. 

She "Martha Stewert"-ed the polar bear and I'm currently thinking about trying the stew.

blizzard?

Almost every day here has started with the sun rising to reveal bright blue skies contrasting the stark white snow that blankets everything. The colours often remind me of the photos I jealously looked at of  the trip my parents took to Greece where white buildings with blue roofs spotted the hills there. Today was different.

I opened my eyes and through the curtains saw peeks of brightness but when I pulled the curtain back (as I do every morning to look at our fantastic view) I saw nothing but blowing snow.  As I sit here drinking my coffee, I am still trying to figure out if it is ACTUALLY snowing, or if the snow that was already here is blowing around. Either way, all the footprints and snowmobile tracks that have dotted the snow over the past three weeks are now being erased. 

A Day of Fun!

The Carnival was a blast, and most importantly it seems as though much of the community came together to make it fun for the students!  Not only did smiles prevail, but I learned a lot more about traditional Inuit games and life. It was intriguing to watch children as young as 5 (and a few younger children who came to join the festivities) and adults participate and enjoy the history of the culture. Seeing children recite traditional Inuit songs, and play drums, and participate knowledgeably in igloo building, and Inuit games and activities made me feel like I was seeing a living culture. Often I assume culture is something that is difficult to describe or grasp, but it was clear today that people here, young and old, know who they are and what they value. I wonder if down south we have the same appreciation for our past and future, or if I just see it here more because it is new to me.

On another note, the other night a few of us ventured to one of the two restaurants in town. Unlike restaurants down south this restaurant is open on select days and part of the menu requires a call in advance for it to be available. I did not quite understand that, until I saw the menu that required advance communication; it included caribou meatloaf, arctic char, and many other land foods that I assume would need to be caught in order for it to be available.  Despite not ordering from the land food menu, we had a great evening chatting and exploring the Dorset Suites (the restaurant was part of one of the hotels here, and it looks comparable to a Hilton on the inside).


The Igloo (Iglu; Igluviaq Snow House). It was impressive to see the men showing the students how this is done, especially since the snow was not ideal.

Sledding was one of the activities!

Hockey was another. I joined in quite often and impressed the students with my "Sydney Crosby" like skills.  

Winter Carnival

Since the day we arrived here we have heard about the Winter Carnival that is put on by our school and today is finally the day it is going to happen and I'm excited to be part of it.

Yesterday the students were divided into teams from primary to grade 6 students (this year the theme is communities of Nunavut) and sent to classrooms with teachers (like myself and one of my master teachers) to decorate team t-shirts. The group I was helping with was "Team Igloolik" and they are the polar bears (Nanuk), which was quite fitting because at lunch time one of the students mothers from Terin's class shot a polar bear outside of town so there was lots of excitement buzzing around! In fact Terin and I were given a big piece of the meat which is currently sitting in my hosts freezer because we were disappointed to hear that you can't eat it raw.  We will be asking around today for good suggestions on how to cook it.

Today each team will go to an assigned classroom where they will eat breakfast and get ready for the games to begin. The stations are very impressive too! We will have an igloo (ice house) building station, a maple taffy station, a skating station, a sledding station, a traditional dance station, etc. The teachers will be switching stations every 30 minutes and thankfully for the students participants Terin and I are never at a station without someone who knows what they are doing. I can only imagine what type of traditional dance we would come up!

I will upload pictures as soon as possible. Unfortunately my camera has seemingly decided that it prefers southern temperatures and is not producing the greatest photos, however fortunately Heidi and Terin and excellent photographers willing to share their photos.



The halls and outside of our school will transform into a bustling and exciting winter carnival today!

the flu exists in the north

I think I assumed because it is so cold here that any flu or cold viruses must surely stay away until the spring/summer thaw. I was wrong. In the last two days I have learned that despite the temperature outside the normal annoying ailments of the south still exist inside.

Having thinking I was better yesterday I went to school only to find myself returning home early in the afternoon to try to re-cuperate from what I assume is the flu. I've awoken feeling 100% today but slightly irritated that the flu is here during this time of year. If I'm fortunate enough to get a job here next year, I will be packing lots of cold and flu remedies.

Thank you to my kind hosts for taking care of me :)

A reality

It's a weird sensation to be in a part of our country, OUR Canada, and not feel like you are anywhere you've ever been before.  I've had that feeling since I landed in Nunavut on March 9th, everything has been surreal, has been new, wonderful, beautiful fun and although that feeling of excitement is great to experience (almost euphoric), I wondered if my whole trip would be a blur because of it and if I would get a chance to experience my new "here" as it really is with it's beauty but also it's honesty.

Yesterday I was sick. I think being sick brought my head back down to the ground and I felt at I got a glimpse into the the real here, not the tourist here. I looked around the school, I looked at my students, I looked around the town and it was familiar to me.  Not familiar because I could relate it to where I come from, but because this community has a special way of making you feel part of it very quickly.  I saw faces I knew and whose faces I knew the faces of their parents of grandparents. I saw some of the sadness that can happen in a community, I saw the joys that can be shared, I saw the talent that could be lost here way in the North, and I saw some of the struggles of the North.

I still love it here. I love that community means what it is suppose to mean. I love the classroom, the school, and the ability of this place to keep going despite what happens elsewhere. I love that a can of pop costs 1.99$ but fruit and veggies are comparable to home, and I love that you can actually knock on your neighbours door and ask for a cup of sugar, but will probably get invited for tea as well.

I'm still sick today, but I can't wait to go to the classroom and see my students again and see what we can learn today.  We've been working on understanding the scientific method and we're going to try to hypothesize some solutions to some problems with snowmobiles.

A Walk up a Mountain

Yesterday was another beautiful day in Cape Dorset. I've been told the weather is not always this perfect this time of year, so Terin and I are quite thankful that it has been blue skies and calm because it has provided us a great opportunity to explore more of the surroundings. Many of the staff decided to climb up to a place called the "Sewage Pond" which had been made to serve that purpose but then it was decided it was not a good location so it has become a popular place to go and explore. I was secretly a little bit skeptical about the "Sewage Pond" because in my southern mind the idea of an unused sewage pond did not lend itself to the idea of fun. Yet I was wrong.

The walk up to the pond was beautiful. The higher we got the more the community of Cape Dorset spread out below us and the smallness of our existence once again was noticeable once again. It's an experience that I've notice happens regularly here for me and one that I appreciate. Once to the Sewage Pond some of the staff decided to climb the rest of the way up local Kinngait Mountain, but some of decided against it because we did not have the proper footwear for the climb (though I found out later I could have made it with my boots). However I still had a fun time because those of us who stayed at the pond explored the rocks and the view from there.

I've rediscovered my love of rock collecting and through the snow there are often patches of rocks protruding through the snow which provide an array of amazing little gems which I hope to bring home, but am unsure if I have too many!

A small portion of rocks I've collected

The beginning of the hike yesterday, Kinngait in the background 

school day, huskies and dance

Yesterday was a fun filled day! I taught most of the day, which is something I always enjoy. The students seem to enjoy the games I try to make out of the math I am teaching and they seemed quite engaged in my continuation of the introduction to the scientific method (we had to try to come up with a hypothesis for how to fix our broken snowmobile, but apparently my broken snowmobile picture was a little more broken then fixable, but the students decided to go with it anyway, though some of them did suggest dragging it to the dump!) In the afternoon I was able to find time to finish the art project they started last week.  They turned out great, and I hope I can post some pictures and it was pleasing to   watch them enjoy being creative and using pastels (one of my favourite go-to's for art lessons).

After school, there is a program called "Huskies" that Terin and I have been shadowing the last few weeks. It provides students with computer time, gym time and a snack.  It's a pretty cool program that provides kids with something to do after school.  It's fun to watch them play and have a good time, and it's a nice opportunity to meet students I might not actually have a chance to meet.

In the evening we were invited to the grade 3-6 dance. It was such a blast and professionally put on by a very technologically talented teacher here.  The students were dressed to the nines and having so much fun. The evening ended with a traditional Inuktitut dance that lasted 20+ minutes and involved everyone (including the teachers) being paired up and doing a rather complicated dance which I was graciously taught by one of my grade 4 students. I was told later that everyone in the community knows how to do the dance and it's very common at events for this dance to occur. It was fun!

High School visit and the Elder's

Yesterday we were invited to the high school to visit with the elders. When we arrived we took the opportunity to visit the daycare that is held in the high school. This daycare is exceptional and like anywhere the children there were super cute!  After our visit there we went to the art room where the elders were.  I wasn't sure what to expect, but I soon realized that they go to the high school to teach and share traditional art with the students at the school.  It was really awesome to watch them sew and bead, and to watch the interactions between the youth and the elders. The students were very interested in us and asked plenty of questions, which in turn allowed us to ask them questions.  Many of them have mothers or aunts who continue to sew and do bead work, so they were excited to be also learning about it in school.

Later we went and visited the elders who teach carving to the youth.  It was interesting that they are taught to carve without using modern tools and we were told it takes a long, long time to do this, compared to the modern tools now used.

After this we were invited to participate in the Inuktitut class where the students drummed, played games, and throat sang for us (a little bit).  It was so engaging and fun!  Some of the games were quite tricky and I was impressed with the physical ability some of it required.  Terin and I want to attempt to learn to throat sing and visit them again and impress them with our skills...but we'll see!

Clip made by student

Seal bones used for games

Tiny mitten sewn by student

PD day 2 and the print shop

Today was the second day of our PD day held by the QSO and was based on assessment in schools. The information was a refresher of much of what we have learned down south but I appreciated it and the the activities as well as the time spent with the teachers and school staff. It was also interesting to sit in a room full of an again diverse group and sense the desire for change, but also to sense the lack of resources and tools for that change.

After the PD day we were invited to go to the print and lithography shop. It was so fascinating to see the shop in action!  Prior to going to the shop, I did understand that the work involved in actually making a print was intense, but seeing it in person really brought that home.  The whole process starts with the print shop purchasing local artists work (and they truly only buy Cape Dorset work). Those prints are then transferred by the print shop artists etching onto slate (from old pool tables right now; ingenious I thought). Then they pour ink over the etching and put Japanese rice paper over the ink and press the ink into the paper with various tools (a spoon like thing seemed to be the best option). this process goes over and over again until all the layers of ink are on the print. The final products are incredible. The lithography shop is similar and from what I could tell, the main difference is that they use metal to transfer the drawings and the ink is pressed on with the use of rollers. All very neat!

While we were there we also were fortunate enough to meet one of the artists. She had come in to sign all her prints as the original artists is the one who gets credit for the work, but on each piece they also put the emblem of the print shop and a mark to recognize the print maker. It was fascinating to watch her see her final product and put her final "stamp of approval" (as I saw it) on it. Also we learned that the print shop and lithography shop now work together. I never thought they didn't work collaboratively, so I was surprised this was a new thing. I was also interested and inspired that we met apprentices and to hear about the process of moving up in the company.

Kenujuak Ashevak - renowned artist- the last print done by her at that shop.

PD day

      Today we were fortunate enough to participate in a PD day about Residential Schools held by the QSO.  Interestingly both members of the QSO were from the Maritimes!  There is a lot of Nova Scotians up here now! It was fascinating to be part of the discussion because it involved a room of people from the South, from the North, people who had been in residential schools and people who had stayed back during those times. It's hard to believe that these events occurred such a short time ago that I would be able to sit and hear first hand accounts of what it was like. It was surreal for me, and I feel that those events need to be shared more among the general public of Canada.

 

The Land

Yesterday we headed out to the land to be part of the Cape Dorset Fishing Derby, which I was told has not happened in a long time.  The day started early with everyone meeting and hanging around at the local Co-op with their snowmobiles and qamutik (sled). All the sudden someone gave the word and Heidi (our teacher friend from school), Terin and myself jumped into the qamutik and we were off!  The journey to the lake (and by lake I mean frozen lake) was really exciting because we journeyed over  land that is completely untouched in a giant convoy of qamutiks and sleds. Once there, everyone unloaded and started setting up for the day. A Tupiq (tent) went up, holes started being drilled in the ice, raw caribou legs started being shared, walrus meat being passed around (all frozen, raw and surprisingly yummy), tea and hot chocolates were being passed around, children were being carted up on snowmobiles to sled down amazing hills that surrounded the lake, and then the Derby began!

Watching 100's of people fish through 8 foot deep holes in the ice, dressed in modern gear with a mix of tradition clothes was incredible. The southern world I'm use to seemed a thousand miles away as we participated and watched this Inuit event surrounded by the now familiar sounds of Inuktitut. The day went so quick, it flashed by, but as I've been processing the events of the day, I have again realized the fortune I have had to have had this experience.

our ride

Time Flies! northern lights and fishing derby!

It is incredible to believe that I stepped off the plane in Cape Dorset only 6 days ago!  The time here is already going so quickly but like the saying goes "time flies when you're having fun"!

My class is great! The kids are full of energy and I appreciate them so much for being so sweet to me and helping me understand the community here and their lives.  One of my absolute favourite times with them is in the morning when they are reading while others finish their breakfast. I walk around and see what they are reading and ask them questions about it, or ask if they want to read to me (they are all so eager to show how much they can read, and I have to say it is incredible to think how far they have come with English in such a short time!). The students have picked up on the fact that I like to spend time with them, so when I sit by one of them reading, I often find that they all congregate to where I am and participate in whatever book is going. Some of their favourite books include anything about animals (which is right up my alley), and I have found it so enjoyable to be surrounded by them and reading together.  It is a special time that I hope continues for me during my time here because it allows me to see what they already know, but it also is a time of sharing connections and stories over the pages of a book. For example I learned yesterday when looking at a picture of an eagle, that they don't have eagles here but they have falcons and that they go south for the winter, I also learned while looking at a goose that the students will get me one to eat if I'm here in the summer and they'll show me how to catch a goose.

I realize my blogs have been sounding like roses and rainbows, and feel that perhaps some things are being missed because I am so content here.  Many things are different in a classroom here. The strictness of some of the customs in a southern school are not as apparent here.  The atmosphere at the school Terin and I walked into on Tuesday is one of safety, comfort and it has a strong sense of community which is similar to the south.  Another difference is that the chitter chatter that occurs in the halls and sometimes during class time is always in Inuktitut, but since I have shown a great interest in learning the language they usually will translate the gist of whatever is being said. In terms of lessons, yesterday and I did a very basic introduction into the scientific method, and the book I found seemed inadequate for an Inuit classroom, because it was so southern, so I changed it and we talked about what science is and where we can see the effect here in Cape Dorset. It was pleasing that by the end of it the students understood that the creation of new "things" and the discovery of new "things" and the way to solve problems involves hypothesizing. Somebody in the world had to come up with the idea of creating a motor which now can be found in snowmobiles, but they didn't just say "oh we don't want dogs pulling our sleds, or down south horses pulling our carriages" they had to come up with ideas and plans to try out.  I'm hoping to have them hypothesize about something next week (I just haven't figured it out yet).

Last night I also had the incredible pleasure of seeing the Northern Lights! They were right above the house I'm living in, and I heard my host scream with excitement and I ran outside and saw them. They are AMAZING. Here they are this weird greenish colour and they just slither across the sky in weird and beautiful ways. I completely had a moment where I felt like I was in a movie, or not really here as I stared up at them. They are a sight to be seen!

One of the most exciting things to happen yesterday was that Terin and I found out we will definitely be going out to the community fishing derby today. My hosts and another very cool teacher arranged a sled and a snowmobile for us. We will be heading out shortly with that cool teacher to experience the land, and I'm so exited that I can hardly wait to share the experience on the blog tonight!

On that note, I must depart. Pictures will follow!

Thursday mini-walkabout

Here are some pictures from out walkabout today. 

The high school

Apparently behind us is open water during the summer months. It's hard to believe.

Kids are kids

It's funny how you can travel so far away and find the same smiles and laughter over silly games, and funny jokes. I think I've lucked into a pretty great class once again.  They keep me on my toes but have an enthusiasm for life that is contagious. I find myself learning so much from them, and they are eager to help me learn Inuktitut so that when I am on duty I can speak to the littler children.

The days at school are broken up much differently than I am use to down south. In the mornings children come in, take off their outside clothes, come into the classroom and have breakfast. The breakfast is much more substantial than anything I've seen down south. From omelet like dishes, to oatmeal and fruit, there seems to always be a hot meal waiting for them.  After breakfast, they do math (which I suppose is typical) except the students are divided into two groups, and it is rotated so essentially the math lesson is taught twice. Then they have Inuktitut class. I am looking forward to sitting in on a class to maybe learn a bit more as it is a really fascinating language and everyone enjoys when we try to speak it. Then they have recess, which is followed by science, social studies, or health, then lunch (1h25minutes), then language arts, and art or gym in the afternoon.

Today I made comics with some of the students in my class. One of my master teachers had read them a story about a man having his leg ripped off by a shark (something that might alarm some children from the south, but was readily received by my students as they have seen many animals gutted and the idea of a leg being ripped off did not alarm them), and some students had finished their work the day before regarding the story early. The teacher wants them all starting on the same thing tomorrow, so I took the students who had already finished and then more as they finished and had them create a comic strip about the story. I explained how though it was a comic strip, it's not funny what happened to the man, but that it is a good way to express what they each understood from the story.  I wish I could scan each one and share them on this blog because they were WONDERFUL! Some students made serious comic strips about what happened and some of them actually managed to make the comics funny while maintaining a respect to the event. I was pretty impressed.

At lunch and after school I was on duty, and I spent the time pushing students on swings as they giggled away.  When the bell rang, I thought I would impress the students who were not coming in right away because they were having too much fun with what my students in my grade four class taught me by saying the words for "come" and "hurry" in Inuktitut...Well, these children quickly stopped what they were doing and stared blankly at me with their hands on their hips. I figured what I had said was wrong and made no sense... and I shrugged and said to a Inuk teacher "well I tried, I guess I need to practice" and she said "it was right, they were probably just shocked you knew some Inuktitut".  Whether she was just being kind or not, it made me feel pretty good on my attempt, despite it being an unsuccessful way to get the students in!

After school my other master teacher has set up a radio station for various students to host. I had the pleasure of seeing it action the other day, but today I was asked to step in as a host due to one of the students being unavailable. Before I knew it, I found myself sitting next to a grade 6 student with a microphone in my hand, headset on, listening to the last few seconds of a pop song I'd never heard, looking at what appears to me to be extensively professional radio gear, and freaking out and sweating because clearly the kid next to me has more confidence than I do. The feeling was similar to the moments before a piano recital or big speech...I was terrified! Thankfully the grade 6 students confidence wore off on me when he offered me a smile after I told all of Cape Dorset I was from "Nova Scotia, Canada....uhhh....yeah Halifax" and it ended up being a great time.

Terin and I decided to venture out after school and explore the community a bit. We saw local carvers working which was quite amazing! We then went to the high school and got a little bit of a closer look. We visited one of the two stores in town where I noticed that three ears of corn cost 9.98$, and baby canned corn was cheaper than in Nova Scotia. We then walked around and met one of our hosts and marvelled at the beauty of Cape Dorset from a gazeebo they have here in town. It truly is spectacular and every time I look out, it feels surreal.

Terin and I have also (thanks to my gracious and lovely hosts) been able to secure a time to visit the print shop and have a tour! We are both eager for that. They have always been talking around town for us to see some more of the local art work, and to participate in local events. We have hit the jack pot with our hosts in many ways, and one of which is their ability and willingness to help us experience the real Cape Dorset.


Also a note to Rebekah, thank you for the extra camera thingy, it has definitely come in handy!




I didn't know...but now I do!  Poster found around school and town.

Another polar bear warning poster. 

Painting on the wall inside the school.

Mona, my host's other roommate. I can find a cat to love anywhere. Literally.

            Playground at lunchtime.

Again, playground at lunch. The view is truly spectacular.

Entrance to school. 

On another note, to my grade 6's in Nova Scotia
-one of your letters showed up! I haven't seen which one, but I will hopefully tomorrow.
-I'm still on the lookout for a polar bear, but I've been assured by the students in my grade four class that I definitely only want to see one from a far and that I better be able to run fast backwards if I do see one up close.

Classroom

Today is the first full day of being in the classroom.  I've quickly realized the benefits of knowing about the cultural nuances of Nunavut prior to coming.  My nose squinching and eyebrow raising have

been (as far as I can tell) noticed and somewhat appreciated by the students. I think they also appreciate my attempts at speaking Inuktitut too and they eagerly and slowly show me the proper way to say things, and thanks to one student I accurately said the word "poop" in Inuktitut after he pointed out to me as we looked at a national geographic magazine during recess that sheep have funny poop. He's right, they do.

Right now, though I am in the North, I have to be honest and say that I have been finding more similarities with the school and students than differences. I somehow felt I would come here and feel completely out of place and look at the students as unfamiliar, but so far I feel the familiarity I'm accustomed to back in Nova Scotia. The differences I do notice are not IN the students or locals, the differences are in the situations they face and deal with daily.

Perhaps because I am in the process of settling in, and everything is new to me I may somehow psychologically be trying to find these familiarities, and maybe in a few more days I will be better able to distinguish more of this experience, but maybe not.  It's still all too exciting to tell!

Hello Cape Dorset!

After realizing the plane was safe, I enjoyed the rest of the short flight to Cape Dorset. The views were quite amazing, and the landing was perfect. Upon arrival we were greeted by our gracious hosts, Principal and fellow teachers which really set the mood for a warm welcoming in a -26C environment. The airport was about the size of a small Nova Scotian classroom and our luggage was pushed through a giant hole in the wall. It was great because we only had to wait about three minutes from departing the plane to receiving our luggage.  Thankfully and kindly our welcoming committee helped us with our extremely heavy luggage, which I have determined some of it might have been pointless to bring.

As our suitcases were loaded into the bus (the Principal kindly used the access a bus to pick us up) we realized he was going to give us a tour of Cape Dorset. Trying to come up with words to describe a place so foreign to my eyes, and so vastly different than where I come from is challenging. The beauty of it alone is breathtaking. Snow covers everything in a thick, crispy layering of pure white that does not seem to suffer the same fate as Nova Scotian snow (how it turns brown along the roadsides and yucky), tips of dark grey rocks protrude through the white snow and give form to the landscape. It truly is amazing to see.

On our tour around we were shown where the infamous polar bears might be seen, but were cautiously warned about going there alone. We were shown the two stores, which were much larger than I had expected and appear to be the place to hang out and we were also shown the different area's of town like the RC, the Valley, Downtown, and I think there is one more but it has slipped my mind. Then I arrived at my hosts house which is not anything like expected. In my head I had imagined something unfamiliar to me, but this looks very similar to townhouses we have lining the streets of Halifax and Bedford. Upon entry to the house I immediately felt welcomed and at home thanks to the effort and kindness of the hosts. I think it must be hard to have someone unknown come and stay with you, but Jess and Katie immediately put any worries I had at ease and made me feel comfortable.

After a lovely dinner and some fun conversations I began to crash fast! I went to bed, slept like a log and woke up refreshed and ready for the first day, and what a day it has been!

The school is literally up a small hill from the house I am staying at and is a quick walk, but I was certainly glad to have my arctic boots, mittens and parka! On our quick walk we even saw a polar bear skin drying on the side of someone's house across from the school! We arrived at the school and walked right in. It's amazing how all schools seem to have the same smell of paper, footwear and the weird smell a photocopier gives off. I was given a tour of the school which to my surprise was comparable, and in some ways much better than the state of some schools in Nova Scotia. As I met staff, got my bearings the bell rang and like a flood of water they came in noisy, excited and eager to see their teachers. Snow pants flew, jackets dropped, mittens were stowed away and the day began.

As the students rolled into the classroom, my impression was that each and every one of them has enthusiasm but that they were for a brief moment timid of the new face standing at their door. After introducing themselves it did not take long before they were eagerly asking me questions which I've promised they have plenty of time to ask.  The morning really flew by, partly because I still feel like I'm in a dream, also because it's a school and I've learned days fly by and even more because today was parent teacher day so the students were gone at noon. I'm looking forward to tomorrow when I will get more time to spend with the children and learn more about them.

    I'm in a lucky situation up here. I will be working with 2 Master Teachers, one who is focusing on language and the other on all the other subjects. My first impressions of them are great and I am looking so forward to learning as much as I can from them. They seem happy to have Terin and I here and we are certainly happy to be here.

As I sit here writing this entry I'm looking around the class thinking about all the things Nick taught us about Nunavut and the people. I'm pleased to say one of my Master teachers regularly tries to incorporate Inuktitut into his teaching and there are signs that although the education here is very southern, there are definitely lights of hope that teachers in Nunavut are teaching for the students of Nunavut.


       View from plane coming into Cape Dorset

More Cape Dorset from Plane

                                          The Cape Dorset International Airport.

The "Park" in Cape Dorset

                                                  Around Cape Dorset

                View from my bedroom window of part of Cape Dorset at night.

       
                                           View from my window of part of Cape Dorset in then early morning hours.

Classroom bulletin board border. I appreciate that it is culturally significant.

                                              Classroom

                         Polar bear skin being dried on the side of someone's house beside the school.

                                           More classrooms.

Hallway outside of some of the classrooms.

It feels great to be here! 

Iqaluit to Cape Dorset

Our time in Iqaluit came to an end early Monday afternoon, but not before Terin and I having an experience of a lifetime. Not only were we fortunate enough to be IN Iqaluit we had the good fortune of randomly (an I do mean randomly) making friends with some Quebecois Reservists who kindly offered to show us around town Monday morning which gave us a better appreciation of the city. Carl, Fred, Michael and Phil were lovely to us both and we both sincerely appreciated the drive to the airport (and help with the luggage), great conversations (Teetee le chat will be forever remembered), and tour of the city.

One of the highlights of our grand tour was seeing the backside of the airport where our new Reservist friends pointed out the plane we would probably be flying on to Cape Dorset. It looked like it was on fire and I almost thought I'd try to walk to Cape Dorset. With Terins support, some deep breaths and my head buried in my parka, I boarded the plane, covered my head and prayed to whoever would listen. I quickly realized the plane, although extremely small and oddly named something that sounds similar to a pop tart, it was not any different than any other plane. I relaxed and enjoyed the ride!

View from our hotel, 5:30am

Bicycle waiting for spring?

                                           The mace in the Legislature; the picture does not do it justice.

         

                                                       Tapestry in the Legislature. It's GIANT!

                                                       The Legislature! So beautiful.

                                                  Antler Carving in the Legislature.

                                                     My new friend! In the Tourism Centre.

 
                                                    A POLAR BEAR!!! Unfortunately stuffed!

                                 
                                                           Frobisher Bay Frozen!

Military base!

Our new friends (minus 1) 

                                                                    Skins drying in Iqaluit

Main Street Iqaluit

Equipment for Rodger

High School in Iqaluit

More Iqaluit

Stop sign, not actually on it's side, I just need to learn how to rotate pictures. Notice the three languages!

Terin and I just outside the DND 

My feet have been staying toasty warm thanks to some kind students from my last practicum!