DRA program highlights traditional skills and modern Wabanaki culture
Woolwich Central School students play traditional Wabanaki games in front of the DRA birch bark wigwam, which was constructed with student involvement. Courtesy photo
Working with reed canary grass to make a mat to cover a wigwam at the DRA are students from Miller Grade School in Waldoboro. Courtesy photo
Students from St. George School in Tenants Harbor participate in DRA’s Wabanaki program and learn about birch bark and its importance to native people with Passamaquoddy educator David Moses Bridges. Courtesy photo
St. George School students dig for groundnuts during the DRA Wabanaki education program. Courtesy photo
Woolwich Central School students play traditional Wabanaki games in front of the DRA birch bark wigwam, which was constructed with student involvement. Courtesy photo
Working with reed canary grass to make a mat to cover a wigwam at the DRA are students from Miller Grade School in Waldoboro. Courtesy photo
Students from St. George School in Tenants Harbor participate in DRA’s Wabanaki program and learn about birch bark and its importance to native people with Passamaquoddy educator David Moses Bridges. Courtesy photo
St. George School students dig for groundnuts during the DRA Wabanaki education program. Courtesy photo
Damariscotta River Association (DRA) welcomed over 350 students, teachers and parents from ten local schools into their Wabanaki Education Program this fall. Students learned about Wabanaki culture through hands-on experiences as they etched birch bark, made grass mats for wigwams, built emergency shelters in the woods, dug for groundnuts and sampled a variety of wild edibles.
Education Director Sarah Gladu recently explained, “The authentic experience of working with natural materials serves not only to teach history and culture but also, as is consistent with the DRA’s mission, connects students with this landscape.”
With respect to the DRA partnership with David Moses Bridges, the Passamaquoddy educator that works with her during this program, Gladu said, “He [Bridges] is an extraordinary educator. Through stories told to him by his elders, his artwork and his skill with birch bark, he connects students to the Wabanaki culture in a profound fashion. When David talks about ‘the ancestors’ and their relationship to this landscape, the cultural bond to this place becomes concrete for the listeners.”
The Wabanaki program is just one of many school programs offered by the DRA. Since Sept. 1, 2016 alone, the DRA education program has provided educational opportunities to over 740 students of all ages from schools ranging from Gray to Camden. The programs focus on natural science but they vary widely in topic, from tree identification to squid dissection.
Damariscotta River Association is a non-profit, membership supported, and nationally accredited land trust and conservation organization dedicated to preserving and promoting the natural, cultural, and historical heritage of the Damariscotta region, centered on the Damariscotta River.
DRA has active programs in the areas of land conservation, stewardship, community education, water quality monitoring, marine conservation and cultural preservation.
Visitors are welcome at the Great Salt Bay Heritage Center in Damariscotta as well as the many other DRA properties throughout the region. For more information call (207) 563-1393, email dra@damariscottariver.org, or view their website at www.damariscottariver.org.
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