Abstract:
Abstract: The infant child has always been celebrated in Pacific cultures, expressed in customs and ceremonies from pre-conception, conception, all phases of pregnancy through to birth, and after birth. Oral language histories, stories, chants, and symbols, affirm connections of life, from human life, to life of earth, seas, skies, and cosmos; all are connected and genealogically woven (Matapo, 2016). As a Pacific nation, tangata whenua and Pasifika peoples of Aotearoa New Zealand are grounded upon specific genealogical relationships to Moana nui a kiwa and what is called into question is the place of indigenous knowledge and pedagogy in the early years. Pacific indigenous knowledge offers alternative ways of thinking, being, and relating to and with the world, opening new possibilities for teaching, learning, and pedagogy in early childhood education.