Early Childhood Curriculum

Te Whāriki

Empowerment – Whakamana / Hoslistic Development – Kotahitanga / Family and Community – Whānua Tangata / Relastionships – Ngā Hononga

The Early Childhood curriculum is founded on the following aspirations for children:

“To grow up as competent and confident learners and communicators, healthy in mind, body and spirit, secure in their sense of belonging and in the knowledge that they make a valued contribution to society”.

The curriculum defines how to achieve progress towards this vision of learner in early childhood learning environments. It is about the individual child.

It’s the starting point is the learner and the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that the child brings to their experiences. The curriculum is also about the early childhood settings. Learning begins at home, and the early childhood programme outside the child’s own home play a significant role in extending early learning and in laying the foundations for successful future learning.

During the early childhood years, children often demonstrate needs and capabilities at a variety of stages. For example: Within minutes, a child can be both dependent and independent, according to changes in temperament, environment, or adult expectations. A young infant needs an environment that is predictable but also needs and enjoys challenges and surprises. A child may be using language and reasoning to order the world while continuing to use the sensory skills used in infancy. Children learn through a combination of imagination and logic.

The curriculum for the early childhood years must, therefore, be flexible enough to encompass the reality of: fluctuations in individual behaviour and learning; the need for repeated, familiar experiences to consolidate concepts and reassure the child; the need for challenge as a medium for growth. There is no developmental cut-off at school entry age. During the early school years, the principles and strands of the early childhood curriculum continue to apply and can be interwoven with those of the New Zealand curriculum statements for schools.

The way in which each early childhood service implements curriculum will vary. Each service will develop its own programmes to meet the needs of its children, their families, the specific setting, and the local community. Programmes will be based on the curriculum principles and be planned and evaluated in terms of the curriculum’s strands and goals.

To view the entire Early Childhood Curriculum click here, this link with allow you to download the document for your research and viewing.