|
Aboriginal Head
Start Initiative
This program is an early intervention program
for pre-school Aboriginal children in larger northern communities. Because it
has a strong cultural component, many groups in the north who have accessed
this program provide language and culture instruction as a component of the
curriculum.
The NWT contact for this program
is Brenda Cantin with Health Canada in Edmonton at (780)
495-5113.
Private
Foundations
There are a number of corporate and private
foundations that provide funding for charitable causes, including cultural and
language activities. The best source of information regarding fundraising
within the corporate and foundation sectors is The Canadian Centre for
Philanthropy. The Centre has excellent resource materials that list grant
agencies, provide information on how to approach grant agencies, and provide
information on proposal writing. The Centre can be reached on the Internet at:
www.ccp.ca
or can be contacted at:
The Canadian Centre for
Philanthropy
425 University Avenue, 7th Floor
Toronto, Ontario M5G
1T6
Phone (416) 597-2293
LANGUAGE
RESOURCES / AGENCIES
Elders and
Fluent Speakers
The single most important resource to all
communities is the elders and fluent speakers of the language. If language
retention and revival is dependent on inter-generational mother-tongue
transmission of the language, then the fluent speakers of the language are
absolutely essential. If the most important reason for maintaining Aboriginal
languages is to maintain the historical connection to the land, then the elders
have a crucial role to play in all language activities.
For any language retention or
revival activity to succeed, elders and fluent speakers must be involved as
resource people. They must also be:
- encouraged to speak the
language as often as possible to as many people as possible;
- cautioned about laughing or
criticizing others for poor pronunciation or language use;
- acknowledged within the
community for the special skill they have; and
- given the training they need to
expand their role as language teachers and mentors.
|
