Philosophy

At Hamilton Community Pre-School we believe that each child is a unique individual and should be viewed, respected and treated as such. We embrace a sense of belonging and a sense of usness with all involved in the Pre-School.

Children

Our philosophy is underpinned by the view that each child is naturally creative, capable and inquisitive. We recognise that children are fundamentally motivated to explore, discover and hypothesise about the world by actively employing a complex network of abilities and interests.

Our play-based learning context supports scaffolding children’s learning and development, this is through quality interactions with peers, parents and carers. In the overall attempt for the children to pave the way for exploratory understanding of themselves, the world around them and their place in it

The children have the opportunity to collaborate respectfully with others in a safe, secure and supported environment. The welfare, wellbeing and safety of each child is paramount as educators strive to provide a holistic support regarding the child’s interests and strengths in a nurturing environment that fosters the child’s development across all developmental domains.

Educators believe that all curriculum decisions uphold the children’s rights to have their cultures, opinions, identities, abilities and strengths acknowledged and valued. We understand and recognise the importance of hearing and acknowledging the children’s voices, so they have a sense of belonging, responsibility and are co-contributors to the service.

Educators

Educators convey a great commitment to the Pre-School by embracing and providing a strong educational program for the children. We utilise our strengths, experiences and understanding of the children by providing challenging environments that will motivate them to discover, explore, invent, hypothesis and master skills. Educators draw on both theoretical, philosophical and personal influences and beliefs to support the children to go beyond their ability level, develop independence, resilience and interpersonal skills. This is achieved by offering creative, innovative, spontaneous, intentional, insightful and fun experiences.

With educators being progressive and proactive in their thoughts and beliefs in early childhood, each child’s learning journey extends above and beyond their capabilities and abilities; this is addressed and reflected in each of the educator’s personal teaching philosophy.

We believe that it is important to establish, maintain and embed a professional culture of both critical and reflective practices. This is achieved through the constant collaboration of ideas and beliefs, reflective (including critical reflection) practices, co-operation and implementation of innovative concepts, through the support from the Educational Leader and Director. These practices be it on a professional or personal level shape the Pre-School’s operations to ensure that any change improves the outcomes for all involved.

Educator’s values, dedication and commitment to the Pre-School are integral and inter-related convictions. These embrace and provide rich learning opportunities for the children, making families feel included in the service and recognising the importance of having a sense of community.

Independent of the qualification that educators hold, we are consistently developing and refining our professional practices, attending additional training to keep abreast with current trends within Early Childhood. All staff strictly abide by a specialised code of ethics and code of conduct to ensure that duty of care is always honoured.

By having a cohesive and experienced team, educators not only respect and value personal and professional pedagogical beliefs, but are also able to share and collaborate these influences to ensure continual improvement of the Pre-School.

Environment

The environment is viewed and considered as the third teacher as it engages all those involved in the service by supporting interrelations and encompasses a wholistic approach.

The Pre-School aims to provide a friendly, relaxed, caring, fun, supportive and accepting environment for our children, families and the community. We pride ourselves on an open door approach which is both welcoming and inviting to all.

Our service believes in a sustainable future, by teaching the children to foster, respect and care for the environment. The aim is to encourage educators, children and families to discuss, reflect and take an active role in caring for the environment and contribute to a sustainable future.

Families/Communities

The service respects the diversity of families and community as we aim to promote an inclusive program. These respectful ties are a catalyst in supporting the children’s growing awareness of their place in the community.

The Pre-school honours itself on recognising the expertise of families through educators valuing the importance of partnerships or co-contributors and open communication which results in sharing the decision making about the child’s learning and wellbeing. This is based on the foundation of understanding and respecting each other’s expectations, attitudes, beliefs, as well asensuring that all values, ideas and options are considered.

These all contribute towards building on the strength of sharing the interests and knowledge about the uniqueness of the child and thus demonstrating that the preschool is committed to continual improvement.

Our respectful ties with the community have been a catalyst in evoking a sense of belonging in the children and a growing awareness of their place in society. Creating social capital through their own interactions and participations within their local community enables the children to be recognised, have value, to value and respect others for their unique background, beliefs and ability.

Curriculum/Program

At all times, educators and the Reflective Daily Journal respect the diversity of our community and cultures, and we aim to provide an inclusive program. This encourages the children to value and respect others for their unique background, beliefs and ability.

The Early Years Learning Framework and the National Quality Standards are embraced and embedded in the Pre-Schools Daily Reflective Journal and our planning cycles. This encompass a holistic approach namely they recognise the children’s interests, knowledge, strengths, their voice/ ideas and input.

Educators respect and value all that the Framework embodies and believe it is the basis for the children’s and educators present and future learnings.

Assessment of Learning

We build a profile of each child’s journey while at Pre- School. All evidence of learnings is detailed, varied and informative which demonstrate the child’s involvement, development and progress. This also includes summative assessments which are created bi annually to provide families with an overview of their child’s progress. All forms of assessments of learning are readily available for families to access through IT and hard copies, the Pre-School consults with families on how they would like to receive this information.

We strongly believe that community participation and involvement is valuable, as well as providing an environment where there are high expectations for the quality of the educational programme and a mutual respect between families and educators as we work together to ensure a positive start for the children.   

Updated December 2019