Orange Shirt Day

“We are All

One” Video
 Background Info:
Orange Shirt Day is a legacy of the St. Joseph Mission (SJM) residential school
commemoration event held in Williams Lake, BC, Canada, in the spring of 2013. It grew out
of Phyllis' story of having her shiny new orange shirt taken away on her first day of school at
the Mission, and it has become an opportunity to keep the discussion on all aspects of
residential schools happening annually.

The date was chosen because it is the time of year in which children were taken from their
homes to residential schools, and because it is an opportunity to set the stage for anti-racism
and anti-bullying policies for the coming school year. It also gives teachers time to plan
events that will include children, as we want to ensure that we are passing the story and
learning on to the next generations.

Orange Shirt Day is also an opportunity for First Nations, local governments, schools
and communities to come together in the spirit of reconciliation and hope for
generations of children to come.
Lesson Ideas & Resources
Phyllis’s Story Slides 5
Shi Shi Etko Slide 6
Fatty Legs Slide 7
Red Wolf Slide 8
I Lost my Talk Slide 9
You Hold Me Up Slide 10
Other Resources Slide 11
It is recommended that Phyllis’ story is part of your day. Watch the Shaw video on Youtube. It is worth the three
minutes.

Education + Discussion Guide

Orange Shirt Day Origin + History
Phyllis' Story translated to French
Handout: About Orange Shirt Day
Making Attachment Hearts
Teacher Resource Guide Grade 5
Shi Shi Etko by Nicola Campbell
In just four days young Shi-shi-etko will have
to leave her family and all that she knows to
attend residential school. She spends her last
days at home treasuring the beauty of her
world — the dancing sunlight, the tall grass,
each shiny rock, the tadpoles in the creek, her
grandfather’s paddle song. Her mother, father
and grandmother, each in turn, share valuable
teachings that they want her to remember.
And so Shi-shi-etko carefully gathers her
memories for safekeeping. Useful website
(see attached lesson plans)
Fatty Legs by Christy Jordan-Fenton Age 9-12

Eight-year-old Margaret Pokiak has set her sights on learning to

read, even though it means leaving her village in the high Arctic.
Faced with unceasing pressure, her father finally agrees to let her
make the five-day journey to attend school, but he warns Margaret
of the terrors of residential schools.At school Margaret soon
encounters the Raven, a black-cloaked nun with a hooked nose and
bony fingers that resemble claws. She immediately dislikes the
strong-willed young Margaret. Intending to humiliate her, the
heartless Raven gives gray stockings to all the girls — all except
Margaret, who gets red ones. In the face of such cruelty, Margaret
refuses to be intimidated and bravely gets rid of the stockings.
Although a sympathetic nun stands up for Margaret, in the end it is
this brave young girl who gives the Raven a lesson in the power of
human dignity.

Lesson Plan (book available on Tumble books)

Web site
Red Wolf by Jennifer Dance (ages 9-12)

Life is changing for Canada’s Anishnaabe Nation

and for the wolf packs that share their territory.
In the late 1800s, both Native people and wolves
are being forced from the land. Starving and
lonely, an orphaned timber wolf is befriended by a
boy named Red Wolf. But under the Indian Act,
Red Wolf is forced to attend a residential school
far from the life he knows, and the wolf is alone
once more. Courage, love and fate reunite the pair,
and they embark on a perilous journey home.
Teachers guide
Chapter Activities
Read Online
○ I Lost My Talk by Rita Joe (
see attached lesson plan)
○ This poem by Rita Joe
talks about her
experiences at the
Shubenacadie Residential
School in Nova Scotia. The
poem talks about loss of
identity, loss of language
and the reclaiming of
identity.
You Hold Me Up
Read Aloud

Lesson Plan

Writing Worksheet
Orange Shirt Day Activities (includes shirt templates)
Lesson Ideas and Orange Shirt Templates
Orange Shirt Activities

Orange Shirt Day- Learn, Engage, Remember

First Contact Series