I have wanted to go to New Zealand since my early teens. My ambition grew when I began to read new theories on childhood development. I repeatedly found that New Zealand is the place to see real child- centred principles in practice. The country's early years curriculum is very much focused on the holistic development of the whole child.
I was fortunate to make contact with Diane Daly, an early childhood professional from the New Zealand Kindergarten Association who helped me to plan my visit to Auckland this summer.
Child-centred
I pride myself on being a child-centred practitioner, always putting the choices of the children first and encouraging their independence. But my eyes were opened when I observed children in kindergartens in New Zealand.
It was amazing. I saw children handling hot glue guns and real tools for woodwork. In one kindergarten I was amazed to see a large tray filled with lots of old radios, circuit boards, plugs and cassette players. I watched in wonder as a group of children used the real tools to change screws, leads and so on.
It's not unusual to see pre-school settings in the UK using their outdoor areas, but children in New Zealand are even able to go out on wet and windy days throughout the year. The outdoor areas are no bigger than those in the UK, but the variety of activities and resources on offer were impressive. I saw sand pits that took up a large proportion of the outdoor space. They were covered by canopies to allow for wet weather play.
Another wonderful moment for me was watching a group of children play with their pet gerbils. They were problem-solving how all 19 of the newborn babies would be able to fit in the cage. The children also decided to plan how to make a gerbil's run out of wooden blocks. They then decided to make some toys for the gerbils to play in, such as wheels and climbing frames.
After planning it on paper, they made their dream a reality and built it all using junk from their creative area.
The New Zealand early years curriculum, called Te Whariki, encourages practitioners to go with the interest of the child. Instead of Personal, Social and Emotional Development they have 'Well Being' and 'Belonging'.
You do not find maths and literacy - instead they have 'Contribution', 'Communication' and 'Exploration'. Within each of the curriculum's principles they have strands such as 'Family and Community' and 'Em-powerment'. The curriculum goes from birth to five, and the language used within the curriculum speaks volumes for what is asked of their children.
Take risks
I found the whole experience very humbling. In the UK it is easy to get caught up in health and safety, adult interaction and curriculum planning, and forget what really counts. I have now learned that children can cope with experiences that some adults find daunting.
We have some excellent early childhood centres in the UK, but we need to make sure that everyone strives to achieve the same goals. We all believe in giving children the very best start in education and we desperately want them to succeed. But to do that, we have to be willing to take risks and go with where our children lead us.
My visit to New Zealand fuelled my desire to continue working alongside our marvellous and dedicated practitioners back here in the UK. Who knows? Maybe in the next few years there will be more of us handling hot glue guns, rewiring old radios, splashing in puddles and playing in mud. And if we can't quite manage it, we can always ask the children to show us how. NW Further information
New Zealand Kindergartens Incorporated: www.nzkindergarten.org.nz Nicola Smith is a leading teacher for Wiltshire Early Years Team
