OUR VISION
We serve our community by providing high quality, play-based early childhood education in a caring, Christian environment. We partner with families to nurture each child’s unique strengths, ensuring every child is welcomed, included, challenged and supported in all of their learning and development.
Our Philosophy
OUR CHILDREN – Children are the heart and soul of our community and the essence of all that we do. We believe that they are the greatest gift that families can share with us. We honour the children as we strive to provide a safe, warm and nurturing environment for each and every child. Our team of educators recognise the fundamental right for every child to be respected and provided with the opportunity and support needed to grow and develop to their full potential. Our educators embrace diversity and use a range of research informed strategies and practices to support children’s meaningful participation regardless of their age, ability, cultural or linguistic background. We believe every child should be supported and encouraged to be their unique selves, to belong to a caring community and to become confident, capable learners who will grow to be active, global citizens (Being, Belonging, Becoming – EYLF).
FAMILIES & COMMUNITY –We believe that children are born connected to family, culture, community and place. We honour this connection and aim to facilitate meaningful relationships between our preschool, our educators, our children, our families and our community (including other professionals). We believe this is critical in building a sense of belonging from where children can thrive. Families are their child’s first teachers and are important members of our preschool community. They are valued for their knowledge, skills, beliefs, values, hopes and dreams for their children, they know their child best. We aim to build warm, responsive relationships with all families, built on trust and shared communication. This foundation allows us to work collaboratively so that their children can achieve the best outcomes possible. We encourage families to become involved in the life of our preschool in a variety of ways that best suits them.
We value our connection to Heathcote Engadine Baptist Church and aim to provide an authentic, compassionate and uplifting environment founded on Christian beliefs. We value strong connections with our local community, including small businesses, schools and the Sutherland Shire Preschool Alliance. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and perspectives are acknowledged, valued and holistically embedded within our environment and curriculum as we move forward in reconciliation.
THE ENVIRONMENT- We believe that the preschool environment should be a safe and beautiful place that provokes a sense of wonder and curiosity. A place where children, families and staff feel like they belong. We value our environment as the ‘other teacher’ as it enhances all aspects of children’s learning. Our environment is carefully curated to provide inclusive spaces for children that reflects their interests, capabilities and identity. Children have at their fingertips, an array of natural, manufactured, repurposed, and recycled resources to inspire their creativity and imagination. Our inclusive environment provides all children with opportunities to investigate, persist, experiment, take risks, discover, connect with nature, culture and our local Indigenous history. We believe we have a responsibility to promote a sustainable future and foster respectful relationships with our natural environment, promoting a love of God’s creation.
OUR EDUCATORS – We have a diverse team of highly valued educators who are rich in experience, knowledge, dedication, and care. Our educators promote collaboration, respect, and ethical practices to foster a supportive service culture and enhance staff continuity. This in turn provides continuity of care to our children. Our educators prioritise our relationships with children and families based on our understanding of ‘circle of security”. We aim to be responsive to children’s emotional needs and provide them with a secure base from which they can explore and ‘be’. Our educators are co-learners alongside children and families and continually seek out ways to challenge our current practices and perspectives as we embrace a culture of reflective practice. Our management committee recognises our educators as professionals and understands that supporting educators’ wellbeing and professional development enhances and uplifts every aspect of our preschool.
OUR CURRICULUM: Our aim is to create an exciting, challenging and motivating curriculum for and with children that targets all dimensions of their learning, development and wellbeing. We believe that children are competent and capable learners who learn best through play. Through play-based learning, children instinctively explore, communicate, discover, create, improvise and learn from each other and their environment. Our educators build an engaging child-centred curriculum that reflects children’s identities, capabilities, interests, strengths, and needs and empowers each child to make choices within their day. Educators make curriculum decisions based on their professional knowledge, their knowledge of the children, and their understanding of the curriculum framework. We offer a flexible routine that provides children with extended opportunities to explore their environment through a balance of structured / unstructured activities and outdoor / indoor experiences.
FAMILIES & COMMUNITY –We believe that children are born connected to family, culture, community and place. We honour this connection and aim to facilitate meaningful relationships between our preschool, our educators, our children, our families and our community (including other professionals). We believe this is critical in building a sense of belonging from where children can thrive. Families are their child’s first teachers and are important members of our preschool community. They are valued for their knowledge, skills, beliefs, values, hopes and dreams for their children, they know their child best. We aim to build warm, responsive relationships with all families, built on trust and shared communication. This foundation allows us to work collaboratively so that their children can achieve the best outcomes possible. We encourage families to become involved in the life of our preschool in a variety of ways that best suits them.
We value our connection to Heathcote Engadine Baptist Church and aim to provide an authentic, compassionate and uplifting environment founded on Christian beliefs. We value strong connections with our local community, including small businesses, schools and the Sutherland Shire Preschool Alliance. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and perspectives are acknowledged, valued and holistically embedded within our environment and curriculum as we move forward in reconciliation.
THE ENVIRONMENT- We believe that the preschool environment should be a safe and beautiful place that provokes a sense of wonder and curiosity. A place where children, families and staff feel like they belong. We value our environment as the ‘other teacher’ as it enhances all aspects of children’s learning. Our environment is carefully curated to provide inclusive spaces for children that reflects their interests, capabilities and identity. Children have at their fingertips, an array of natural, manufactured, repurposed, and recycled resources to inspire their creativity and imagination. Our inclusive environment provides all children with opportunities to investigate, persist, experiment, take risks, discover, connect with nature, culture and our local Indigenous history. We believe we have a responsibility to promote a sustainable future and foster respectful relationships with our natural environment, promoting a love of God’s creation.
OUR EDUCATORS – We have a diverse team of highly valued educators who are rich in experience, knowledge, dedication, and care. Our educators promote collaboration, respect, and ethical practices to foster a supportive service culture and enhance staff continuity. This in turn provides continuity of care to our children. Our educators prioritise our relationships with children and families based on our understanding of ‘circle of security”. We aim to be responsive to children’s emotional needs and provide them with a secure base from which they can explore and ‘be’. Our educators are co-learners alongside children and families and continually seek out ways to challenge our current practices and perspectives as we embrace a culture of reflective practice. Our management committee recognises our educators as professionals and understands that supporting educators’ wellbeing and professional development enhances and uplifts every aspect of our preschool.
OUR CURRICULUM: Our aim is to create an exciting, challenging and motivating curriculum for and with children that targets all dimensions of their learning, development and wellbeing. We believe that children are competent and capable learners who learn best through play. Through play-based learning, children instinctively explore, communicate, discover, create, improvise and learn from each other and their environment. Our educators build an engaging child-centred curriculum that reflects children’s identities, capabilities, interests, strengths, and needs and empowers each child to make choices within their day. Educators make curriculum decisions based on their professional knowledge, their knowledge of the children, and their understanding of the curriculum framework. We offer a flexible routine that provides children with extended opportunities to explore their environment through a balance of structured / unstructured activities and outdoor / indoor experiences.