Local Government Organizations Launch Resource for Saskatchewan Educators

Treaty 4 Territory, Regina, Sask. – To raise awareness and engagement in local democracy, local government organizations in Saskatchewan have launched a resource to support Grade 4 educators as they teach students about governance.

The resource, Who Governs Us? Who Governs the Land? focuses on governance at the local, community, civic, and provincial levels, including both Métis and First Nations governance structures and K-12 education governance. Lessons, which offer possible inquiry questions, vocabulary, and activity options, focus on outcomes from the Saskatchewan Grade 4 Social Studies Curriculum. The comprehensive resource also provides access to a speakers bureau. Educators can contact the speakers bureau to be connected with local representatives – mayors, reeves, chiefs, trustees, and directors - who can speak to students about local government and governance.

Who Governs Us? Who Governs the Land? is a collaboration between the Saskatchewan School Boards Association, Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities, Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association, Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations, and Métis Nation – Saskatchewan.

The resource, developed by teachers and the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation Learning Centre, is being released in conjunction with Local Government Week, which runs November 14-20. Locally-elected governments represent the voices of the people they serve and provide close connections and accountability to their communities. Local Government Week recognizes and raises awareness about Saskatchewan’s systems of local governance.