All of the knowledge that has been shared with us from Elders David Katzeek, Linda Belarde, and Selina Everson, has been a real privilege to hear. It is wonderful getting to listen to such a vast amount and variety of tid-bits, life experiences, and tips that they have gained over their lifetimes.
The thing that really stuck out to me (the “nugget” of information) was that Linda really touched on things that we’re currently discussing in our class. Things like relating to the students. Developing a personal relationship with them or “love” them as Linda said. This way of thinking is really important because sometimes the importance of developing those deep relationships isn’t stressed enough. Sometimes (especially in smaller villages) when a student doesn’t have the greatest home life, the teacher is their number one advocate for support. Without that close relationship, there is the potential to really dull the student’s drive to attach with you.
This becomes directly applicable in the classroom when we think about the meaningfulness of the relationships that we’re developing with our students. The more the students can trust us, the more that they can open up to us. This connection will likely make them more attached to learning.
Gunalchéesh
Joe