Teksta versija
LEGAL ACTS OF THE REPUBLIC OF LATVIA
home
 
The translation of this document is outdated.
Translation validity: 01.09.2019.–31.08.2023.
Amendments not included: 07.03.2023.

Republic of Latvia

Cabinet
Regulation No. 716

Adopted 21 November 2018

Regulations Regarding the State Guidelines for Pre-school Education and the Model Pre-school Education Programmes

Issued pursuant to
Section 14, Clause 18.1
of the Education Law

I. General Provision

1. The Regulation prescribes the State guidelines for pre-school education and the model educational programmes corresponding thereto.

II. Objective, Tasks of the Implementation of the Pre-school Education Content, and Model Educational Programmes

2. The objective of the implementation of the pre-school education content is a curious, creative, and joyful child who leads a healthy, safe, and active life, acts independently, learns with interest and joy, gaining experience about himself or herself, others, the surrounding world and the interaction therein.

3. The tasks of the implementation of the pre-school education content shall be as follows:

3.1. to promote a comprehensive development of a child, taking into consideration his or her needs, interests, abilities, and experience and laying the foundation for the establishment of value-based habits;

3.2. to develop social and emotional skills of a child which include self-awareness and awareness of his or her emotions, thoughts, and behaviour, ability to understand others and establish positive relationships;

3.3. to develop critical thinking, ability to take responsible decisions, creative activity and entrepreneurship skills, cooperation skills, civic participation skills, and digital skills;

3.4. to develop basic literacy in the fields of study such as languages, social and civic awareness, cultural awareness and self-expression in art, natural sciences, mathematics, technologies, health, and physical activity;

3.5. to provide a child with a possibility to prepare for the acquisition of basic education.

4. Pre-school education shall be implemented according to the model pre-school education programmes provided in Annexes to this Regulation. The pre-school education content has been included in the pre-school education programme (Annex 1), the minority pre-school education programme (Annex 2), the special pre-school education programme (Annex 3), and the minority special pre-school education programme (Annex 4).

III. Values to be Included in the Content and Process of Pre-school Education

5. The content and process of pre-school education shall include values such as life, human dignity, freedom, family, work, nature, the Latvian language and the State of Latvia, and also other values referred to in the Constitution and Cabinet regulations regarding the guidelines for the upbringing of educatees and the procedures for evaluating information, teaching aids, materials, and teaching and upbringing methods.

6. The unity of the upbringing and learning process promotes the development of the values referred to in this Regulation and the habits based on them, and also of such virtues as responsibility, courage, enterprise, purposefulness, diligence, composure, moderation, tolerance, kindness, compassion, justice, solidarity in a child.

7. The attitude of a child towards the values referred to in this Regulation shall be created in daily communication and interaction both in family, educational institution, and a wider society.

IV. Compulsory Content of Pre-school Education, Intended Results of the Acquisition Thereof in the Fields of Study, and Principles for the Implementation Thereof

8. The compulsory content of pre-school education shall consist of the following:

8.1. the values and virtues referred to in this Regulation;

8.2. the transversal skills which form the basis of the compulsory content of pre-school education. These include aspects of activity and thinking of a child, and also his or her emotional and social aspects that help to acquire knowledge, understanding, and basic skills in different contexts;

8.3. the knowledge, understanding, and basic skills in the fields of study such as languages, social and civic awareness, cultural awareness and self-expression in art, natural sciences, mathematics, technologies, health, and physical activity.

9. A child shall acquire the following transversal skills in pre-school education:

9.1. critical thinking and problem solving. The child uses algorithms of domestic activities in known situations, formulates simple relations and sequence of actions, identifies causes and consequences of known situations, events, learns to evaluate reliability of information, take decisions, make choices, and assess what he or she has done;

9.2. creative activity and entrepreneurship skills. The child thinks of several possible solutions for carrying out regular activities, shows initiative, learns to become aware of himself or herself as an active and creative personality, wishes to acquire new skills;

9.3. self-directed learning. The child distinguishes emotions and identifies causes thereof, learns to control his or her behaviour, follows a daily routine, is able to wait, is able to complete an activity, dresses and organises his or her things independently, learns to set an objective of his or her activity, to plan an activity in order to realise his or her idea, acts independently, overcomes difficulties with support, learns to carry out the assigned task, is proud of his or her achievements, looks at the failures and mistakes as a part of learning, evaluates his or her activities, activities of others and results thereof, explains his or her evaluation;

9.4. cooperation. The child expresses his or her thoughts and feelings, learns to listen to others and express his or her opinion, starts to understand how his or her own emotions and behaviour affect others, learns to solve conflict situations, to coordinate activities with others, behaves politely and acts kindly, learns to establish stable relationships and form his or her understanding of friendship, helps and accepts help, learns to work by setting a common goal, to assume and share responsibility;

9.5. civic participation. The child participates in the development and discussion of the order and safety rules, understands, accepts, and follows them, learns to observe and respect the needs and rights of others, learns to act in an environmentally friendly manner by choosing resources which correspond to work and handling them with care;

9.6. digital skills. The child learns to distinguish between the virtual and real world and to understand the role of digital technologies, knows the rules which must be followed when using different information media, including digital devices.

10. At the end of pre-school education a child has acquired the following basic literacies which include values and virtues, transversal skills, and knowledge, understanding, and basic skills:

10.1. in the field of study of languages:

10.1.1. in the language in which the educational programme is implemented the child explains why people use language to communicate, listens to a text, names characters thereof, retells events, thinks of the continuation of the text, asks about the unclear and replies to a specific question, tells comprehensibly and successively about the things which he or she has seen, heard, experienced, participates in a conversation, does not interrupt the speaker, uses different intonations in his or her speech, distinguishes between sounds and names them, designates a sound with a corresponding letter, reads words and understands the reading, writes in cursive;

10.1.2. the child who has completed the minority pre-school education programme replies in the Latvian language to questions about what he or she has seen and heard, asks in order to obtain information, expresses his or her needs, joins conversations about topics which are related to daily life and study process; learns how to pronounce sounds correctly, knows printed letters, reads short words which are used in daily situations and study process most often;

10.2. in the field of social and civic study the child is aware of himself or herself, belonging to his or her family and educational institution, explains and distinguishes between right and wrong behaviour, evaluates an activity chosen and carried out independently, forecasts different consequences of an action in daily situations related to personal health and safety (communication with a known person and a stranger, reducing the risks of the use of substances hazardous to health and of the domestic injuries at home, in an educational institution, on the street, while playing outdoors, near water bodies and on playgrounds, and also fire safety, road traffic safety, electrical safety rules), follows rules, understands where and in what cases ask for help when he or she feels ill or unsafe, knows emergency number 112; explains that Latvia is part of the world, understands that people are different; recognises and names symbols of the Latvian State - flag, coat of arms, and anthem, learns to treat them with respect;

10.3. in the field of study of understanding of culture and self-expression in art the child observes, listens, and imagines, creates and implements an idea in a diverse activity, purposefully uses means of artistic expression and, where necessary, combines them, chooses and uses different materials creatively, becomes acquainted with the characteristics of the Latvian traditional culture and traditional culture of other nations, chants folk songs, recites short poems, plays a plot of his or her own story or of a literary work, sings, plays music, dances, freely and securely improvises with movements or sound tools when singing individually and together with others, with or without an accompaniment, tells about his or her experience with creative activities, characterises impressions created by visual arts, music, and literary work;

10.4. in the field of study of natural sciences the child observes, compares, and experiments to explore characteristics of living organisms typical of the surrounding area - plants, animals, and mushrooms -, properties of rocks and water, compares properties of objects made of different materials - glass, wood, plastic, paper, stone, and possibilities of use thereof, observes celestial bodies and movement thereof, observes diversity of the land surface (even, uneven) in the vicinity, tells about changes observed in nature resulting from the change of seasons, day and night, weather, understands basics of safe behaviour when coming in contact with animals (including insects), plants and mushrooms (including the unknown ones), understands that nature and its resources should be nurtured, becomes involved in cleanup works in the vicinity;

10.5. in the field of study of mathematics the child, through actions, determines composition of numbers up to ten, forms different variations of the composition of a number, makes an assumption about the number in pictures and sets of objects and verifies it by counting, designates a number with a corresponding digit, writes digits, determines the length, width, and capacity with determined measures, measures the length with a ruler, understands geometric shapes, including spatial ones, characterises shape thereof and associates it with known objects, sorts objects according to several features and compares them by number and size (using words "more", "less", "larger", "smaller"), names the location of objects in the space and plane (using words "above", "under", "at", "behind", "next to", "right", "left"), forms rhythmic rows and arrangements from objects and geometric shapes creatively and under a specific condition;

10.6. in the field of study of technologies the child tells about the idea of his or her work, plans steps of implementation of this idea, chooses the necessary materials, implements idea and evaluates result, learns different techniques, methods, and safety rules regarding the use of materials and instruments for the implementation of his or her idea, creates and combines parts by achieving the desirable shape from the offered or selected materials, holds writing tools and instruments and uses them in a correct hold, participates in the preparation of simple and healthy food by becoming acquainted with the significance of a healthy diet;

10.7. in the field of study of health and physical activity the child participates in indoor and outdoor activities with joy and develops healthy lifestyle habits by being aware of the health risks and learning to prevent them, moves along different obstacle courses in a manner which is safe both to himself or herself and others and participates in movement games by combining walking, running, crawling, climbing, keeps balance, moves objects, and overcomes obstacles by choosing the type of activity according to the situation, uses fine motor skills in a versatile manner, is aware of his or her gender and bodily integrity, practises personal hygiene on a daily and regular basis, tells which personal protective equipment must be used in different movement activities, for example, when riding a bicycle.

11. The principles for the implementation of the pre-school education content shall be as follows:

11.1. a uniform upbringing and study process in which the child acquires knowledge, understanding, and basic skills in different fields of study in an integrated manner through a practical activity, develops transversal skills and establishes value-based habits;

11.2. the main form of study organisation shall be the play lesson. In order to achieve the intended results, it is implemented as follows:

11.2.1. throughout the entire day;

11.2.2. indoors and outdoors;

11.2.3. including free and independent playing of the child and learning in a play lesson organised purposefully and directed indirectly by a teacher;

11.2.4. ensuring steady load, rest, and activity of the child according to his or her individual skills;

11.3. the child learns by immersion. In the study process:

11.3.1. clear learning objectives and results to be achieved are set;

11.3.2. diverse tasks and time for modelling activities are offered;

11.3.3. feedback providing support and development is ensured, and also a possibility to explain the course of activities to the child and think about his or her learning and result achieved;

11.4. learning is personally important to the child. The following shall be ensured in the study process:

11.4.1. a relation with his or her experience and daily life and involvement in the taking of decisions on his or her life;

11.4.2. a possibility to be interested and to participate in the development of the culture of an educational institution, the ongoing processes in the community, the State, and around the world and to look to the future by exploring and evaluating topics important to his or her personal development and welfare and also to the development and welfare of the society;

11.5. diversity of children on grounds of gender, ethnicity, religion, health condition, language, intellectual development, and other characteristics is respected by conforming to the prohibition of discrimination and differential treatment, and also the individual abilities and talents of the child are recognised;

11.6. individual needs of the child are ensured by respecting the principles of accessibility of the environment, thus increasing opportunities for participation of every child, and also fostering a mutual dialogue and ensuring collaborative professional support;

11.7. targeted, supportive cooperation which is oriented towards learning and development needs of the child is ensured among the child, teachers, and parents or the lawful representative of the child by involving parents or lawful representatives of the child in the learning process of the child and ensuring regular feedback with regard to the performance and achievements of the child;

11.8. the learning environment is physically and emotionally safe, supportive and oriented towards development, changing and adjusted to learning and development needs of every child.

V. Basic Principles for the Assessment in Pre-school Education

12. Assessment of the study performance shall be based on observations of the activity or final result of work of a child. Assessment shall be an integral part of the study process which ensures efficient feedback to the child and the teacher the objective of which is to improve learning and teaching. The teacher shall periodically inform parents or lawful representative of a child of his or her observations.

13. The basic principles for the assessment in pre-school education shall be as follows:

13.1. the principle of openness and clarity - the child knows and understands the intended results to be achieved and the criteria for the evaluation of his or her performance;

13.2. the principle of methodological diversity - different methodological assessment techniques are used for the assessment of the study performance;

13.3. the principle of system - assessment of the performance of a child is based on a system which is characterised by a set of regular, reasoned activities organised in a specific sequence;

13.4. the inclusive principle - assessment is adjusted to the different learning needs of every child;

13.5. the principle of growth - individual development of the study performance is taken into account in the assessment of the study performance, especially at the end of the learning stage.

14. A teacher shall determine the methodological techniques and the assessment criteria for the assessment of the study performance, taking into account the intended results to be achieved which have been specified in the relevant field of study and the procedures for assessing the learning achievements of the child developed by the educational institution in accordance with the basic principles referred to in this Regulation for the assessment in pre-school education.

15. At the end of acquisition of pre-school education a teacher shall assess and describe the achievements of the child in relation to the intended results of the acquisition of the compulsory content specified in this Regulation. The teacher shall inform the parents or lawful representative of the child of such achievements in writing.

VI. Closing Provisions

16. Cabinet Regulation No. 533 of 31 July 2012, Regulations Regarding the State Guidelines for Pre-school Education (Latvijas Vēstnesis, 2012, No. 129), is repealed.

17. An educational institution which has licensed a pre-school education programme by the day of coming into force of this Regulation shall ensure implementation thereof according to the model of the relevant pre-school education programme.

18. This Regulation shall come into force on 1 September 2019.

Prime Minister Māris Kučinskis

Minister for Education and Science Kārlis Šadurskis

 

Annex 2
Cabinet Regulation No. 716
21 November 2018

Model Minority Pre-school Education Programme

Code of the educational programme 0101 11 21

I. Objective and Tasks of the Implementation of the Educational Programme

1. The objective of the implementation of the minority pre-school education programme (hereinafter - the educational programme) shall be to promote comprehensive development and strengthening of the health of a child, to foster acquisition of ethnic culture and preparation of a child for the acquisition of primary education. Tasks shall be implemented according to the State guidelines for pre-school education.

II. Content of Education

2. The content of education has been determined in the State guidelines for pre-school education.

III. Principles for the Organisation of Pedagogical Process and Plan for the Implementation Thereof

3. The educational programme shall be implemented according to the by-laws of an educational institution by ensuring a supportive environment for the acquisition of the official language.

4. A child shall acquire the educational programme until commencement of the acquisition of a primary education programme.

5. The educational programme shall be implemented according to skills, interests, individual experience, and needs of a child, promoting individual achievements of each child.

6. Upon organising the pedagogical process, an educational institution shall ensure the following:

6.1. a supportive environment for the cooperation between a child and a teacher;

6.2. a possibility to become acquainted with other children and adults, understand commonalities and diversities;

6.3. a possibility to observe positive examples of cooperation between children and adults by creating an understanding of the values (for example, life (including health), human dignity, freedom, family, marriage, work, nature, culture, the Latvian language, and the State of Latvia) and virtues referred to in this Regulation and the regulatory enactment regarding the guidelines for the upbringing of educatees and the procedures for evaluating information, teaching aids, materials, and teaching and upbringing methods;

6.4. a possibility to participate in the creation of and care for the environment of an educational institution, to learn to take decisions, and to assume responsibility for specific actions.

7. According to the specific age of children of pre-school education, the compulsory content of pre-school education which includes values and virtues, transversal skills and knowledge, understanding and basic skills in different fields of study (languages, social and civic awareness, cultural awareness and self-expression in art, natural sciences, mathematics, technologies, health, and physical activity) shall be integrity which is implemented in the play lesson as an integrated study process throughout the day.

8. Implementation of the compulsory study content shall be planned and organised as follows:

8.1. in two stages. In the period from 1 September to 31 May, a study process shall be ensured for the implementation of the compulsory content of pre-school education specified in the State guidelines for pre-school education and for the acquisition of the intended results to be achieved by a child, while in the period from 1 June to 31 August, a study process shall be ensured for the comprehensive development of a child and for the strengthening of the knowledge, understanding, basic skills, and transversal skills, and also value-based virtues and habits acquired in the previous period;

8.2. as integrated study of a topic currently important to a child (in the period not shorter than one month):

8.2.1. formulating the core message which corresponds to the topic, is specific and understandable to a child and choosing complex results to be achieved in all fields of study, ensuring acquisition of knowledge, understanding, basic skills, and transversal skills, and also value-based virtues and habits;

8.2.2. envisaging acquisition of mutually coordinated results to be achieved by weeks and days of the week;

8.2.3. envisaging activities for a daily play session in an environment which corresponds to the play session for a child for the acquisition of the specific results to be achieved;

8.2.4. changing the intended results to be achieved and activities, where necessary, for the improvement of study performance of a child according to his or her needs or under the influence of other circumstances;

8.3. providing a child with a possibility to acquire part of the study content outdoors on a daily basis;

8.4. ensuring regular physical activities and establishing of healthy habits on a daily basis;

8.5. including different activities, for example, those that are related to national holidays, seasonal habits, traditions and acquisition of ethnic culture in order to achieve the intended results of the compulsory study content.

9. During the entire stage of pre-school education the acquisition of the Latvian language shall be promoted in an integrated study process through a bilingual approach which is implemented in cooperation among teachers, specialists, and other employees of an educational institution according to the development of a child, and the Latvian language shall also be used in daily communication. The Latvian language shall be the main means of communication in the play session for children from the age of five years, except for purposefully organised activities for the acquisition of a minority language and ethnic culture.

10. Upon implementing the special pre-school education programme, children with special needs shall be included in a pre-school education group in accordance with the regulatory framework, and an individual plan for the completion of the educational programme shall be developed for them.

11. Acquisition of the pre-school study content shall be planned and implemented by a pre-school teacher or a pre-school teacher in regular cooperation with other specialists involving parents or lawful representatives of a child in the provision of support for a child in the learning process.

12. A child shall be enrolled in and discharged from the acquisition of the educational programme in accordance with the regulatory framework.

IV. Characterisation of the Learning Environment

13. The learning environment of an educational institution shall promote the development and learning of a child both on the premises and within the territory thereof.

14. The physical environment of an educational institution shall be suitable for every child, including children with functional disorders. The environment shall be safe, multi-functional, and comfortable (children may work in groups and individually, it is possible to organise learning centres or organisational areas, signs understandable to children are placed, and easy access to teaching aids, objects, and places is ensured, thus promoting achievement of the intended results of the acquisition of the compulsory study content, there is a space for movements and rest), aesthetic, correspond to the hygiene standards, and shall be provided with equipment for varied movement activities in the territory of the educational institution.

15. The socio-emotional environment shall guarantee safety, encourage mutual trust and respect, willingness to help and mutually support in the learning process and personal difficulties. According to the needs of a child, groups of specialists shall be formed which, according to the competence, provide pedagogical assistance and coordinate psychological and social support by involving parents of the child, teachers, specialists, and other employees of an educational institution.

V. Procedures for the Assessment of Learning Achievements of a Child

16. An educational institution shall independently develop the procedures for evaluating learning achievements of a child according to the basic principles for the evaluation in pre-school education specified in the State guidelines for pre-school education.

17. An educational institution shall include in the procedures for evaluating learning achievements of a child the information on the frequency, scope, and type of information for parents or lawful representatives of the child, and also the forms of cooperation with parents or lawful representatives of the child in order to promote the development of the child.

VI. Evaluation and Justification of the Personnel, Financial and Material Resources Necessary for the Implementation of the Educational Programme

18. A founder of an educational institution (hereinafter - the founder) shall, in accordance with the Cabinet regulations which prescribe a list of pedagogical professions and positions, and the Cabinet regulations which lay down the requirements for the education and professional qualification necessary for teachers, ensure the personnel of teachers which corresponds to the implementation of the educational programme.

19. Taking into account the working hours of groups of an educational institution and the number of groups, the founder shall build up the personnel of teachers and the support staff for necessary for the implementation of the educational programme.

20. The founder shall establish position units for medical, maintenance, and technical personnel necessary for the implementation of the educational programme.

21. Acquisition of the educational programme shall be ensured from the financial resources of the founder.

22. The founder shall cover the costs of the implementation of the educational programme in accordance with the Cabinet regulations regarding the minimum costs of the implementation of pre-school educational programmes per educatee.

23. The founder shall divide the State financing intended for the work remuneration of teachers employed in the teaching of children of five and six years of age in accordance with the Cabinet regulations regarding the earmarked grant from the State budget for the work remuneration of teachers in educational institutions of local governments or the Cabinet regulations regarding the procedures by which the State finances educational programmes in private educational institutions. Work remuneration of other teachers shall be ensured from financial resources of the founder.

24. The founder shall ensure work remuneration of teachers (including the number of hours worked to be paid and to be paid additionally for one position unit a week, and also the amount of work remuneration) in accordance with the Cabinet regulations regarding work remuneration of teachers.

25. Work remuneration of medical, maintenance, and technical personnel shall be paid from financial resources of the founder.

26. The implementer of the educational programme shall ensure conformity with the hygiene requirements and keeping of the territory, premises, equipment, and inventory in order in accordance with the Cabinet regulations laying down the hygiene requirements for educational institutions implementing pre-school education programmes.

27. The founder shall ensure materials and technical facilities which are necessary for the implementation of the educational programme in order to foster self-development and creative activity.

Minister for Education and Science Kārlis Šadurskis


Translation © 2020 Valsts valodas centrs (State Language Centre)

 
Document information
Title: Noteikumi par valsts pirmsskolas izglītības vadlīnijām un pirmsskolas izglītības programmu paraugiem Status:
In force
in force
Issuer: Cabinet of Ministers Type: regulation Document number: 716Adoption: 21.11.2018.Entry into force: 01.09.2019.Publication: Latvijas Vēstnesis, 236, 30.11.2018. OP number: 2018/236.3
Language:
LVEN
Related documents
  • Amendments
  • Changes legal status of
  • Issued pursuant to
  • Rulings of the Constitutional Court
  • Annotation / draft legal act
  • Policy planning documents
  • Explanations
  • Other related documents
303371
{"selected":{"value":"01.09.2023","content":"<font class='s-1'>01.09.2023.-...<\/font> <font class='s-3'>Sp\u0113k\u0101 eso\u0161\u0101<\/font>"},"data":[{"value":"01.09.2023","iso_value":"2023\/09\/01","content":"<font class='s-1'>01.09.2023.-...<\/font> <font class='s-3'>Sp\u0113k\u0101 eso\u0161\u0101<\/font>"},{"value":"01.09.2019","iso_value":"2019\/09\/01","content":"<font class='s-1'>01.09.2019.-31.08.2023.<\/font> <font class='s-2'>Pamata<\/font>"}]}
01.09.2023
87
0
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Draugiem.lv
 
0
Latvijas Vestnesis, the official publisher
ensures legislative acts systematization
function on this site.
All Likumi.lv content is intended for information purposes.
About Likumi.lv
News archive
Useful links
For feedback
Contacts
Mobile version
Terms of service
Privacy policy
Cookies
Latvijas Vēstnesis "Everyone has the right to know about his or her rights."
Article 90 of the Constitution of the Republic of Latvia
© Official publisher "Latvijas Vēstnesis"