Wigwam to go up at elementary school

A wigwam will soon go up at the Dr. John C. Wickwire Academy, thanks to a grant from Mi’kmaq Services.

The $5,000 grant is part of an outreach program aimed at educating students in the schools about Mi’kmaq culture and heritage.

Students Calla Brown and Sierra MacLeod are part of the group working to get the Wigwam built, and say it was a good opportunity for the school.

“I feel like it is a really good thing to be happening,” said Brown. “It’s something that should be happening.

Adam Leuschner, the teacher coordinating the build, says they hope to use the Wigwam for learning about Mi’kmaq history, reconciliation efforts and to incorporate it into their outdoor education curriculum.

Both students are moving on to Grade 6 at the middle school next year, but hope that this Wigwam be a lasting legacy for the school.

Todd Labrador from Acadia First Nations will help the school create the Wigwam, and will teach the children the meaning behind the Wigwams, how to collect materials and how to construct it.

The Wigwam will go up on school grounds sometime in May.