Kode’s class is learning about the Seven Teachings, but she’s still confused about Respect. Kode asks the wisest people she knows for help—her parents, her older siblings, and her grandparents. As each person gives her a different answer, Kode learns about the many different ways we can show respect for other people, for the environment, and for ourselves.

In this story for young readers, an Anishinaabe girl explores what respect means and how to be a respectful member of a community. A pronunciation guide for the Anishnaabemowin words can be found at the back of the book.

Rich in culture and grounded in traditional knowledge, Katherena Vermette’s The Seven Teachings Stories series features themes of love, wisdom, humility, courage, respect, honesty, and truth. Contemporary Indigenous children explore the Seven Teachings of the Anishinaabe through stories of home and family that will look familiar to all young readers in these books for ages 3–5.

Illustrated by: Irene Kuziw