Supporting the new HPE curriculum
The Years 0–10 HPE curriculum was released in September 2026, and Years 9–10 content is required from the start of 2027. This page brings together PENZ planning tools, the official Ministry documents and where to find support as you get ready.
What's required, and when
Curriculum released
The Years 0–10 HPE learning area was published on Tāhūrangi in September. Years 9–10 can use the 2007 curriculum until the end of 2026.
Years 9–10 begin
Required from 1 January 2027, with full implementation expected by the end of 2027.
Year 11 updates
Updated Year 11 content begins. Year 12 follows in 2029 and Year 13 in 2030.
Years 0–8 begin
Required from 1 January 2029, with full implementation expected by the end of 2030.
The Years 11–13 HPE content is still in draft and is due to be published later in 2026. Dates are as published by the Ministry of Education and take effect once the curriculum statement is published in the New Zealand Gazette. Check the Ministry's implementation dates
Start here: a department day to unpack the PE strand
You don't need to start again. This guide walks your department through the Physical Education strand for Years 9–10, so you can recognise what you already do well, spot what needs developing, and bring your questions to the PENZ Big Day Outs.
Unpacking the Physical Education strand of the new HPE curriculum
Run it as one teacher only day or across three or four department meetings. Seven activities move from first impressions to reshaping a real unit, with opportunities for cross-strand planning with Health.
Getting our heads around the PE strand25 min
Read the purpose statement, strand description and learning area structure, then share what feels familiar, what looks different and what you're unsure about.
PE curriculum scavenger hunt25 min
Ten questions in pairs to learn the structure, the two elements, their six headings and how knowledge and practices differ.
Sort the knowledge50 min
Sort the statements into Movement and Active participation, place them in Year 9 or Year 10, then colour code what your department already teaches explicitly.
Unpacking knowledge into practice60 min
Take one knowledge statement, connect it to its practices and design movement experiences that develop and show the learning.
Keep, tweak or rethink70 min
Review an existing unit and reframe it around its intended learning, with worked examples of learning-led units and movement contexts.
Bringing Health and PE together55 min
Find authentic connections between the Health and PE teaching sequences and plan one cross-strand opportunity.
Help us plan your Big Day Out15 min
Agree one department response to five questions and send it to PENZ so the Movement and Active participation workshops meet your needs.
What you'll need
- The HPE curriculum, Phase 4 (Years 9–10)
- The HPE glossary and conceptual mapping document
- Your current Year 9–10 PE unit plans or programme overview
- Paper, sticky notes and highlighters, or a shared digital document
Before your Big Day Out
Bring one current Year 9 or Year 10 PE unit plan and your first ideas about how it could develop to align with the new curriculum.
PENZ planning tools for Years 9–10
Four printable A3 tools that take you from what must be taught to a planned unit. Use them in order the first time, then move between them as your programme takes shape.
Knowledge and practices
What must we teach?
Every PE knowledge and practice statement for the year level on one page, organised by the six topics and coded for planning.
Unpacking canvases
What does it mean here?
Work out the knowledge, skills and experiences behind the statements, plus capabilities, local curriculum and te ao Māori.
Programme maps
Which units carry which topics?
Map units across four terms and tick every statement in the coverage tracker, so gaps and thin topics are easy to see.
Unit canvas
How will this unit teach it?
Plan one unit: why this context, the statements it teaches, key considerations, and how you'll notice progress.
Close the loop. Log each statement a unit teaches back on the programme map, so every statement has at least one tick across the year.
Codes such as M1, K2 and P3 are PENZ labels to help with planning, not Ministry codes. Statements on the tools are taken verbatim from the curriculum (pp. 28–29). Phase 4 progress content is due in 2027, so use your existing practice until then.
Official curriculum documents
The curriculum itself lives on Tāhūrangi, the Ministry of Education's curriculum site. It is published as a PDF first, with full web pages to follow later in the year. All links open in a new tab.
The curriculum
Health and Physical Education, Years 0–10 The full learning area, purpose statement, glossary and file download. Phase 4, Years 9–10 The phase you need for 2027 planning. Te Mātaiaho, the New Zealand Curriculum framework The overarching requirements schools give effect to, including the capabilities. HPE learning area home Every HPE curriculum statement in one place, including the transition table.Understanding the changes
What's new The Ministry's summary of what has changed in HPE. Conceptual mapping How the ideas connect across the learning area. Needed for the teacher only day. Glossary Definitions of key terms, from agility to kinaesthetic awareness. What you told us and how we responded How consultation feedback shaped the final HPE curriculum. Consultation feedback analysis The full analysis of HPE submissions.Implementation and leadership
Years 0–10 curriculum hub Implementation dates, videos and Ministry information sessions. Implementation resources and information sheets General information sheets and supports for putting the curriculum in place. Informing your school community about the health curriculum Guidance for talking with whānau and your community. Resources for leaders Curriculum and assessment resources for school and middle leaders.Support from PENZ
We're working alongside kaiako through the change. Here's where to connect with us and with each other.
Big Day Outs
Practical Movement and Active participation workshops to help you develop your existing Years 9–10 programme. Bring a current unit plan.
See upcoming eventsHe Ao Kori, He Ao Mātauranga
What quality physical education looks like, and learning in, through and about movement. A useful anchor when deciding what your programme is for.
Read the kōreroYears 9–13 resources
PENZ teaching resources for secondary physical education, including literacy and NCEA support.
Browse resourcesTell us what your department needs
After your teacher only day, send us one department response. What feels familiar, what's the biggest change, and what support you want at the Big Day Outs will shape the workshops we run.