The Scene Presents Susan Aglukark

Susan Aglukark Multimedia presentation on Self-Esteem with Q&A to follow

March 10 @ 12:45l Total running time: 90 minutes [Presentation: 60 minutes Q&A: 30 minutes] Age: 12 years +

The Scene: Youth Media Festival 1 www.thesceneyouthmedia.ca

DESCRIPTION OF PROGRAM

The Scene Youth Media Festival is proud to announce that winning Inuk singer/songwriter, Susan Aglukark, will give a multimedia presentation about self-esteem. Drawing from her personal and professional struggles, Susan will combine stories, songs, and videos to talk about challenges she has faced, and the ways in which key turning points in her life inspired particular songs.

A big part of Susan’s presentation will center on her heritage, the Arctic, and its people the . She will discuss her growth and her commitment to her art, writing and performing. She will share her struggles to find ‘herself’ in her music, and describe what happened when she finally settled on her career.

Susan Aglukark has a universal message told through stories of her own life experiences and those of her peoples, which she seamlessly weaves into song.

“The songs are driven by the stories. It’s all about the stories.” Susan Aglukark

Susan Aglukark Biography With eight albums to her credit, Susan Aglukark is Arctic Canada’s first ever Juno Award winning Inuk singer/songwriter. She has won 3 Juno awards, and in 2005 she received The Order of Canada. She has performed for many dignitaries including HRH Queen Elizabeth, Jean Chrétien, Brian Mulroney, Nelson Mandela, Billy Graham, and The Countess of Wessex.

Susan is one of Canada’s most unique and most honoured artists. An Inuk from , , she has been walking in a tension between two worlds, a defining note in her remarkable career. She was a rare and exotic presence in the mainstream music world – an Inuk woman, a modern woman, a strong woman with something important to say is sometimes very rare in the entertainment industry. Susan embodied pure, graceful honesty and strength. As her songs climbed the charts, her stories and her candour about the struggles of the Inuit and Aboriginal communities, and her bravery as she opened up about her own anger and struggle won her an audience beyond that of most pop artists.

Susan’s musical success is even more interesting when you realize she didn’t start her career until she was 24; with no modern musical orthodoxy to draw on she was free to respond to the sounds and styles that touched or motivated or inspired her. The (real) appeal of her music is that in an era where the most popular music is often less relevant than style or mood, her lyrics are where she lives.

As much as she writes and sings about her people, the songs Susan Aglukark creates have something in them that speaks to all of us, whether it’s the longing of a woman growing old for the traditional life that she was taken away from (“Bridge of Dreams”), or a gentle anthem for peace and tolerance (“O Siem”—joy in community). Aglukark’s artistic vision is ultimately a universal one.

Website: http://www.susanaglukark.com

The Scene: Youth Media Festival 2 www.thesceneyouthmedia.ca CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS This presentation connects directly and powerfully to various outcomes in the following curricula for each grade: Arts Education, ELA, Health, Social Studies

Samples of Relevant Outcomes Arts Education: Cultural Historical CH7.2 Investigate how Indigenous artists from around the world reflect the importance of place (e.g., relationship to the land, geology, region, urban/rural environments).

CH7.3 Investigate and identify a variety of factors that influence artists, their work, and careers.

CH8.2 Analyse the influence of social issues on the work on contemporary First Nations, Métis and Inuit artists, and share results. English Language Arts CR7.4 View and demonstrate comprehension and interpretation of visual and multimedia texts with specific features and complex ideas including the visual components of media such as videos.

CR8.4 View critically and demonstrate comprehension of a variety of visual and multimedia texts including . . . informational presentations, dramatic presentations . . . to locate and interpret key messages and details, to develop conclusions, opinions, and understanding, and to evaluate the effectiveness of the text.

Essential Questions

What types of experiences weaken or strengthen our self-esteem? Can art help us respond to life’s wonders and challenges? How might identity affect art? In what ways are culture and artistic impression related? How do we respond in different ways to the spoken word and to music? If an experience of art, such as this presentation, is a “turning point” in my own understanding, how can I communicate this meaningfully to an audience? How is Indigenous art important to all Canadians?

The Scene: Youth Media Festival 3 www.thesceneyouthmedia.ca VIEWING SKILLS

Adapted from Saskatchewan Curriculum, “Assessing, Evaluating, and Reporting Student Progress

Grades 6-9 Student: _ interprets meaning and potential impact from visual texts _ recognizes audience(s) targeted by visuals and considers potential impact _ identifies explicit and some implicit messages in visual texts _ practises the behaviors of effective viewers including: previewing and setting purpose for viewing making and confirming predictions making connections to prior knowledge and experiences monitoring understanding recognizing main ideas and relevant supporting details reflecting on and assessing understanding re-viewing evaluating _ expresses personal reactions and opinions _ recognizes how the visual is organized and presented for effect _ recognizes how the images or other elements capture and hold attention _ uses critical thinking skills to identify bias _ reflects on viewing habits _ identifies strengths and areas for improvement in viewing

Grades 10-12 Student knows: • visual texts combine clarity with artistry to have an impact on viewers • visual texts construct reality; audiences negotiate/ construct meaning • all visual texts contain ideological and value messages. Student: _ identifies the purpose(s), intended audience(s), and implicit and explicit message(s) within visual texts _ considers context for viewing _ actively (versus passively) interprets visual texts _ practises the behaviors of effective viewers including: anticipating message and setting purpose for viewing seeking and checking understanding by making connections making and confirming predictions and inferences interpreting and summarizing analyzing and evaluating _ infers whose point of view, values, biases, and assumptions are implicit in visual texts _ recognizes the techniques, conventions, and aesthetic elements (e.g., light, angle, colour, focus, composition, shape), and psychological appeals used in visual texts _ explains how visual text combines with oral, print, and other media to convey meaning _ evaluates critically the message or information obtained by viewing _ assesses the relevance and reliability of visual information presented _ identifies strengths and areas for improvement in viewing

The Scene: Youth Media Festival 4 www.thesceneyouthmedia.ca Pre-Viewing Activity #1: Video of Aglukark in Concert To give students a sense of what this live performance will be like, share this video of Aglukark performing in Manitoba at the Red River Relief event (televised on CBC, May 18, 1997). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWpv2jRdSJY As they view, ask students to record thoughts, observations, and inferences in response to these questions: Question My Thoughts My Peers’ Thoughts

How does she interact with

her audience?

How do they regard her?

How do you

know?

What do you notice about her music? (consider its style, content, & purpose)

What questions do you have

about this

Canadian musician?

The Scene: Youth Media Festival 5 www.thesceneyouthmedia.ca Pre-Viewing Activity #2: Aglukarks’ Music JIGSAW ACTIVITY 1. Create 7 groups.

2. Assign each group to one of the songs below (all can be accessed through the link) http://www.susanaglukark.com/music/ Group 1: 1993 Arctic Rose, “Arctic Rose” Group 2: 1995 This Child, “Shamaya” Group 3: 2000 Unsung Heroes, “Stand Up” Group 4: 2004 Big Feeling, “Big Feeling” Group 5: 2006, Blood Red Earth, “Blood Red Earth” Group 6: 2011 Big Feeling, “White Sahara” Group 7: 2013 Dreaming of Home, “Old Toy Trains”

3. Instruct groups to listen to their song, study its lyrics, and discuss and answer these questions: a. What is the song about? Summarize the lyrics. b. Describe the style of the song, considering its pace, tone, instruments, lyrics . . c. Does the style match or suit the meaning of the words? d. What does the speaker worry about? Celebrate? Reject? Value? How do you know? e. Does she use both English and the Inuk language in the song? If so, do you know what the Inuk words mean? If not, does it still communicate to you somehow – to your thoughts and/or emotions? Can you infer what it means in the context of the song? f. Why do you think Aglukark includes Inuk words instead of their English translations? Suggest 3 reasons!

The Scene: Youth Media Festival 6 www.thesceneyouthmedia.ca Pre-Viewing Activity #3:

Making Connections Between Aglukark’s Story & Inuit History

In her presentation, Aglukark will speak about the effects of colonization on Inuit people, and on her personally.

In 2008, Prime Minister Stephen Harper issued a formal apology to First Nations, Metis, and Inuit peoples for the suffering they endured in residential schools.

(https://www.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/eng/1100100015644/1100100015649 )

In the link below, Inuit leader Mary Simon speaks to Prime Minister Harper and a full house of Members of Parliament and Aboriginal Leaders in the House of Common. Her words can give students an initial sense of the Aglukark’s culture, which infuses her art. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgOfCD7aCxM

As students listen, ask them to record their observations and questions, and to see if they can find any connections between the Aglukark songs they studied in Activity #2, and the ideas Mary Simon expresses. Discuss these things after viewing.

The Scene: Youth Media Festival 7 www.thesceneyouthmedia.ca Post-Viewing Activities

A. DISCUSSION of Students’ Experience at Aglukark’s Presentation B. DISCUSSION TOPICS Most memorable moments; Favorite song(s); Lessons / Truths about Self-Esteem

C. COMPOSE & CREATE RESPONSES TO AGLUKARK’S PRESENTATION

CHOICE Provide students with a choice of ways to respond to Aglukark’s presentation. This could include a Letter of Appreciation, or an Autobiographical Narrative of turning points from students’ own lives. PROCESS

Provide students with Compose and Create Before, During, and After process supports to guide them as they create their texts (spoken, written, visual, digital, multimedia)

Sample Process Questions from Curriculum Guide How can I best express these ideas for this audience and purpose? What forms can I use? What are the conventions of those forms? How can I communicate most clearly and effectively? Are my compositions and presentations well- crafted, fully developed, coherent, and appropriate to my audience and purpose? PRODUCT

graphic novel, comic, oral storytelling, diary, letter, poem, poster, infographic . . . AUDIENCE Audiences may vary, according to students’ purposes, chosen media, and relationships. A classroom gallery of student work may be a rich experience for students and the school community.

Share final product, reflect, consider feedback, and celebrate learning.

If students would like to send their letters (or other types of texts) to Aglukark, they can email them to her at this address: [email protected]

The Scene: Youth Media Festival 8 www.thesceneyouthmedia.ca

Post-Viewing Activity #2:

Aglukark’s Active Citizenship: Research & Share

In addition to being a talented artist, Aglukark is an active and engaged citizen.

Invite students to research an example of Aglukark’s citizenship, and share it with the class.

Here is an example to get them started: http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/acclaimed-singer-shipping-1-000-pounds-of-food-to-nunavut- 1.2151549

The Scene: Youth Media Festival 9 www.thesceneyouthmedia.ca Rubric for Student Learning from The Scene Program

Criteria Level 4 Level 3 Level 2 Level 1 Viewing • Consistently and • Uses a range of • Uses some basic • Uses few strategies Skills and ably uses a range of strategies before, strategies before, before, during, and Strategies strategies before, during, and after the during, and after the after the viewing during, and after the viewing process. viewing process. process. viewing process. Comprehensio • Demonstrates • Demonstrates clear • Demonstrates some • Demonstrates n thorough understanding of understanding of limited and insightful ideas, information, ideas, information, understanding of understanding of concepts, and/or concepts, and/or ideas, information, ideas, information, themes in visuals. themes in visuals. concepts, and/or concepts, and/or themes in visuals. themes in visuals. • Explains the • Identifies the explicit • Identifies the explicit • Identifies explicit relationship between and implicit messages and some of the messages but has the explicit and in the visual text. implicit messages in difficulty identifying implicit messages in the visual text. the implicit the visual text. messages in the visual text. • Explains in a thorough • Explains how ideas • Explains in a simple • Has difficulty and insightful are portrayed and way how ideas are explaining way how ideas are how visual elements/ portrayed and how how ideas are portrayed and how techniques have visual elements/ portrayed and how key visual elements/ been used to achieve techniques have visual elements/ techniques have been particular effects. been used to achieve techniques have used for effect. particular effects. been used for effect. Response • Responds critically • Responds personally • May need assistance • Needs assistance and thoughtfully to and thoughtfully to to respond from and prompting visual text. visual text. personal viewpoint. to respond from personal viewpoint. • Responds personally • Responds personally • Responds personally • Responds personally with a high degree with considerable with some detail and with limited detail of detail and detail and support. support. and support. effectiveness. • Responds critically • Responds critically • Responds critically • Responds critically with a high degree with considerable with some analysis with limited analysis of analysis and analysis and support. and support. and support. effectiveness. • Makes connections • Makes connections • Makes connections • Makes connections with other texts with with other texts with other texts with with other texts a high degree of with considerable some understanding. with limited understanding. understanding. understanding. • Identifies and explains • Identifies and explains • Identifies personal • Shows a limited overt and covert bias; overt bias in visual bias only. awareness of avoids and actively texts. personal bias in challenges bias in visual texts. visual texts. *Saskatchewan Online Curriculum; “Assessing, Evaluating, and Reporting Student Progress”

The Scene: Youth Media Festival 10 www.thesceneyouthmedia.ca

The Scene: Youth Media Festival March 8 – 10, 2016

The Broadway Theatre 715 Broadway Avenue Saskatoon, SK S7N 1B3 www.thesceneyouthmedia.ca Scene Administrator: Alison Whelan at 306-652-6556 x 4

This Teacher Resource Guide was prepared by Sherry Van Hesteren, Curriculum Consultant for The Scene 2016.

The Scene: Youth Media Festival 11 www.thesceneyouthmedia.ca