Celestial Connections (from Oct. 17th)
Narda: What is this? Someone brought a puzzle!
Child: That is Jupiter and there’s the astronaut. It’s mine. I brought it.
____, _____ and few others come in and out of the ‘puzzle space’, drawing tiny pictures while piecing together (and pulling apart) puzzle pieces on the table.
Narda: Hmmm…Can you tell me about this picture? It reminds me of our visit to the telescope. The observatory.
Child (pointing to picture): This is a satellite. There’s the astronaut. Can I tell you something? That’s what I'm going to be when I grow up! I’m going to go out into space and take pictures!!
_______ (watching intently): agrees with _______ and points to more celestial bodies on the puzzle lid.
Narda: Oh wow. Yes, I see him! (the astronaut) Did someone take this picture? There’s so much in it.
______: Yes (nodding) Someone took it.
Narda: Wait a second. If this is a picture of the galaxy we live in, where are we in the picture?
_______: (points to Earth) Here!
_______: Yeah. That’s Earth. I’m drawing it.
Narda: So…let me get this straight…If we are there, talking together about space, who took the picture?
_______: Karun did.
We are here!
I was grateful for the opportunity to join you for the tour of the UVic Observatory. The experience was amazing and still seems to be rippling out in interesting ways in the centre! A few of the things that struck me most from the tour were:
- The impact of our presence in the halls of the university (the children were met by many looks and smiles from students and staff)
- Karun’s (Dr. Thanjavur’s) first question to the children: “Before we start talking about the planets, I have a question for you all: where are we right now? Who knows where we are?”
- How knowledgeable the children are about the planets in our solar system (one child named most of the planets Karun drew on the white board)
- How powerful the sun is! (poor Mr. Pencil)
Touched by the Universe
Shifting the telescope
Mr. Pencil didn’t listen!
It was a wonderful experience that has me thinking about how vast the universe is and how we come to understand ourselves as within it and connected (or not) to those celestial bodies. Rather than re-tell the story of our trip (which you are more capable of re-telling from your own perspectives), I’m curious about the way this experience might continue to live and ripple out in connection with our collectivity inquiry. What would it mean to reorganize pedagogy around our celestial connections? How might we make space for other perspectives and render our multiple connections to the cosmos visible? Is the universe part of our ‘collective’?
When ______ & ______ pointed out the astronaut on the puzzle box, I automatically referred to that figure as a ‘he’. Space tends to be a masculinized and human-centric realm. But things are changing; last week the world saw its first all-female space-walk! We are also not the only creatures who notice and orient themselves to the sun, stars, moon, etc. Some plants are known for turning their faces toward the sun as it moves along the horizon and I’ve heard about a recent study that highlights the way dung beetles navigate themselves via the Milky Way. Who else does this?
During the tour, Angie turned to me and asked “Is this Common Worlds?” Love that question and think it’s a fascinating one to continue thinking with! We have been trying to ground and make meaningful connections with the ‘huge’ problem of climate change over the past few years. Space feels similar in that ‘massive’ sense, that is, while it feels compelling to think with, it is also a bit daunting to get my head around this all-encompassing phenomenon (Space) in pedagogy and practice. _____’s mom and Karun’s tour was a gift and catalyst to start thinking in this way. The children already seem to have deep connections with the cosmos. Pedagogically speaking, it feels important to orient ourselves in the universe, as Karun did at the beginning of our visit. Technology is incredible and advancing all of the time. It enables us to reach deeper and deeper into space, revealing more and more images and information about the solar system (and beyond). Where are we in this process of ‘discovery’? To whom must we be accountable in casting our imaginations beyond our own shared atmosphere? What might creative engagement look and feel like when put to work with these concepts and knowledges? What does it mean to think beyond the critical zone of our own planet’s generosity? Just a couple of questions that come up for me.:)
French philosopher, Bruno Latour, talks about the impact of the modern image of a ‘blue globe’ has had on our collective psyche and how humanity in general tends to organize itself as separate from, rather than deeply entangled with and dependent on the soil, creatures, air, and others who compromise our collective home. ______ showed me what it looks like to walk in space, telling me he had to take oxygen on his back to go into space. He and ______ also pointed out an image of an astronaut learning to walk in space by going under water with divers. How might we continue to engage children’s knowledge of (and fascination with) space and their everyday ideas/connections with the stars, moon, the sun, etc.? What stories do you carry with you from your own childhood about the stars, moon, etc.? How might we experiment together (through art, dance, song, discussion) in a way that renders our connections with the galaxy visible?
Expanding an idea:
Noticing and interpreting what children do and why they do it probes the connection between thinking and questioning and shows or makes visible the way children are making meaning of their learning or of their interaction with the world. As one interprets and critically reflects on a moment/observation, intriguing questions and insights can be gained without requiring absolute certainty about the situation. (BC ELF, 2019, p. 55)
For the most part, during our tour we were treated to a fascinating discussion and tour from a ‘Western science’ perspective, although Karun did bring in questions and more-than-human perspectives (like Mr. Pencil’s) that push at the boundaries of how we tend to get taught about non-human agency (which was delightful!). Science and technology have given us incredible discoveries about space! But there are other approaches to science that offer their own situated insights into the relationality of the universe that we can learn from as well. Wilfrid Buck, from the Opaskwayak Cree Nation Elder, talks about the way that that “every culture in the northern hemisphere went out at night and saw the same stars…it wasn’t only Romans and Greeks looking up at the sky, it was everybody…We are related to the stars, we are star people”: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/unreserved/from-star-wars-to-stargazing-1.3402216/cree-mythology-written-in-the-stars-1.3402227
Here is another link to Indigenous science perspectives that emphasize cultural relations with the cosmos (“Not just quaint little stories”) https://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/indigenous-astronomy-1.5077070 (includes link to video clip with Wilfrid Buck, Ask an Elder: Winter Solstice in the Cree Tradition)
More locally, here is a link to a 2018 article that highlights the cultural significance of renaming of a small planet ‘Tsawout’, after one of the 5 WSÁNEĆ bands in this area:
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/british-columbia/article-astronomers-name-minor-planet-after-vancouver-island-first-nation/
Chief Underwood noted the WSÁNEĆ people on Vancouver Island have looked to the stars for a lot longer than 100 years. “The moon governed our seasons to fish, hunt and gather,” he said. “It’s quite neat that we had the science of that a thousand years ago.”
The WSÁNEĆ have historically tracked lunar cycles and recognized 13 different moons. Late-May to early June marks the moon CENTEKI, or the sockeye moon when the sockeye salmon would return to the straits around Vancouver Island and could be harvested. Other moons mark the coming of winter, spring harvest or strong winds.
Nick Claxton is an assistant teaching professor at the University of Victoria and a member of the Tsawout Nation. He says that the geography of Tsawout land has historically played into a reliance on the stars. “Because our traditional territory is just as much marine environment as it is land, the knowledge of the tides and the currents and obviously the moon plays a big part,” he said.
He emphasized that institutional acts such as renaming Asteroid (402920) “Tsawout” – which translate to “houses on the hill” from the WSÁNEĆ language − are a way of valuing and promoting Indigenous knowledge. “We’re still struggling to have our knowledge passed on to future generations, so this helps. It creates a sense of value and sense of identity,” Mr. Claxton said.
Will leave it there for now! Looking fwd to hearing from you and continuing the conversation on Tuesday, Oct. 29th!
Thanks,
Narda
We walked back to the centre. Another tree-Key story emerged.
…there is nothing simple about ethical and political practice. No generalizations can be made as to how we practice, what we do, how we respond. Each pedagogical encounter requires a different kind of attention. There are no shortcuts for any of us. We just need to figure out, together in dialogue, how we want to respond or, more precisely, how we are able to respond. (Pacini-Ketchabaw et al., 2015, pp. 190-191)