Study Guide - We Are All Treaty People · these, and other reasons, the NWMP was established in 1873-4. Colonel James MacLeod (1836-1894) joined the NWMP in 1874. He founded Fort

JUNIOR – STUDY GUIDE We Are All Treaty People

PROGRAMME DETAILS: Grades: JK – Grade 6 Run Time: 60 minutes Curriculum Connections: The Arts – Drama Social Studies Language Arts – Oral Communication

STUDY GUIDE: Thank you for choosing to visit Harbourfront Centre during Junior – Big Thoughts for Growing Minds! Harbourfront Centre is an innovative, non-profit cultural organization which provides internationally renowned programming in the arts, culture, education and recreation, all within a collection of distinct venues in the heart of Toronto's downtown waterfront. WHAT TO EXPECT FROM YOUR DAY? When you arrive onsite, head to the appropriate theatre for your production. Be sure to check the brochure and Harbourfront Centre website for directions, and staff will be available onsite to direct you. Please arrive 15 minutes before show time to ensure that you are seated comfortably before the show begins. If you are scheduled for a Creative Response workshop, be on the lookout for School Visits staff in reflective vests to direct you to your classroom. Instructions for timing and locations will also be announced at the end of the morning production. After the show, be sure to check out the additional activities onsite, as outlined below.

ACTIVATION (Pre Visit Ideas) Included in the following pages are a number of activities to engage your students prior to attending We Are All Treaty People. Please note, this resource guide was developed with the Alberta Curriculum in mind and has been provided directly by Quest Theatre.

• History of Treaty 7 (p.3) • Key terms (p.5-9) • Key Activation Questions (p.10) • Activation Activities

o Language Arts Activity: Poetry Response (p.13)

o Social Studies Activity: Treaty 7 Research Assignment (p.14)

o Drama Activity: What Are You Saying (p.15-16)

o Drama Activity: Analyzing the script of We Are All Treaty People (p.17)

EXTENSION (Post Visit Ideas) Included in the following pages are a number of activities to continue dialogue with your students following the performance of We Are All Treaty People. Please note, this resource guide was developed with the Alberta Curriculum in mind and has been provided directly by Quest Theatre.

• Key Extension Questions (p.11) • Extension Activities:

o Social Studies: Cultural Appropriation Activity (p.18)

o Visual Arts Activity: Knowledge Bundle (p.19)

o Drama Activity: Indigenous Storytelling (p.19)

o Language Arts Activity: Reflection Writing (p.20)

ADDITIONAL LINKS TO LEARNING (Harbourfront Centre School Visits does not assume responsibility for content on the resources listed below. Please confirm the content is appropriate for your class and school community before using these suggested resources in your classroom) 1) Quest Theatre – www.questtheatre.org 2) Truth and Reconciliation Commission Recommendations –

www.trc.ca

ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES ONSITE Throughout the week, the following free activities will be available to you and your students on a first come, first serve basis Humanizing the Homeless by Leah Denbok

(Marilyn Brewer CS) A Foldable City by Sean Martindale

(Marilyn Brewer CS) Visual Arts and Craft Exhibitions (Throughout the campus) Main Gallery Space

STUDY GUIDE 2017

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Treaty No. 7 p. 3 MAKING TREATY 7 – The Play p. 3 WE ARE ALL TREATY PEOPLE – the Play p. 4 WE ARE ALL TREATY PEOPLE – the Characters p. 4 Terms and References p. 5 Some Topics to Discuss Before You See the Play p. 8 Some Topics to Discuss After You Have Seen the Play p. 8 Some Topics and Themes Explored in the Play p. 9 Pre-Show Activities Friendship p. 10 Treaty 7 p. 10

What Are You Saying? p. 11 The Buffalo p. 13

Post-Show Activities Cultural Appreciation p. 14

Knowledge Bundle p. 14 Storytelling p. 15 Treaty 7 Revisited p. 16

About Quest Theatre p. 16 We Appreciate Your Feedback p. 17 Please Help Us Thank Our Sponsors p. 17

ABOUT THIS STUDY GUIDE

Live theatrical performances are an exciting and complementary part of education for students. Quest Theatre hopes that the play, WE ARE ALL TREATY PEOPLE, will be meaningful and memorable for you and your students. This study guide has been created to enhance your students’ theatrical experience. Suggestions are provided to prepare students for the play they will see, as well as to follow up after. We hope you will take some of these ideas and adapt them to suit the needs of the curriculum and the interests of your classes. Enjoy WE ARE ALL TREATY PEOPLE!

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TREATY NO. 7

Treaty Seven was a peace treaty made between two nations – the tribes of the Blackfoot Confederacy, (Siksika, Piikani, Peigan) and Kainaiwa (Blood), Tsuu T’ina (Sarcee), the Stoney (Bearspaw, Chiniki and Wesley/Goodstoney) and the Queen (Victoria) by her Commissioners, the honourable David Laird, Lieutenant Governor and Indian Superintendent of the North West Territories, and James Macleod, Commissioner of the North West Mounted Police. As part of the terms of bringing British Columbia into Confederation in 1871, the Canadian government had promised to build a transcontinental railway within ten years. From 1871 to 1876, the government of Canada had concluded treaties with all tribes in the North West Territories with the exception of those inhabiting approximately 50,00 square miles of land south of the Red Deer River and next to the Rocky Mountains. These lands were occupied by the Treaty Seven First Nations. Treaty Seven was signed on September 22, 1877 at the Blackfoot Crossing of the Bow River, at the present-day Siksika Nation reserve, approximately 100 km east of Calgary. The government promised Native people reserve lands based on one square mile for every five persons, a $2000.00 annual payment with some minimal provisions for farming equipment, ammunition for hunting, clothing supplies as well as providing for education for children.

MAKING TREATY SEVEN – THE PLAY

The original interdisciplinary production, MAKING TREATY SEVEN, was presented in a tent in Heritage Park with a cast of 30 actors, writers, poets, dancers and performance artists. The project was launched by the late, great Michael Green as a Calgary 2012 legacy project. The goal of the original production was to create a truthful, respectful theatrical performance to help audiences understand the true spirit, intent and historical significance of the treaty. It was a co-

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creation of First Nation and non-First Nation artists informed by the stories of the respected Elders of the Treaty Seven Nations. A treaty is a promise. Many of the promises made to the First Nations people were broken. The play explores many of those issues, including the failure of the government to make annual payments and children taken from their families and placed into abusive residential schools.

WE ARE ALL TREATY PEOPLE – THE PLAY

Quest Theatre and Making Treaty 7 Cultural Society’s play, WE ARE ALL TREATY PEOPLE, is hosted by a Trickster character who encounters a girl of aboriginal descent and a girl of colonial descent. They wonder if they can be friends, even though they don’t know or understand their shared history of this land. Trickster tells them the story of southern Alberta and Treaty Seven, including the context in which it was signed, the promises that were made and broken and the issues that still challenge us today. Although sore points are touched upon, such as negative racial references, the whiskey trade and residential schools, the story is told with song, prayer, creative movement and puppets with the intent to heal and create understanding. The girls in the story defy the Trickster and do become friends.

WE ARE ALL TREATY PEOPLE MAIN CHARACTERS

Alanna – a girl of Aboriginal descent who grew up on the Tsuu T’ina reserve in Southern Alberta. Maya – a girl of colonial descent (in her case, English, French and Irish) who grew up near downtown Calgary. Trickster – a wise being, sometimes a troublemaker, who tells Alanna and Maya the story of southern Alberta and the Making of Treaty 7, including the context in which it was signed, the promises that were made and broken, and the fallout of issues that still challenge us today. Trickster advises against the girls becoming friends because they do not know or understand their shared history of this land.

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TERMSANDREFERENCESIniistsii so that you know

Oki “hello” in Blackfoot language Umba wastitch “hello” in Nakoda language

Danit’ada “hello” in Dene language

Signatories of Treaty 7 Blackfoot Confederacy, Kanai, Siksika, Piikani, Nakoda, Tsuu T’ina and the representatives of Queen Victoria in Canada

Iinii “buffalo” in Blackfoot language Tatonka “buffalo” in Nakoda language Hanate “buffalo” in Tsuu T’ina language

Aakii “woman” in Blackfoot language Woosa in the future Smallpox a highly infectious, contagious

disease that turned into an epidemic killing an estimated 80% of the Treaty 7 Frist Nations people

Treaty a treaty is a promise, an agreement, a physical document, a deal, a spiritual understanding that speaks of two different paths that exist side by side but do not interfere or infringe on each other’s journey

Indian Act the principal statute through which the Federal Government administers Indian status, local First Nations Governments and

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the management of reserve lands and communal finances

Metis people of mixed European or Canadian and Aboriginal ancestry

Missionary a person sent on a religious mission, especially one sent to promote Christianity in a foreign country

Hudson’s Bay Company a merchant company founded in London England that branched into Canada, primarily as a fur trading business

The North West Mounted Police (1873-1920)

known as Redcoats, the forerunners of our current Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald considered areas in Alberta and Saskatchewan as untamed and lawless. With the goal of settling the West to extend Canadian sovereignty from coast to coast, it was important to establish good relations between an increasing number of settlers and the First Nations communities. For these, and other reasons, the NWMP was established in 1873-4.

Colonel James MacLeod (1836-1894)

joined the NWMP in 1874. He founded Fort MacLeod, suppressed the whiskey traffic, and, it has been said, that he won the confidence of the Blackfoot chiefs and negotiated Treaty 7

Queen Victoria (1819-1901) Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 1937 until her death in 1901. She sent her representatives from England to make treaties with the

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First Nations Chiefs. Her representatives may also be referred to as ‘The Crown.’

Crowfoot a Siksika chief and diplomat who negotiated with the Federal Government on behalf of the Blackfoot Confederacy. He was a key link between Aboriginal people on the western plains and colonial forces by way of the North West Mounted Police. He was key negotiator and supporter of Treaty 7

Sir John A. Macdonald The first Prime Minister of Canada (1867-73, 1878-91), Scottish lawyer, businessman and politician. Taking orders from the Queen, he sent police to negotiate a treaty with the Aboriginal people making promises he had no intentions of keeping

Bull-head a Sarcee warrior who came to Blackfoot Crossing to negotiate Treaty 7 in 1877. He reluctantly marked his “x” on the treaty, as he could see no alternative but to sign it.

Chief Chiniki one of the Chiefs of the Nakoda Nation involved in the signing of Treaty 7

Chief Redcrow warrior, peacemaker, indigenous leader, he was chief of the Kainai (Blood) and one of the signatories to Treaty 7

Pemmican an elderly holy man who was asked by Chief Crowfoot for advice about Treaty 7. It is said that his advice was, “I want to hold you back

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because I am at the edge of a bank. I want to hold you back because your life will be different from what it has been. Buffalo makes your body strong. What you will eat from this money will have your people buried all over these hills. You will be tied down, you will not wander the plains, the whites will take your lands and fill it. You won’t have your own free will. That is why I say don’t sign. But my life is old, so, sign if you want to. Go ahead and make the treaty.”

Fort Whoop Up the nickname given to a whiskey trading post near what is now Lethbridge, Alberta. It was established in 1869 by Americans as a base for fur trade with Aboriginal people. It is now a National Historic Site

Lieutenant-Governor David Laird (1833-1914)

the first Lieutenant-Governor of the North West Territories. Treaty 7 was signed September 23, 1877, by Chief Crowfoot and other Chiefs, Commissioner Laird and Lieutenant-Colonel MacLeod, Commissioner of the North West Mounted Police

Poniika antelope

Okkii rivers

Pooniikaamitaaks horses

A’appokskiinaaks cows

Naapaa.nn bannock

Moh-kins-tsis elbow, like the river – the original

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Blackfoot name for Calgary Assimilate the process whereby a group

gradually adapts to the customs and attitudes of the prevailing culture and customs, just like the Colonial creators of Treaty 7 intended for the First Nations peoples

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SOMETOPICSTODISCUSSBEFOREYOUSEETHEPLAY

1) What does the word ‘treaty’ mean to you? Are you aware of

any kinds of treaties from the past or present time?

2) How do you decide who will be your friend? What do you think is most important about having and being a friend? Have you ever become friends with someone you never thought you would be friends with? How did that happen?

3) What do you know about the first people to live in our

country – their heritages, languages, cultural practices and spiritual beliefs?

4) Who are the members of your family? What does your

family mean to you? How do you think you would feel if you were separated from your family and moved to an unfamiliar location where you did not understand the language or the customs?

5) Have you ever broken a promise? What did it feel like? Has

a promise that was made to you ever been broken? What happened? How did that make you feel?

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SOMETOPICSTODISCUSSAFTERYOUHAVESEENTHEPLAY

1) What do you think of the title of the play?

2) Why do you think that title was chosen?

3) What does the title mean to you now that you have seen the

play?

4) As you watched the play, did you think Alanna and Maya would ever become friends?

5) What happened to bring them together?

6) Why do you think the character of the Trickster was in the play?

7) What do you remember was in the knowledge bundle?

8) If you could create your own knowledge bundle, what would

you put into it?

9) What motivated the First Nations of Treaty 7 to sign the treaty? How did they think they would benefit?

10) Why did they believe the promises made by the representatives

of Queen Victoria? What did those representatives really want?

11) What was your favourite part of the play and why?

12) Was there anything you didn’t like or didn’t understand?

13) What parts of the story did you feel good or bad about?

14) Tell the story of the play in your own words.

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SOMETHEMESANDTOPICSEXPLOREDINWEAREALLTREATYPEOPLE

• Treaty 7

• Friendship

• Promises

• Telling the truth

• Storytelling

• Diverse cultures

• Communities

• Belonging

• Respect for nature

• Harmony with the land and all living beings

• Honouring our ancestors

• History of southern Alberta

• Making decisions

• Problem solving

• Working collaboratively

• How does our history impact our present-day lives?

• Survival

• Communication

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PRESHOWACTIVITIES

Friendship In the play, WE ARE ALL TREATY PEOPLE, Maya and Alanna meet for the first time on the first day of school. Their backgrounds are completely different. Alanna is Blackfoot, Dene and a descendent of the Lakota. Maya’s heritage is English, French and a bit of Irish. They wonder if they could ever become friends. Read the following poem with your students.

A Friend is a Treasure

A friend is someone we turn to,

when our spirits need a lift.

A friend is someone we treasure,

for our friendship is a gift.

A friend is someone who fills our lives,

with beauty, joy and grace.

And makes the world we live in,

a better and happier place.

Ask your students what they think of the poem. What qualities do they look for in a friend? How might they describe someone they wouldn’t want to have as a friend? Ask them if they might be interested in sharing stories of how they met someone who is now a good friend. Or they may wish to compose their own poems about friendship.

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TREATY7 Ask students what, if anything, they know about Treaty 7. In advance of seeing the play, WE ARE ALL TREATY PEOPLE, it might be useful for students to do some research in order to enhance their experience of seeing the play. Divide students into small groups and assign each group one of the following suggested topics, or you may wish to come up with your own. Then have each group report their findings back to the rest of the class.

1) Who were the Nations of Treaty 7 and what territories in Southern Alberta did they inhabit?

2) What was the North West Mounted Police? Why was it established and by whom in 1873-4?

3) Who was Queen Victoria? Why did she send her representatives to convince the Nations of Treaty 7 to sign the treaty? When was it signed? What promises were made to the Nations of Treaty 7?

4) Once the Treaty was signed, what promises made to the nations of Treaty 7 were eventually broken? What impact did this have on their lives and the lives of their children?

5) Why was the buffalo important to the livelihood of the nations of Treaty 7? Why did the representatives of the Queen wish to eliminate the buffalo from the land they wanted to control? What were the consequences once the buffalo were killed off?

6) How did the whiskey trade and the smallpox epidemic at that time impact the First Nations people?

7) Who were the Elders and what important role did they play in the lives of their people?

8) The character of the Trickster is featured prominently throughout the play, WE ARE ALL TREATY PEOPLE. What role did that character play in many of the legends and creation stories used in the Blackfoot world?

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WHATAREYOUSAYING?One hundred and forty years ago at Blackfoot Crossing just east of Calgary, thousands of people came together: Blackfoot Confederacy, Kainai, Siksika, Piikani, Nakoda and Tsuu T’ina as well as Metis Traders, Missionaries, representatives of Queen Victoria, people from America and the Hudson’s Bay Company. The native people believed that they were there to sign a peace treaty, and that the North West Mounted Police would take care of them – no more killing the buffalo; no more whiskey trade; no more starving; no more disease. They were there to make a treaty – a promise – inistissii. The Chiefs of all the First Nations listened to the offers being made by the representatives of the Crown, but English was not their language and, though there were translators, they did not speak all the Native languages. The Queen’s men listened to the Chiefs, but they didn’t understand their native languages. What happened as a result was clearly a failure to truly communicate. Ask students to think about what it might be like to try to communicate in a strange new world in which they do not speak the language or understand the culture. A fun way for them to experience the language aspect is through acting exercises using Gibberish – using meaningless sounds substituted for recognizable words in order to communicate by vocal and physical expression. If some students have difficulty putting together nonsensical sound, they may substitute random use of numbers or letters of the alphabet instead. Create a little acting area at the front of your classroom. Invite one student to look at one of the following suggested sentences that he or she will then translate into Gibberish with a partner of their/your choosing and play a scene trying their best to make each other understood. As an alternative, the student speaking Gibberish says the phrase to the rest of the class who then try to guess the meaning.

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Sample Sentences (or you and/or your students may wish to create your own.)

I have a toothache. I like your new haircut.

Where is the exit? That is a beautiful hat. I’ve missed my bus. Please don’t shout. Are you my mother?

Is this your hat? Who’s in charge here? May I take your order?

My feet hurt. I can’t find my shoes.

Does the train stop here? Stop, in the name of the law.

I’m thirsty. It looks like rain.

What a beautiful day. We’re going to be late.

This food is spoiled. Get off my lawn.

I have a splitting headache. Where’s the telephone?

Do you have a pen? Leave me alone!

I’m cold. I’m hungry.

My leg is broken. Have you seen my dog?

You’re not allowed to smoke in here. What’s for supper?

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THEBUFFALOThe buffalo was one of the most sacred and powerful beings in the Treaty 7 territory. It provided food, clothing, shelter – everything the people needed. This was the reason it was so devastating when the buffalo population was wiped out by the white settlers and representatives of The Crown. Read the following excerpt from the play, WE ARE ALL TREATY PEOPLE with your students.

The Buffalo Song

Do you feel low? You need buffalo!

If your stomach cries Eat the meat when it dries.

Need a place to rent? The hide makes a tent!

Makes toys and tools, boil the bones for glue! Cups from hooves, leather for shoes

Use every part, Skin, hair, bones, and heart.

Buffalo are everywhere, But don’t waste them don’t you dare!

Once you have read the song lyrics, challenge students to stretch their imaginations to the limit and work individually or in groups to come up with a way to demonstrate their own treatment of the lyrics. Some possibilities might include: movement, drums, musical accompaniment, a tune or sound effects, rap or hip hop, choral speech, story theatre with narration and mime or even some sort of artistic depiction to accompany the words. Prepare, rehearse and present.

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POST-SHOWACTIVITIES

Cultural Appreciation In the play, Maya says to Alanna: “ …this all happened a long time ago. What has this got to do with me?” Ask students what why it was important for Maya to learn about Alanna’s culture and history. How many different cultures and backgrounds are represented in your classroom? Do you think your students honour, accept and appreciate the represented diversity among their classmates? Ask them how they felt about Maya finally honouring, accepting and appreciating Alanna’s culture and history. Have a Cultural Appreciation Day in your classroom. If students have a traditional clothing outfit or one representative piece of clothing, encourage them to wear it. Ask them to bring in a picture, or prepare a brief story, poem, song, dance or some sort of presentation that demonstrates their background. What cultural celebrations, rituals or holidays do they participate in and what do those celebrations mean to them? Ask them to each be prepared to tell the rest of the class what is most important to them about their background, culture and traditions. If possible, perhaps they might like to bring in a sample of a traditional food for everyone to taste. Once students have shared their information, ask them to each tell each other one new thing they learned about.

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Knowledge Bundle Ask students to recall why Trickster’s knowledge was so heavy and then became lighter by the end of the story. What was in it? Challenge students to come up with a list of what Trickster pulled from the bundle to describe the peaceful way of life in the Treaty 7 First Nations before the newcomers and representatives of the Crown arrived. If you need to jog their memories, some of what was created at the beginning of the play was: the land, trees, grass, water, bears, antelope, owls, wolves, caves, nests, burrows, dens, buffalo, tipis, long houses, huts and families. Students will then create artwork to represent the way they imagine life looked back then. Each student can do their own piece, or you may wish to create a wall mural with teams of students each responsible for one section of the mural. As an alternative, ask each student to create their own knowledge bundle as an art project. What would they put in it and why? Afterwards, they can share their bundles with others. Storytelling In the play, WE ARE ALL TREATY PEOPLE, Trickster tells the story of Napi and the White Dust. She had heard this story at the trickster conference from a friend. First Nations, Inuit and Metis cultures have passed on knowledge from generation to generation through oral traditions, including storytelling. Stories bring history to life, as Trickster demonstrated by pulling many things out of the knowledge bundle. Also, through stories, people learn about cultural beliefs, values, customs, rituals, practices, relationships, the land and ways of life.

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Ask students to work in small groups to find a legend or story belonging to one of the Nations of Treaty 7: Blackfoot Confederacy, Kainai, Siksika, Piikani, Nakoda or Tsuu T’ina. Some stories may be sacred or historical, focus on social, political and cultural ways, or even be entertaining and funny. You may wish to provide several stories for groups to choose from. Once each group has chosen their material, have them decide on and rehearse how they will present it to the rest of the class. It is important that each student participate in the telling of the story so the work is collaborative and fair. As they rehearse, encourage them to work on vocal, facial and physical expression, possibly add music or sound. They may also create or gather visual aids as needed. Share the stories. After each group has done so, members of the audience may ask questions, if the have any, and/or offer positive feedback. Perhaps students can take turns being a videographer to record the stories and then they can be shared with other classes. Treaty 7 Revisited On the basis of what students found out in the play, WE ARE ALL TREATY PEOPLE, why did the First Nations people sign the treaty? What did they think it meant for them? What promises were made by the representatives of the Crown? What promises were broken? What effect did this have on their lives? Now ask students to imagine they could go back to the time when Treaty 7 was written and enacted. Knowing then what we know now, brainstorm students’ ideas about what each side, the First Nations and the Colonials, would want and expect if they could create a new treaty. What would they negotiate for? How might they negotiate? What would each side promise? What would their rights and responsibilities be? Would it truly be a peace treaty this time?

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ABOUTQUESTTHEATRE

Quest Theatre has prepared a special section for Educators on our website at www.questtheatre.org. Please spend some time on the site so you can learn about all the programs we offer, including:

School Touring Shows (Plays for Grades K-6)

Artists in School Residencies

(Weeklong programs for Grades K-12)

Summer Drama Camps (Camps for ages 6-14. Bursaries are available for students in need of

financial assistance.)

You can also access information about our touring shows, request a study guide or advance pack, provide feedback, ask questions, or learn about the work we have been doing with young people since 1984.

WE APPRECIATE YOUR FEEDBACK!

Feedback from you and your students is very important and valuable to us. We would like to invite you to send samples of your students’ work illustrating their responses to our production of WE ARE ALL TREATY PEOPLE. We would also welcome comments about the play, this study guide, and your overall experience with Quest Theatre. We read it all!

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Please send feedback to:

Quest Theatre @cSPACE King Edward

1721 29th Ave. SW Calgary, Alberta T2T 6T7

Phone: 403-264-8575 Fax: 403-264-8578

Toll Free: 1-888-801-2508 Email: [email protected]

www.questtheatre.org

PLEASE HELP US THANK OUR SPONSOR