Parents and educators concerned about how much their children need to know before starting primary school will now have a better idea of what their children need to learn by the end of Kindergarten 2.

The Ministry of Education (MOE) launched a new version of the Kindergarten Curriculum Framework on Wednesday after consulting with early childhood experts, primary and pre-school educators. The new version better highlights the learning outcomes of pre-school education.

For example, it explains that children should be able to count up to ten and recognise and write their first names by the time they enter primary school.

Parents in recent years have raised concerns that they are unsure of what their children need to know before starting primary school, leading to over preparation through enrichment classes. The new framework will be distributed to all kindergartens and childcare centres and a parents' guide to the refreshed framework will be available on the MOE website and at MOE's parent outreach seminars.