Understanding early childhood learning trajectories: Evidence‑informed supports for quality curriculum and practice

High‑quality early childhood education and care enables children to flourish across developmental domains while supporting educators to make informed pedagogical decisions. The Early Childhood Learning Trajectories, developed by the Australian Education Research Organisation (AERO), offers a research‑based lens to understanding how young children learn and develop in the years before school, and how educators can best support that learning through intentional practice. 

• Executive functions — cognitive processes that support problem‑solving, memory, planning and self‑regulation
• Social and emotional learning — skills for managing emotions, building relationships and engaging cooperatively with others
• Mathematical thinking — ways children make sense of number, pattern, measurement and spatial concepts
• Language and communication — development of expressive and receptive language, interaction and meaning‑making
• Physical development — growth in motor skills, coordination and embodied learning experiences 

1. Strengthening curriculum and pedagogical decisionsEducators can use the trajectories to inform what they observe, assess and plan for, building learning experiences that are responsive to children’s evolving strengths, interests and needs. This supports the ongoing cycle of observation, planning, implementation and reflection central to quality practice. 
2. Supporting professional learningTrajectories can help teams develop shared language and understanding about children’s learning progressions. Services can focus on one domain at a time to deepen educator knowledge and refine pedagogical approaches. 
3. Enhancing assessment for learningUnlike prescriptive milestone checklists, the trajectories describe learning as a continuum rather than age‑based steps. They encourage educators to make professional judgements grounded in evidence about where a child is in their learning and what might be the next meaningful learning opportunity. 

• A comprehensive PDF resource collection that outlines the trajectories in depth and provides downloadable content for educators. 
• A user guide to help educators implement the trajectories purposefully in curriculum design and reflective practice. 
• Animated explainer videos that introduce the learning domains and demonstrate how the trajectories align with curriculum frameworks and assessment practices. 
• A reflection activity to support teams to gather classroom examples and deepen understanding collaboratively. 
• A related evidence base report outlining research foundations and the development of the trajectories. 

• Better articulate children’s learning pathways
• Enhance documentation and pedagogical reasoning
• Improve alignment with EYLF 2.0 and the NQF
• Promote shared professional language across teams
• Support responsive, evidence‑informed practice