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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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Teacher Member Posts

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Toddler with bottle of milk to feed lamb.
Outside‑the‑Box Play Ideas

Farm Visit

Farm Visit with Children.

While the animals may not be as exotic as the ones you find in a zoo, going to a farm can still be a great day out.

It can be especially good for smaller children as they can usually get closer to the animals.

Try these ideas to increase the learning potential of your visit.

Talk about the animals you might

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baby sleeping peacefully
Child Health, Attachment, and Wellbeing

Controlled Crying or Training Children to Settle Themselves to Sleep

Controlled Crying.

This article discusses the Controlled Crying method. It gives clarity to conflicting opinions about whether this is a good practice and its benefits. We discuss if this method should and can be used in early childhood education (ECE) settings and in our teaching practice. Suggestions are included for other ways of support

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Children Baking Cooking
Job Guidance

Independent Contractor or Employee? What Home‑Based Educators and Nannies Need to Know

If you work in your own home under a licensed home‑based agency, or in a family’s home as a nanny or home‑based educator, you may be asked to sign an agreement saying you’re an independent contractor.

But being incorrectly hired as a contractor can cost you real money, key employment rights, and important protections. Many educators don’t realise the risks until it’s too late – which is why it’s crucial to check whether your work arrangement actually meets the legal test.

Log in with your member details to read the full guidance. If your membership has lapsed or you’d like to join, get in touch and we’ll help you get set up quickly.

Here we help you to learn how to tell if you’re truly a contractor or if you should legally be an employee, and what to do if something doesn’t look right.

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Lambs and young children
Outside‑the‑Box Play Ideas

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

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Service Provider Member Posts

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Learnings from Serious Incidents

Head Injury Suffered by Toddler on Concrete Ground in Mid-Winter

For an outline of key facts read our article: Nelson’s fall: Parents still don’t know how their toddler hit his head on concrete and had a brain injury at childcare

We’ve reviewed the centre manager’s report of the incident, Ministry of Education communications, Worksafe report, and lawyer correspondence. The learning we’ve taken is:

Don’t take children outside until the outdoor playground safety check is completed and ticked/signed.

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behavioural disorders
Employer Guides and Staff Management

Disciplinary Process

There may be a time that you find an employee is underperforming or an employee is engaging in misconduct or serious misconduct.

You may not want to, but you will need to begin a disciplinary process with that employee.  Here is information to assist you in learning about disciplinary processes as an employer or manager of early childhood s

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early childhood research journal online
Employer Guides and Staff Management

Formal Warning Letter and Expressing Concern Letter

Here are templates for a letter ‘of concern’ and a letter giving an early childhood employee a formal first or second warning.

EXAMPLE LETTER OF CONCERN

Private and Confidential

DATE

Dear <Name>

Letter of Concern

This letter is to formally raise our concerns around <insert a general description of the concern, i.e. inapp

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Teacher carrying a child, opens child-proof gate for protecting children in the early childhood centre.
Child Protection

Safety Checking of Staff and Others under the Children’s Act

Safety checking is required of every person who has or may have access to children as part of their work, such as cleaners and cooks at early childhood services, must be safety checked in accordance with the Children’s Act 2014 before being allowed to start work. The fine to the early childhood service of failing to do this is up to $10,000 upon c

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Research Library – Today’s Featured Articles

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NZIRECE Journal for early childhood education and care research
About the Journal and Making a Submission

Call for Papers for the 2026 New Zealand International Research in Early Childhood Education Journal Special Issue

Theme: “Quality Begins with Teachers: Workforce Challenges in Early Childhood Education”

High-quality early childhood education begins with a skilled, supported, and sustainable workforce. This special issue calls for paper that explore the central paradox of our sector – the significant responsibility placed on teachers despite the systemic challenges that threaten their professional sustainability.

In this 2026 issue of the NZIRECE Journal, we aim to examine the complex realities educators navigate and the resilient practices they use to maintain high standards of care and education. We invite submissions from both New Zealand and international scholars that address the essential links between workforce wellbeing and pedagogical excellence. Papers from different perspectives are welcomed

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art room
2024 NZIRECE Journal

The teacher’s role in visual arts learning

Great research on the visual arts experiences of young children (aged 3-4) at early childhood settings in NZ. Learn about the experiences and visual arts pedagogies of early childhood teachers. 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.

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early childhood research journal online
2014 Special Policy Issue

Children’s Participation in Disaster Risk Reduction as Curriculum

Children’s Participation in Disaster Risk Reduction as Curriculum.

Dian Fikriani* and Jane Bone** * Gadjah Mada University Indonesia. **Monash University Australia.

Full Reference: Fikriani, D. & Bone, J. (2014). Children’s participation in disaster risk reduction as curriculum. NZ Research in Early Childhood Education Journal, Spec

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early childhood research journal online
2016 NZRECE Journal Articles

Whiteness Scholarship in Early Childhood Education

Research on how racism and ‘whiteness’ operates within the early childhood research site and research processes. It shows ways that researchers and educators reinforce, rather than reduce the impacts of whiteness and racism, despite the best of intentions. Read the full paper below. Or to order a pdf copy of the article go to the main NZIRECE Journal page.

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What We Do

The Office of ECE drives high-quality care, learning and teaching for all infants and young children and high-quality working environments for teachers and service providers.
Teacher supervising infant and young child playing in playground at ECE centre.

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