Together, these four foundations task kaiako with providing equitable opportunities for all children to learn in individually and culturally responsive learning environments.
In Kōwhiti Whakapae communication is inclusive of all the ways children and kaiako communicate, including, but not limited to:
- Spoken languages including te reo Māori and home languages.
- New Zealand Sign Language and other home signed languages
- Oral and visual means of expression, including vocalisations, gestures, movement, images and alternative and augmentative communication (AAC).
For learning about space and measurement, kaiako should:
- Weave te reo Māori and tikanga Māori meaningfully into the everyday curriculum. For example, draw attention to the relative locations of maunga, awa and marae.
- Value children’s home languages and cultures and respond to their cultural ways of knowing and being. For example, communicate about shapes using the home languages of children.
- Work with families, whānau and community to identify and dismantle barriers to participation and learning. For example, adapt the environment so that non-mobile children can physically explore the concepts of distance, trajectory or shape.
- Weave the principles of Te Whāriki through all curriculum decision making and use them to guide pedagogy and practice. For example, empower infants to explore space by providing a safe physical environment (Empowerment | Whakamana).
