6 DECEMBER NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE 4583

(b) Programmes and resources should also appropriately promote non-sexist behaviour and language by children, parents, family and staff.

(c) All children, irrespective of gender, should be encouraged to learn and play in all curriculum areas.

(d) Programmes and resources should cater for the individual and different needs of children with special needs.

(e) Policies and practices in early childhood services should reflect the cultural heritage of the signatories to the Treaty of Waitangi.

Specific Goals and Objectives of Management and Staff of Chartered Early Childhood Centres and Care Arrangers.

1 Responsibilities to Community and Users

Goal A

A consultative process which reflects an atmosphere of openness, acceptance and support for family and community values.

Objectives and Practices

(a) To prepare the charter using a consultative process between parents, family, management and staff and caregivers and, where appropriate, to involve the community served by the early childhood service and to provide evidence of endorsement of the charter by parent users and by staff or caregivers;

(b) To undertake to consult regularly with parents and families in ways which are sensitive to the parents and families involved in the service;

(c) To provide evidence to the Ministry on the consultative process used in developing the charter document and on decisions which were affected by that process;

Goal B

To be accountable to its staff and committee for the operation of the service, to the families and community for nature and quality of the service provided and to Government for the effective, efficient and appropriate use of public monies to meet the charter objectives.

Objectives and Practices

(a) At all times to comply with the regulations covering minimum standards for early childhood centres as provided for by section 317 of the Education Act 1989, or, in the case of care arrangers, with the Codes of Practice for chartered care arrangers as specified by the Secretary for Education;

(b) To formulate management plans throughout the charter in objective and measurable terms;

(c) To report regularly to parent users of the service on the ways in which the charter is being fulfilled and on the ways in which the funding available to the service is being used towards the attainment of charter objectives;

(d) At all times to comply with reasonable requests from authorised persons having the right of entry under section 318 of the Education Act 1989 for documentation such as annual audited accounts, local body reports, health inspection reports, fire service reports, statistical information and any other reports required by statute;

(e) To state how reports from the Education Review Office will be made known to parents, families, staff, caregivers and the community.

2 The Learner, Curriculum and Programme

Goal

Provision of a curriculum which is the sum total of the children’s direct and indirect learning experiences in early childhood centres or home based settings. It should promote the overall development of young children while responding to the needs of families.

Objectives and Practices

(a) At all times to implement a curriculum which enables all children to experience an environment in which: they learn who they are; they are safe; they relate positively to others; they enjoy themselves; they learn in appropriate ways; they respect the natural environment; learning is not limited by race, gender or special needs; decision making is shared; conflict is resolved peacefully; the importance of home and family is recognised; adults are learners also;

(b) To organise the curriculum to take account of the ethnic origins of each child and the different characteristics and developmental needs of infants, toddlers and pre-schoolers, where they are present;

(c) To ensure that adults at all times interact with children in positive ways;

(d) To develop and promulgate a statement of the philosophy underlying the operation of the service;

(e) Every year to specify the methods by which the early childhood centre or home programme is to be regularly planned and evaluated by staff or by caregivers and care arrangers, to ensure that it is developmentally appropriate;

(f) To specify established procedures for settling children into the service or caregiver’s home, informing parents about their children’s day and ways of facilitating the transition of children to school;

(g) At all times to plan for and provide developmentally appropriate programmes and practices for children and infants attending the early childhood service;

(h) Developmentally appropriate programmes should integrate care and education and to focus at all times on the overall needs of each individual child. Activities should include:

(i) both active and quiet, planned and spontaneous, small group and individual activities both in and out of doors, with children able to make choices about the degree, type and manner of their participation;

(ii) creative activities where individual expression is encouraged;

(iii) the use of natural materials and play in natural areas.

(i) At all times for the programme and environment to allow for gross and fine motor play for all children and provide opportunities both for interaction with others and for privacy;

(j) At all times to meet the requirements for the programme and management of child behaviour under regulations for a licence or codes of practice as required in section 317 and section 314 of the Education Act 1989.

3 Special Needs

Goal

To cater for the individual and different needs of children with special needs they attend and their families.

Objectives and Practices

(a) To aim at all times to provide for children with special needs in close consultation with the parents and families of each child;

(b) To provide programmes for individual children with special needs in early childhood centres which include specific objectives based on careful assessment and monitoring of specific skills and activities and which are designed to maximise the strengths of children with special needs;

(c) To ensure that records of the assessment of children with special needs are kept in a confidential manner;

(d) To ensure that staff and caregivers seek guidance and information from specialist services and others associated with