Young children learn by doing, touching, experimenting, choosing, talking, and negotiating. At WHPS, imaginative and creative play is considered to be vital in children’s development and is encouraged.
Our play-based curriculum is based on the Early Years Learning Framework and the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework. Our teachers use both intentional strategies and emergent curriculum in their plans and programming.
Each child’s learning journey is documented and planning emerges from the children’s interests and daily life in the program. Sessions are carefully tailored to ensure they are socially relevant, intellectually engaging, and personally meaningful to the children, both individually and as a group.
Extra-curricular activities
A regular program of workshops and visitors to the centre broadens and enriches children’s experiences. Each year special activities are organized based on the interests, needs and dynamics of each group. These include incursions for all groups and may include excursions for our four year olds.
We also encourage parent and family involvement in all aspects of the program. In the past we have had visits from parents during our ’stay and play’ sessions, who were nurses, airline cabin crew, TV cameramen, radio news readers, art teachers, and others who have performed Greek dances and bathed new babies. We have also been privileged to have parents and families who speak languages other than English share culture, songs and stories with the children.
Beyond the fence
To further enrich the children’s experiences at pre-school, we have also developed an ongoing excursion program called ‘Beyond the Fence.’ This program strives to support children’s knowledge of their local environment and help them connect with their broader community.
Whether it be walk through Smart St Reserve to observe the changing seasons or a visit to a near by building site to see the diggers in action, these excursions provide rich and varied learning experiences that develop community-minded citizens.
