The Australian Education Research Organisation (AERO)’s Early Childhood Learning Trajectories describe how children learn and develop in these key domains:
- Executive functions
- Social and emotional learning
- Mathematical thinking
- Language and communication
- Physical development.
While each learning trajectory describes children’s progress in a single domain, they’re designed to be used in interconnected ways. A single experience within an early childhood program may support progress in multiple domains at the same time. Progress in one domain may depend on progress in another.
Teachers and educators can use the learning trajectories in a variety of ways to strengthen their curriculum and inform their pedagogical decision-making, in line with the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF V2.0) or other approved learning frameworks used in their service. The learning trajectories also support the National Quality Standard, especially Standard 1.3: Assessment and planning. They can also help ECEC services lift quality and implement Quality Improvement Plans.