Hello! For my Personal Learning Project I chose to take singing lessons. I chose this because I want to become a musician one day, and I know that being able to sing well is an important skill for me to develop so I wanted to improve my singing and learn different techniques that would help me become a better singer.

During my singing lesson we started with vocal warm ups such as going up and down the vocal scale and doing different exercises to warm up my voice, I really enjoyed learning different techniques and getting to practice them, I do wish the lesson was longer so I could have learned even more, but overall I really enjoyed the whole experience. I liked it enough that I plan on continuing with virtual singing lessons which I hope will help me continue building my skills and take another step toward my future career goal in music.

Hello! Participating in the Culture and Language Personal Learning Project (PLP) was an exciting opportunity to learn about different cultures and traditions while gaining a better understanding of the diverse communities around us. Throughout this project, I had the chance to attend several cultural events and visit places that expanded my knowledge and appreciation of cultures from around the world.

One of my favourite experiences was attending the Ghana Festival in Ottawa. The festival was full of energy, music, dancing, delicious food, and beautiful traditional clothing. It was amazing to see how proud the Ghanaian community is of their culture and how welcoming everyone was. Watching the performances and learning about Ghana’s traditions helped me understand the importance of celebrating cultural heritage.

Another memorable experience was attending the AXE WorldFest at the National Arts Centre (NAC). I enjoyed seeing performances from different cultures that included music, dance, and storytelling. Each performance was unique and showed how art can bring people together, even when they come from different backgrounds. It reminded me that culture can be shared in many creative ways.

I also visited the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, where I learned more about Canada’s history and the many cultures that have shaped our country. The exhibits helped me better understand the traditions, stories, and contributions of Indigenous Peoples and other communities that have helped build Canada. One of the highlights of my visit was looking up at the beautiful painted ceiling in the Grand Hall The artwork added to the experience and reflected the rich Indigenous culture and history celebrated throughout the museum. It was interesting to see how history, art, and culture come together to tell meaningful stories and connect people from different backgrounds and generations.

For my personal learning activity, I chose to visit an Asian outdoor market. The market was set up outside with many different tents, each offering a variety of foods, snacks, drinks, handmade items, and cultural products. Walking from tent to tent gave me the opportunity to experience the atmosphere and see the wide range of traditions and products that were being shared. I enjoyed exploring the different booths and learning about the foods and items that are important in many Asian cultures. This experience showed me how food, traditions, and local markets bring people together and help preserve cultural heritage. Visiting the market gave me a greater appreciation for the diversity within Asian cultures and encouraged me to continue learning about them.

Hey, Rick here once again! During my time in the Next program, I was put into the Food & Nutrition group where we learnt about foods, cooking and baking. The Food and Nutrition group got to take a tour of Algonquin College’s culinary arts school, take a class, cook, and meal prep for the day. I never even knew they offered that type of program because I love baking and cooking as well. I personally got to take a tour of a bakery in Ottawa, which really gave me a sense of how to start up my own business back home,how to navigate problems, coordinate staff, hire staff, and all the business stuff.

My favourite thing to experience was that I never knew Algonquin College offered 1st and 2nd year of Culinary arts program. Your first year of culinary schooling is just learning how to cook like a 5 star restaurant. Then in the second year you’re still cooking, but more experienced, learning what it’s like to be the head chef in a restaurant, taking charge of your meals, prepping and other stuff. I also learnt that once you graduate Culinary arts, you can get hired basically anywhere in the world, on cruise ships, high quality restaurants, and so much more places around the world. I was also told you make around 10k a month, if I remember correctly hehe. I also got to take a tour at a local bakery where I learnt what it’s like to have your own personal business. Speaking of personal business, I would one day love to open up a bakery in my hometown which is known as Baker Lake. I learnt to start small and that there may be some downs and ups in the process of starting your own bakery, but it’s worth all the hustle if you push yourself in order to achieve what you want in life because no one else will do it for you.

Through all the good and harsh times during my placement with NYA Next, I would definitely do this all over again if I could. I also would love to go to school in Ottawa some day as it opened more doors than I imagined. Until next time!

Warm regards, Rick.

Hello everyone my name is Chloe Hokanak. I’m from Kugluktuk, Nunavut and the population in my community is approximately 1,500 people. I’m one of the 18 participants of the NYA NextProgram. Here is a bit about myself – I enjoy beading, sewing by hand or sewing machine, baking, fishing, camping, exploring new places, travelling, and learning more about my culture. I applied to NYA back in October 2024, I got accepted and was fortunate enough to choose which of the two core programs I would be more interested in participating in. I chose the NYA Next Program because I recently graduated high school and I’m looking into different options for post-secondary/university while also learning what its like to live on campus, which was at Algonquin College here in Ottawa.

Before I arrived to Ottawa I was a bit nervous as this is the furthest I’ve been away from my home community. I didn’t know what to expect from this trip and how much I would gain from this experience. I also never expected how much this experience would change how I view life as a whole, and how much the people would change my life. This experience has taught me so much about life, campus, residence, learning to navigate my way around the city on my own, trades, and so much more. But I’ve also learnt so much about myself as an individual. It’s brought me so much more confidence, understanding and it’s taught me how to be more resilient. I learned how to be more independent, I learned more about leadership and entrepreneurship with my PLP group, and ways I can help my community with volunteerism.

This whole experience has been nothing but amazing, and such an eye-opening experience for me. Although there were days where I was very tired and exhausted from the intense schedule, I wouldn’t change it for anything. The staff and project leaders are very understanding and helpful. They assist you when needed, and if you want someone to talk to, they are there for you and the other participants. We did so much in a short amount of time, but once the ending of the program came closer, it felt as if we never had enough time together as a group. This program has, no doubt changed my life and I will always be grateful to have been able to experience this with an amazing group of youth. I encourage all youth from my community and neighbouring communities to apply to this program. If you’re thinking of applying or know of someone interested in applying, encourage them and support them. They will gain a lot from this experience and learn so much more than they ever expected. They will also get the chance to meet youth from Nunavut & NWT, build strong bonds and gain friendships that will last forever, and make connections with project leaders and staff that will help and support them through the program and even after the program is done.

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog 🙂 Hope you have a great day!