Best Start Kindergarten resources
Preparing for the assessment
Principal checklist
- The Principal checklist (PDF 34KB) (staff only) identifies tasks for schools to complete before, during and after the assessment window.
Information for administrative staff
The Best Start Kindergarten Assessment and PLAN2 rely on ERN student information so it is crucial students are set up correctly for teachers to administer the assessment. This includes checking if a student already has an ERN record before creating a new registration (for example, a student who attended a department preschool will already have an ERN record).
See Checking and linking an SRN for schools using online enrolments. If your school is not using online enrolments, refer to the ERN QRGS (quick reference guides) for support.
Once students are marked as Risk Assessed or Enrolled (In Attendance) they will be available in ALAN/PLAN2.
Note: New enrolments may take up to 48 hours to appear in the ALAN app.
Assessment resources
Updated Best Start Kindergarten Assessment folders (assessment booklets and resources were mailed to all department schools during Term 4 2022).. Use these resources for the 2025 assessment.
Orders for additional folders for 2025 are now closed. A limited reserve of folders is available for schools with additional Kindergarten classes. Email beststartkinder@det.nsw.edu.au for assistance.
Supplementary guide
Use the Supplementary guide (PDF 201KB) (staff only) when the Best Start Kindergarten Assessment does not provide sufficient or accurate information about a student's knowledge and ability.
Teachers use the guide when working with parents and carers to gather information about their child's skills, strengths and areas of need. This information can support teachers to create differentiated teaching and learning programs. The questions in the guide are aligned to the Best Start Kindergarten Assessment questions and are intended to gather similar information.
Best Start Kindergarten bilingual assessment
Visit English as an additional language or dialect - teaching and learning for information on administering a bilingual Best Start Kindergarten Assessment.
Offline recording form
Use the offline recording form only in situations where the online assessment is not available. Teachers then use the post assessment entry option to submit responses when the online tool is available.
- PDF version for printing - Offline recording form (PDF 1.06MB) (staff only)
- Word version (accessible) - Offline recording form (DOCX 94.9KB) (staff only)
Administering the assessment
Online tool
Teachers administer the assessment using the online tool for entering student responses. The online tool will is available via ALAN at the beginning of Term 1 each year.
In specific circumstances, you may be required to record responses offline.
Vision impaired student materials requests
Large print and Braille versions of the assessment are available for students.
Complete and submit the 'request for large print and braille materials form' (PDF 220KB) (staff only) by Term 4, Week 8 each year.
A copy of the form is also available in the administration guide.
BSKA and PLAN2
As soon as each individual assessment is lodged, the observations are automatically recorded against the corresponding literacy and numeracy progression indicators.
Assessment filters in PLAN2 will support teachers in accessing and analysing all observations from BSKA at an individual student, class or cohort level.
Updated Areas of Focus templates will be available in PLAN2 for each skill area, to support targeted learning.
Implementation advice for teachers
The “Implementation advice for teachers” animation provides advice to support the successful implementation and effective use of the assessment.
All children start school with different abilities in literacy and numeracy. At the beginning of Kindergarten, it is important that teachers identify their knowledge, skills and understanding.
One way of helping new kindergarten children feel relaxed and at ease is to take the time to explain to them what the assessment is, and what sort of questions you are going to ask and why. Students generally need up to 5 seconds to answer each question. Let students know that you are going to give them time to think and organise their thoughts. Recording observations provides important insights such as how the student pronounced a word, if prompts were required or if you probed for further information. This information records student engagement and contributes to parent feedback, conversations or team meetings.
You may notice your student using their fingers to represent numbers. The use of fingers is an effective early numeracy strategy and should be encouraged. When observing a student's numerical skills, allow them to organize and count counters independently. This will allow you to observe other skills like one to one correspondence
Ensure you communicate with families as soon as possible after the assessment to provide feedback, using an interpreter if required.
Use information from PLAN2 to develop differentiated teaching and learning programs that build on each student's prior knowledge and experience.
Although the Best Start Kindergarten Assessment is an assessment upon entry into Kindergarten, it is recommended that the assessment is conducted within the first five weeks of school.
If you have any questions during the assessment period, do not hesitate to lodge an enquiry ticket that is in the top right corner of the help section of your menu in PLAN2.
The ‘Engaging Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families in the Best Start Kindergarten Assessment” animation provides advice to support and work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and communities when administering this assessment.
Engaging Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families in the Best Start Kindergarten Assessment.
Engaging with Aboriginal families and communities is critical to improving Aboriginal educational outcomes. Reaching out to Aboriginal families prior to the Best Start Kindergarten Assessment is an opportunity to connect and build strong, respectful relationships which strengthen transition to school.
Aboriginal Education Officers and Elders are a resource that can support Aboriginal families to understand the structure of the BSKA and how data is collected to identify individual student’s strengths.
Parents must be reassured that the BSKA is not a test, but a snapshot of their child’s abilities on that day to help their teacher plan a learning pathway that caters to their individual learning needs.
When administering the assessment, it is vital to create a safe environment where students feel respected and valued. Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander students may choose not to respond when asked. They may say what they think you would like to hear, out of fear of shame that they think they have made a mistake. If you need support, utilise the knowledge of your AEO or Elder by asking them to be present during the assessment.
During the assessment allow ample time for students to demonstrate their literacy and numeracy skills. If needed, rephrase questions or ask students to clarify responses.
Some students may speak Aboriginal English and this must not be recorded as a speech impairment or language deficit.
Providing parents and students feedback after the assessment is vital. Work collaboratively with your AEO, Elder or local DoE support personnel to have group conversations about the BSKA experience and the literacy and numeracy skills that their child demonstrated.
Strong family and school connections will support Aboriginal Students in achievement, engagement and wellbeing at school.
The ‘Best Start Kindergarten Assessment and English is an Additional Language or Dialect (EAL/D) students” animation provides advice to support and work with students who are EAL/D, Language Background Other Than English and bilingual speakers when administering this assessment.
Best Start Kindergarten Assessment and EAL/D students.
Almost one in four students in NSW Government Schools are learning English as an additional language. While English is acknowledged as the language of our education system, the reality for many students is that they may speak two or more languages.
Students may be described as LBOTE, which means a student comes from a Language Background Other Than English. Not all LBOTE students require support to learn English. EAL/D learners are students whose first language is not Standard Australian English. EAL/D learners require additional support to achieve English language proficiency.
As the Best Start Kindergarten Assessment is conducted in English, EAL/D children often have difficulty demonstrating their literacy and numeracy skills.
To support EAL/D students taking the initial Best Start Kindergarten assessment in English, teachers can add visuals or gestures to unpack the vocabulary of the questions within the assessment. Repeating or rephrasing questions and allowing additional response time will also provide support for EAL/D students. Teachers should record the use of these strategies in the comments section of the assessment for your records and reference in team meetings.
Some schools have access to bilingual support staff such as community language teachers, bilingual SLSOs and other staff who speak and read the students home language fluently. Teachers can utilise these support staff to interpret the questions for the student, with the classroom teacher observing and recording their observations in PLAN2.
Teachers should be mindful of the language demands of texts. For instance, words used in assessments may be substituted to account for students’ lexical understandings in English and their home language. Schools have the ability to make case-by-case judgements on assessment timelines. Individual assessments can be delayed for students with complex needs or trauma.
For further support, contact multicultural.programs@det.nsw.edu.au.
Contact: beststartkinder@det.nsw.edu.au