OUR VALUES AND PHILOSOPHY
Our philosophy is founded on respect for all children and families equally, regardless of race, colour, religion and other status.
At Gellibrand Crescent Kindergarten, we focus on the whole child and work to support each child’s learning and development through offering an emergent curriculum. Our Curriculum embraces the Early Years Learning Framework which is a part of the National Quality standard. Children are assisted to achieve within the five learning outcomes “Identity, Community, Wellbeing, Learning, Communication” identified in the Early Years Learning Framework, which inevitably helps each child form their identity through ‘Belonging, Being and Becoming’.
We aim to create a safe, warm, happy and healthy environment for children, staff and families. We value individual strengths and talents. We believe in extending creativity in each child’s abilities, and promoting each child’s confidence and self-esteem. We provide age-appropriate learning experiences to foster physical, social, emotional and language skills. We support children to develop their problem solving through the use of open ended materials and engaging adults for successful school entry.
We respect, value and embrace the diverse values, beliefs, family and cultural backgrounds, traditions, life experiences and knowledge children and their families bring to our kindergarten. We aim to provide a Curriculum that respects the diversity of the families and communities within Australian culture. It is our intention to develop and maintain reciprocal understandings between educators, families and children where we value each other’s contributions and where we have a reciprocal trust that will allow shared insights with each other about each child. It is also intended that open and respectful communication will form the basis of how we interact with families.
We believe that supportive relationships between management and staff members lay a foundation of quality in early childhood settings. To ensure the education and care we provide is of a high standard we aim to be a progressive and innovative kindergarten that considers new ideas and forward thinking. We keep up to date with current early childhood practice and continually advance the professional development of our staff.
Outcome 1:
Children have a strong sense of identity
As a result of this learning outcome, children:
- feel safe, secure, and supported
- develop their emerging autonomy, inter-dependence, resilience and sense of agency
- develop knowledgeable and confident self identities
Outcome 2:
Children are connected with and contribute to their world
This outcome enables children to:
- develop a sense of belonging to groups and communities and an understanding of the reciprocal rights and responsibilities necessary for active community participation
- respond to diversity with respect
- become aware of fairness
- become socially responsible and also show respect for the environment
Outcome 3:
Children have a strong sense of Wellbeing
In achieving this outcome, children:
- become strong in their social and emotional wellbeing
- take increasing responsibility for their own health and physical wellbeing
Outcome 4:
Children are confident and involved learners
As a result of this learning outcome, children:
- develop dispositions for learning such as curiosity, cooperation, confidence, creativity, commitment, enthusiasm, persistence, imagination and reflexivity
- develop a range of skills and processes such as problem solving, enquiry, experimentation, hypothesising, researching and investigating
- transfer and adapt what they have learned from one context to another
- resource their own learning through connecting with people, place, technologies, as well as natural and processed materials.
Outcome 5:
Children are effective communicators
As a result of this learning outcome, children:
- interact verbally and non-verbally with others for a range of purposes
- engage with a range of texts and gain meaning from these texts
- express ideas and make meaning using a range of media
- begin to understand how symbols and pattern systems work
- use information and communication technologies to access information, investigate ideas and also represent their thinking.
