Literacy and Numeracy Co-Requisites
Many of you will now be aware of the new NCEA Literacy and Numeracy Co-requisite. Parents requiring more information can find it here. To be awarded any level of NCEA, all learners must achieve this 20-credit co-requisite in literacy and numeracy. This is a one-off requirement, and most students will be ready to sit these assessments in Year 10. 

Our current Year 10 cohort will be undertaking these assessments from 7-9 September 2026.  A group of our Year 10 students attempted these in May and will not have to sit it again if they have achieved these credits already. 

The Numeracy standard requires student to master the mathematics and statistics content ideas at Level 4 of the New Zealand Curriculum AND interweave these content ideas with mathematical and statistical process ideas. NCEA Literacy supports learners to develop a level of literacy knowledge and skills to engage successfully with all the learning areas of the New Zealand Curriculum, as well as learning in non-school settings. NCEA Literacy covers foundational literacy. 

The standards are: 

• US32403: Demonstrate understanding of ideas and information in written texts 
• US32405: Write texts to communicate ideas and information.  
• US32406: Use mathematics and statistics to meet the numeracy demands of a range of situations 

Students can practise online assessments. When practising digital assessments, it is important to work on a device that they will use for the assessment.  Google Chrome is the most appropriate platform for accessing these assessments. Students can check if their device is suitable at Digital exams device check.  

Past digital exams can also be found on the NZQA public website on the Find past digital exams page. Please scroll down to the bottom of the page till you see Literacy (Reading) and you will find writing and numeracy further down on this list. You will need the following information:  

• NSN: View2024 
• Verification code: Tw3nty/24
• The access code is 0000 

How can I help my child to achieve in the Common Assessment Activities?
Being in class is your child’s best chance at success as literacy and numeracy is covered schoolwide. There is a particular focus on preparing for these tests in Mathematics and English lessons. It is essential that it is ‘business as usual’. Students do not need time off from school to prepare for these tests. 

At home, you can: 

• Access past papers for practice, aiding familiarity with exam structure, question styles and text types. See above for details about how to access the past papers. 
• Create a supportive environment: Establish a study space and celebrate progress and achievements. 
• Manage test anxiety: Equip your child with coping mechanisms to alleviate stress and enhance performance. 
• Check whether your child can login to NZQA – this needs to be well in advance of the day of the exam.  
• Support with typing practice, if needed. 
• Use the Literacy and Numeracy books purchased this year. 

For the Reading and Writing Test: 

• Encourage Daily Reading: Provide diverse reading materials and engage in discussions to improve comprehension. This will support your child to build reading fluency and comprehension. 
• Model Effective Strategies: Demonstrate good reading habits, like annotating texts, reading aloud to your child, pausing to reflect on the meaning of the text or asking questions about unfamiliar words 
• Build Vocabulary: Introduce new words in everyday conversations and employ word games for enrichment 
• Practise Active Reading: use previewing techniques by skimming headings, subheadings, and the first sentences of paragraphs to get an overview before reading in depth. Encourage questioning for deeper engagement. 
• Consider author’s purpose. Read a text together and ask: 
• What do you think is the main point of this article? 
• After reading this article, what do you think the reader wants us to think? Why do you think that? 
• Do you agree with the author’s perspective here? Why / Why not? 
• Is this article a reliable source? Why or why not 
• Encourage accurate writing. Support students to correct spelling and punctuation errors. 

For the Numeracy Test: 

• Encourage Problem Solving & Explaining thinking: by asking questions such as, ‘so what made you come to that conclusion?’, ‘show me how you worked that out?’ 
• Model Effective Strategies: Math problems are not always solved through knowing what to calculate. Model other strategies such as drawing diagrams, pictures, or using series of lines/dots. 
• Build Vocabulary: Use math language where possible. There are many common math concepts that with repeated exposure will commonplace in the mind of your student, ie: area, volume and perimeter, probability, right-angle, east direction, discount, G.S.T, scale, commission, parallel, perpendicular, net, rotate, enlarge, deposit, withdrawal, etc… 

Careers Tertiary and Industry events for 2026

Other tertiary institutions that will have open day throughout the year (these times and dates will be confirmed)