Graduation Speech -- Graduation Speech, Commencement Address

High school. I never realized it would bring so many changes. As I walked on to campus my freshman year, my mindset was the same as it was in eighth grade; the young are invincible. And although I was excited to come to high school I had many fears. Would the classes be too hard, would I make new friends, what could I become involved in, and most of all -- what if I get lost? All of these fears eventually subsided and I, along with all of you, found the right classes and the right teachers. We all made new friends. We all got involved in something. During my freshman year, innocence surrounded me and although eventually my shell would crack, not until this year have I broken through. This year I decided that it is time to soar on my own. Graduation is the beginning of a new flight for all of us, the class of 1997. Confucius once said, "Our greatest glory is not in never failing but in rising every time we fall." As a class, we have done our best not to fail. Pep assemblies, dances, food drives, games, and conquering the senior lot are just some of the things we accomplished. We pu... Graduation Speech -- Graduation Speech, Commencement Address High school. I never realized it would bring so many changes. As I walked on to campus my freshman year, my mindset was the same as it was in eighth grade; the young are invincible. And although I was excited to come to high school I had many fears. Would the classes be too hard, would I make new friends, what could I become involved in, and most of all -- what if I get lost? All of these fears eventually subsided and I, along with all of you, found the right classes and the right teachers. We all made new friends. We all got involved in something. During my freshman year, innocence surrounded me and although eventually my shell would crack, not until this year have I broken through. This year I decided that it is time to soar on my own. Graduation is the beginning of a new flight for all of us, the class of 1997. Confucius once said, "Our greatest glory is not in never failing but in rising every time we fall." As a class, we have done our best not to fail. Pep assemblies, dances, food drives, games, and conquering the senior lot are just some of the things we accomplished. We pu...

candy Essay -- essays research papers

Candy Thesis: I.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Introduction A.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Opening Statement B.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Thesis II.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Skittles A. B. I would like to think of myself as a healthy eater. I try not to eat much meat during the week and I always eat a variety vegetables. Nevertheless, I have this weakness that renders all my attempts at healthy eating D.O.A. Of course I am talking about candy. Even thought it is almost completely made of sugar, I cannot get enough. Everyone has their favorite candy; some may like sour or sweet while others stick to the classics; chocolate or camel. The only problem is I like them all so narrowing it down is not easy. I think the best way would be to pick through my long list of favorites and come up with the top three. My all time favorite candy’s are, in no particular order, laffy taffy, skittles, and pralines. Some people simply despise fruity candies. Somehow I always seem to find myself not only buying, but also enjoying them. It seems the sky is the limit when it comes to the colors and flavors availably to choose from. Even through the seemingly endless type, I stay true to skittles in particular. I simply cannot get enough of those delicious little candies. They are about the same size as an m&m, but much more colorful. I would say my favorite flavor would have to be the red ones. The colors coordinate to the flavors. Red skittles are strawberry. The purple ...

Ethanol as an Alternative Energy Source Essays -- Biofuel Bio Fuel Ess

Biofuels: Ethanol an Alternative Energy Source Abstract In today's society, when someone wants to go to the movies, work, school, library, or mall, they drive to their destination. The average amount of gasoline consumed per year is about 146 gallons in the U.S. (Biofuels for Transportation, p1). Discoveries of huge petroleum deposits kept gasoline cheap for decades and biofuels were forgotten (Leen, p1). However, with the recent oil prices, along with growing concern of global warming caused by carbon dioxide emissions, biofuel regained popularity (Leen, p1). Ethanol, a renewable fuel made from plants was added to gasoline to increase octane and help the engines burn more efficiently and cleanly (West,p1). Introduction Ethanol or ethyl alcohol (EtOH) is an alternative energy source which produces a fuel with higher octane rating and fewer emissions than unblended gas (West, p1). Some sources used to make ethanol are sugar canes, maize, sorghum, fruit and vegetable waste, barley, wheat, potatoes, molasses, cotton, or any other plant that contains a large amount of sugar. But the leading U.S fuel crop is corn. Corn byproducts allow more fuel to be made from the same amount of corn by breaking down the starches in its cell walls (Benefits, p3). The enzyme Tran 2 increases production of alcohol from corn by 2% to 3% (Benefits, p3). There are four steps toward making ethanol. First, the feedstock is ground for easier processing, then when the sugar is dissolved from the ground materials, the microbes feed on the sugar producing ethanol and carbon dioxide as byproducts (West, p2). Lastly, the ethanol is purified to achieve the correct concentration (West, p3). This grain alcohol is a colorless and flammable as well as drin... ...http://journey tofor ever.org/ethanol.html>. 2. Martinez, Scott. Ethanol. 12 Sept 2005. WiseGeeks, Wisegeek.com/ what-is-ethanol-fuel.htm>, 22 July 2008. 3. Sunshine John. What is Ethanol Fuel? 8 July 2008. Ethanol. 20 July 2008. . 4. Unknown. Biofuels. Alternative Energy. 25 July 2008. . 5. Unknown. Genomes to Life. 2007 July 10. Biofuels for Transportation. 19 July 2008. . 6. Unknown. The Benefits of Biomass. 2006 Sept 18. Bioenergy. 18 July 2008. . 7. West, Lester. What is Ethanol? 13 March 2005. About. 17 July 2008. ethanol.htm>.

Diary of A Baby by Daniel Stern

Diary of a Baby by Daniel N. Stern focuses on 3 key points in Child Development. What your child sees, what they feels and what are the experiences during infantry. The author tries to relate from a baby’s point of view from one chapter to another. Reading this book is really an enjoyable experience where you ought to learn and tries to bring you back to the time where you are still young. The main character Joey gives us a clearer picture of what we were during this period. It clearly narrates how a young’s consciousness was penetrated by the environment and the people that they deal with everyday.Newborns can see clearly approximately 10 to 12 inches away, about the distance between a nursing infant and his mother’s face. Fortunately, infants tend to be more interested in the human face than everything else. This is where parents tends to take advantage of it and must spend time gazing into the baby’s eyes. As per the term what they see is more important because from total darkness in their mother’s womb, they were enlightened to the world and what they see gives them a clearer view and understanding of what the real world is all about.What a baby feels is like a human weatherscape where there is a unique moment of feelings in motion. Unlike photographs which are static, it has duration and changes depending on a child’s point of view. Dependability is one great word to describe what a child feels where it can last from a split second to many seconds. In the book, Joey’s feeling and perceptions change together. Each moment has its sequence and continuously adds up to the characters experiences in life. Interaction from the people around him is what drives his sights, feelings and experiences.What links the book to child development is that it gives guidance for parents in raising a child base on the scenario of everyday interaction. From coping up with the environment and dealing with the surroundings to the ex pectations in guidance and caring process to each Joey in a parent’s life. The optimal development of children is vital in our society. Therefore the social, cognitive, emotional and educational development of children is important to understand. Joey’s milestone mirrors child development in the book Diary of a Baby.Because it specifies physical and mental abilities like walking, seeing and understanding language according to a child’s age. Milestones can be described as what a child accomplishes throughout the different stages in their life. Increased knowledge of age specific areas in child development allows parents and other caring adults to keep track of appropriate child development which includes patience, problem solving, social skills and creativity in child rearing. What could possibly conflict the book and Child development is that not all that can be read may be applied.It varies depending on the knowledge and understanding of the reader and at the s ame time the stereotypical notion for them in racing their own child based on how they were raised by their parents. One strength of the book is that the reader sees a clearer view on a baby’s phase. It makes the reader feel as if they were young just like Joey once again. From the first six weeks where feelings are really great factors in child care. Why a warm hug and a sweet lullaby expresses deep love and care in every baby.World of feelings in this stage is extremely induced to the readers knowledge for them to be able to comply and have a better understanding how feelings is important during this stage. When a baby is hungry and wants to be fed up immediately it is like shots in a movie one maybe continuous with the next, or fade into it, or cut abruptly against it. Or be separated by a blank pause. It is not clear to babies how they move from one moment to the next or what. If anything happens between those experiences, the one who takes care of them are the mere respo nsible ones in the scenario.Because for Joey all his senses are focused on each one activity that he sees, feels and is experiencing at that very moment. And he lives and deals with each one intensely. Many are the prototypes of the moment that will or may recur over and over throughout his life. What could weaken the scenario is the conflicting ideas between the reader and the author’s concept for not all people may understand that all that is written in the book is the same in a parent-child scenario. One good example is unexpected pregnancy which may greatly affect the reader’s point of view on child development.It could provide both positive and negative impact once it was read. Positive in a way that a mother may become more excited into being a mother to her child or it could possibly frighten her in dealing with her baby because she is not really prepared to have one. Surprising Discoveries that was learned in the book is that I was fascinated how the author ent husiastically explained in details what a baby sees, feels and experiences during his childhood days where the only person they depend upon and look up to is their parents.This book can be utilized in the truest sense of the word parenting and child development process. It is a great instrument for mothers, expecting mothers and parents who desperately wants to know what the infant’s experience is really like Stern draws on his readers different findings and cutes on experiences of a baby in order to re-create the baby’s world and make it more fun, exciting and enjoyable

On the Quai

â€Å"On the Quai at Smyrna† As a collection of stories that take the reader through the confusing and disorienting journey of America soldiers in World War I, the introduction, â€Å"On the Quai at Smyrna,† is no exception. Hemmingway begins his introduction without any explanation of who is reminiscing and provides only details to create an image in the reader’s mind. Hemmingway creates no context for which to frame the events, and by doing this, Hemmingway throws the reader into the story, not unlike the soldiers who were thrown into a war.Throughout the introduction Hemmingway creates an image of suffering and despair, however the narrator is never introduced. Using this confusing and disturbing prose as an introduction, Hemmingway sets the reader up for the perplexing and horrible stories that the soldiers are telling throughout In Our Time. â€Å"On the Quai at Smyrna† describes a world where gruesome stories are so commonplace that a telling is rece ived with less shock and awe and more indifference. Hemmingway sets up the story by explaining, â€Å"he said† (Hemmingway) as a frame.There is no more background given; no other details are displayed to help the reader understand the situation. The reader has to work through what â€Å"he said† to find out the setting, the characters, and the entire situation. This use of framing is atypical and causes the reader pause when relating to the protagonist. By structuring the story this way, Hemmingway draws the readers’ attention to the fact that it is not a first person account of the war, but of someone’s retelling. The story is told by the officer, it seems, to someone who has had a similar experience with the war and would understand.The story includes obscure references and specific things of which a reader might not have sense. The anonymous narrator is a British officer at Smyrna and is relaying his stories to possibly an old war friend saying,  "You remember the harbor,† (Hemmingway) leading the reader to believe these two have shared similar experiences. Hemmingway uses this confusion to show have the soldiers in the war might have felt confused about a number of issues. At this point, the narrator is telling the story so matter-of-factly that he might have destroyed all emotions linked to the horrifying events of the war.Because this officer has seen such terrible things, such as a mother holding her dead babies, he has become immune to the emotions that the reader feels from these situations. This set up the rest of the stories of In Our Time with a tone of horror that becomes more developed throughout the rest of the novel. â€Å"On the Quai at Smyrna† starts with the narrator, an officer, talking about â€Å"them,† screaming at midnight. Although â€Å"they† are never identified, the officer makes a point to explain that he does not know why â€Å"they† are screaming.This is just the beginning of the numerous ways that the soldiers in World War I are confused about the happenings in the war. Not only is the reader disoriented, but the so is the narrator. The officer begins a conversation with Turkish officer on the pier. The narrator explains that a Turkish officer wants the narrator to discuss one of the narrator’s sailors who had been insulting to the Turkish officer. Hemmingway does not use quotations to explain this conversation between the Turkish officer and the narrator hoverer, a Hemmingway switches to dialogue as the narrator talks to his sailor.The reader is told exactly what the sailor responds, as if what the Turkish officer’s dialogue was less important. By switching the style of storytelling, Hemmingway ensures that the reader will more so identify the narrator of the story. The speaker is unable to find the words he needs to use to describe his environment. While telling the story, the narrator struggles with holding in his feelings about the situation and giving an accurate portrayal to his companion. There were plenty of nice things floating around in it. That was the only time in my life I got so I dreamed about things.Hemmingway has the reader speak with a limited vocabulary in order to show his inability to find the appropriate words. The speaker doesn’t describe what was floating in the harbor or about what he was dreaming. By creating the rhetoric of the speaker to be so barren, Hemmingway shows the emotional detachment the speaker had to the horrifying truths of war. The reader sees that the dreams had by the speaker were most likely nightmares of terrible things he had seen at the pier, and is using his lack of language to control his emotions.The officer then tells about the women who are unwilling to give up their dead babies bodies. The way the narrator tells this story, in short choppy phrases and sentences, is parallel to his emotions. Hemmingway writes in this way so that although the read er knows and is even disturbed by these stories, the speaker is unattached. The narrator has seen so many traumas in the war that he is unable to display emotions that someone who is not privy to that world would display.By creating this cognitive dissonance in the reader, Hemmingway emphasizes the harsh realities of a war-laden environment. The narrator seems to talk as if he as seen too much, and what he has seen was not easy to swallow with the mindset he previously had before coming to war. After seeing all of these terrible situations, he has become overly withdrawn and able to tell a story full of facts including the gory details. The denial of his emotions proves that he is powerless to discuss his feelings during this time.As the English officer begins to speak about the strange death of an old woman, the reader sees no change of emotion within him. He interrupts him self while explaining, â€Å"We were clearing them off the pier, had to clean off the dead ones, and this ol d woman was lying on a sort of litter. † (Hemmingway) The speaker is remembering himself as he tells the story, and nonchalantly adds that it was the dead bodies that he was cleaning. Explaining something that could already be assumed, the narrator is emphasizing what his job entailed.Although he links no emotional memory to this responsibility, the fact that he adds that his chore was to remove the dead bodies, shows that he was uncomfortable with it. By reminding himself of the terrible things he was asked to do, the speaker shifts in his emotional restraint for just a quick second. There is no reasoning behind the facts. The speaker talks about the way things were, but never explain why the babies were not given away, or why the animals were crippled before going into the water. As the reader, it is impossible to assume why these things happened.Hemmingway puts the reader in the same mindset as the narrator, as if the narrator also has no knowledge of the motives of these p eople. The confusing atmosphere during wartime is mimicked in the speaker’s retelling of the story. A terrible, horrible scene is created not by the speaker, or by Hemmingway, but by Hemmingway to allow the reader to think of the worst possible â€Å"things. † But putting the control of the surroundings into the mind of the reader, Hemmingway is able to propel the reader to reach the outskirts of his or her own fears.The sarcastic irony the speaker uses, saying things like â€Å"nice things,† â€Å"nice chaps,† â€Å"a most pleasant business. † (Hemmingway) Shows that he is unable to come up with the words to display his feelings properly in the telling of his experiences. Whoever is listening to the story knows that the speaker was greatly affected by tragedies, but the speaker is not willing to admit it. By using irony, the narrator shields himself from having to relive memories that were already painful enough the first time.The speaker knows th at a large percentage of what he did was inhumane, and wrong, and by saying that it was â€Å"nice† or â€Å"pleasant† he creates a barrier for himself and his feelings of guilt. Because he had no power to control the happenings in the war, but does feel responsible for treating people without respect, he used ironic language to display those feelings, rather than look weak. Hemmingway creates a man that is devoid of his emotions, rather stereotypically, to tell the horrors of war in a factual way. Works Cited Hemingway, Ernest. In Our Time. New York: Scribner Paperback Fiction, 1996. AZW.

Hag’s Nook by John Dickson Carr

Hag’s Nook is a detective story by John Dickson Carr that is first published in 1933. It is a mystery type of novel and the first to feature in the series of detective Gideon Fell. The author, John Dickson Carr was born in 1906 in Uniontown, Pennsylvania. His first published detective novel, It Walks by Night, was published in 1930 featuring the Frenchman Henri Bencolin. Apart from Dr. Fell, whose first appearance was in 1933 in Hag?s Nook, Sir Henry Merrivale, who debuted in The Plague Court Murders in 1934 was Carr?s other series detectives. The synopsis goes this way: Young American Tad Rampole is travelling in England who meets and falls in love with Dorothy Starberth, in a chance meet on a railway platform. Within a short period of time, after an introduction letter made by Rampole to Dr. Gideon Fell both become engaged in the affairs of the Starberth family. Dr. Fell discovers the truth behind the legends after Martin Starberth is murdered. Chaterham Prison was the legend in the village. Abandoned for a hundred of years and had kept its secrets of extreme fear and death. The Starberths die of broken necks. He must arrange ancient superstition from modern-day malice to guarantee that the responsible criminal does not go and not punished. This novel emotionally moved me clearly to the days of reading Ripper. It was quite interesting to imagine the traps and see how the villain lured their victims. Lastly, I am definitely recommending this novel Hag’s Nook for those who likes reading detective stories that is full of suspense and mystery.

Early Childhood Education Essay

He taonga te reo: Honouring te reo me ona tikanga1, the Maori language and culture, within early childhood education in Aotearoa2. Dr Jenny Ritchie, Associate Professor, Early Childhood Teacher Education, Unitec Institute of Technology, New Zealand Abstract This paper considers data from recent research which illustrates the ways in which tamariki (children), whanau (families) and educators are integrating the use of the Maori language within their everyday educational interactions, as mandated by the bilingual New Zealand early childhood curriculum, Te Whariki (Ministry of Education, 1996). Languages reflect cultures, expressing our deeper meanings and representations. Inscribed within verbal and non-verbal languages are our ways of being, knowing and doing (Martin, 2008). Jeanette Rhedding-Jones has inquired in her Norwegian multicultural context as to â€Å"What kinds of constructions are the monocultural professionals creating for cross-cultural meetings and mergings? † (2001, p. 5). What follows is an exploration of strategies by which Maori ways of being, knowing and doing are being enacted through the medium of te reo in early childhood centres. Introduction Te Whariki (Ministry of Education, 1996), the first bicultural education curriculum in Aotearoa, reaffirmed a commitment already widely acknowledged across the early childhood education sector in this country, to Te Tiriti o Waitangi3, and the validation and inclusion of te reo me ona tikanga4 as an integrated component of early childhood education programmes. Te Whariki contains strong clear statements of expectations for educators in terms of enacting te reo Maori within their teaching: New Zealand is the home of Maori language and culture: curriculum in early childhood settings should promote te reo and nga tikanga Maori, making them visible and affirming their value for children from all cultural backgrounds. Adults working with children should demonstrate an understanding of the different iwi and the meaning of whanau and whanaungatanga5 (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 42) The juxtaposition of the promotion of te reo and tikanga alongside whanau and whanaungatanga is insightful. Previous research had identified that as early childhood 1 2 Te reo is the Maori language, tikanga are Maori beliefs, values and cultural practices. Aotearoa is a Maori name for New Zealand. 3 Te Tiriti o Waitangi/The Treaty of Waitangi, signed in 1840 between Maori chiefs and the British Crown, promised protections to Maori of their lands and taonga – everything of value to Maori , which includes their languages, beliefs, values and traditions. 4 Te reo is the Maori language and tikanga are Maori cultural practices. This phrase, literally, â€Å"the language and its cultural practices† demonstrates how intrinsically the language and culture are linked. 5 Iwi are tribes, whanau are families, and whanaungatanga is the building of relationships. 2 educators generate an environment reflective and inclusive of Maori values such as whanaungatanga, Maori families are more comfortable and become more involved within that early childhood setting (Ritchie, 2002). Te reo Maori has been severely jeopardised by the processes of colonisation. As Mere Skerrett has written: Maori ways of speaking were also colonised through the subjugation of te reo Maori, to be replaced by English. This, at times violent, process of colonisation caused a disruption in the intergenerational transmission of Maori language, Maori knowledge and, as a consequence, disrupted Maori lives and Maori societies. (2007, p. 7) Whanau Maori have consistently stated their preference that their children learn their language and culture within education contexts (AGB/McNair, 1992; M.Durie, 2001; Else, 1997; Te Puni Kokiri/Ministry of Maori Development, 1998) in affirmation of their identity as Maori, since â€Å"Te reo Maori serves as the medium through which symbolic and cultural components are properly united and Maoriness most appropriately expressed† (A. Durie, 1997, p. 152). Young children learn languages comparatively easily. Early childhood centres are a logical site for young children to have opportunities to learn te reo Maori, in naturalistic experiential ways, consistent with both early childhood and second language learning pedagogies (Cummins, 2001; Ritchie, 1994). This will only occur if we are able to provide them with a linguistically rich environment and authentic language models. It is reasonable that Maori parents might expect that their children will not acquire poor pronunciation of their own language from their educational experiences. Previous Research In 1999 as part of my doctoral research (Ritchie, 2002), I observed 13 different early childhood settings in the Waikato area (Ritchie, 1999). I noted that in most of the settings there was at least one staff member who attempted to use some Maori language. This was a stronger use of te reo than Pam Cubey observed in eight Wellington early childhood centres in 1992, when she reported that virtually no Maori language was heard (Cubey, 1992). During my observations, the most frequent usage of te reo Maori were ‘commands’, such as: â€Å"Haere mai ki te kai; E tu tamariki; E noho; Haere mai ki te whariki; Horoi o ringaringa†6. There were also instances of counting and naming colours in te reo Maori. Several staff repeatedly inserted single Maori nouns within some of their regular English sentences, for example, â€Å"Do you want some fruit? Some panana 6. Haere mai ki te kai – come and eat E tu tamariki – stand up children E noho- sit down Haere mai ki te whariki – come to the mat Horoi o ringaringa – wash your hands panana – banana aporo- apple taringa – ear(s) waha – mouth 3 or some aporo? Turn on your taringa, zip up your waha†. During my visits, eight of the 13 centres sang at least one song in te reo Maori, usually at structured mat-times, which were compulsory for all children. These teachers identified confidence and competence as barriers, because, as one teacher explained, â€Å"you feel like a real twit when it comes out wrong†. I was concerned that the available te reo Maori resources appeared to be under-utilised and that the range of language use was restricted to simple commands, the use of colour names and counting in Maori. This indicated reliance on a limited range of vocabulary, with little knowledge of Maori grammar. Teachers expressed their need for support and encouragement to broaden their ‘comfort zone’ beyond single words, to using complete and more complex phrases that represent linguistically authentic Maori structures. I suggested that teachers consider widening the range of formats in which they used Maori phrases. Recent data Whilst 6. 58% of registered early childhood teachers are Maori (Ministry of Education, 2007), only 1. 6% of New Zealanders of European ancestry speak Maori (Ministry of Social Development, 2007). Early childhood teachers’ use of te reo may seem encouraging in that 75% of Pakeha early childhood teachers said that they use some Maori whilst  teaching, yet 70% of these teachers reported themselves as speaking Maori â€Å"not very well† (Harkess, 2004, p. 12). In 2006 we reported on a two-year study7 with a range of participants, which included early childhood educators, an Iwi Education Initiative8, teacher educators, specialist educators and professional learning providers, co-exploring strategies for supporting the involvement of whanau Maori within early childhood settings other than Kohanga Reo9 (Ritchie & Rau, 2006). Using narrative (Connelly & Clandinin, 1990; Schulz, Schroeder, & Brody, 1997) and Kaupapa Maori (Bishop, 2005; Smith, 1999, 2005) research methodologies, we explored early childhood educators’ strategies for encouraging the participation of whanau Maori within early childhood education settings, and ways for implementing understandings of commitments derived from Te Tiriti o Waitangi as expressed in the bicultural early childhood curriculum, Te Whariki, through the delivery of Tiriti-based programmes10. Participants in this study were those who were strongly committed to implementing Tiriti-based practice. Pedagogical enactment described in this study was consistent with 7 This project was funded through the Teaching Learning Research Initiative, a fund provided by the New Zealand Ministry of Education, and administered by NZCER. 8 We gratefully acknowledge the support and contribution of Kokiri Tuwaretoa Education Initiative to the Whakawhanaungatanga study. 9 Kohanga Reo are Maori-medium educational settings where young children are immersed in the Maori language and culture in a whanau-based context. 10 The term Tiriti-based practice is derived from a commitment to Te Tiriti oWaitangi, the treaty signed in 1840 by Maori chiefs and the British Crown, that legitimated the presence of immigrants, initially from Britain, alongside the tangata whenua, Maori, the indigenous people of this land. 4 a view of Maori language and cultural practices as being holistically and simultaneously performed. This enactment includes daily welcoming and spiritual rituals in te reo, and is inclusive of waiata11. This climate generated a sense of welcoming and safety for Maori families, which resulted in their increasing involvement in centre reo and tikanga implementation. An educator demonstrated how this whanau participation was integral within their early childhood centre programming: â€Å"In partnership with whanau we  introduce new waiata each term, and tikanga experiences, such as, hangi, powhiri, harakeke, [and] legends of the whanau, hapu12, and iwi attending the service. † Other Maori co-researchers within the Whakawhanaungatanga research project also identified aspects of Te Ao Maori13 that they would like to see reflected within early childhood education and care settings. They considered it important that Maori parents and whanau sense a match between their values and those of educational settings. They valued a sense of whanaungatanga generated and enacted within the early childhood centre, whereby tamariki and whanau, kuia and kaumatua, and other whanau members such as â€Å"Aunties† (Martin, 2007) participated as a collective, learning and teaching alongside the teachers and children, educators sharing responsibility and demonstrating willingness to identify and support the needs of all members of that collective. In this vision, te reo Maori is modelled and integrated throughout the programme, with support for adults to increase their own facility with the language alongside their children, and there is ongoing everyday enactment of tikanga such as: rituals of welcoming and farewell; sharing of kai14; a value of inclusiveness; reference to Te Ao Wairua15 and nga Atua16, and annual celebrations such as Matariki. 17 Children, in this view are exposed to te reo as part of the daily enactment of Maori beliefs, values and practices. Co-researchers in this project demonstrated a commitment to integrating te reo and tikanga within their centre practice, in ways that were meaningful and contextual for children and families. Working with natural materials, such as harakeke (flax), provided a source of learning of traditional knowledge, involving the planting and care of the flax bushes, weaving of rourou18, children observing alongside adults, connected to the land and its spiritual significance, as Ana, a Playcentre kaiako, described: So even though we had those harakeke within our centre boundary, in our lawn, we knew that the pa harakeke19 of that harakeke that we had, came 11 12 Waiata are songs. Hangi are feasts cooked in earth ovens, powhiri are greeting ceremonies, harakeke is flax, and hapu are sub-tribes 13 Te Ao Maori is the Maori world. 14 Kai is food 15 Te Ao Wairua is the spiritual dimension. 16 Nga Atua are supernatural beings, or gods. 17 Matariki is the constellation whose arrival announces the Maori New Year. 18 Rourou are flax food baskets. 19 Pa harakeke are flax bushes, often planted as a source of flax for weaving and rongoa (medicinal remedies), and also refers metaphorically to the nurturing by the wider family of the offspring, the younger shoots. 5 from a bigger picture. And all the natural resources on our little wagon inside, in the area of where they go and make pictures and glue things and make structures out of the driftwood and put their shells and tie their shells on and harakeke, they might have been just in the rourou baskets, but we knew and the tamariki knew they come from this bigger picture out there in the whenua20, because they had gone to get them. So we brought our big world reality and our spiritual world reality into the bounds of that centre. Pania, a Maori kindergarten teacher, spoke of her bilingual approach as being like a whariki,21 †¦where you get two strands and you build them together to make your little kete22 or your whariki of learning. And [implementing a bilingual approach] is a way that I can facilitate my programme that is non-threatening. It’s an option for the child – and the parent – whether they would like to do it, but it’s also another teaching technique and a resource and a learning strategy. Daisy, a Pakeha kindergarten teacher, actively researched aspects of tikanga that she was interested in integrating into her teaching: I wrote a story and what I wanted to do was encompass the tikanga aspects on collecting kai moana23. I wanted it to be something Pakeha could grasp, something simple, that was really clear and conveying the tikanga aspects because it’s not just about going down to the beach and picking up a few pipis24, its deeper than that, there’s a lot of kaupapa25 behind it. How did I know about all the tikanga? —I’ve never gone out collecting kai moana in my life? Research, korero26 with others more knowledgeable. As far as getting it to children it needs to be simple and straight-forward. The pipi story is focused on Tangaroa,27 the protocols around that. The tamariki seem to enjoy it, but in order to deepen their understanding, and extend the story, I set up the pipi hunt in the sandpit. So the story was a visual and a listening experience, whereas the pipi hunt was a tactile experience, so that then I think I would have managed to tap into every child’s way of learning. Daisy also involved whanau Maori of her centre in her planning, although she took primary responsibility for researching the reo and tikanga that was to be incorporated. Incorporating te reo and tikanga was more effective when educators were committed both individually and collectively to proactively integrating this within planning, teaching 20 Whenua is land. Whariki are woven flax mats. 22 A kete is a woven flax basket. 23 Kai moana are seafoods. 24 Pipi are cockles. 25 Kaupapa is philosophy. 26 Korero is talking. 27 Tangaroa is the Atua, supernatural being, or God, of the sea. 21 6 interactions, programme evaluation, and centre review. Many of the Pakeha coresearchers have worked hard over the years to increase their competence in te reo, and continue to do so, by taking courses. At Ariel’s childcare centre, all the teachers had attended a reo course offered in their local community. Penny, a kindergarten head teacher who was also studying te reo, explained that as her own confidence grew, and supported by her co-teacher, the quality of te reo within the centre programme continued to strengthen, as â€Å"the reo is fed in gently and quietly†. Respondents from the Hei Ara Kokiri Tuwaretoa Education Initiative data articulated aspirations for early childhood education services that envisioned all children as being supported to become biculturally and bilingually competent. The following example recognises the important role of early childhood services in offering quality models of te reo Maori: To be fully bicultural and therefore bilingual all children in Aotearoa/NZ should have the opportunity to learn to be fluent in Maori and English and develop understanding of both cultures’ world view. We need proficient Maori speaking teachers in all ECE learning environments. It is not enough to use Maori language in directives – information – acknowledgment contexts. We need to work towards providing environments where children can use the target language, be completely immersed in te reo Maori. We need to promote environments where the conscientization of language is constructed as normal to prevent dialogue being used by teachers to act on children. Teachers and children need to be using dialogue to work with each other – co-constructing. In order to reflect this, we need to provide environments rich in Maori language. We need proficient speaking Maori teachers! Regurgitating learnt phrases will not provide the opportunities for children to really conscientise their experiences, that is, thinking in Maori. Only a very high level of exposure in Maori will do that. Honouring the indigenous language and culture of this country remains an ongoing challenge for educators, particularly given the legacy of colonialistic arrogance that has limited access for many people, both Maori and non-Maori. Kaupapa Maori models are providing inspirational pedagogical models that honour te reo me ona tikanga (Skerrett, 2007). However, as the numbers of Maori children in education services other than kaupapa Maori remains high, the onus is on educators in these sectors to find strategies to provide Maori children and families with the language that is their birth-right and source of identity as affirmed by Article 30 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of The Child (1989), which requires that: In those States in which ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities or persons of Indigenous origin exist, a child belonging to such a minority or who is Indigenous shall not be denied the right, in community with other members of his or her group, to enjoy his or her own culture, to profess and practise his or her own religion, or to use his or her own language. 7 Conclusion Maori continue to seek education provision that respects and honours their identity, including the linguistic affirmation of authentic models of te reo Maori (Robertson, Gunn, Lanumata, & Pryor, 2007). 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