Drumming Our Way Home

Drumming Our Way Home takes readers on an autobiographical journey to recover Indigenous identity, demonstrating how storytelling – aided by a hand drum – can open up a new world of pedagogy and culture-based learning.

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What does it mean to be Secwepemc? And how can an autobiographical journey to recover Secwepemc identity inform learning and teaching? Drumming Our Way Home demonstrates how telling, retelling, and re-storying lived experiences not only passes on traditional ways but also opens up a world of culture-based learning.

Georgina Martin was taken from her mother not long after birth in a tuberculosis hospital. Her experience is representative of the intergenerational trauma inflicted by the Canadian state on Indigenous Peoples. Here she tells her story and invites Elder Jean William and youth Colten Wycotte to reflect critically on their own family and community experiences. Throughout, she is guided by her hand drum, reflecting on its use as a way to uphold community protocols and honour teachings. Her journey provides a powerful example of reconnection to culture through healing, affirmation, and intergenerational learning.

Drumming Our Way Home is evidence of the value of storytelling as a tool for teaching, learning, and making meaning.