Our Program
Early learning … Give your child the best possible start.
Early learning offers enormous potential benefit to your child and play-based learning is one of the foundations of early learning. Play-based learning fully engages children in activities where they can show what they’ve learned and are trying to understand. At Little Gems, children enjoy a wide variety of activities within a flexible daily routine to ensure that every part of their day is not just fun, but acts as a ‘teachable moment in time’. Play-based learning is at the heart of the program and engages children in activities where they can demonstrate a sense of learning, creativity, imagination and commitment. Given the chance to love learning, children also embrace literacy and numeracy – so vital to reaching their full potential.
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The Little Gems program is developmentally appropriate to all the children’s age groups and caters for individual children’s needs, interests, strengths and is based on family grouping and directed free play with opportunities for choice. Experiences are planned by staff based on children’s interests, ongoing observations, developmental records, parent input and staff knowledge of child development. Staff value and include parents’ contributions and participation in our program.
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At Little Gems we use OWNA. This is a parent communication app that allows parents and educator to share information about the child's day. Photos are included to share memories of the child's time at school with their friends.
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Family Grouping
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This means that the children are not separated according to age during free play. The children interact all together and share meals and rest times. This encourages responsibility and care for others in the older children, and enables the younger children to learn from playing with and imitating the older children. It also assists with separation anxiety when we have siblings, friends and cousins all playing with each other.
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Nutrition
At Little Gems, we promote a healthy lifestyle by emphasising the importance of good nutrition and health. We believe that positive early learning is dependent on stimulating a positive environment of health, as children learn confidently in a nourishing environment.
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Portfolios & Observations
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Developmental summaries are age appropriate and are carried out bi-annually. Children are evaluated on physical development (gross and fine motor), cognitive development, language development (expressive and receptive), social/emotional development and self-help and play skills. Each child has a journal which contains photographs, art works and work samples as observatory tools. Parents have the opportunity to view their child’s journal twice a year and comment in the area provided. Parents can request to view their child’s journal at any time and arrange a meeting to further discuss any concerns they may have.
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Observations are carried out on a daily basis and are used to plan developmentally appropriate experiences for the individual children. Staffs closely observe children during the day using a focus child system and make a record of each child’s level of skill acquisition and development.
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Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF)
Little Gems is implementing the Early Years Learning Framework at the centre. This new framework, or a way of understanding and working with children, is called Being, Belonging & Becoming. This framework helps guide educators who work in early childhood education and care. The EYLF aims to extend and enrich children’s learning from birth to five years. It also sees relationships as an essential part of learning as children’s relationships with family, community, culture and land shape the learning and development that occurs.
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In implementing this framework, it provides educators to observe and record children’s learning based on 5 outcomes:
Outcome One
Children have a strong sense of identity
Outcome Two
Children are connected with and contribute to their world
Outcome Three
Children have a strong sense of wellbeing
Outcome Four
Children are confident and involved learners
Outcome Five
Children are effective communicators