Respond

Offer choices about routine events so that mokopuna have opportunities to make decisions without being overwhelmed by the possibilities. Begin with only two options in a question, i.e., would you like this or that?

Sensitively read and respond to children’s cues regarding their preferences and choices.

Partner with children to do activities that involve taking responsibility in the setting (e.g., put a toy away together or help take compost to the worm farm). Describe or comment on everyone’s contribution during these shared activities.

Observe and be responsive to the ways mokopuna indicate their interest in people and things within the environment.

Talk aloud to model making plans and setting goals as part of everyday experiences.

Describe children’s learning progress to them, affirming the efforts and dispositions that have been used (e.g., “You’ve been working hard at practising backing down that step and now you can get down without any help!”).

Tune in to children’s verbal and non-verbal communication about what resources or materials they would like to access or use when choices are offered to them.

Invite children to come with you when accessing additional materials or resources and offer choices on which materials they would like to have available.

Provide access to a broad range of materials and resources that mokopuna can safely access independently within the immediate environment that do not require close supervision.

Draw children’s attention to the expectations and rules by describing these and/or acknowledge when children are following them.

Only use gentle and respectful physical intervention if a child’s behaviour is unsafe for themselves, others, or the environment. Simultaneously, clearly explain the reason why you are intervening.

When mokopuna need support to learn the limits and boundaries of the setting, aim for this to be enacted by the most familiar adults available. If a child has been settling with a certain kaiako, they will likely find it less stressful to be redirected or guided by that kaiako compared to a reliever or less familiar adult.

Learn and use specific waiata and oriori used by whānau at home (e.g., when supporting children to get to sleep).

Incorporate home practices around routine events and care moments (e.g., sleeping, changing and mealtimes) within the setting’s routines where appropriate.

Show sensitivity and patience with children where differences in practices between home and setting frustrate or cause distress to mokopuna.

Provide opportunities for overcoming challenges or obstacles, while ensuring children’s physical well-being and safety.

Talk with mokopuna about their persistence and problem-solving strategies in everyday experiences and routines; highlight when they try and try again.

Name and validate the emotions mokopuna show when trying or persisting at hard tasks.

Provide realistic materials that represent real-life objects for mokopuna to use in play.

Model excitement and wonder with children, both in play (e.g., “I wonder what’s under the blanket”) and about the environment and people in it (e.g., “I can hear a lot of noise coming from the trees – I wonder what’s making all that noise”).

Recognise that some children may be reluctant about exploring sensory materials and sensitively support mokopuna to engage at their own pace.

Recognise, describe and support children’s use of learning strategies and dispositions during exploration and learning.

Use the language of thinking, knowing, and wondering in your everyday conversations with mokopuna (e.g., “I wonder if those dark clouds mean it is going to rain soon”).

Provide mokopuna with the materials and resources they may need when they have an idea about something they want to do and support them with their plan.

Offer clear and structured choices when mokopuna need support to make decisions.

Notice and recognise children’s interests and passions and draw on these to support children to make choices.

Invite mokopuna to help with routine tasks such as tidying up the environment, using specific requests so that children understand what you are asking them to do. Ensure requests are manageable and be flexible and adaptable in your expectations.

Be attuned and responsive to children’s differing verbal and non-verbal ways of indicating interest in people and things within the environment.

Model using language of planning and setting goals when talking with mokopuna about their interests and learning (e.g., “I wonder if we need to make a plan for how your building will look so we can think about how best to build it?”).

Read assessment documentation (e.g., learning stories) with mokopuna on a regular basis, and use these to spark conversations about making plans and being a learner.

Reminisce with children about materials and resources they have enjoyed previously and ask if they would like to use them again.

Involve children in planning conversations about what materials or resources might be made available either in that moment (e.g., while children are playing) or later (e.g., after lunch or the next day).

Carefully introduce new or unfamiliar materials and resources so that mokopuna are supported to use them safely and appropriately and to explore the possibilities of the resource.

Support children to learn about the expectations and rules by describing these or acknowledging when mokopuna are following them. Remind children of the expectations and rules in clear, plain language as they engage in activities.

Consider making visual cues or social stories that support mokopuna to learn about expectations in the setting.

When children want to make choices that are not appropriate or safe, respond with empathy to their desires and clearly articulate the reasons why they cannot make that choice, for example to maintain the safety of themselves, others, or the environment.

Invite mokopuna to share waiata and stories that they hear at home and incorporate these into the programme. Check with whānau about appropriate usage, wording and sources.

Support children to share what they have been doing outside the setting. This might include sensitively sharing connections that you are aware of (e.g., “Did you go to the swimming pool with Dad?”).

Explain, without judgement, why there may be different approaches and practices at home and in the setting (e.g., “There are more children here so sometimes we have to take turns”).

Look out for moments when mokopuna engage in risk taking and encourage them to participate in experiences that stretch them in terms of their comfort zone, celebrating their efforts with them.

Support children to break big challenges down into smaller achievable steps (e.g., “That’s a big job. We could start with X and then do Y”).

Talk with mokopuna and give specific feedback on their persistence and problem-solving strategies in everyday experiences and routines. Recognise, name and validate the wide range of emotions children experience when engaged in new and risky play.

Introduce increased levels of complexity in materials and resources and encourage mokopuna to use alternative materials and objects to represent real-life objects in their play (e.g., using a block as a microphone for singing into).

Model simple techniques to manipulate and use materials in intended and creative ways.

Ask open-ended questions and ‘wonderings’ (e.g., "How else might we do that? I wonder what might happen if we...") when exploring ideas, problem-solving, playing, creating, or building.

Name and describe different learning strategies that mokopuna are using or suggest these as options that children might like to try.

Use simple theory of mind and metacognitive language to help children recognise themselves and others as thinkers and learners (e.g., "That was a tricky problem. You had to think of lots of ways to solve it!").

Support mokopuna to consider the materials and resources they may need by showing a few options and discussing ways to get started when they have an idea about something they want to do.

Support children to make decisions about their participation, learning and wellbeing by asking questions and offering options.

Provide mokopuna with authentic choices about the experiences they might engage in and the materials they can use.

Engage in conversations with mokopuna about the reasoning for their choices. Support children to think about the ways their choices affect others and about how to collaborate to make choices together in groups.

Invite children to participate in projects that include a strong component of caring for others, animals or the environment (e.g., building ‘homes’ for insects outside; collecting recyclable materials; making a card for a someone in the community who is sick or has suffered a loss).

Invite children to talk about their interests and to set learning goals and plans.

Support mokopuna using a range of different media and approaches to help them develop goals and plans (e.g., drawing plans) of things they intend to create.

Increase the complexity of conversations with mokopuna about their learning successes and challenges, articulating the learning strategies they are using such as practising, persevering and problem-solving.

Consider how mokopuna can access materials and resources independently, and support children to access those that are not readily available.

Encourage children to request materials and resources that require adult support to access and use (e.g., hot glue guns).

When materials or resources requested by children need to be used under close supervision, plan with them suitable times and conditions (e.g., one at a time) for these materials and resources to be made available.

Support mokopuna to follow the expectations and rules by regularly discussing them, asking children about these or acknowledging when they are following them.

Encourage children to see the importance of expectations, limits and rules for the wider group. Have conversations about how our behaviour impacts those around us, and the value of adjusting our behaviour to be fair to others.

Use respectful and empathetic language to show mokopuna that their struggles with limits and boundaries are valid (e.g., “I know it’s hard to walk inside when you really want to run to your friends, but it’s important to keep everyone safe”).

Support children to share some of their favourite things with you and their peers, building on the special skills that they have learned at home or in the community.

Invite mokopuna to share what they have been doing outside the setting, including asking questions and making connections to things they have told you previously. Use these topics to foster sustained conversations with children.

Look for opportunities to make connections between group planning or projects in the setting and the knowledge children bring from home. Regularly ask mokopuna and whānau for ideas and discuss and act on these as appropriate.

Use moments when mokopuna engage in risk taking and working outside their comfort zone to give specific feedback about their effort and strategies they used.

Revisit moments where children have taken a risk, experienced disappointment and worked through it (e.g., “Remember the other day when you tried …. You felt a bit disappointed when it didn’t work but then you tried again … and you got there”).

Support mokopuna to collaborate in setting challenges and taking risks together. Encourage the group to help each other through problems and disappointments and to persist with difficulties.

Support and encourage children to be imaginative and creative in how they manipulate and use materials to represent their ideas and thinking.

Model increasingly sophisticated techniques for expressing ideas and feelings through the visual and expressive arts. Support mokopuna to describe their ideas for play and creative expressions and help them gather views of others.

Revisit past instances when they have been flexible and why that was helpful with mokopuna.

Support children to think about alternative approaches that they could use when learning is challenging, including reminding them of strategies they or others have used successfully in the past.

Use resources such as puppets and stories (e.g., Māui slowing the sun) to discuss different learning processes and dispositions and what it means to be a learner.

Use increasingly complex theory of mind and metacognitive language with mokopuna to describe thinking, learning and what it is to be a learner (e.g., ‘That’s a great solution. Why do you think it worked?’).

Encourage children to make plans and decisions about their own participation, learning and wellbeing, particularly in areas that they are passionate about.

Support mokopuna to collaborate and work with others to make plans and decisions, e.g., about projects they want to work on, both inside and outside the setting.

Recognise and discuss the concept of service and how being responsible and giving to others (whether time, assistance or caring) is important and valued across different cultures.

Invite and support mokopuna to take on larger, more long-term, or collaborative projects that extend their learning interests, highlighting that learning takes time, persistence, and cooperation.

Support children to use external sources of information (e.g., books, internet sites, local sites, community members) to support their thinking about how they might achieve more complex learning goals.

Support mokopuna to document their projects over time and encourage them to think about how the project has developed, what they have learned and how their learning dispositions and identities have been strengthened through the process.

Support children to take on a tuakana role with teina to share and use materials and resources that they have experience with.

Support children to plan what further materials and resources they might use in their play and projects, including writing lists of requirements.

Scaffold children to learn how to use more complex equipment (e.g., sewing machines, cooking equipment, carpentry tools) with the goal that children can safely use these with appropriate supervision.

Encourage children to uphold the expectations and rules and support others; for example, ask mokopuna to remind each other about the rules to help keep everyone safe.

Support children to share their ideas and understandings of limits and boundaries through conversations (e.g., “I wonder what might happen if …?”). Discuss with mokopuna how rules and expectations might vary between different contexts they spend time in.

Have increasingly complex conversations with mokopuna about the need to balance rules with flexibility and empathy for others, modelling understanding about different children’s diverse capabilities and strengths.

Support mokopuna to teach adults and other children knowledge and skills that they have learned outside the setting and celebrate the expertise that they are able to share, e.g., sharing their home language.

Invite and support children to share their experiences outside of the setting in larger group situations such as morning hui.

Support mokopuna to consider and discuss why there might be differences in how things are done at home and in the setting, without making judgements on children’s home lives.

Support mokopuna to contribute to creating an environment that has an element of risk. Discuss the potential risks and how they might work through challenges they encounter.

Encourage children to plan in advance experiences that stretch their thinking and physical capabilities (e.g., "What could we do this afternoon? I wonder if we can think of something new that we have never done before?”).

Revisit moments of disappointment with mokopuna including unpacking the emotions they experienced and their problem-solving strategies (e.g., “How did you feel when that happened? What did you do next? What else could you do”).

Support mokopuna to engage in sustained imaginative play, with and without props, and to develop and tell their own imaginative stories and creative expressions (e.g., oral stories, dance and movement, using puppets, visual arts, and taking photographs).

Support children to plan projects that involve creating something that is large or complex (e.g., building a permanent ramp to slide small vehicles down or creating and sewing a costume), including being creative and innovative in their design plans and representing what they think their creation will look like.

Discuss how mokopuna implemented their plans, highlighting their flexible and creative thinking and problem solving in achieving their goals. Invite children to seek the views and ideas of others.

Invite and support mokopuna to share with others how they learned to do something, for example, how they went about solving a problem and why they used the materials and strategies that they did.

Support children to describe and document their learning process and dispositions, sometimes partnering with children to share their learning through a learning story.

Support mokopuna to engage in possibility thinking with you – for example have conversations about what might happen next in a book, what they would do if they were a character in a story, what they would do differently from how the character acted.