ABSTRACT

This chapter explains the importance of thinking with land, water, and ice in the context of the Canadian Arctic. The purpose of thinking with land, water, ice, and snow is to reconceptualizing early childhood programs in Inuit Nunangat through a very situated and specifically Inuit Nunangat pedagogy in the Canadian Arctic. Inuit Nunangat is an official title used by the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (ITK) to recognize Nunatsiavut, Nunavik, Nunavut, and the Inuvialuit region of the Northwest Territories (NWT) as the regions and territories comprising the Inuit homeland in which Inuit live and have lived since time immemorial. The chapter explores that stories can be used to consider approaches to learning, teaching, and skill development connected with local and Inuit ontologies, axiology, and epistemologies. In a curriculum of place, young people or novices grow into knowledge through engagement in hands-on activities learning side-by-side with masters of the craft.