[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":3,"doc-seo-579707-105":59,"doc-detail-579707-en":129},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,13,18,23,28,33,38,43,48,51,55],{"id":8,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":10,"show_sort_weight":11,"slug":12},1,"Document","Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":14,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":15,"show_sort_weight":16,"slug":17},2,"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":19,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":20,"show_sort_weight":21,"slug":22},4,"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":24,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":25,"show_sort_weight":26,"slug":27},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":29,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":30,"show_sort_weight":31,"slug":32},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":34,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":35,"show_sort_weight":36,"slug":37},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":39,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":40,"show_sort_weight":41,"slug":42},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":44,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":45,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":47},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":49,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":50},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":53,"show_sort_weight":52,"slug":54},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":56,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":57,"show_sort_weight":24,"slug":58},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":60,"data":61},"ok",{"site_id":62,"language":63,"slug":64,"title":65,"keywords":66,"description":67,"schema_data":68,"social_meta":122,"head_meta":124,"extra_data":126,"updated_unix":128},105,"en","autistic-children-promoting-their-inclusion-engagement-and-skill-development-in-early-childhood-education","Autistic children: Promoting their inclusion, engagement and skill development in early childhood education","","Early childhood education in Aotearoa New Zealand is committed to inclusive pedagogy, yet translating policy into everyday teaching practice remains challenging. Many ECE teachers report limited confidence in teaching children with disabilities, while autistic enrollment in ECE continues to grow. The article foregrounds autistic children’s rights in ECE settings and explains culturally responsive, intentional pedagogy. It outlines autism strengths, evidence-based inclusion practices, supporting resources, and the role of working conditions and support systems.",{"@graph":69,"@context":121},[70,84,104],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":35,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/healthcare/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/autistic-children-promoting-their-inclusion-engagement-and-skill-development-in-early-childhood-education/579707/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":98,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":99,"interactionStatistic":100},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/autistic-children-promoting-their-inclusion-engagement-and-skill-development-in-early-childhood-education/579707.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Ezra","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":101,"interactionType":102,"userInteractionCount":8},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":103},"ViewAction",{"@type":105,"mainEntity":106},"FAQPage",[107,113,117],{"name":108,"@type":109,"acceptedAnswer":110},"Why do ECE teachers face challenges in inclusive practice for autistic children?","Question",{"text":111,"@type":112},"Policy commitment to inclusive pedagogy does not always translate into teachers’ day-to-day practice. An Education Review Office report notes limited teacher confidence, lack of professional development, and other system constraints.","Answer",{"name":114,"@type":109,"acceptedAnswer":115},"What does the article focus on regarding autistic children in ECE?",{"text":116,"@type":112},"It foregrounds the rights of autistic children attending ECE settings and emphasizes culturally responsive, thoughtful, intentional pedagogy to meet learning needs.",{"name":118,"@type":109,"acceptedAnswer":119},"Which inclusion supports does the article highlight for ECE settings?",{"text":120,"@type":112},"It highlights evidence-based practices that facilitate active participation and inclusion, along with culturally responsive practice and freely available resources for teachers’ professional development.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":123,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":125,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":127,"site_id":62},579707,1792076370,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":130},{"doc_id":127,"user_id":131,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":132,"doc_module":4,"category_id":34,"category_name":35,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":133,"file_id":134,"file_url":135,"file_type":136,"file_size":137,"view_count":8,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":56,"language":138,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":139,"faqs":140,"seo_title":141,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":142,"read_time":143},1099514068035,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_276721f389ce27ea32af1340a28f341c","Kairaranga, 2025, 26(1), 1-19. Weaving educational threads. Weaving educational practice.  \nAutistic children: Promoting their inclusion, engagement and skill development in early childhood education  \nKate McAnelly, Laura J. Hall, Samuel L. Odom, Erin Hall, and Kerry Purdue  \nABSTRACT  \nThe early childhood education (ECE) sector in Aotearoa New Zealand is committed through policy to inclusive pedagogy for all children, however translating such policies into everyday practice for teachers can be challenging. According to an Education Review Office (ERO, 2022) report, many ECE teachers do not feel confident teaching children with disabilities. With increasing numbers of autistic children with additional needs enrolling in ECE, it is vital that teachers build capability through professional learning to promote the rights, wellbeing and belonging of these children (ERO, 2022; Ministry of Education, 2017) . Our intention in this article is to forefront the rights of autistic children attending ECE settings in Aotearoa New Zealand and the importance of culturally responsive, thoughtful, intentional pedagogy to meet their learning needs. We identify and describe the characteristics and strengths of autistic children that teachers can affirm and build on, highlight evidence-based practices from research that can help facilitate the active participation and inclusion of these children and their families, and discuss the importance of culturally responsive practice. We also share freely available resources that support teachers’ professional development and implementation of inclusive curriculum. We conclude by emphasising the critical importance of the type of working conditions in ECE settings and support systems that promote inclusive practice.  \nKEYWORDS  \nEarly years, autism, inclusion, intentional teaching  \nIntroduction  \nAutism is “a neurodevelopmental condition that affects cognitive, sensory, and social processing, changing the way people see the world and interact with others”(Autism New Zealand, n.d., para. 1) . Because autism is a complex condition, common misconceptions about autism’s typical presentations from the past remain (McAnelly & Gaffney, 2020) . That said, autism is better  \nKairaranga, 2025, 26(1), 1-19. Weaving educational threads. Weaving educational practice.  \nunderstood today, especially when viewed through a neurodevelopmental paradigm that recognises brain-based differences and, importantly, presumes competence rather than incompetence or deficiency (Skelling, 2020) . People often see the characteristics of autism as universal, but the opposite is true. Each child with autism is unique and has a different set of the condition’s widely recognised traits or characteristics, each of which sits along a spectrum (McAnelly & Gaffney, 2020; Runswick-Cole et al., 2016) . Among the most common traits and characteristics are struggles with social interactions and communication, and adherence to specific repetitive interests and behaviours. McAnelly and Gaffney (2020) acknowledge that greater recognition is now being given to gaining understanding of how sensory stimulation affects autistic children’s participation, wellbeing and learning. As Skelling (2020) emphasises, those who work with autistic children need to understand they should not treat autism like an illness that can or should be cured, but rather should exercise knowledge and strategies to ensure these children are conceptualised as active citizens who must be fully included in all aspects of their learning environment. Skelling’s (2020) advice aligns with the strengths-based, rights-focused approach needed to ensure equity of learning opportunity for diverse learners in early years settings (Macartney, 2019; Runswick-Cole et al., 2016) .  \nRecognition of the importance of inclusion and removal of barriers to participation in ECE for children with disabilities is supported by policy and legislation in Aotearoa New Zealand. All children in this country ","cbCaijrcDpNT9gpg","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaijrcDpNT9gpg","pdf",363888,"English","# Abstract\n# Keywords\n# Introduction\n## Inclusive education policy and barriers in ECE\n## Rights-based and culturally responsive pedagogy\n## Organising ECE environments for autistic children","[{\"question\":\"Why do ECE teachers face challenges in inclusive practice for autistic children?\",\"answer\":\"Policy commitment to inclusive pedagogy does not always translate into teachers’ day-to-day practice. An Education Review Office report notes limited teacher confidence, lack of professional development, and other system constraints.\"},{\"question\":\"What does the article focus on regarding autistic children in ECE?\",\"answer\":\"It foregrounds the rights of autistic children attending ECE settings and emphasizes culturally responsive, thoughtful, intentional pedagogy to meet learning needs.\"},{\"question\":\"Which inclusion supports does the article highlight for ECE settings?\",\"answer\":\"It highlights evidence-based practices that facilitate active participation and inclusion, along with culturally responsive practice and freely available resources for teachers’ professional development.\"}]","Autistic children: Promoting their inclusion, engagement and skill development in early childhood education | PDF",1792036157,48]