Kindergarten to Grade 7

Old Crow Experiential - Culture Camp
Resources were developed with input and guidance from Vuntut Gwitchin members, Elders and resource workers in Old Crow, Yukon, Canada. The resources and lessons are specific and relevant to the traditional and cultural activities of the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation people. It is recommended that organizations and individuals interested in using these materials reflect on their community and youth needs, and create their own materials for their own community's traditions and culture under the guidance of Elders, community members and resource workers. Traditions & Science Traditions, Arts & Trades Traditions, History & Geography
Youth Blanket Exercise
In 1996, the Aboriginal Rights Coalition worked with Indigenous elders and teachers to develop an interactive way of learning the history most Canadians are never taught. The Blanket Exercise was the result; it has since been offered thousands of times and the fourth edition was released in 2016.

The Blanket Exercise covers over 500 years of history in a one and a half hour participatory workshop followed by a debriefing session in which participants have the opportunity to discuss the experience as a group.

Blanket Exercise participants take on the roles of Indigenous peoples in Canada. Standing on blankets that represent the land, they walk through pre-contact, treaty-making, colonization and resistance. The exercise follows a script read by a narrator and other facilitators play the role of European colonizers. Participants are drawn into the experience by reading scrolls and carrying cards which ultimately determine their outcomes.

By engaging on both an emotional and intellectual level, the Blanket Exercise effectively educates and increases empathy about the experience of Indigenous people in Canada. This can often raise deep emotions and we strongly encourage you to work with your heart and spirit when participating.

These documents have been adapted to incorporate relevant Yukon events. Please call Tammy Stoneman at 334-8597 or email her at tammy.stoneman@gov.yk.ca to set up a facilitated session.
Yukon First Nations 4 and 5
Linking traditional knowledge and history with modern curriculum objectives in this unit, students will develop an understanding of YFN governance in a pre-contact setting. This will include oral traditions, First Nation languages, traditional territories, clan systems, traditional laws, citizenship, potlatches and traditional ways of governance.
Yukon First Nations 4 Teacher's Guides Yukon First Nations Student Booklets Yukon First Nations 5 Teacher's Guides
Links to Additional Resources
Caribou Fences Interactive
In 2003, Vuntut Gwitchin completed a four-year project to record Elders talking about their traditional ways. Much of what is known about caribou fences was gathered through this oral history.
Project Caribou
Caribou are important to many aboriginal cultures across Canada. They have always formed a basic part of the cultures of people living in the Arctic and subarctic. People such as the Vuntut Gwich’in of Old Crow (see Porcupine Caribou Herd case study) have depended upon caribou for thousands of years for food, clothing and a way of life that involves close ties with the northern land. Many other Dene and Inuit cultures have also depended upon caribou.
How People Got Fire Guide 
How People Got Fire is a short animated film that uses a combination of elegant charcoal drawings and rotoscoped animation to recreate Kitty Smith’s oral story from the Tlingit Nation in Canada’s Yukon Territory. Kitty Smith drew upon the oral tradition of the Tlingit and Southern Tutchone indigenous languages, as well as English to retell origin tales. According to Mrs. Smith, this version of How People Got Fire came from her father’s people, the coastal Tlingit.
Northwest Coast Formline Design - Definitions & Activities
The class projects are designed to provide a body of reliable information to assist teachers in sharing some basic principles and composition strategies for creating traditional formline designs with their students. The project materials come in a form that is ready-made and will not require design experience on the part of those teaching this kit. Adults can guide students through these projects with the help of the instructions that come with the kit, enabling students to produce completed projects for take-home use and future reference.
NorthWind Books/Eaglecrest Books Roster
The NorthWind Books were developed to be used as part of a guided reading program and provide reading material that reflects the life and experiences of Yukon First Nations people. Currently there are no new books being developed. NorthWind Books were developed collaboratively with the NorthWind Books Working Group. The working group was composed of classroom teachers and an Elder, with technical support from the department's coordinator of Primary Programs and the FNPP Cultural Inclusion Consultant. A Teachers' Guide, is also available, and includes reading activities, cultural connections and cross-curricular links.
Grade 7 Cross-Curricular Unit
SEASONAL CIRCLES                                                          
The mission, vision and goals for students in this project is to have them discover the different aspects of circles, their identity, and the culture of First Nations in the Yukon. Throughout the project, students will gain an understanding of math concepts in a creative way which will allow them to learn at a level that is differentiated for each student.