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The learners are now putting together a publication about their experience, while the audiotape is in the next stage of production.

I am also happy to announce that a long-standing book project is finally nearing completion. "How To Read A Dinosaur and Other Museum Tales," a joint publication of the program and Pacific Educational Press will be released in the Spring of 1999. For more information see p.8 of this newsletter. A video about the work of the "Reading The Museum" program is also in production. It will feature projects in Edmonton, Montréal and Saint John New Brunswick. The video is being made by Christina Craton and Tim Schwab of First Light Films International, who have extensive experience in making documentaries for museums. The next issue of the newsletter will contain details about the production's progress.

At this time, I would like to acknowledge all the museum staff, literacy educators and learners who participated in demonstration projects and other program activities over the past year. Their efforts confirm what can be accomplished when museums and community organizations work together to encourage literacy. I would also like to thank those who served on the selection committees for new demonstration projects. February 1998 competition: Cheryl Campbell, Pembina Learning Centre, Winkler, Manitoba; Christine Bernier, Musée d'art contemporain, Montréal, Québec; Christine Goodchild, Art Gallery of Windsor, Windsor, Ontario; and Roberta Kremer, Vancouver Holocaust Centre, Vancouver, British Columbia. October 1998 competition: Stephen Archibald, Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History, Halifax, N.S; Yolande Racine, La Pulperie, Chicoutimi, Québec; Jeri Harmsen, formerly of the Agnes Etherington Art Gallery, Kingston, Ontario; and Maureen Sanders, Prospects Literacy Association, Edmonton, Alberta.

Lon Dubinsky
Coordinator, Reading the Museum

"Hear Are Your Roots"

Oral History and Literacy at the Fraser-Fort George Museum, Prince George, British Columbia

Alecia Greenfield, Project Coordinator

The Fraser-Fort George Museum is currently presenting "Hear Are Your Roots," an exhibition about the region's forestry workers. The exhibition features oral histories of people from many communities who agreed to tell their stories. Some of the contributors include Carrier Sekani, Scandinavians, Chinese and Indo-Canadians. The literacy component involved the College of New Caledonia's English-as-a-Second Language program. It recommended that there be both written and audio elements and suggested activities to run in conjunction with the exhibition. A Language for New Canadians class proofread the text for the exhibition, suggested other changes and recommended that a glossary be included. The class also discovered some of the history of indigenous people and of the immigrants who came before them.

The result is an exhibition in which pioneers speak for themselves directly. Their recollections are on wall panels done in colourful magazine style layout. There are also listening stations where visitors can hear the stories. An accompanying publication has the same format. For a look at a "page" from the exhibition, see the adjacent page of this newsletter.

In the end, over 35 oral histories were recorded. As a result, the museum strengthened its relationship with many cultural communities in the region that might not otherwise participate in the museum's programs. By working with the English-as-a-Second Language program, museum staff also learned a lot about how to make exhibits and programs more accessible to several communities in the region. "Hear Are Your Roots" runs from September 10, 1998 to January 4, 1999 and will then be available as a travelling exhibition.