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CURR GD HIST UniversityofAlberta Library 1620 2793216 7 CREE LANGUAGE AND CULTURE PROGRAM NINE-YEAR GRADES 4-5-6 This program ofstudies is intended for students who are beginning theirstudy ofCree language and culture in Grade 4. It constitutes the first three years ofthe Cree Language and CultureNine-year (9Y) Program (Grade 4 to Grade 12). PHILOSOPHY Four aspects common to Mother Earth in Nehiyaw worldview that can be honoured in the classroom The Cree (Nehiyaw) worldview is not a polarized are: view but a holistic view. It is not this or that but this and that. It holds that all life forms are • the mterconnectedness ofall things interconnected and that life is sacred. Human • the connection to the land and community beings are not at the top of a ladder but are one • the dynamic and changing nature ofthe world part ofa sacred circle. Emotional, physical, mental • the strength that develops in power with not and spiritual realms are not separate but power over. recognized aspart ofthe whole. Language proceeds from the worldview of a Traditionally, responsibility within the Nehiyaw culture. The Nehiyaw worldview and philosophy culture primarily involved contrib—uting to the is embedded in the language and culture. It is also well-being and success of the group the family, evident in the Nehiyaw pedagogy and ways of extended family and community. Leadership was learning. developed through service to the community, and cooperation and helping others were crucial to RATIONALE FOR LEARNING CREE survival. Traditional Nehiyaw culture revolves {NEHIYAWEWIN) around the connection to Mother Earth and the relationship with family and community. Cree (Nehiyawewin ekimiy'kowisiyahk) is a gift of The concept of Mother Earth in Nehiyaw Omdmawi Ohtdwimdw (the Creator). Elders are worldview not only encompasses the land but also the keepers of the language and, consequently, of all animals, minerals, rocks, water, plant life and the beliefs and culture. Indeed, language and all mterconnectedness with humans. Cree people culture are inextricably woven. do not use the products and minerals of Mother Earth as commodities but regard them as relatives The importance of Cree language learning has and treat them withthe utmost respect. been expressed by Dr. Anne Anderson, who states in the forewords to her Metis Cree resource books that the way to a people's heart is through their language. Cree Language and Culture Nine-year Program (4-5-6) l\ ©AlbertaEducation, Alberta, Canada (Revised 2009) Ex LlBRIS Universitatis Albertensis According to ELDERS, 87 285 Cree iuw ivEEPERS AND s tti^juj^vri^ the most widely spoken languages in Canada in COMMUNITY EXPERTS various dialects. The wisdom of the Elders is central to cultural The value of learning Cree (Nehiyawewin), to learning according to Cree perspective. Elders are Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students, is the "keepers of knowledge," and it is their enormous. It permits insights into a worldview of guidance that Cree people seek as they strive for spiritual and natural dimensions. When one balance in their relationships with Omdmawi speaks the language, Elders and their wisdom Ohtawimaw (the Creator), the natural world, other become accessible. Learning Cree also enhances people and themselves. one's self-esteem by strengthening cultural identity. Use oflanguage is also the bestmeans of Alberta Education acknowledges the necessity of transmitting culture to the next generation. guidance from the Elders, other knowledge keepers and community experts if this program is truly to reflect Cree perspectives and content. NATURE OF THE CREE LANGUAGE Each community wishing to establish a language and culture program must turn to its own Elders, The Cree language, or Nehiyawewin, is one of knowledge keepers and community experts for many indigenous languages within the Algonkian guidance. It is only in this way that Aboriginal family oflanguages. The Cree "Y" dialect that is language and culture programs can succeed in used m this program of studies is one of the five achieving the goal oflanguage revitahzation. The major dialect—s in Canada. Cree is a language of Cree Language and Culture Nine-year Program, relationships relationships to Omdmawi Grades 4-5-6 has been developed based on the Ohtawimaw (the Creator), to others (kinship) and support of various Elders and the support and to Kikdwinaw Askiy (Mother Earth), which advice of community experts and knowledge encompasses all living things. It is a rich and keepers from Treaty 6 FirstNations, Treaty 8 First complex language because it relates to kinship, Nations, the Metis Nation ofAlberta and the Metis nature and spirituality. Settlements. The Roman orthography recommended for the Oral Tradition instruction of Cree is the Pentland orthography, which is based on the Cree syllables of standard In Nehiyaw culture, oral tradition has been the orthography. The "Y" dialects of the Plains and most important method for passing information Woodland Cree of Alberta use 14 English letters, and knowledge from one generation to another. ofwhich 8 are consonants (c, k, m, n, p, s, t andh), Students need to be taught to value and respect 3 are shortvowels (a, i, o), 4 are long vowels (a, i, oral tradition. o, e), and "w" and "y" are listed as semi-vowels. A sound variation occurs within the same dialect Storytellers have always been respected within based on regional and cultural differences. traditional Nehiyaw culture. Storytellers carry within their stories the legends, spiritual truths and history of the Cree people. Stories pass on the values and beliefs that are important to Cree people, and stories preserve the language. Storytellers speak from the heart, and the listener listens fromthe heart. 2/ Cree Language and Culture Nine-year Program (4-5-6) (Revised 2009) ©Alberta Education,Alberta,Canada There are many types ofstories. Sacred stories are Our Relationship with Ourselves only told in the winter, unless special permission is given. Some stories are short, with a particular Each person is bom sacred and complete. message or moral, and most are full of humour. Omdmawi Ohtawimaw (the Creator) has given Many stories are open-ended, long extended each person the gift of a body and the choice to stories with many levels ofmeaning. care for and use thatbody with respect. Stones are repeated over and over and change over Omdmawi Ohtawimaw (the Creator) has given time to reflect life in the community. As listeners eachperson the capacity and choice to learn. mature and gain life experience, the meanings and lessons in the stones reveal themselves in different "I had no schooling. When I was a kid, I used to watch ways. What one discovers m a story as a child can people steadily. I would go to my grandmother and she be very different from what he or she discovers as toldmewhatrules to follow." an adult. A story written on paper becomes frozen - VernonMakokis,Saddle Lake, Alberta in time, whereas the beauty ofan oral story is that it remains a living, flexible and dynamic part of Omdmawi Ohtawimaw (the Creator) has given culture and language. each person talents or strengths to be discovered and the choice to develop and share the gifts. Spirituality ASSUMPTIONS Although the Elders strongly recommend that the connection to Omdmawi Ohtawimaw (the Creator) be interwoven throughout the program of studies, The following statements are assumptions that the developers and Elders themselves respect that have guided the development process of this individuals/teachers may not want to programofstudies: teach/promote this view. Above all, one's • Language is communication. individual integrity is respected. • All students can be successful learners of Our Relationship with the Natural World language and culture, although they will learn in a variety ofways and acquire proficiency at varied rates. People are not greater than the things in nature. The natural world has its own laws that must be • All-languages canbe taught and learned. respected ifpeople are going to be sustainedby it. • Learning Cree (Nehiyawewin) leads to People are identified by the land they have enhanced learning in both the student's historically inhabited and on which they have primary language and in related areas of learned to survive. Even today, it is necessary to cognitive development and knowledge live with the laws ofnature and to feel apart ofit. acquisition. This is true for students who come to the class with some background knowledge Our Relationship with One Another of Cree (Nehiyawewin) and develop literacy skills in the language. It is also true for Agreement on rules enables cooperation and group students who have no cultural or linguistic strength, which is greater than individual strength. background in Cree and are studying Cree as a second language. Identity comes from being in respectful relationships with others, particularly in the family/clan, community and nation. Cree Language and Culture Nine-year Program (4-5-6) /3 ©AlbertaEducation, Alberta, Canada (Revised 2009) — CONCEPTUAL MODEL A Spiral Progression Two curriculum frameworks developed under the Language learning and cultural teachings are Western Canadian Protocol for Collaboration in integrative, not merely cumulative. Each new Basic Education The Common Curriculum element that is added must be integrated into the Frameworkfor Aboriginal Language and Culture whole of what has gone before. The model that Programs, Kindergarten to Grade 12, June 2000, best represents the students' language and cultural and The Common Curriculum Framework for learning progress is an expanding spiral. International Langu—ages, Kindergarten to Students' progression is not only vertical (e.g., Grade 12, June 2000 have provided guidance in increased proficiency) but also horizontal (e.g., the development of the Cree Language and broader range of applications and experience with Culture Nine-year Program (Grade 4 to Grade 12). more text forms, contexts and so on). The spiral also represents how language and cultural learning The aim ofthis Cree language and culture program activities are best structured. Particular lexical of studies is the development of communicative fields, learning strategies or language functions are competence and cultural knowledge, skills and revisited at different points in the program, but values in Cree. It is important that the focus of from a differentperspective, inbroader contexts this program of studies be on interaction and or at a slightly higher level of proficiency each meaningfulness, with special attention and time. Learning is reinforced, extended and emphasis being given to oral communication. broadened with each successive pass. Four Components Language Community For the purposes of this program of studies, Applications Competence Membership Strategies communicative competence and the development CreeLanguage of cultural knowledge, skills and values in Cree andCulture30-9Y are represented by four interrelated and interdependent components. Applications deal with what the students will be CreeLanguageand able to do with the language, the functions they CultureCrude8 (Nine-yearProgram) will be able to perform and the contexts in which they will be able to operate. Language Competence addresses the students' 'CreeLanguageand knowledge ofthe language and their ability to use CultureGrade4 (Nine-yearProgram) that knowledge to interpret and produce meaningful texts appropriate to the situations in whichthey are used. Community Membership aims to develop the understandings, views and values ofCree culture. Strategies help students learn and communicate more effectively and moreproficiently. Each of these components is described more fully at the beginning of the corresponding section of this program ofstudies. 4/ Cree Language and Culture Nme-yearProgram (4-5-6) (Revised 2009) ©Alberta Education, Alberta,Canada UNIVERSITY LIBRARY UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA ORGANIZATION OF THE PROGRAM Specific Outcomes OF STUDIES Each general outcome is further broken down into General Outcomes specific outcomes that students are to achieve by the end of each grade. The specific outcomes are General outcomes are broad statements identifying interrelated and interdependent. In most classroom the knowledge, skills and attitudes that students activities, a number of learning outcomes are are expected to achieve in the course of then- addressed in an integrated manner. language learning experience. Four general outcomes serve as the foundation for this program The specific outcomes are categorized under of studies and are based on the conceptual model cluster headings, which show the scope ofeach of outlinedpreviously. the four general outcomes. These headings are shown inthe table on the following page. Applications [A] • Students will use and apply Cree in various The specific outcomes are further categorized by situations and for different purposes at home, strands, which show the developmental flow of in school and in the community. learning from the beginning to the end of the program. However, a learning outcome for a Language Competence [LC] particular grade will not be dealt with only in that • Students will be effective, competent particular year of the program. The spiral and comfortable as Cree speakers. progression that is part of the conceptual model (Okiskinamawdkanakka/ta nihtd nehiyawewak) means that activities in the years preceding will prepare the ground for acquisition and in the years Community Membership [CM] followingwillbroaden applications. • Students will live (wa)wetina{hk) (peacefully) with Kikdwinaw Askiy (Mother Earth*), others and themselves, guided by Omdmawi Ohtdwimdw (the Creator*). Strategies (S] • Students will use strategies to maximize learning and communication. The order in which the general outcomes are presented in this program of studies does not represent a sequential order, nor does it indicate the relative importance of each component. The general outcomes are to be implemented in an integrated manner. discretionary (see further details onp. 34) Cree Language and CultureNine-year Program (4-5-6) /5 ©AlbertaEducation, Alberta, Canada (Revised2009) General Outcomes Applications Students will use and applyCreein various situations and fordifferentpurposes athome, in school and m thecommunity. A-l to share information A-2 to express emotions andpersonal perspectives A-3 to getthings done A^ to form,maintain and change interpersonal relationships A-5 to enhance theirknowledge ofthe world ' A-6 for imaginative purposes and personal-'' Language enjoyment Competence Strategies 'Studentswill be effective, competent and Studentswill use strategiesto maximize'1-, comfortable as Creespeakers. learningandcommunication. (Okiskinamawdkanakka/tanihtd S-l language learning nehiyawewak.) S-2 languageuse LC-1 attendto the formofthe language S-3 cultural learning LC-2 interpretandproduce oral texts S^ general learning LC-3 interpretandproducewritten and visualtexts LC-4 applyknowledge ofthe sociocultural context applyknowledge ofhowthelanguage^ is organized, structured and sequenced Community Membership Students will live(wa)wetina(hk) (peacefully) withKikdwinawAskiy (MotherEarth*), others andthemselves, guidedby Omdmawi Ohtdwimdw (the Creator*). CM-1 KikdwinawAskiy (MotherEarth*) CM-2 others CM-3 themselves * discretionary (see further details on p. 34) 6/ Cree Language and CultureNine-year Program (4-5-6) (Revised 2009) ©AlbertaEducation, Alberta, Canada Guide to Reading the Program of Studies General Outcome for Language Competence Students will be effective, competent and comfortable as Cree speakers. (Okiskinamawdkanakka/ta nihta nehiyawewak.) HHHfe. clusterheading LC-2 interpret and produce oral texts forspecific outcomes Grade 4 Grade 5 Grade 6 (Nine-year Program) (Nine-year Program) (Nine-yearProgram) Students willbeable to: a. understand simple understand short, a. understandshort, spoken sentences in simple'oral texts in simple oral texts in guided situations guidedsituations guided andunguided situations produce simplewords producesimple produceshort, simple andphrases, orally, in sentences, orally, in oral texts inguided guidedsituations guidedsituations situations engagein simple engagein simple engage in simple interactions, using interactions, using interactions, using short, isolatedphrases simple sentences simple sentences and/orphrases readeach pagehorizontally forthe developmental flowof outcomes fromgradeto grade Cree Language and CultureNine-year Program (4-5-6) II ©AlbertaEducation, Alberta, Canada (Revised 2009) 8/ Cree Language and Culture Nine-yearProgram (4-5-6) ©AlbertaEducation,Alberta, Canada