St. Michael's College Early Learning Centre in Caboolture, Queensland | Nursery

St. Michael's College Early Learning Centre

Locality: Caboolture, Queensland

Phone: +61 7 5428 2777

Address: 1-63 The Abbey Place 4510 Caboolture, QLD, Australia

Website: http://www.smccab.qld.edu.au

Likes: 793

Add/Update information

Reviews

Tags

• Childcare service
• Nursery

25.01.2022 For young children, play is learning and there is absolutely no better environment for children to learn than the outdoors! In our busy, fast-paced and technologically-focused world, sometimes the importance of outdoor play and the joys and benefits that are gained from spending time in nature is forgotten. When we think back to our own childhood, it is often the times spent outside with friends that stir our most positive memories. Nature is the greatest play resource we... can offer children and here at St Michaels College Early Learning Centre and Outside School Hours Care we value our beautiful natural surroundings and the immense benefits it offers when children are able to connect with and develop an innate appreciation and respect for the environment. It is well documented that playing outdoors grows resilience, self-confidence, initiative, creativity and more. It encourages the joy of movement; it nurtures wild imaginations, experimentation, friendships, social connections and behaviour (Nature Play QLD) We look forward to the many adventures that nature play will bring this year for all children and educators!

25.01.2022 When the world is going crazy let the children play

22.01.2022 Last week we took part in National Outdoor Classroom Day for 2020. Outdoor Classroom Day is a global campaign to inspire and celebrate outdoor learning and play and by getting involved in the annual celebrations along with millions of others we are helping to send a message to the world that time outdoors is vital for every child. While outdoor play is a priority for us every day, we always enjoy taking part in this fantastic event each year as it gives us a chance to truly celebrate what a fantastic environment we really are blessed with here at St Michael’s and the children absolutely love being able to spend their entire day exploring and investigating in our outdoor spaces. Take a look at just some of the amazing things we did the smiles on their faces say it all!

22.01.2022 Diwali has long been an important event for our community here at St Michael’s College Early Learning Centre and this year was no different! We began our explorations a little earlier with Miss Michelle and Miss Sangira once again sharing their knowledge of this important cultural celebration with all the children. We are so fortunate to have such passionate educators who are eager and willing to share their cultures with the children and the children always show such a kee...n interest in the different elements of the Diwali celebrations so we continued the explorations throughout the next week. Diwali is the five-day festival of lights, celebrated by millions of Hindus, Sikhs and Jains across the world. The festival, which coincides with the Hindu New Year, celebrates new beginnings and the triumph of good over evil and light over darkness, hence the importance of candles/lanterns and lights. The children were offered opportunities to engage in Diya making, Rangoli creation and Lantern art and we spent lots of time learning about why Diwali is such an important celebration. We even learned about a special goddess named Lakshmi who brings good fortune and good luck to anyone she visits we had to keep an eye out for her tiny little footprints to see if she had come to visit us! To finish off our celebrations we enjoyed a delicious Diwali feast on Friday afternoon, complete with a dining room that was decorated to depict a traditional Diwali celebration. The children were able to taste lots of different Indian food including Samosa’s, Gulab Jamun, Sooji Halwa and Mango Lassi’s. We have thoroughly enjoyed learning so much about what makes Diwali special and important to our families and it's been so wonderful to see the children showing such a genuine interest and respect for the culture. #StMichaelsCollegeELC

21.01.2022 We have always known that play is the key to child development

21.01.2022 We may be apart but our ELC family is still connected - we miss you all!!

20.01.2022 1 Minute 11th Hour 11th Day 11th Month... We Remember Them

19.01.2022 **SPOTLIGHT ON OUR OUTDOOR EDUCATOR** Miss Nicole is our senior side Outdoor Educator and she is not only responsible for the amazing gardens out on the senior side but she also leads the outdoor program, ensuring that each child on the senior side is engaged in rich, deep and meaningful play in the outdoor environment. Miss Nicole has a wealth of knowledge about gardening and plants and she loves to share this knowledge with the children, ensuring that any interest a child ...may have is followed up and extended on, fostering a true sense of empathy and care for the environment in the children. Miss Nicole, alongside our Kindy and Pre-Kindy teams, also ensures that a wide range of experiences are on offer each day within the senior yard so that each and every child can find something engaging, challenging and fun to explore either independently or alongside their friends. Sustainability is very important to Miss Nicole and she ensures that the children have opportunities to learn about recycling, re-purposing and reusing, often setting up invitations to play that encourage the use of recyclables or loose parts in the creation of something truly amazing! Come along and see for yourself the wonderful job Miss Nicole does in providing a rich and stimulating outdoor environment that prioritises nature play if youre lucky you might even get to head out on an adventure to the gully with her or go on a bug hunt around the paddock you just never know what fun ideas Miss Nicole will have next!

19.01.2022 ** SPOTLIGHT ON MISS LEA** Miss Lea is our mulit-talented, hard-working cook and also our wonderful nursery lunch relief educator. Since taking on the role of cook Miss Lea has provided our children with healthy, delicious and well-balanced meals that everyone loves - even the educators!! Thanks to the hard work of the educators in charge of our gardens, Miss Lea often harvests ingredients for the meals from our own veggie patches and herb gardens so she is definitely using... the freshest ingredients possible! Each day as the lunch trolleys are wheeled in the children are eager to find out "What did Miss Lea make today?" and no matter what the answer is there is always one certainty - it will be delicious! When she is not busy cooking and singing in the kitchen, Miss Lea can be found helping with lunch relief in the nursery and assisting the nursery team to care for our littlest people here at St Michaels College Early Learning Centre. The babies love when Miss Lea visits and she is a valued part of not only our nursery but the entire centre. Pop your head in to the kitchen and say hi next time youre in - Miss Lea loves to see everyones smiling faces as they arrive each and every day!

19.01.2022 Welcome to a day in the life of a Kindy Child! Our qualified teachers and educators deliver a program that encompasses all the requirements from the Queensland Kindergarten guidelines and all children that attend our Kindy will experience learning that is engaging and builds important life skills. Our Kindy program embraces nature play and children are encouraged to take supervised risks and attempt many challenges. This leads to opportunities to develop skills in negotiatin...g the environment, how to use equipment safely, develop coordination skills and learn about consequences all skills that are essential. Often parents ask about Literacy and Numeracy. Here in Kindy we know these skills come naturally through everyday play and its our role to foster all the skills children need before being able to write, read and do maths so we are passionate about ensuring that children have access to experiences that encourage this in a multitude of ways . This enables all children to develop the skills needed for prep-readiness in an environment that promotes exploration, play and child-led investigation. Take a look at how our Kindy children spend their days here at St Michaels College Early Learning Centre - youre sure to be impressed!

18.01.2022 **SPOTLIGHT ON OUR KINDY ROOMS** Meet our dedicated, passionate and highly skilled Kindy team! Led by our qualified Early Childhood Teachers, Miss Vanessa and Miss Rachael, our Kindy team work hard to ensure a smooth transition to school for all our Kindy children. With an approved Kindergarten program that is play-based and child-led, the teachers and educators strive to ensure that every single child develops a sense of belonging and security within the kindy environment ...which enables them to explore, investigate and engage in rich, deep and meaningful learning opportunities. Miss Vanessa is our Kindy A teacher and she works alongside Miss Sangira and Miss Erica, while Miss Rachael is our Kindy B teacher and she works together with Miss Bernie and Mr Rob. Together they provide a stimulating, engaging and interactive range of experiences for the children with a strong focus on developing each childs independence, sense of identity and confidence. Our teachers and educators support the children in developing strong and positive friendships with one another, which supports their ability to learn collaboratively and further extend their own knowledge and understanding by working alongside their peers. Our Kindy team also works in collaboration with our dedicated Outdoor Educator, Miss Nicole, to ensure that the childrens interests are extended throughout the whole environment and the Kindy children are able to freely access both the outdoor and indoor environments throughout the day. Our Kindy program embraces and encourages nature play and we have regular access to play in the paddock and the gully. Children take supervised risks and attempt many challenges, which leads to opportunities to develop skills in negotiating the environment, how to use equipment safely, develop coordination skills and learn about consequences all skills needed for life. Together with the children the Kindy room has developed some wonderful traditions including Kindy Chef, the All About Me boxes, Buddy classrooms, our Stay and Play roster for families and our annual end of year excursion. These all contribute to the wonderful sense of community that is exists in the Kindy environment. So why not come in and see for yourself just how fantastic our Kindy rooms really are you will have so much fun watching all the amazing experiences and we know you will feel completely at ease leaving your children in our Kindy teams capable hands!

18.01.2022 Our Outside School Hours Care program is open during the upcoming Easter school break and we have vacancies available to families who are outside the St. Michaels College community. During these uncertain times we know how important it is for those families who require care for their children to be able to access high quality, engaging and fun Vacation Care programs for their school age children. If you are looking for a place for your child please give us a call and we can organise your enrolment as soon as possible.

17.01.2022 NAIDOC Week is an important and significant event in our calendar each year and often it is a time for us to reflect on the ways in which we celebrate and include Indigenous perspectives and culture each and every day. Here at St Michael’s College Early Learning Centre understanding, respecting and embedding Indigenous perspectives and culture has been a journey that has provoked some deeply reflective conversations and really made us think about how to best do this in a genu...ine, respectful and authentic way. The children and educators have engaged in some beautifully rich learning opportunities along the way including a past project with Uncle Lyndon and Uncle Brent in which they not only spent time here at the ELC but we also had the opportunity to take the Kindy children on excursions to some nearby places that are very important to the Gubbi Gubbi people, learning about Aboriginal symbols with Aunty De and learning about story telling through dance with the Gubbi Gubbi Dance troupe. Our educators have used the knowledge we gained from these visits and excursions to continue the learning with the children long after the project had finished, however we recognise that our understanding is only just beginning and we have so much more to learn. We know that this will be an ongoing journey of learning, reflection and inclusion and we are committed to ensuring that we strive to authentically embed Indigenous culture and perspectives in our curriculums across the service. #NAIDOC2020 #StMichaelsCollegeELC

15.01.2022 Today we are celebrating EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATORS DAY!! We are so proud of the incredibly dedicated, talented and passionate team of educators we are blessed with here at St Michaels College Early Learning Centre and today we take the time to celebrate the amazing work they do everyday! Celebrate with us by leaving a message of thanks below to show just how appreciated our educators truly are

14.01.2022 To all family and friends of St. Michaels College Early Learning Centre and OSHC please share to help us find the right person for our amazing OSHC service.

13.01.2022 We are excited to be holding our first ever ELC Christmas Bake Stall! Once again we welcome all donations of baked goods as they are a vital part of making this stall such a success. We thank you in advance for your donations and all donations may be left at the main Centre kitchen please. As it is Christmas themed we will be offering a variety Christmas sweets and biscuits and maybe even some sneaky rum balls!... The staff and children in the ELC will be manning the stall in support of our exciting Nature Play venture! Come along with any spare change and pick up a yummy Christmas treat! Christmas Bake Stall is on Wednesday the 4th December at the ELC Entry, Goodies will be available for purchase from 2:30pm.

12.01.2022 From the day they are born, children use all their senses to begin making sense of the world around them. They do this by touching, hearing, smelling, seeing, tasting and moving. This sensory exploration is a lifelong learning tool but, in the early years, exposure to as much sensory exploration as possible is vital to their learning and development. So, what is sensory play? Sensory play includes any experience that stimulates a childs senses: touch, smell, taste, sight..., hearing, movement and balance. Sensory experiences facilitate exploration and investigation which encourages children to begin using emerging scientific processes while they investigate and explore. Sensory play is crucial to brain development, creating neural pathways and helping children to process the information they have gathered and respond appropriately. One example of this may be a child who has aversions to foods of a certain texture, such as particularly wet or sticky foods. Through the use of regular sensory play which offers safe and unhurried opportunities for the child to explore and investigate these textures in a range of settings, they are able to begin to create new understandings and build positive pathways in the brain that tell them that it is okay to engage with food/materials of this texture. Sensory play has the potential to influence what children view as fun, positive and safe which in turn influences their choices and behaviours. Here at St Michaels College Early Learning Centre and Outside School Hours Care we understand the importance of sensory exploration and we provide a wide array of this type of play each and every day. The type of sensory play each child engages in can look very different depending on a range of factors including age, stage of development, sensory aversions of individual children, which sensory area of development they are drawn to and their level of confidence when it comes to engaging in sensory play. We understand this and ensure that each child is supported to explore and investigate at a level that they are comfortable with.

12.01.2022 Hi everyone!! If you are currently not attending the ELC this week please keep an eye out for a special delivery from us. Nursery, Toddler and Junior Kindy children will be receiving theirs on Wednesday afternoon and the Pre-Kindy and Kindy children will be getting delivered today!!! If you have children in various aged groups your delivery will be coming from your oldest childs group. If you are not home we will leave it in a safe place

12.01.2022 If you could spare five minutes to complete our Parent Feedback survey it would be much appreciated!

12.01.2022 Happy Mothers Day to all our ELC families! We hope your day is filled with love and laughter

11.01.2022 What a fabulous week we have had celebrating Book Week!! This culminated in our Dress Up Day and our Kindy and Pre Kindy children were lucky enough to join the students at the college for their Parade through the school as well! There were so many wonderful costumes and we all had the best time - thanks to the mums and dads who were able to make it to the parade too, we know that it meant a lot to all your little people that you were there to watch them!

11.01.2022 **SPOTLIGHT ON OUR FLOAT EDUCATORS** Meet our float team Miss Bree, Miss Theresa, Mr Todd and Mr Mitch! Miss Bree and Mr Todd are our senior side lunch floats while Miss Theresa and Mr Mitch are the floats on the junior side. Without the assistance of these four educators the rooms would not run as smoothly and seamlessly as they do while the regular room educators are on their breaks. Our float team are hardworking, enthusiastic, adaptable and have built some fantastic... relationships with the children which makes our days run very smoothly. Miss Bree, Mr Todd, Miss Theresa and Mr Mitch also step in for non-contact from time to time which gives them the opportunity to spend extra time building those relationships and allows them to really engage in the program with the children and other educators. By ensuring we have regular float educators we are able to maintain our high quality and consistent care for all our children and this also ensures that the children always feel safe, secure and supported throughout their day. Thank you for all your hard work Miss Bree, Miss Theresa, Mr Todd and Mr Mitch we would be lost without you!

10.01.2022 We have started collecting cans and bottles to support one of our children in the Kindy A room. Hudson was born with Bilateral Microtia Atresia and his family are raising money to help pay for reconstructive surgery. If you have any cans or bottles that you would like to contribute, please place them in the bags that are located around the back of the centre near the Senior playground. If you cant locate the drop off spot please speak to an Educator. If you would like to... follow Hudsons journey you can find his story at "Help Hudson Hear" on Facebook. Thank you in advance for your support - it is truly appreciated! https://www.facebook.com/helphudsonhear/

09.01.2022 **SPOTLIGHT ON MR BRENDON** Meet our resident handyman/groundskeeper/Mr Fix-it/jack of all trades - Mr Brendon!! Mr Brendon is here every morning, making sure that our outdoor environment is safe and ready to go for the children and educators and he spends every Thursday and Friday busily building, fixing, creating, moving, maintaining and repairing - you name it Mr Brendon can do it! ... As educators we are beyond grateful to have such a talented, patient and hardworking maintenance man. Often when we come to him with something we would like him to build all we have is some pictures and somehow he manages to create exactly what we had in mind each and every time! The children absolutely love when Mr Brendon comes to visit and whenever he enters a room or a yard he is quickly swarmed by groups of children eager to see what Mr Brendon is doing today. They love to lend him a helping hand, copying his every action with their own makeshift tools and every conversation revolves around what he is doing or where he is going when its time for him to leave! Mr Brendon has also played an enormous role in the improvements and renovations to the outdoor environment that we have undertaken recently and without his help and support we definitely would not have achieved what we have in such a short space of time! Next time you see Mr Brendon around feel free to stop and say hi!

09.01.2022 Yesterday morning the Kindergarten children were able to join in with the school to take part in the annual Cross country run. Running is great exercise and lovely way to challenge ourselves and have fun with our friends. In addition to the fun it also provides a wonderful opportunity for the children to become familiar with the school and supports a successful transition to prep next year. https://youtu.be/koBsFaofdJU

08.01.2022 Yesterday, we took part in National Simultaneous Storytime at 11am, sharing a story about the Chicken Divas! National Simultaneous Storytime (NSS) is held annually by the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA). Every year a picture book, written and illustrated by an Australian author and illustrator, is read simultaneously in libraries, schools, pre-schools, childcare centres, family homes, bookshops and many other places around the country. Now in its 20th s...uccessful year, it is a colourful, vibrant, fun event that aims to promote the value of reading and literacy, using an Australian childrens book that explores age-appropriate themes, and addresses key learning areas of the National Curriculum for Foundation to Year 6. This year the story that was selected is Chicken Divas which was written and illustrated by Lucinda Gifford and it is about two chickens named Whitney and Britney who sneak out each night to perform at their local jazz club, leaving them exhausted the next day! The children in Kindy ventured out to the paddock to read the story, Pre-Kindy found a lovely shady spot under a tree to enjoy the book, while the children on the junior side joined together in the junior kindy room to share the story with one another. It was a lovely story to share and the children all thoroughly enjoyed this experience together.

07.01.2022 Here at St Michaels College Early Learning Centre and Outside School Hours Care an integral part of what we do every day is actively work on building strong, positive and trusting relationships with each and every child. We believe that in order for a child to feel safe, secure and supported and for them to completely engage and immerse themselves in rich, deep and meaningful learning experiences, they must first feel a sense of belonging and have established strong bonds w...ith their educators. This belief underpins everything we do, so it is an immensely important part of our day and looks very different for each child. While one child might need physical comfort and affection to build these bonds, others will prefer their educators to engage with them in play, while others will want to share aspects of their home life with us in order to establish a sense of connection. Educators understand and respect these differing needs and support each individual child to build these relationships in the way they feel most comfortable. Getting to know each child and building these bonds is one of the most rewarding parts of what we do every day!

06.01.2022 **SPOTLIGHT ON OUR OSHC** Meet our amazing Outside School Hours Care team! Our OSHC team consists of an incredibly hard working, dedicated team of educators who strive to provide each and every child with not only a phenomenal space to call their own in our purpose-built OSHC building but also a high-quality program that is driven by the childrens interests and ideas. Miss Katrina, our OSHC coordinator ensures that every childs voice is heard and each and every idea is val...ued which enables our other amazing educators to put in place some fantastic experiences and ideas that the children love! From a dedicated artistic exploration space, an inviting and open-ended construction zone, loose parts exploration, our dance off competitions, the wide array of board games, gymnastics fun, an abundance of nature play, an amazing garden full of produce (which our families are able to take home with them regularly) there really is something for everyone at OSHC. The children and educators have created some beautiful community traditions such as the much-loved tea time and our regular bush walks are always popular! Miss Katrina loves our dance offs and is always ready for some fun with some group games together! Miss Casey and Miss Britt love to spend time playing board games with the children or doing some art and craft, Mr Todd is always up for a joke and a laugh and loves to spend time kicking the ball around, Miss Danielle always has some great ideas for art and craft and loves to see what amazing creations the children can make while Miss Kalina loves to get outdoors and engage with the children in nature. Mr Mitch and Miss Shaunnah are our regular relief educators and they love getting time to spend having fun with all the OSHC children when they are in! So, come along and find out just how amazing our OSHC really is for yourself we promise that you wont be disappointed and your children wont want to leave!

06.01.2022 **SPOTLIGHT ON OUR JUNIOR KINDY ROOM** Meet our enthusiastic, dedicated and capable Junior Kindy team Miss Amie, Miss Amanda, Miss Michelle and Miss Shaunnah. Miss Amie leads a high-quality, child-focused and engaging program which runs in conjunction with the Toddler room, operating as an open door, free-flow environment which enables the children to spend time in a variety of play spaces throughout the day, effectively fostering a strong sense of agency and belonging. A...Continue reading

06.01.2022 **SPOTLIGHT ON OUR NURSERY ROOM** Meet our nurturing, dedicated and passionate nursery team Miss Lauren and Miss Maddy! They are the fantastic educators in charge of caring for and educating our youngest St Michaels ELC children and they spend their days providing a rich, warm and caring environment for all the babies. Miss Lauren implements a sensory-filled, play based program that ensures each child is able to engage in a wide array of experiences while also making sur...e that each childs individual routines are supported to ensure a smooth transition from home to here at the Early Learning Centre. There is a deep focus on building strong and secure relationships with each child which supports them to feel safe and supported during their time here and Miss Lauren and Miss Maddy are both very committed advocates for building these connections. Here in the nursery we also believe that it is important for the babies to extend their interactions beyond their trusted educators and engage in play and interactions with children of all ages and educators from other rooms. This ensures that as they begin to build their confidence and independence, they are able to feel safe and secure with a wide array of people. To establish this the children from nursery also spend time engaging in the free flow play and exploration that is in place in the toddler and junior kindy environments. Miss Lauren and Miss Maddy both ensure that the children have time out in the yard and also in the toddler room, particularly as they approach toddler age, which also assists with ensuring a very smooth transition to the toddler room when the time comes. With a wide variety of play spaces to explore and experiences to participate in, the children are very busy establishing strong foundations for future learning, but most importantly they are having so much fun in the process! So come on in and spend some time in our wonderful nursery and see for yourself just how great it is to be in the nursery here at St Michaels College Early Learning Centre!

06.01.2022 On Wednesday 20th November from 2.40pm we will be selling chocolates on the path from the ELC to the College. We are raising money for our new outdoor nature play program that we are implementing from 2020. Please show your support by purchasing a chocolate. They are $1 each. Thank you in advance

05.01.2022 Today we had Dress as a Super Hero day in order to raise funds for Hearing Awareness Week. Everyone brought along a gold coin donation and dressed up as their favourite Super Hero we had lots of Spider Mans, Supermans and Batmans, a few Super Girls, Bat Girls and even a couple of Elsas too! The day was a huge success with everyone enjoying an action-packed, Super Hero Friday!! Thank you to everyone who participated and helped us to raise money for this important cause close to our hearts.

05.01.2022 As we prepare to welcome back so many of our wonderful families next week, we wanted to take this opportunity to shine a light on just how amazing and resilient all the children have been throughout the last couple of months! There has been so much focus on how our world has been forever changed and what our "new normal" looks like and while this can be a daunting prospect to us adults, lets just take a moment to remember how overwhelming all this uncertainty must be for th...e children. They truly are strong, resilient and inspiring little people and we are so blessed to spend our days with them all! We cant wait to see lots of our friends back again next week and to those staying at home for a little bit longer just remember - we really are all in this together and we are here to support you in any way we can

04.01.2022 Our nursery may be home to the littlest members of our Early Learning Centre Community but they dont let that stop them being involved in such a wide array of different learning experiences each and every day! Our wonderful educators ensure that every childs interests are extended and dedicate their time to ensuring that everyone is able to explore, investigate and engage to their hearts content. As they develop trusting bonds with their educators they are offered regular ...opportunity to explore in the wider ELC community by joining the Toddler and Junior Kindy children in their outdoor environment and by taking part in the open-door, free-flow curriculum that exists on the junior side. This not only ensures that our nursery children are able to form relationships with a wide network of educators within the junior side but also offers them ample opportunity to make connections with the other children, ensuring a smooth and seamless transition when the time comes for them to move to the toddler room.

04.01.2022 Did you know that you can come along and join in the fun with your child here at St Michaels College Early Learning Centre and Outside School Hours Care? We believe that forming strong partnerships with families is an imperative part ensuring each child develops a strong sense of belonging within the St Michaels community and we have an Open Door policy for that very reason. We value any time that parents, carers and extended family members are able to come along and join... in the play and learning here with their child. Whether you would like to share a special skill, engage in a special activity or simply come along and spend some time just playing and exploring as your child takes the lead, we truly value the contributions families make and we know just how special it is for the children when their someone special joins them for a morning or an afternoon of fun! However, we also understand how busy life can be, which is why we plan community events throughout the year so that families are able to come along outside of usual working hours and build relationships with others in the St Michaels Community. Whether its meeting other families, spending more time getting to know all the educators or simply taking the time to see the world through your childs eyes as they share this important part of their life with you, we truly value the opportunities these events provide when it comes to making connections. They say it takes a village to raise a child and we want each and every family to feel like they have the support of that village here with us!

03.01.2022 This year, to kick of National Reconciliation Week, Reconciliation Australia is asking everyone to take to social media to acknowledge Country on Wednesday 27 May. This is a way we can all be "In this together" while being apart. As many of our families already know Reconciliation awareness is something we view as being enormously important here at St Michaels College Early Learning Centre and we strive to embed an understanding of Indigenous history, culture and perspectiv...es in all our age groups in a variety of ways. Today, like everyday, we all engaged in our morning Acknowledgment of Country with the children on both the Senior Side and the Junior Side and we would like to share that with you all. We look forward to sharing with you all next week the other experiences we have engaged in with the children for National Reconciliation Week. #NRW2020 #InThisTogether2020

03.01.2022 **SPOTLIGHT ON OUR PRE-KINDY ROOM** Meet our dedicated and passionate Pre-Kindy team Miss Rachel and Miss Michaela! Miss Rachel implements a high quality, engaging program, which is underpinned by the Early Years Learning Framework and alongside Miss Michaela ensures that each childs day is filled with fun, laughter and learning. Our Pre-Kindy team also works in collaboration with our dedicated Outdoor Educator, Miss Nicole, to ensure that the childrens interests are ex...tended throughout the whole environment and the Pre-Kindy children are able to freely access both the outdoor and indoor environments throughout the day. In Pre Kindy, our environment is designed to engage the children in play-based learning opportunities and the educators work hard to build each childs sense of identity and support the children in building independence and confidence each and every day. We know that children are innately curious about the world around them and in Pre-Kindy they work on building connections to our community through a wide range of different experiences including investigating our cultures, engaging with community groups and caring for our environment. The Pre-Kindy children are able to take part in regular cooking experiences, have frequent planned nature play experiences outside the fence-line, as well as opportunity to explore the natural environment daily within the outdoor environment. Miss Rachel and Miss Michaela strive to provide a home-like environment and encourage a sense of belonging so that every child feels like they are part of the Pre-Kindy family. Pre-Kindy also engages in the Buddy Class program and engages with other age groups within the Centre so that the children are able to engage in opportunities in which they learn to show care and empathy to children of all different ages and backgrounds. Learning to be kind to ourselves is a large part of the daily program in Pre-Kindy and educators encourage the children to explore how to be independent as they care for their own needs. Physical well-being is also a focus and the educators offer opportunities for the children to take a guided class in Yoga regularly. Miss Rachel and Miss Michaela ensure that the environment supports and challenges the children in their physical exploration and we believe in incorporating loose parts and natural resources in our environment. Risk taking is something we support and learn about together during the year, encouraging each child to learn how manage appropriate levels of risk to ensure they are able navigate any challenge they may face. Feel free to come along and see for yourself just how fantastic it is to be a Pre-Kindy family!

03.01.2022 Recently we have been working hard on improving the outdoor environments in all our age groups. We are incredibly passionate about children having regular access to nature play as this not only develops a sense of care and respect for the environment but also enables children to resource their own investigations, provides them with an array of open-ended learning opportunities and encourages them to seek out risky play which we all know is so important! We are so proud of what we have achieved so far and we cant wait to see how these changes positively impact the childrens learning journeys!

03.01.2022 Our kindergarten program is in full swing, At St Michaels College Early Learning Centre we are proud to provide a nurturing, engaging and stimulating environment where our dedicated teachers Miss Vanessa and Miss Rachael understand the importance of the early years in assisting children to develop, and have the knowledge and experience to ensure they reach their full potential. Our kindergarten program, helps children develop a wide range of skills and gives them the best preparation for school and future learning in a beautiful, natural and sustainable environment that encourages children to explore, discover and learn through play. We currently have a few vacancies in our kindergarten program for 2020; if you would like to find out more please call or drop in for a guided tour.

02.01.2022 Over the last week we have been celebrating and exploring National Reconciliation Week. This has happened in a variety of ways, including exploring Dreamtime stories, learning about Indigenous dance, investigating the meaning behind Aboriginal symbols and then painting our own stories using these symbols, cooking recipes using local native ingredients, exploring how to make and use Ochre, creating collaborative murals together to ensure the message of reconciliation week is ...ongoing and simply spending time connecting with the natural world and learning through exploring the environment, developing a deep sense of care and empathy for the world around us. In addition to this, we have created "The Tree of Togetherness", so as a community we can come together though unity and compassion to share what reconciliation means to us. All families and educators have been encouraged to take one of the hand-crafted feather ornaments, write what reconciliation means to them and then add it to our tree. This Tree of Togetherness will then serve as an ongoing reminder of our commitment to reconciliation and demonstrate our unity with and love, respect and honour for the Indigenous community. While we value the importance of embedding Indigenous perspectives within our curriculum each and every day, reconciliation for us is a time of reflection and a time to ensure that we are offering truly rich, deep and meaningful opportunities for exploration for all our children.

01.01.2022 What a wonderful week we have enjoyed so far welcoming back so many of our families! All the children are so excited to be back, delighted to see their friends again and have been eager to venture off and explore. We really have missed our ELC community over the last few weeks and it has been great to see so many smiling faces again each and every day and to hear our spaces filled with the sounds of busy children having fun, laughing and learning! We are looking forward to the last few families returning really soon so our little community is whole once more!

01.01.2022 Meet the wonderfully caring, passionate and dedicated Toddler team Miss Candice, Miss Kerrie and Miss Kate! Miss Candice runs an engaging and fun free flow, open door program in collaboration with our junior kindy room and alongside Miss Kerrie and Miss Kate they ensure that children are supported and encouraged to take the lead when it comes to play and investigation. Each childs interests are closely observed and extended on by the whole team to ensure that the environ...ment is a true reflection of each and every childs learning and development. In our toddler room, the educators understand that children are moving through some huge developmental milestones as they become more independent and try to communicate and interact more with others. For this reason, much of the day in our toddler room is all about simply being in the moment with the children. As they transition from the nursery (or join us for the first time) the focus really is on offering a wide array of opportunities to explore, engage and have fun! Sensory play is a huge part of the toddler room program and it is something that is on offer in a variety of formats each and every day. It may be as simple as exploring what happens when we add water to our dirt patch and turn it in to the mud pit, we may be having fun with finger painting or exploring early scientific concepts with mediums such as goop and slime! Nature play is also an enormous part of the toddler room routine and the children love being out in nature exploring and investigating. We all know just how important nature play is for children and with the growing number of families working long hours we ensure that the children have daily opportunities to get out and explore in nature whether thats within the natural spaces in the yard or actually heading out on a nature play adventure together! Miss Candice is a passionate nature play advocate and leads the charge in toddlers, building up each childs confidence and capabilities to ensure that their time in nature is informative, fun and fulfilling. Miss Kate loves to explore new experiences with the children and is a fantastic story teller and lead singer when it comes to our language and literacy times within the room. Miss Kerrie loves to engage in physical play experiences with the children and often plans some group physical games that they can play together which not only encourages physical development but also the beginnings of each childs social skills and friendship connections. Our toddlers really do have so much fun so come along and see for yourself how amazing our toddler team is you wont be disappointed!

01.01.2022 Recently our Kindy children have started taking part in our fantastic transition program over at the College. We pride ourselves on the seamless transition to Prep that we are able to provide for the children who are enrolled in our Kindy program and our Kindy teachers work collaboratively with the Prep teachers to ensure that each and every child is as familiar, comfortable and confident with not only the Prep environment but the College as a whole and this makes the move to "big school" much less daunting and an exciting prospect for them instead!