This article is based on a 2-year TLRI-funded research project that examined how three early childhood centres explored the ways in which walking, reading, and storying the land with teachers, community members, iwi, and whānau enabled children to experience and learn about their local area, its stories, geology, biodiversity, and ...

Stories are one critical aspect of literacy across the life span. For young children, stories invite engagement in shared thinking, and social and emotional connections with others in family homes and early childhood education settings. In this article, we share key findings from two studies that illustrate ways that story ...

The involvement of whānau in the teaching and learning process is important at every juncture of a child’s educational journey. Rich understanding of the curriculum enables whānau to make deep and meaningful contributions to discussions about their child’s development. It also presents an interesting challenge for educational settings to create ...

Kaitiakitanga is promoted in the revised curriculum document Te Whāriki—He Whāriki Mātauranga mō ngā Mokopuna o Aotearoa: Early Childhood Curriculum (Ministry of Education, 2017). The authors give primacy to the Māori worldview of sustainable living through engaging with, and protecting, the natural environment. This article reports on a picturebook research ...

Critical pedagogy has the potential to create transformation experiences within early childhood settings, as educators open up children’s worlds to explore fairness, equity, and democratic participation across issues of interest and relevance to young children. Using a critical inquiry framework, informed by the work of Paulo Freire, teachers from an ...

The KidsCan ECE programme is designed to remove barriers to participation in early childhood education through the provision of raincoats, shoes, nit treatment products, lunches and snacks. Data from an evaluation of the pilot programme involved surveys and interviews with whānau and teachers. Findings showed the benefits for children’s health ...

Inclusive teaching approaches and positive teacher attitudes are vital when creating inclusive early childhood educational (ECE) settings for all children, and especially for children with additional learning needs. This study focused on understanding how teachers nurture and promote the spirituality of children with additional learning needs in their early childhood ...

In New Zealand, every child has the right to participate in inclusive, quality early childhood education (ECE), as outlined in the 1989 United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCROC). However, research reveals both the struggles children with disabilities and their families experience to have their rights recognised ...

Children’s citizenship in early childhood education and care is the root of democracy, equity, and sustainability. In Aotearoa New Zealand, Te Whāriki has a strong aspiration for children as competent and active citizens. Early childhood settings are sites where children may have opportunities to act as powerful citizens. Employing Foucault’s ...

Children’s story experiences are foundational to their social, emotional, and communication development. Viewed through a sociocultural lens, variability in the ways children and teachers interact during stories across diverse learning contexts is expected. This article explores the social and cultural knowledge demonstrated by children of different ages as they co-construct ...