Getting your kids off too a good start in life and education can start at a very young age.
There are many early childhood education programs, but the Nak’azdli Whut’en Aboriginal Head Start takes a special focus on incorporating Nak’azdli Whut’en language and culture, along with developing children’s physical, social, emotional and cognitive growth.
“I have a language teacher, I have a drumming and singing teacher that comes in and teaches us this,” said manager Corinna Courtoreille, explaining that the cultural component aims to heal the rift left by the residential schools.
“They took everything away from the parents when the parents were put into residential schools. They lost their language, their culture. They lost their way and didn’t have the resources when they came back.”
The Headstart program, which takes kids up to age six, takes a hands-on approach and gets the kids outside, even to the smokehouse where they learn to prepare fish.
“We did a ton of fish drying, canning, freezing. We’ve done jams like blueberry jam, huckleberry jam,” said Courtoreille. “We do a lot of cultural things with our kids.”
The Headstart program remained open all through COVID lockdowns, with appropriate safety plans. Courtoreille admits there were two times where they became concerned enough to close the doors.
“Our kids our first priority for all of us. So we were still at the COVID where we meet the parents at the door. We take temperatures still. We still wear our masks,” said Courtoreille, explaining that it is important to keep normalcy in the kids’ lives.
“They have to have somewhere where they can learn, they’re always using their mind. This way there’s a learning place where they’re safe,” she said.
The teaching goes home with the students, Courtoreille said.
“These kids are like sponges. You can teach them something and they’ll go home and tell their parents what they’ve learned.”
This all doesn’t come together without a lot of community support. From the Nak’azdli Whut’en chief and council, the band office staff, support for the program spreads out into the wider community. Courtoreille has a long list of people she thanks for their support.
