What if your curriculum started with the children rather than a plan you wrote months ago? That is the heart of emergent curriculum and once you experience it working well in practice, it is very hard to go back. This guide will help you understand what emergent curriculum is, how it connects to Aistear, and how to plan and document it effectively in your Irish early years setting.
What Is Emergent Curriculum?
An emergent curriculum is one that develops from the children's own interests, curiosities, questions and experiences. Rather than following a fixed schedule of topics decided months in advance, an emergent curriculum is responsive. It follows the children rather than leading them.
The concept was popularised through the Reggio Emilia approach to early education, where children are understood as competent, capable learners who co-construct knowledge with adults and with each other. In Ireland, this philosophy aligns strongly with Aistear, the national Early Childhood Curriculum Framework, which places the child at the centre of all learning and emphasises child agency, play-based learning and holistic development across all four themes.
How Emergent Curriculum Differs from a Pre-Planned Approach
In a pre-planned or topic-based curriculum, the practitioner decides the themes and activities in advance, often on a termly or annual basis, and children are guided through those topics regardless of their level of engagement. In an emergent curriculum, the practitioner shifts from planner and director to observer, documenter and co-learner.
This does not mean there is no structure. Predictable daily routines, the physical learning environment and the key worker relationship all provide essential structure. What emerges is the content of learning: the themes, the investigations, the stories and the questions.
How to Observe and Document Children's Interests
Observation is the engine of emergent curriculum. Without careful, regular observation you are guessing at children's interests rather than genuinely responding to them. Useful observation tools include:
- Anecdotal notes capturing what a child said or did in a specific moment, using sticky notes, an observation app or a dedicated notebook
- Photographic documentation with written captions describing what was happening and what it might mean for the child's learning
- Short video clips of moments of deep engagement or significant interaction
- Direct child voice recordings capturing children's own words about what they are thinking, wondering or wanting to explore
Planning Webs and Learning Stories
Planning Webs
A planning web takes an identified interest at the centre and maps outward, exploring how that interest could be extended across different areas of learning and different Aistear themes. For example, a fascination with construction could extend into maths (measuring, patterns, counting), science (balance, materials, gravity), language (design vocabulary, storytelling), creative arts (drawing plans, three-dimensional construction) and wellbeing (collaboration, persistence, frustration tolerance).
Learning Stories
A learning story is a narrative documentation tool developed by New Zealand educator Margaret Carr. Written in the second person to the child, learning stories make learning visible to children, families and practitioners. They are a powerful way of documenting emergent curriculum in action and are widely used in Irish early years settings that engage with Aistear.
Early Years Shop's Emerging Interest Library provides a growing collection of interest-based resources and planning materials that support emergent curriculum practice in Irish settings. Browse the full range at earlyyearsshop.ie.
Linking to Aistear Themes
Ireland's Aistear framework organises early learning under four interconnected themes: Wellbeing, Identity and Belonging, Communicating, and Exploring and Thinking. Emergent curriculum maps naturally onto all four themes simultaneously because genuine child-led investigation is inherently holistic. When documenting and planning, make explicit links to Aistear aims and learning goals to demonstrate to Tusla inspectors that your approach is theoretically grounded and intentionally implemented.
Examples of Emergent Projects in Irish Settings
- The Puddle Investigation: after heavy autumn rain, children became fascinated by the large puddle in the yard. Over two weeks this developed into explorations of water, reflection, depth and evaporation, with children making predictions and testing them
- The Bird's Nest: a child brought in a fallen nest. Three weeks of exploration followed, covering birds, habitats, eggs and natural materials, culminating in children creating their own nests and dictating stories about the birds who might live in them
- The Shadow Project: children noticed their shadows on a sunny morning walk. Weeks of investigation into why shadows change shape, shadow puppetry and shadow art followed, integrating science, maths, drama and visual art naturally
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I still need a planning framework if I am using emergent curriculum?
Yes. Emergent curriculum is planned and intentional, just responsive rather than predetermined. You still need documented planning that links to Aistear themes and shows how observations informed your provision. The difference is that the content emerges from the children's interests rather than from a predetermined topic list.
How do I explain emergent curriculum to Tusla inspectors?
Inspectors want to see that your curriculum is intentional, documented and responsive to children's needs. Show your observation records, explain how they informed your planning, demonstrate links to Aistear aims and learning goals, and be able to articulate why each activity or provision area is in place. Confidence and clarity in explaining your approach is what inspectors are looking for.
Final Thoughts
Emergent curriculum requires a leap of professional confidence. It means trusting the children, trusting yourself, and trusting that learning will happen even without a pre-planned schedule. When it works well, the depth of engagement, the quality of learning and the joy in the room are unlike anything a pre-planned topic can generate. Start small. Follow one thread of genuine interest. See where it takes you.
Early Years Shop, part of the Canavan Byrne brand, provides educational resources, Aistear-linked planning materials and curriculum support tools for Irish early years settings. Browse our Emerging Interest Library and Educational Products range at earlyyearsshop.ie.
Visit earlyyearsshop.ie to explore our Emerging Interest Library, educational products and curriculum planning resources.
