Manitoba First Nation schools cautiously optimistic about new year

Many First Nation students in Manitoba returned to the classroom this week for the first time in two years.

Grade 12 student Keaton Antoine said most of his high school learning has taken place online in Sioux Valley Dakota Nation, about 45 kilometres west of Brandon, even though Sioux Valley High School is in Brandon.

"It sucked, because I didn't get to see my friends and all that. You can only see them over the screen. It was pretty boring," Antoine said.

Students were split into two groups last year, rotating in and out of the school on different days to limit personal contacts.

Grade 11-12 student Theo Pratt said it was difficult to study without friends, because they help keep each other motivated.

Pratt and Antoine, both 17, are members of the Sioux Valley High School Junior Chief and Council, the student leadership group. Last year Pratt served as chief, he said, but being separated from classmates made it difficult to connect, which is crucial to the role. 

On Pratt's first day of school Tuesday, there was a sense of freedom, he said. 

Kevin Nabess, the Sioux Valley Dakota Nation director of education, said there's a refreshing new energy in the air.

"It was a lot of hustle and bustle in the hallways." 

Attendance in Sioux Valley's two schools — Sioux Valley High School in Brandon and Sioux Valley Elementary School (Tatiyopa Maza Wayawa Tipi) on the First Nation — is approaching pre-COVID numbers, and most of the classrooms were full or nearly at capacity as school started, Nabess said.

Masks are optional but some COVID-19 safety precautions remain in place, including hand sanitizer and additional cleaning of the facility and buses.

COVID-19 antigen tests are available at the schools and students who are sick are asked to stay home.

Staff will watch COVID-19 numbers and follow safety measures. The goal is to help families feel safer despite the continued presence of the coronavirus.

"We are a school community and we lost the fact that we are able to open up the school and keep everyone going to school on a regular basis," he said.

"We want to work past all those days and move forward in a good manner — enjoy those times because we sure missed them."

The excitement was palpable in Swan Lake First Nation too, Indian Spring School principal Joyce Soldier said.

Teachers and staff could also feel the excitement as students poured through the halls for the first day of school this week, said Soldier, whose school is about 160 kilometres southwest of Winnipeg.

This year, more than 90 students from nursery to Grade 8 enrolled for in-person learning. The school typically has 80 to 85 students each year, but those numbers were down over the past two years.

Soldier said they are approaching the new year as a "fresh start," with a new curriculum focused on imparting mindfulness and kindness, paired with strengthening cultural knowledge for students.

"It's been really exciting just to see them all again," Soldier said. "They're really happy to be here, and it's so relaxed."

She could feel the joy from students and staff as they started reconnecting and sharing what they have been up to since they last saw each other.

These are critical opportunities, she said, because some students stayed home for the past two years.

"I think there's a greater appreciation for us sticking it out, you know, and giving people that choice to be, you know, here," Soldier said. 

Families also have a feeling of safety because they know the staff have been immunized and protocols exist to keep everyone safe, she said.  

Ebb and Flow School principal Kathleen Morrisseau said the return to normal will be key to helping students find success in the new school year.

The kindergarten to Grade 12 school, near the northwest corner of Lake Manitoba, typically has around 700 students — but this year, more than 752 students enrolled.

"This year we're kind of heading back to normal," Morrisseau said. "It's been pretty hard to work, the way we have been."

The school had a number of COVID-19 cases over the past two years, Morrisseau said, and shifted to online learning based on overall COVID-19 numbers reported in the community of Ebb and Flow.

During the height of the pandemic, staff created packages for students to ensure they were able to study from home. It was important that not all learning be online, because some students have limited Internet access. 

Teachers and education assistants created the care packages and hand-delivered the homework to students. 

Students have a new appreciation for the school after the disruption they have faced during the past two years, she said. 

"I think everyone is happy and excited. Everything feels good again and not so scary," Morrisseau said.