Kei Tua o te Pae

Kei Tua o te Pae/Assessment for Learning: Early Childhood Exemplars is a best-practice guide that will help teachers continue to improve the quality of their teaching.

The exemplars are a series of books that will help teachers to understand and strengthen children's learning. It also shows how children, parents and whānau can contribute to this assessment and ongoing learning.

We are making improvements to our download-to-print functionality. So if you want a printed copy there are PDF versions available at the bottom of the main cover page.

Confidence with and control of the body

  • The acrobat
    • Infant boy lying on stomach

      Stretch, kick, roll, push, pull, balance and a press-up for old times’ sake. Well, if I had some of Layne’s energy and determination, an aerobic workout a day would be a breeze. However, I think I will stick to the leisurely strolls down the beach and leave him to the strenuous crawling task he is mastering so well!


      What learning happened here?

      Infant boy lying on stomach

      Our aspiration is to support children to develop a sense of themselves as “confident and capable learners” and this portrays Layne’s efforts so well. His developing curiosity is becoming a significant motivator for his increased physical activity. He is experimenting with the process of moving around in space and through this active exploration he is gaining the confidence to manipulate his body and develop new skills.


      What next?

      Infant boy playing with toys

      To empower Layne’s development we will provide the freedom for Layne to practise his physical skills in safe surroundings, while we offer responsive encouragement.

      Please feel free to write a whanau story and tell us about Layne’s escapades at home, Nikki and Daniel. We are always interested to hear from you and it will be so special for Layne to look back at the relationships and links that developed between his home and the centre, as he grows and revisits his learning journey.

      Jo


      Whānau story

      Infant boy on blanket with dog

      Photo brought in from home

  • Tapahia me ngā kutikuti – Cutting with scissors
    • 10 May

      Child using scissors

      He mahi uaua te whakawhanui i ngā kutikuti, heoi ano ka ako au, titiro ...

       Child using scissors

       Āta titiro, āta whakaaro, whakarite ngā kutikuti. Katahi, tapahia! Anana!

      Child using scissors


      Whaea Mel 

      child and adult using scissors

      Te pai hoki o ou mahi i te rangi nei e Tama!

      I kōrero mai a Whaea Re-nee kei te kaha koe ki te parakatihi i o mahi tapahia me ngā kutikuti tēnei wiki Mandela. I kite koe i ahau e tapahia ana i ngā ahau i te taha tepu, kātahi i noho koe ki taku taha hei matakitaki ...

      I whakaatu au me pehea te tapahia tika, te mau tika o ngā kutikuti. I whai koe ōku tauira, katahi i mau koe ki nga mahi! Ka rawe tenei ki au, kia kite i to harihoa, to aroha ki te ako. He rite ki te whakaahua whakamutunga nei, he rawe tenei maramatanga hou ki a koe!

      Anō te pai o tō mahi i te ata nei Mandela. Kia kaha koe ki te parakatihi tēnei mahi tapahia.

      Ma te kōrero ka mōhio, na te mōhio ka mārama, ma te mārama ka mahi, ma te mahi ka matatau!

  • “I’m getting better and better”
    • It was so good to have the camera handy to catch the magnificent effort of perseverance by Amy today!

      The first thing that Amy said to me as I approached was, “I’m getting better and better.”

      “What are you doing?” I inquire. “I’m learning to go over here.”

      Amy climbs up on top to the platform to show me what she has been teaching herself to do.

      Holding onto the ropes, which I have tied up a day or so earlier, Amy is using these to help her walk across the red ladder. This is not an easy thing to do as the ropes are very loose and this makes balancing somewhat difficult.

      I ask you, Amy, if it used to be hard for you to get across, and you tell me that “Yes, it used to be hard.” We talk together about how with practice it has got easier for you.

      Amazing!!

      Now you can go both ways!


      Short-term review/What next?

      Amy, I really liked the way that you are able to see that you are a learner, that sometimes it does take practice to get something right! Even now as an adult it takes me lots of practice to get some things right!

      I would love to see this disposition taken into other areas at kindergarten. It is good knowing that you can succeed when you find things difficult.

      Jo

      30 April

      Girl walking across a red ladder Girl walking across a red ladder

      What’s happening here?

      Amy has been practising walking across a ladder. She is recognising her ability to learn a new skill and comments to the teacher, “I’m getting better and better.”

      What does this assessment tell us about the learning (using an Exploration/Mana Aotūroa lens)?

      The teacher emphasises Amy’s perseverance in “teaching herself” to walk the ladder. The teacher and Amy talk together about how, with practice, the challenge got easier. The teacher discusses with Amy whether this project used to be difficult, and she comments on Amy’s progress (“Now you can go both ways!”) as well as on the process that got her there (practising).

      How might this documented assessment contribute to Exploration/Mana Aotūroa?

      This documentation affirms Amy’s self- assessment: “I’m getting better and better”, and the teacher provides a general rule about learning: “sometimes it does take practice to get something right!”

      The short-term review describes Amy as a “learner”, and the reader understands that, in the teacher’s view, a learner practises and continues “getting better and better”.

      The teacher suggests that Amy might apply this learning process to difficulties she encounters in other areas, and all the teachers will no doubt now be alert to recognising such occasions.

      What other strands of Te Whāriki are exemplified here?

      An aspect of well-being is self-management, and self-assessment (as shown in this exemplar) indicates of an ability to self-manage.