In a move that has surprised educators nationwide, the Portland Board of Education announced today that, beginning February 1, all Portland schools would provide teacher and parent training in Yankee English, or so-called Yankonics, recognize Yankonics as distinct from standard English, and help Yankee children who use Yankonics to master standard English.

The district said it would not teach Yankonics, derived from the words Yankee and phonics, in place of standard English, and would not try to classify Yankonics-speaking students as bilingual in order to obtain federal funds.

Both the Clinton Administration and congressional Republicans moved quickly to attack the announcement, with the Administration emphasizing that it would refuse to grant special funding.

An estimated 53 per cent of Portland's 13,000 students speak Yankee English at home, and district officials say they have the lowest average grade point averages in the district.

Reaction in the city was guarded, but supportive. Lobsterman John Nadeau, 43, of Fore St. said, "Every yeah, it gets hahda and hahda for ouah kids to get the jawbs they need. I cahn't say if this will wohk oah nawt, but at least it's a staht."

The lunch crowd at Demillo's echoed Nadeau's position. Mary Lamoreaux, 54, of Falmouth Foreside concurred. "I've got two daughtahs, neithah of whom cahn undahstahnd hahlf the things they heah on TV."

Patrick Payson, 35, a developer at One City Center, admitted that he's found his linguistic heritage a difficult cross to bear at times. "I went down New Yahk a few weeks ago foah some meetins. It took me close to two days to figuah out what people weah tahlking about. Rest assuahed, I was wicked confused when I gawt bahck."

Some, however, were not convinced. Arthur Wentworth, 87, a scrimshaw artist in the Old Port said, "Deah Gawd. Yeahs ago no one cahed so much about this soht of thing, we just went on about ouah business. I don't see much use in this. If people from away cahn't understahnd what weah saying, then they just ought head back to Massasstwoshits, oah wheyevah they came frawm."

Asked if he'd lived in Portland all is life, Wentworth replied, "Not yet."

Your Abbreviated Guide to Proper Yankonics

Pahty: A place to go to drink and socialize - nothing to do with Mother Nature.

ah: The letter between "q" & "s."

ahnt: Sistah of your fathah or muthah.

bah: Serves beah and hahd likkah: "The train to Noo Yok has a bah cah." bay

ah: Ferocious brown or black animal.

beah: Malt beverage.

bahn: As in: "What yeah were you bahn in?"

bzah: Strange, odd.

Chahlz: The rivah.

chowdah: Clams, milk, buttah.

cahn: Stahchy veggie that comes on a cob.

connah: Where streets intersect.

fah: Not neah heah

fahk: What you eat pahster with.

fiah: Blaze

Gahden: What they closed last yeah (also a place to plant flowahs.)

hahbah: What they dumped tea into in 1773.

Hahvid: Preppy college across the rivah.

hahf-ahst: Done without regahd to detail.

heah: Done with the eahs. "Listen my children, and you shall heah of the midnight ride of Paul Reveah."

khakis: What you staht the cah with and keep on yawh key chain.

nawtheastah: Stahm that blows in from the wottah.

Noo Yok: Sinkhole 240 miles south of Tremont Street.

owah: Sixty minutes.

pahk: Cahn't do it in Hahvad Yahd. Not downtown, eithah.

pahster: spaghetti, ziti, etc.

pastah: The rectah of a parish, like St. Mahgrits.

pichahs: They throw fastballs at Fenway.

Rawjah: He *used to* throw the fastest fastballs at Fenway.....

Reveah: He rode through Ahlington on a hoss shouting, "To Ahms!"

shuah: Of course

shot: Not tall.

wof: A peeah, jutting into the hahbah.

wottah: H2O

yeah: A 365 day period.