The Anicinabe organization Minwashin launched the WIKWEMOT educational basket as well as the augmented reality video game of the same name on November 25 in the community of Kitiganik (Lac-Rapide/Lac-Barrière).
Wikwemot is the Anicinabe word for “bark basket,” a tool “used since time immemorial by the Anicinabek to transport food, water and other essential objects across the territory.”
Like the hardware version, the WIKWEMOT educational basket makes it possible to collect, preserve and transmit elements of ancestral Anicinabe culture with educational activities in a digital universe accessible to all.
Minwashin presents it as “innovative, unifying and unique in its kind”.
The new educational kit was designed to teach Anicinabe culture in French, English and Anicinabemowin which respects the different dialects. It will be distributed to all schools in Anicinabek communities.
The king of the forest
The focus of the project is the moose, the mos, or the kacabagonegabwec.
There are four educational capsules on skinning the legs and scraping the skin of the moose, five educational activity books designed by teachers, pedagogues and cultural leaders from five different communities, as well as four video workshops on moose anatomy, its different calls, moose hunting experiences and the sacred values of the Seven Grandfathers.
“For the Anicinabek, moose represent much more than game, and hunting goes beyond mere subsistence activity. It’s not for nothing that we call him the King of the boreal forest,” explained Minwashin.
WIKWEMOT AR
The WIKWEMOT project has enhanced its basket with an augmented reality (AR) video game that allows you to learn how Anicinabek ancestors worked moose legs.
An original idea from Grace Ratt, an artisan and cultural educator from the Kitiganik community, this game designed for young people offers a wide range of traditional knowledge about moose.
The player will discover that everything in the moose leg has its use. Nails, bones, tendons: nothing will be thrown away. Grace Ratt herself narrates the game.
All information about this project is available on the Minwashin website under the WIKWEMOT tab.
