Where Did You Get Your Moccasins?

Children in an urban school are curious about a classmate’s new pair of moccasins. In answer to their questions, the boy describes in detail how his grandmother, or Kookum, made his moccasins.

Bernelda Wheeler (1937–2005) was an author, poet, journalist, actor, broadcaster and social activist, perhaps best known for her work on CBC Radio’s “Our Native Land.” For her pioneering work in media and literary circles, she was awarded the Order of Canada (1991) and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Anskohk Aboriginal Literacy Festival (2005). Her children’s books explore the importance of relationships to the land, as well as traditional Indigenous knowledge passed from generation to generation.