Starting school is a big step for all children. It is a very exciting time which brings many changes to both your child’s life as well as yours. At Kellyville Ridge Preschool and Long Daycare we aim to make this transition period a smooth and enjoyable experience.

We have produced this guide to introduce the programs and practices we use at Kellyville Ridge Preschool and Long Daycare. It also intends to prepare your child, with parent involvement and guidance for school. We strive to support all areas of children’s development and focus on building the children’s skills and confidence to continue along the path of lifelong learning. At Kellyville Ridge Preschool and Long Daycare, we identify when individual children are ready for school and prepare them with the skills and qualities they need.

School readiness is integrated within our program. We prepare children for school by promoting all areas of growth and development. We closely observe and respond to children’s needs and interests, which in turn will provide opportunities for encouraging the skills and attributes needed for starting school.

About the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF)

We work in partnership with families to prepare children for “Big School”. We do this by

implementing the Early Years Learning Framework. This new framework introduced at the beginning of the 2011 can be best described that the framework is a view of children’s lives as characterised by belonging, being and becoming.

From before birth, children are connected to family, community, culture and place. Their earliest development and learning takes place through these relationships, particularly within families, who are children’s first and most influential educators. As children participate in everyday life, they develop interests and construct their own identities and understandings of the world.

BEING

Childhood is a time to be, to seek and make meaning of the world. Being recognises the significance of the here and now in children’s lives. It is about the present and them knowing themselves, building and maintaining relationships with others, engaging with life’s joys and complexities, and meeting challenges in everyday life. The early childhood years are not solely preparation for the future but also about the present.

BECOMING

Children’s identities, knowledge, understandings, capacities, skills and relationships change during

childhood. They are shaped by many different events and circumstances. Becoming reflects this process of rapid and significant change that occurs in the early years as young children learn and grow. It emphasises learning to participate fully and actively in society.

BELONGING

Experiencing belonging – knowing where and with whom you belong – is integral to human existence. Children belong first to a family, a cultural group, a neighbourhood and a wider community. Belonging acknowledges children’s interdependence with others and the basis of relationships in defining identities. In early childhood, and throughout life, relationships are crucial to a sense of belonging. Belonging is central to being and becoming in that it shapes who children are and who they can become.

Learning Outcomes

The Framework conveys the highest expectations for all children’s learning from birth to five years and through the transitions to school. It communicates these expectations through the following five Learning Outcomes:

• Children have a strong sense of identity
• Children are connected with and contribute to their world
• Children have a strong sense of well being
• Children are confident and involved learners
• Children are effective communicators.

The Framework provides broad direction for early childhood educators in early childhood settings to facilitate children’s learning. The Framework is designed to inspire conversations, improve communication and provide a common language about young children’s learning among children themselves, their families, the broader community, early childhood educators and other professionals.

Learning Outcome:

This is a skill, knowledge or disposition that the educators actively promote in the early childhood settings and in collaboration with children and families. It guides educators in their curriculum decision making and assists in planning, implementing and evaluating quality in early childhood settings. It also underpins the implementation of more specific curriculum relevant to each local community and early childhood setting.

How is this achieved?

• Recording children’s unique journey at Preschool in their Portfolio.
• Keeping families informed.
• Listening to the needs of the families.
• Creating an environment that will foster children’s learning and development e.g. through play, interactions, experiences, routines and events (planned and unplanned).
• Designing learning environments around children’s interests and strengths.

We aim to uphold Goal 2 of the “Melbourne Declaration of Education Goals for Young Australians” which states that

“All young Australians [will] become: Successful learners, confident and creative individuals, and active and informed citizens”.

At our Preschool we believe children learn through play. Why? Play provides opportunities for children to learn as they discover, create, improvise and imagine. When children play with other children they create social groups, test out ideas, challenge each other’s thinking and build new understandings. Play provides a supportive environment where children can ask questions, solve problems and engage in critical thinking. Play can expand children’s thinking and enhance their desire to know and to learn. In these ways play can promote positive dispositions towards learning.

While you observe your child’s journey at Preschool you can look for and also help promote your child’s school readiness.

So What Should Parents Do?

So What Do Schools Expect of Children When They Start?

Everyday activities at the centre encompass a whole range of school readiness activities. Here are some learning experiences children engage with as they explore the different learning areas.