One of the main concepts of the early childhood education is the concept of holistic child development in which a child is given the freedom to grow both physically, emotionally, cognitively and socially in a holistic manner. Goodstart Early Learning Bayswater north Goodstart Early Learning center has adopted a holistic approach to learning, under which all areas of the child are taken care of through meaningful play based learning activities. Such a method can be connected to the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) that emphasizes the need to give children the chance to develop in all domains in a holistic and balanced way.
Holistic child development is associated with physical development. Goodstart promotes various physical activities in children that can be undertaken both outside and inside. Such actions involve running, climbing, playing team games and fine motor activities such as drawing, cutting and block building. Such activities aid in the development of strength, body control, and coordination of children. (Kearns, 2020) underlines that physical activity is not only about fitness; it is about the development of a healthy brain, the improvement of concentration, and the development of social skills when children learn to share, cooperate, and communicate during the process of playing.
In addition to physical development, emotional development is equally important to the overall well-being and learning of the children. At Goodstart, teachers provide an emotionally safe and supportive environment to allow children to explore their feelings and learn to be emotionally resilient. Guided relaxation, mindfulness, and talks on emotions are some activities that will help the children understand and deal with their feelings better. As (Harrison-Longworth, 2019) remarks, it is recommended that young children should be encouraged to build emotional resilience which allows them to overcome difficulties, manage their emotions, and establish positive connections with others. When educators teach children to be emotionally aware, they set them up to face challenges in life with confidence and empathy.
Goodstart approach in the area of cognitive development is another strength. Early childhood cognitive development entails the facilitation of children to make meaning of the world around them, problem solving and thinking skills. Children at Goodstart are taught to think, explore and solve problems through the activities encouraged in the company. As an example, in the course of structured play or interactive learning, the children are provided with open-ended questions, are asked to choose, and have a chance of experimenting and exploring. The activities assist the children in developing their reasoning, memory, and concentration. Besides the physical, emotional, and cognitive development, Goodstart focuses a lot on social development. The centre understands that young children develop their social skills by relating with their peers and adults. Social development encompasses sharing, turn taking, conflict resolution and expression of ideas within a group. At Goodstart, children learn and train those skills through group activities, cooperative games, and collaborative projects in the real-life environment. Through interaction with others, children will understand the value of cooperation, understanding, and socialization, which are essential ingredients to success in life and beyond in learning institutions.
Outcome 3: Well-being of the EYLF makes it clear that, the emotional and physical well-being of the children should be developed along with their learning. The concept of holistic child development deployed by Goodstart ensures that issues of well-being of children are considered in every action that the children engage in educationally. The positive reinforcement, the promotion of language use and the creation of safe environment where children can express themselves with their words also make them feel worthy. In conclusion, we can say that comprehensive approach to child development within the framework of Goodstart Early Learning Bayswater north Goodstart Early Learning center is both physical, emotional, cognitive and social development during play-based learning interactions. As with all of these areas of focus, Goodstart ensures that the children have the skills and resiliency to succeed not only now but also as they progress and go forward and continue to learn and develop.