Peata

Peata is a 10 month old baby of Maori and Scottish descent. She lives with older sister Awhina, dad Steve, mum Huria and Grandmother Mereana. They all live in a small town in Aotearoa, on a 1/4-acre section. The whanau have a lot of room outside to play and they also have a vegetable garden. This is awesome since Huria, Steve and Awhina love the outdoors, and also Peata now that she has started to walk. Peata 's father Steve is a mechanic at the local garage, and mum Huria works at home looking after the children. Peata has a close relationship with her grandmother, who has been living with the whanau since her husband past away two years ago. Mereana, Peata 's grandmother predominately speaks Te reo Māori when she is home with her whanau, and has a close relationship with Peata. Peata has also started to form multiple relationships with her mother’s extended family which lives close by. They regularly visit their mother Mereana, so Peata is getting to know her aunties, uncles and cousins very well. The whanau are very involved at the marae. Encluding, helping out at events, hui 's and kapa haka. Peata is a valued member of the whanau, she has already started to have a sense of self, and cultural identity, by being spoken to in Te reo Maori, spending time at the marae and constantly being around her Māori family "children don’t think of culture when it is so much a part of them".(Gonzalez-Mena & Widmeyer,2012, p. 291). Peata 's mother Huria has decided to enrol Peata into the local education and care centre 5 days a week. She is starting an accounting course at the local polytechnic, for when she and Steve own their own business. This means Peata will be introduced to new people and a new environment. The ways in which the teachers can help in this new process Peata is going through, is to form partnerships with Peatas whanau. Auther et al (2008) stated "Strong partnerships between educators, children, families and communities build positive relationships and

Cited: in Nutall (2013). With Mereana and Huria at the center it is giving Peata positive emotions towards the centre’s staff and environment, which is a good when focusing on her learning, development and well-being. "If the child 's experiences are positive and happy, the emotional responses will produce a child who is positive and happy, who is confidant and has a positive self-image (whatumanawa)" (Nutall, 2013, p.47) It is now time for mum to drop Peata off to her first day of day care, and start her new course. Huria puts away Peatas stuff away, and then talks to Pat about Peatas night and morning. Pat smiles at Peata, she returns the smile back as she remembers her from the earlier visits. Huria tells Peata that she is going to work, and dad will pick her up after he finishes. Mum hands Peata over and then say goodbye and leaves. Peata is calm at first, and then she gets upset when mum walks away. Pam soothes her and takes her to the window to wave goodbye to mum. In Aruther at el (2008), the child 's main caregiver in a center that they can form attachments with, are the ones that provide them with physical and emotional care, and are predictable towards them and their needs. Pat initiates this theory along with the knowledge of Peatas background that she learnt from the earlier visitswhen soothing her. This will help her to be successful in teaching her as a teacher and caring for her as a caregiver. This also where 'Ako ' is used as Pat and Peata are at the beginning of a co-construction relationship, were they are teaching and learning together (Drewry and Bird, 2004). Peata has been at the centre for 3 months now, and no longer gets upset when mum and nana drop her off in the morning. This is because she feels reassured that her parents will return to pick her up. This is called ‘Secure Attachment’ (Cherry, 2014). Peata has started to build an attachment relationship with Pat, her key teacher, and she is very comfortable in the center’s environment now. Peata is also starting to bond with another teacher Robyn, which enjoys music as much as Peata does. Peata also enjoys the outdoors which Pat encourages. Peata is confidant when playing on the challenge equipment, her physical and coordination skills are improving. Over the last few weeks she has been walking across the low bridge and hopping into the low swing unaided. She is proud of her achievements and calls to a teacher when she has completed her actions and for further assistance. This is called ‘functional play’ she is repeating the same actions, using the swing and lower bridge of the challenge equipment. She is doing this through motor and sensory skills, because it is enjoyable to her. This is is helping her learning and development. Piaget, (1962) describs this as stages of cognitive development, and would place Peata in the sensorimotor stage. This is shown when she goes outside even though she cannot see the swing and the outdoor challenge equipment. She knows it will be there, and she looks for it when she is allowed outside (Aurther et al, 2008). She is developing at a steady rate and we can tell this through the actions she takes, when we observe her interest and play, which is why they are so important. Peata is also showing interest in the sandpit, water play, challenge equipment, music and the vegatable patch. Ways in which the teachers can support or ‘scaffold’ Peata, and deepen her interest and play. Is by setting up activities for her, that she can do and the teacher can be there as ‘scaffolding’ to support Peata when needed (Gonzalez-Mena and Widmeyer Eyer, 2009). Such as, lift the bridge higher for her on the challenge equipment, give her little containers so she can make her own sand castles, and maybe cook a simple dish with her with the vegetables in the garden. This will help to aid in her learning development. Her other interest, music can be enjoyed and deepened by the teachers learning and teaching a Māori waiata (Ako). This will be an awesome way to help Peata to feel social competent, because of her enjoyment in music and her cultural background. This is where links between culture, language and learning can be put in to one activity, based on the fact that the waiata is a part of Māori culture, they are using Te Reo Māori and the tamariki are all learning a song (Ministry of education, 1996). In Peata’s motor skills and physical development stage, play such as climbing into the swing and playing in the sand would be stages that she would have developed by herself in the centre at a meso level. Also the interest in the garden and the music would come from her being around her immediate whanau (micro). Peata is very talkative and friendly to the other children. This is shown when a child smiles at her and she smiles back. She feels fine to interact with other children, which is a part of her micro and meso system environment that influences her development and what she is learning. Above that at a macro level is the government and the policies, procedures and curriculum the centre and staff have to follow. These are all working together to help raise the children in centres, schools and kohanga reo around Aotearoa. This is looking at Bronfenbrenner, Ecological contextual approach within child development (Drewery & Bird, 2004). Such as the harakeke we are resourceful, have a lot of history and hold land stable on banks where other plants would struggle to live. We work together as a community, family and hapu with our tamariki in the middle of the flax bush, which we must protect and nurture. What happens to us on the outside of the flax bush, can and will affect the inside of the flax bush like a chain reaction. What we do today with our tamariki will determine the future of tomorrows tamariki (Drewery & Bird, 2004).