What would your life be like if you were a Salmon?
Try and write about your life from the point of view of a Salmon. Discuss the stages of your life and travels. You can start by writing what you know about Salmon, and then add some details about what would happen as a Salmon! Where do you go? What do you see? What do you think about?
Students might find it easier to work on their salmon story with if they can tell it with a salmon, so here is a beautiful, simple salmon puppet students can fold and colour, designed by Butch Dick (a local Songhees artist and educator).
As students will probably remember from class discussions, salmon have had a huge impact on the Indigenous people of British Columbia, and have been a vital part of First Nations’ diet, economy, and mythology for centuries.
Before European contact, salmon was an important trade item, and featured prominently in a wide variety of legends, art, and spiritual ceremonies. In some stories, salmon are considered returning relatives, further personalizing and deepening the connection to the Indigenous communities who depended on salmon for survival and sustenance. It is a versatile food, and could be eaten fresh from a catch, or dried in a smoke house for the winter months… a tradition still practiced today! Perhaps that is one of the most powerful lessons we can take away from salmon:
Elder Philips says the salmon reminds us of the struggles each of us has to go through, but it also continues to teach us about the past, the importance of honouring tradition and our own place in the cycle of life.
Click here to watch a short video of Elder Ralph Philips, of Xat’sull First Nation sharing the story of the salmon!
Here is a Salmon WordSearch students might be interested in trying to solve!
