Curriculum design in early childhood education

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Curriculum design in early childhood education

HomeEarly childhood education resourcesCurriculum design in early childhood education

Topic summary

Effective curriculum design ensures that an early childhood setting’s priorities for learning are promoted and supported through teachers’ and children’s daily activities and interactions.

Curriculum design is the process of planning a curriculum and associated activities, environments and interactions for early childhood based on agreed priorities for children’s learning. This will look different in every early childhood setting.

Curricular plans and the associated provision of early childhood environments and experiences enable children’s inquiries, learning and development. Research finds that children’s achievement is greater where teachers plan for more structured play and focus on academic skills, as well as engaging in pedagogical practices such as direct teaching (questioning or modelling), ‘sustained shared thinking’, scaffolding children’s play, and extending child-initiated interactions. 

There is clear longitudinal evidence from the UK that suggests teachers’ planning for children’s learning and active involvement in children’s play and activity are associated with greater achievement. There is also a strong alignment between the research findings from cognitive psychology and neuroscience about the features of effective early childhood learning environments. 

Plan purposeful teaching interactions building on and from children’s play, and take time to really consider potential teaching actions and decisions. Choose pedagogies and practices which enable you to:

  • Emphasise relationships and promote social interaction
  • Nurture children’s wellbeing
  • Build on prior learning
  • Make learning authentic and meaningful
  • Develop children’s capacities for learning to learn

  • Do you draw on agreed priorities for children’s learning to inform curriculum design?
  • How do you select priorities for children’s learning?
  • Do you emphasise teachers’ roles and interactions as well as environment, activities and resources in your planning?
  • Do you plan for a range of teaching strategies and pedagogies to teach content, skills and dispositions?
  • What role do you assign children’s interests, intentions and self-initiated play in your processes for curriculum design?

Research reviews

How children learn: Principles to underpin curriculum design

Exploring the research behind how young children learn and how to use this knowledge to inform curriculum design.

Designing curriculum: Effective experiences and environments for early childhood education

Ideas to support the design of effective activities and environments for children in early childhood settings.

What do I need to know to implement Te Whāriki 2017?

An overview of the key changes to the 2017 update of Te Whāriki and what they mean for practice.

Webinars

Children’s voices in early childhood curriculum

Professor Marek Tesar (University of Auckland) and Dr Vicki Hargraves discuss the importance of incorporating children’s voices in to curriculum design and implementation in early childhood settings.

Authentically designing a curriculum aligned to local context

A discussion about the elements involved in setting up a local curriculum and look at ways to work with Te Whāriki (2017) to make this happen authentically.

Infographics

Curriculum design in early childhood education infographic

Tips for building an effective curriculum.

Snapshots

Local curriculum and learning outside the centre

How venturing outside the centre builds children’s sense of belonging in their community.

Inquiry based planning and curriculum design

The principles of an inquiry-based approach at Kids’ Domain.

Inquiry in action

How the teachers at Kids’ Domain use an inquiry-based approach to respond to children’s interests.

Pedagogical tools for developing a project

Discover how one early childhood centre approaches a project-focused curriculum.

Outdoor explorers: Risk-taking beyond the centre

Exploring the local community provides many valuable learning opportunities,
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