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Welcome to the Office of Early Childhood Education
The OECE is a national organisation for the ECE sector and public adviser, championing high-quality education and care for every child
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- Provides membership support to ECE services, teachers, researchers, and community partners
- Actively contributes to sector analysis, research, and policy development
- Advances evidence-based best practices that prioritise children’s interests and wellbeing
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Teacher Member Posts
Teaching Pre-Reading Skills
Teaching Pre-Reading Skills. By Barbara Morris.
Is it important for parents and early childhood educators to be involved in teaching pre-reading skills to children? Yes it is!
Parents play an important part in helping their children acquire pre-reading skills. There are many ways early childhood educators can support the acquisition o
Mums Expressing Breastmilk and Managing Other People’s Reactions
Mums Expressing Breastmilk in ECE. By Dr Sarah Alexander.
Early childhood services can be places that support breastfeeding, and the attitude of staff and teachers and what they do makes a big difference as to whether a mother continues with breastfeeding.
Often there is not time enough time to discuss questions such what to do if anothe
Pet Lamb – What You Need to Know
TITLE: Pet Lamb – fostering agreements, day-to-care care, benefits for children’s play and learning, and regulatory requirements
Some lambs are sadly orphaned at birth or there may be another reason why a farmer may decide the lamb would be better off to be hand-reared (such as in the case of multiple births and the mum having only one teat).
Your service could offer to help to hand-rear the lamb.
A lamb gives children a new responsibility.
A lamb is a new playmate and a friend that will love them unconditionally.
A lamb is gentle. It delights in playing but also at times needs to stop and drink or sit down and rest.
This is a pet that is dependent on care for survival and that will teach children to nurture.
Introducing a pet lamb to your early childhood service is an excellent way to naturally support children to spend more time outdoors running, jumping and skipping and enjoying the spring weather.
Below we cover aspects of
– How to get a lamb
– Agreements with the farmer and with your children for fostering the lamb
– Preparing for the lamb and what you need
Parenting a Gifted Child – What Parents Learn
Parenting a Gifted Child. By Melanie Wong.
Someone asked me ‘how can you manage your life with children who don’t like to sleep?’
I replied that ‘it is alright when you are used to it’.
I wish I had thought quickly enough at the time to also tell her how much I enjoy being with my children, as they did not only come into m
Service Provider Member Posts
Social Media Policy
Social Media Policy.
How social media is used can have a significant influence on the reputation of an early childhood service and the safety of participants.
Social media technologies if used appropriately can become an excellent way to broaden and increase opportunities for communication as well as being a powerful marketing tool.
Emergency Management Policy, Procedures, and Supplies
Here is a sample emergency management policy template, covering different emergencies such as fire, flooding, terrorist or armed offender, and natural disasters such as earthquakes, volcanic activity, and tsunamis.
We also show you what you might put in a sample emergency plan, emergency procedures (including drills), and an emergency sup
Being Inclusive of LGBT Teachers
Equality and acceptance of LGBT teachers in the New Zealand education system is still far from established.
Discrimination can be subtle, such as whispering the word ‘gay’ so that the children can’t hear, but can also be obvious and inappropriate through direct discrimination and exclusion.
Teachers, and particularly leaders, in early c
SUDI – Death of an Infant when Sleeping
Sleep in ECE and Reducing the Risk of (SUDI): Learnings and What’s Legally Required versus Best Practice.
For years, the OECE’s chief advisor Dr Sarah Alexander has feared that a child would die from sudden unexpected death in infancy (SUDI) in an early childhood education (ECE) setting. Now that has happened: An infant died from SUDI while
Research Library – Today’s Featured Articles
Negotiating Policy-Driven and State-Mandated Expectations of Leadership: Discourses Accessed by Early Childhood Educators in Australia
Negotiating Policy-Driven and State-Mandated Expectations of Leadership: Discourses Accessed by Early Childhood Educators in Australia.
Louise Thomas and Joce Nuttall. Australian Catholic University.
Full Reference: Thomas, L., & Nuttall, J. (2014). Negotiating policy-driven and state-mandated expectations of leadership: Disc
Inclusion and equity for teachers with disabilities
The positive and negative experiences of early childhood teachers / kaiako with disabilities who are working in NZ. How this impacts on their human rights, sense of wellbeing, and work. Login to read the full research paper below. Or you can order a pdf copy of the article, go to the main NZIRECE Journal page.
Educators Listening and Partnering with Parents: Recognising Parental Wellbeing and Agency
Research on parent wellbeing and recognising parent agency in ECE. Read the full paper below. Or to order a pdf copy of the article go to the main NZIRECE Journal page.
How to do Action-Based Research or an Inquiry, and Writing Your Report
What is Action Research?
Action research is defined in the glossary as:
A hands-on approach to research for change in a setting and/or to one’s own practices, thinking and knowledge. Action research can be a collaborative endeavour or carried out by an individual.
When action research is being undertaken to bring about change in a se
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