Resources - Teachers' Guide : Lesson Two

Resources | TEACHERS' GUIDE : LESSON TWO

 

Lesson 2: The Dreamer's Drum

Background:

In July, 2005, a group of Dane-zaa elders, young people, linguists, anthropologists and folklorists met at our Doig River First Nation's Cultural Centre to plan this website. Former Chief Gary Oker brought a drum to the meeting that had been in his family for many years. Elders present at the meeting recognized this drum as one that was made by the Dreamer Gaayęą.

Dreamers, such as Gaayęą, were wise people, or prophets, who received songs and messages from Heaven in their dreams, and often drew maps and pictures of these visions on their drums. Gaayęą's drum is sacred to our Dane-zaa people because it has a drawing on it of one of the visions he received during his lifetime. Seeing Gaayęą's drum again inspired our Dane-zaa elders who were at the meeting to talk about the importance of Dreamers, and their messages from Heaven, to Dane-zaa culture. For this reason, we choose the Dreamer's Drum as the central symbol and guiding metaphor for our website. To find out more, watch the video clip of Dane-zaa elder Tommy Attachie talking about Gaayęą.

Due to the sacred nature of the drawings on Gaayęą's drum, our Dane-zaa community decided not to portray the drum on our website.

 

Lesson 2A: Elementary

Core Concepts

  • Aboriginal cultures create art for ceremonial and functional purposes
  • In our Dane-zaa community, drums were used by Dreamers, such as Gaayęą, in the past and are used today by our Doig River Drummers who perform at Dreamers' Dances and community events throughout the year.
  • Dane-zaa Dreamers were given songs in dreams and visions. The Dreamers' songs deal with the right way to live on our traditional land, with bringing on good weather, with ensuring good hunting, and with how to live in order to follow the road to Heaven.
  • Only Dreamers can draw or paint their visions on drums.
  • Our last Dane-zaa Dreamer, Charlie Yahey, died in 1976.
  • Our Dane-zaa songkeeper, Tommy Attachie, and our Doig River Drummers continue to perform songs that were handed down by our Dreamers and these songs give us strength to face the challenges of today.

Procedures

  1. Go to The Dreamer's Drum. Read the information on the Dreamer's Drum then click on the links to hear our Dane-zaa elder (and songkeeper), Tommy Attachie, talk about the importance of Gaayęą's drum and to hear Dane-zaa youth, Mark Apsassin, talk about what the drum means to him. You can also listen to Tommy Attachie singing a Dreamer's song.
  2. Go to Gaayęą. Click on Gaayęą and one of our Dane-zaa elders will pronounce his name. Read about his life and listen to Tommy Attachie and the Doig River Drummers singing Suunech'ii Kech'iige (The Place Where Happiness Dwells)—one of Gaayęą's songs.
  3. Once you've finished, fill out the worksheet below.

Worksheet

  1. What is special about Gaayęą's drum?







  2. Why can only Dreamers draw or paint their visions on drums?





  3. Why is the Dreamer's Drum so important to our Dane-zaa culture and to our website?





  4. Who was Gaayęą?



  5. Describe how he received one of his special songs.





Enrichment Activity

Visit a cultural centre, museum, or art gallery where aboriginal or indigenous art is on display. Choose a piece of art or a ceremonial object and answer the questions below:

  1. What is the item?
  2. Where does it come from?
  3. What was it used for?
  4. How old is it?
  5. Do you think that this item should be on display? Why or why not?

Back in the classroom you can share what you've learned.


 

Lesson 2B: High School

Core Concepts:

  • Aboriginal cultures create art for ceremonial and functional purposes.
  • Cultural appropriation, intellectual property rights, and repatriation are important issues facing Aboriginal people and communities today.
  • In the past, our Dane-zaa Dreamers were given songs in dreams and visions. The Dreamers' songs connect Dane-zaa people today to our cultural beliefs and traditional homeland.
  • Only Dreamers can draw or paint on drums.
  • Our last Dane-zaa Dreamer, Charlie Yahey, died in 1976.
  • Our Dane-zaa songkeeper, Tommy Attachie, and our Doig River Drummers continue to perform songs that have been handed down by our Dreamers and songkeepers and these songs give us strength to face the challenges of today.
  • Cultural appropriation is the adoption of aspects or symbols of one culture by a different cultural group.
  • Cultural repatriation refers to the return of cultural, ceremonial, or artistic objects to their place of origin.

Procedure

  1. Go to The Dreamer's Drum. Read the information on the Dreamer's Drum then click on the links to hear our Dane-zaa elder (and songkeeper), Tommy Attachie, talk about the importance of Gaayęą's drum and to hear Dane-zaa youth, Mark Apsassin, talk about what the drum means to him. You can also listen to Tommy Attachie singing a Dreamer's song.
  2. Go Gaayęą. Click on Gaayęą and one of our Dane-zaa elders will pronounce his name. Read about his life and listen to Tommy Attachie and the Doig River Drummers singing Suunech'ii Kech'iige (The Place Where Happiness Dwells)—one of Gaayęą's songs.

Worksheet

Today, Aboriginal communities and families are working to have ceremonial objects returned to their communities. This return is referred to as repatriation. Write an essay or research paper on the topic of cultural appropriation and repatriation. You can also do research on the Internet. Here are some questions to get you started.

  • Should aboriginal art used for religious or ceremonial purposes be on public display in museums and art galleries?
  • What about cultural centres that are based in Aboriginal communities?

 

Continue to Lesson 3 : Places