I hope that everyone had a wonderful NWT Literacy Week this year! It was great to see all of the creative ways that communities celebrated the week with our theme of Literacy on the Land. NWTLC hosted two territory-wide events, outdoor events in Yellowknife, and provided funding and prizes for events in communities around the NWT.
Our NWT-wide photo contest had 59 entries, and showed off so many breathtaking parts of the NWT. It was lovely to see each of these special places and to read why people love them so much. Congratulations to our five prize pack winners.
Nearly 100 people let us know that they read for 15 minutes on Wednesday, April 14. We heard about participants reading in the sunshine, enjoying stories together before bed, reading to their dogs and chickens, visiting the library and lots of school reading. It was so much fun to hear what you were all reading and where you chose to read! I hope our five prize pack winners enjoy their prizes.
In Yellowknife, NWTLC put four of our Story Walk© stories up on trails and in parks for residents to get outside and read together. The most popular one was Niven Lake Trail, where we had set up The Owl and the Lemming by Roselynn Akulukjuk. Walkers on the Frame Lake Trail could read A Journey Down the River by Rachel VanderVeen, and at Parker Park families could read The Littlest Sled Dog by Michael Kusugak and Vladyana Krykorka while visiting the playground. Approximately 60 people visited these walks and contacted us for a free book.
In celebration of NWT Literacy Week and Oral Health Month, the fourth Story Walk© that we set up was Our Ever Awesome NWT Brushing Song by Richard Van Camp at Forrest Drive Park. Steph visited the park for the afternoon on Saturday, April 17 to read the story with families as well as to provide oral hygiene tools. Thank you to everyone who joined her for the story while enjoying a beautiful day at the park.
NWTLC provided funding to eight organizations to host events in five communities. All events were planned to connect with the theme of Literacy on the Land and followed GNWT’s COVID-19 preventative measures. Thank you to the following groups for bringing great events to your community:
- Children First Society in Inuvik hosted a ski and snowshoe event.
- The Sahtu Dene Council and Deline Preschool joined together to spend the week outside with students at the preschool.
- Two events were held in LutsëlK’e. The LutsëlK’e Dene School and Aurora College partnered for a Dënësųłinë́ Matching Word lunch. LKDS also invited the community to Stark River for a community lunch with Dene Games.
- Moms, Boobs and Babies invited families in Yellowknife to join them for an outdoor story time with The Fox and My Boot author Lana De Bastiani, and set up a Story Walk© of A Sled Dog for Moshi, by Jeanne Bushey, that they left for families to visit over the afternoon.
- The Yellowknife Playschool hosted events throughout the week and invited parents and siblings of students to join them exploring outside.
- Weledeh Catholic School’s students participated in outdoor learning opportunities throughout the week through their Wolves on the Land program.
- In Hay River, families got outside for a sliding party with the Growing Together Society.
- Elders connected with youth to talk about on the land safety with Hay River Committee for Persons with Disabilities.
I hope that everyone had a fun week learning outside. We’d love to hear about events in other communities as well. Please send feedback about this year’s NWT Literacy Week and ideas for future themes and events to katie@nwtliteracy.ca. Thank you to everyone who joined us and who helped others celebrate as well!
- Katie Johnson, Family and Community Literacy Coordinator
