Pro-D for Educators | Chinatown Connections

SOLD OUT! Join VHF for our first Professional Development Day for Educators of the 2023/24 school year, with Chinatown Connections. 

Spend the day exploring Vancouver's Chinatown and its many stories, with a morning at the newly opened Chinese Canadian Museum (CCM). The museum honours the history, contributions, and heritage of Chinese Canadians, while elevating and engaging with voices and communities across this country. 

You'll join a special Wing Sang Building Tour, highlighting the rich history of the oldest brick building in Chinatown and its transformation from 1889 to the present. The tour guides include museum staff and Larry Chin and Sarah Ling, directors of Everlasting, a film on the museum's third floor that traces the journey and evolution of the Wing Sang Building and its inhabitants. You will also be introduced to the museum's current exhibitions, including "The Paper Trail to the 1923 Exclusion Act"  and have access to a range of educational resources.

Chinese and Indigenous Histories Workshop: In this activity-based workshop, learn about the deep ties between the Chinese and Indigenous peoples in BC. Participants will watch film clips from the Odysseys and Migration exhibition and award-winning documentary All Our Father’s Relations, as well as be introduced to resources such as children's books that explore Indigenous and Chinese Canadian ties. These will also be explored through a guided tour of special objects and artwork in the museum that reflect some of these shared histories in Canada.

Lunch will be served at the CCM, take out from Tato's (formerly Kent's Kitchen).

The afternoon will be spent on concurrent walking tours.* Guides Larry Chin and John Atkin will lead concurrent walking tours throughout Chinatown for approximately 1.5 hours, then return to the Chinese Canadian Museum for a final regroup and concluding discussion. Please note the tour routes will differ and may cover over 4-6 blocks, rain or shine.

*In order to increase capacity for this Pro-D, there will be 2 groups for the afternoon walking tour, each with a different guide (John Atkin or Larry Chin). The guide is reflected in the ticket type - either CCM & Walking Tour (Atkin) or CCM & Walking Tour (Chin). You may select either group, depending on your preference and/or availability of spots.

Admission and a private tour of the Chinese Canadian Museum, a session on Indigenous and Chinese-Canadian connections, lunch from Tato's Kitchen and an afternoon walking tour are included in the price. Proceeds support VHF's Heritage in Schools Program which provides field trip grants, online resources and professional development for educators.

Please note that capacity is limited.

This Pro-D is presented with the Chinese Canadian Museum (CCM).

About the Speakers:

Sarah Ling is Exhibition and Program Manager at CCM. Sarah oversees the development and implementation of the Chinese Canadian Museum’s programs and outreach initiatives including exhibition, public, educational, and volunteer programming.

Larry Chin is a professional photographer, filmmaker and volunteer in Chinatown. He serves as a Director on the Board of the Chinese Historical Society of BC, Chin Wing Chung Tong Society and Vancouver Hakka Association.

John Atkin is a civic historian, author and heritage consultant. He offers an interesting and offbeat insight into the city’s architecture, history and neighbourhoods through a series of unique and popular walking tours. These combine his interests in urban planning and development, a love of architecture and a fascination for the curious.

About the Sites:

Chinese Canadian Museum https://www.chinesecanadianmuseum.ca/

VHF's Vancouver Historic Chinatown Map Guide https://www.vancouverheritagefoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/VHF-Chinatown-Map-Guide-FINAL-web-res.pdf

Professional Development Day ("Pro-D Day") sessions are intended for current educators focusing on enriching their K-12 lesson plans/programming. VHF recognizes educators as a diverse field and not exclusive to district school teachers. We welcome all those whose field of work or employment/volunteer position impacts the education of K-12 children and youth. Please contact jessica@vancouverheritagefoundation.org if you have any questions regarding our Pro-D sessions. If you are not a current educator but are interested in the event, please sign up for the event waitlist.  

Please review our cancellation policy here before registering.

All donations are tax deductible. An official tax receipt is issued for donations of $20 or more. Our Registered Charity number is 891765968.