Kalei

My Responsibility
Your children are our future. Our future creatives, future scientists, future leaders. It is a big responsibility to prepare the children of our future for what comes next, and this is a responsibility I do not take lightly. I believe if we nurture their individual strengths, abilities, interests and ideas, we give them the foundation and courage to grow to their full potential.

Exploratory Play
Play is the learning language of children, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, culture or social standing, children will engage in many forms of play. Exploratory play begins from infancy, where children use their developing senses to discover the world around them. I ensure to implement unhurried, exploratory play into daily practice, inviting children to express themselves and their ideas, gain confidence in their own abilities, experiment with scientific concepts, and foster their development and wellbeing.

My Role as an Educator is to also be an Observer
A crucial part of an educator’s planning cycle is to observe children during their time in our care. This is to gather information about the children’s interests, their development, ideas and abilities. I utilise the information that I gather, along with using the unique understandings and relationships with each child to implement experiences and opportunities which support their growth.

The Importance of the Environment
The environment in which our children engage with when they are present at the service is carefully curated to promote safety, inclusivity, risk-taking, exploration and to develop a sense of responsibility and care for their physical environment. When creating an experience, designing a learning environment or changing room decor, I continually ponder on the feelings and considerations that these alterations and additions will provoke…Does the room feel inviting? Calm? Warm? Are the children able to engage in play, with the paramount consideration of safety? Does this experience engage the children’s senses and foster developmental opportunities? I also value the responsibilities we hold to demonstrate genuine care for and responsibility to our environment. We live in a diverse and rich ecosystem within the Illawarra, filled with unique plant and animal life and we implement sustainable practices and educational opportunities for children to build their connection with the land we live on and for the future.