June is National Indigenous History Month and as part of our learning we joined in on the Jube School's live session with Lennon First Rider who is a prominent Indigenous dancer known for his Fancy Dance performances and involvement in various powwows and other events. He has been involved in fancy dance since the age of 4 and has won numerous awards and championships in various categories. He has performed at events like the Calgary Stampede and is a multi-time World Iron Man Fancy Dance Champion!
Learning Intentions:
- Students explore the foundational heritage of First Nations communities
I Can:
- Describe how heritage is cultural traditions that can be expressed and learned in many ways and are passed down through generations
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This week we took a look at the history of lacrosse before we started our ELEV8 Lacrosse residency with Coach Dan Taylor! We learned that lacrosse was started by Canadian Indigenous groups and was originally known as stickball. These Indigenous games were seen as major events, which took place over several days in huge open areas between villages and the goals, which were often marked by trees or other natural features. The early iterations of this sport were more than recreational as they held significant cultural and spiritual importance, often serving as rituals and training for war. Any number of players were involved at one time and the rules were simple...the ball was not to be touched by a player's hand and there were no boundaries! The earliest lacrosse balls were made from natural materials like wood, buckskin, or rock and were often filled with fur. The early versions of lacrosse sticks were often crafted from single pieces of wood with the head bent and strung with animal sinew.
Learning Intentions:
- Students modify movement to improve control and efficiency
I Can:
- Experiment with the three phases of movement in a variety of physical activities
- Modify one or more phases of movement to improve control and efficiency
- Participate in repeated practice for skill development
- reflect on the performance of movement skills, and apply ways to be more efficient
Coach Dan taught us...
- about the parts of the lacrosse stick and how to hold it
- how to get low and scoop the ball up off the ground
- about using soft hands when throwing, catching and cradling the ball
- to make sure the end of our stick faced our target when throwing
We also had lots of fun learning how to do some very tricky tricks like 'paint the circle', 'spin the stick' and played Hungry Hungry Hippos lacrosse style!
