Long Day Care & Kindergarten Programs
Bairnsdale Childcare & Kinder links children's learning curriculum with the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF). There are three main components of the Early Years Learning Framework and they are Belonging, Being and Becoming.
Belonging is about children's relationships with others and there identity within these relationships
Being is about living here and now. It acknowledges children's right to have fun! Time for them to just ‘be', time to play and try new things.
Becoming is about how young children experience growth and change. Children are starting to build a sense of identity from an early age, which shapes the type of adult they will become.
The Belonging, being and becoming of the EYLF provides us the starting point for planning programs that cater to all children. Our curriculum acknowledges a child’s social and emotional development along with the importance of learning literacy, numeracy and creativity. The EYLF framework also recognises the power of play based learning. Play based Learning is an integral part of the program delivery. the curriculum at our services endeavours to represent child’s knowledge, ideas, culture, abilities and interests as the central focus.
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Rather than 'academic direct instruction' young child learn best through play based learning. Research tells us that pretend play allows the expression of both positive and negative feelings and teaches children to assimilate emotions with thinking and actions. In practice, this means giving children time and space for free-flowing play at home and/or in early education and care settings. For best practice in teaching young children, we need to plan pretend, creative and active play scenarios in order to educate and extend current knowledge of individual children.
How this learning looks in practice, might be parents reading with and talking with their children or educators using guided play to impart lessons in language, numeracy, science and other topics of relevance or importance to children , families and the community.
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The children’s learning is made visible by educators documenting the learning journey. This is in conjunction with room goals, parent voices, group learning projects and specifically created learning areas that aim to display the learning and progress. Each child's learning journal is available to view and contribute to at both the services.
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Active Play Program
Physical activity is also a key component to children’s learning and this is delivered through planned and spontaneous experiences that are age appropriate for each child.
Social Learning Program
There is a mountain of research that tells us that children who are systematically ‘taught’ social and emotional skills have fewer problems later in life (they like school more and pay attention in class). The social skills program consists of ten sessions, each focusing on a particular skill such as sharing, taking turns, managing frustration and speaking up. This is integrated into the daily program
Sustainable Practices
We place a high priority on the environment and sustainability and we teach children to ensure that “there is enough for all, forever”. The services use a range of sustainable practises throughout our centres, such as recycling program, to teach children about preserving the environment and highlight methods available for them to become environmentally responsible and show respect for the environment.
