The Imagination Library and the Resource Centre Start a New Chapter

The Manitoba First Nation Education Resource Centre (the Resource Centre) has proudly partnered with the Dollywood Foundation to ensure new readers on 38 First Nations will receive books as part of Dolly’s book gifting program.  The Dolly Parton Imagination Library puts books, each month, into the hands of children throughout Canada, USA, and Australia. Dolly’s philosophy? If you can read, you can do anything, dream anything and be anything. 

Families can register their children, from birth to age four, who are then provided with the free, brand-new books through Canada Post.  The books are delivered in the child’s name, until they graduate from the Program when they turn five.

The presence of books in the home supports the child’s academic, social and emotional development. The Resource Centre has always believed children’s learning capacity is enhanced when their experiences are nurtured in a caring, safe environment. Children can develop a strong bond with their parents or caregivers by snuggling up and reading together, even if it only for 15 minutes a day.  The Resource Centre hopes to include books that depict First Nations’ cultures, within the next year, as an add-on to the Imagination Library.

February is “I Love to Read” month and its focus is the importance of reading and all its many benefits.  Reading can make a huge difference in a child’s academic success, speech & language development and confidence.  Both Dolly and the Resource Centre want to inspire children and families to love books and reading! 

All information submitted is considered strictly confidential and is not shared.

Please include the parent/caregiver’s name, mailing address, postal code, the child’s/ children’s name and date(s) of birth. If you would like a greeting from Dolly on your child’s birthdate, and a congratulatory message when they turn five, please include your email address as well.

For more info, please contact Karyn Davis, Imagination Library Coordinator:

karynd@mfnerc.com

Cell Phone: (204) 249-0236

Work Phone: (204) 594-1290 Ext. 2344

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Discover Your Path – Virtual Event 2023

Manitoba First Nations Education Resource Centre (MFNERC) is pleased to announce we will host our second Career Fair for our member schools on, February 28, 2023. The event has been renamed to, Discover Your Path – Virtual Event, to better reflect the opportunities available to our Manitoba First Nations Youth. Opportunities that range from professional, technical, business, medical, etc., to more traditional, cultural and Northern Manitoba industry related life paths like forestry, agriculture, trapping, and more!

Manitoba universities, colleges, employers, and organizations offering unique life options for our students, will gather virtually to provide information and thought-provoking future paths for our youth. 

EDUCATORS: Help your students explore their career and education opportunities virtually! Access the Educator information sheet by clicking here.

COST: Free for educators, staff, students, and parents of MFNERC or MFNSS schools.

DATE & TIME: February 28, 2023 – 9:30 AM to 3:30 PM

Registration options:

  • Have your students register individually with their own email addresses.
  • Register once with your email address and allow your students to use your login to explore the event.
  • Register with your email address and show the event and livestreams on a projector to your class.

Register online at: https://mfnerc-careerfair.virtualeventhub.ca/

Downloadable Registration Form.

For more information please contact Shawna Spence at ShawnaS@mfnerc.com or call (204) 594-1290.

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The Manitoba First Nations Education Resource Centre is excited to host the MFNERC Language
Gathering 2023. This event will occur on January 18-19, 2023, at the Victoria Inn, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

The focus will be on First Nations languages and cultures using the theme of Building First Nations
Language and Culture Foundation
s. We are pleased to provide this opportunity for MFNERC/MFNSS
member First Nations to come together to reaffirm the importance of First Nations languages and
cultures. An Elders panel will discuss the importance of reclaiming, preserving, and revitalizing our First
Nations languages. Various sessions will allow participants to engage, share, and learn about First Nations teaching strategies, concepts, and cultures.

Registration is limited!! You are encouraged to register as soon as possible.

Link to Registration Form.

Please be advised that MFNERC will not be responsible for travel and accommodations for this
event. Interested schools must complete and send the attached registration form to Ashley
Kinsman at ashleyk@mfnerc.com or by fax to 204-477-4314 by January 6, 2023.

If you wish to book your stay at the Victoria Inn, you can call 204-786-4801 and ask to reserve a room in
the MFNERC group block (group code 261272) to access the discounted rate of $129 plus tax before
January 6, 2023.

Should you have any questions regarding the above, please get in touch with Davin Dumas at
davind@mfnerc.com.

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Manitoba First Nations Education Resource Centre (The Resource Centre) celebrated I Love to Read Month in February. An integral part of First Nations cultures has always been storytelling. Oral stories are passed down from generation to generation and are an educational and interactive way of sharing life’s lessons. Books are another way to inform us, connect us to other worlds, instruct us, and challenge us. I Love to Read Month was an opportunity to encourage reading for all ages. As a part of the kickoff, MKO Grand Chief Garrison Settee,  and Charles Cochrane, Executive Director of the Resource Centre, encouraged us all to pick up a book. You can still watch their videos on the Resource Centre’s YouTube channel.  

Every Tuesday and Thursday in the month of February, the Resource Centre’s Facebook featured a special guest reader. Every Friday for I Love to Read Month, we shared a First Nations language storybook read in one of the First Nation languages of Manitoba. These are all available on the Resource Centre’s Facebook page. 

I Love to Read Month is a reminder to us all how important it is to ensure early years, school years, and older students learn the value of reading. Books are a way of inspiring and connecting us all. On an individual basis, books can be good for mental, physical, and emotional health by strengthening the brain, reducing stress, and improving vocabulary. Reading also creates a bond between adults and children at a very early age.  

The Resource Centre publishes a wide variety of high-quality books that promote  First Nations cultures, histories, and languages. Our resource list includes fiction, non-fiction, children’s literature, and language resources to use in the classroom or library. Many of these can be borrowed from the IRC lending library or bought online at the Resource Centre bookstore at www.mfnerc.org/the-shop 

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Michael Hutchinson is a member of the Misipawistik Cree Nation. As a teen, he pulled nets on Lake Winnipeg, fought forest fires in the Canadian Shield, and worked at the Whiteshell Nuclear Research Station’s Underground Research Lab. As a young adult, he worked as a bartender, a caterer for rock concerts and movie shoots, and, eventually, as a print reporter for publications such as the Calgary Straight and Aboriginal Times.

Continue reading “New Communications Manager on the Front Lines of Language and Cultural Revitalization”
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We are excited to welcome students and staff back to in-class, in-person interactions in MFNSS Schools! MFNSS schools are planning to open the first week in September after Labour Day, and this school year will start with getting back to the new “normal” and supporting students to transition to attending school again and ensuring that their needs are met. We will be focusing on continuing to implement the strategic plan. We are also excited about a partnership with the Treaty Relations Commission of Manitoba which will focus on ensuring students learn about the spirit and intent of the treaties and their relevance in the present day. The MFNSS is a unique school system designed for First Nations by First Nations and we are looking forward to learning together again.  

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MFNERC is proud to announce the winners for the Lighting the Fire Student Essay Contest 2013!

Category 1 (Grades 7-9)
The grand prize winner is Trenton Harper 13 years old attending grade 9 at George Knott School in Wasagamack First Nation

The second place winner is Shawneen Fisher 12 years old attending grade 7 at Miskooseepi School in Bloodvein First Nation

Category 2 (Grades 10-12)
The grand prize winner is Kailey Arthurson 17 years old attending grade 12 at Charles Sinclair School in Fisher River Cree Nation

The second place winner is Kirsten Muswaggon 17 years old attending grade 12 at Otter-Nelson River School in Cross Lake First Nation

The staff at MFNERC is so proud of these students’ achievements in writing and wish each of them continued success in their academic careers.

The staff also thank the many students who entered the contest. You are all doing very well and we enjoyed reading your essays. Please watch the mail delivery at your school for a certificate of achievement to arrive. MFNERC also thanks the teachers and principals who taught essay writing and supported their students’ efforts.

Check back on our site later in May to view highlights of the grand prize winners’ experiences during conference week!

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