- Definition
A knowledge keeper is someone who holds and shares important traditional information, stories, or skills from their community, like language, culture, or arts. They are a valuable resource for learning about their community's heritage.
A person from the community who visits the class to teach a traditional song is a knowledge keeper.
How to teach this in 30 seconds
Try this analogy: A knowledge keeper is like a grandparent who remembers all the family stories and how to do special things, like bake a certain cake or sing a special song.
Ask your child: Who in our family knows a special story or song?
Common mix-up: Kids might think a knowledge keeper must be an Elder. A knowledge keeper can be any person trusted by their community to hold and share important teachings, regardless of age.
Examples
- A community member who teaches children how to do a traditional dance.
- Someone who knows how to make traditional crafts and shows others how to do it.
knowledge keeper is a term used in Ontario’s Kindergarten to Grade 8 curriculum.
Where this shows up
- Grade 5 Health and Physical Education
- Grade 1 Social Studies / History / Geography
- Grade 2 Social Studies / History / Geography
- Grade 3 Social Studies / History / Geography
- Grade 4 Social Studies / History / Geography
- Grade 5 Social Studies / History / Geography
+3 more mentions across the curriculum
The descriptions on this page are SmartStudy’s own original, plain-language writing — not the Ministry’s wording. They are aligned to the Ontario Curriculum, © King’s Printer for Ontario. For the Ministry’s official wording, see the source link below. SmartStudy is an independent service and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the Government of Ontario or the Ministry of Education. Ontario Curriculum and Resources ↗
