Mentone Girls’ Grammar acknowledges the Boon Wurrung/Bunurong People of the South-Eastern Kulin Nations for their connection to land, sea and community, and for their custodianship of the land on which we live, learn and work. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people today.
Welcome to the Sarah Simpson Early Learning Centre at Mentone Girls’ Grammar. In early years education, and throughout life, relationships are crucial to a sense of belonging. Belonging is central to being and becoming, in that it shapes who children are and who they can become.
As an intimate, all-girls school we are in the enviable position of being able to create strong relationships through our nurturing, inclusive community where every girl is known, seen and heard. In doing so, we provide a warm, supportive and caring environment, where your daughter will develop her sense of belonging and life-long relationships with her peers.
We understand Early Learning is a foundational time in your daughter’s education, with neuroscientific research showing us the significant impact the early years has on young children’s brain development. It is this truth that motivates our educators to provide a centre of excellence in early childhood education and care. A place where every child is valued as a competent, capable thinker, who is challenged and inspired to explore, wonder, question, play, inquire and learn.
Here at Mentone Girls’ Grammar, we believe girls’ horizons have never been broader. We are committed to inspiring your daughter with hope through a sense of purpose, meaning and belonging, to shape her present and the future of our changing world, whatever path she chooses.
As your daughter’s educators, we will give her the opportunity to explore, learn and discover her strengths through a holistic program designed to empower her to achieve her goals – no matter how big or small. As we ignite wonder and curiosity, your daughter will find joy at every turn, and will come home to you bursting with conversation about her day. We value genuine partnerships with families and are committed to developing trusting, respectful relationships with you, to together nurture your daughter to learn and flourish. In the words of our founders, the Simpson family, we empower our girls ‘to be bold, to do one’s best and to never give in’. We look forward to working in partnership with you to empower your daughter to dream with her eyes open.
Ms Bree Phelan
ELC Director
Our Sarah Simpson Early Learning Centre is named in honour of our School founder, and working mother, Mrs Sarah Simpson.
Sarah Simpson was the driving force behind the family decision to start a school, having worked as a teacher herself for many years. Sarah emigrated to the colony of Victoria at the age of 20 in 1863 where she ended up teaching in Ballarat. It was here that she married fellow Irish immigrant, William Hamilton Simpson in 1876 at the age of 33. Unlike many of her generation she refused to give up work, choosing instead to combine teaching with her new role as wife and mother. Her children, Mary (Minnie), Euphemia (Effie), Ethel and Daisy were all born within ten years. The girls attended a reputable high fee-paying school in Ballarat where academic excellence was encouraged. As a result of the 1890s depression, Sarah Simpson, aged just 51, became unemployed. Her pride was damaged, the family income was reduced, and she exhibited thereafter a desire to have greater control over her own and her family’s affairs.
Given Sarah’s commitment to teaching, it is not at all surprising that she saw opening a private school as worthwhile for it would enable her to pursue her great passion for education and contribute to the welfare of the family in a way which would not otherwise have been possible. And so, with four daughters aged from 13 to 21, the Simpson family decided to move from Ballarat to Melbourne to establish their own school for the daughters of business and professional people who took residence in the increasingly fashionable bayside suburb of Mentone. They purchased a substantial brick home called ‘Cobbalanna’ for their new venture and a local advertisement announced that the Mentone High School for Girls, as it would be known, would open there on 1 February 1899.
As a result of Sarah’s vision, foresight and determination, the School found its place in the hearts of Mentone locals, forming as much of the town’s fabric as the iconic coastline upon which it is built. The School was known for pursuing new ideas of academic and sporting achievement and held a fundamental belief that girls could achieve anything – a belief that holds true to this day.
It is our wish for our students that they continue to honour the Simpson educational philosophy, “to be bold, to do one’s best and to never give in.”
Photos: The Simpson Family - From left, Ethel (Mrs Thompson), Mrs Sarah Simpson (nee Mills), Minnie (Mrs Somerville), William Hamilton Simpson, Effie (Mrs Seward), Daisy-Ella (Mrs Barnett). Sarah Lester Simpson (née Mills).
We believe that every child:
• Is an individual, with their own knowledge, strengths, ideas, culture, abilities and interests.
• Has rights, which in turn carry responsibilities for themselves, others and their community.
• Has the right to feel secure, confident and included, and their dignity respected.
• Develops and learns in their own way and at their own
We believe:
• The highest quality practice can be achieved through continual reflection, evaluation and development.
Our mission is to create an Early Learning Centre that respects children, their families, our community and honours the Simpson educational philosophy, “to be bold, to do one’s best and to never give in.” We do this by providing a learning environment that empowers our students to develop, learn, achieve and become responsible global citizens. Our philosophy is a collaborative reflection encompassing our beliefs and values to support the growth and development of the whole child and ensure all our students and families are known, seen and heard. pace.
• Has agency, which is promoted, enabling them to make choices and decisions that influence events and their world.
• Educators and staff work best with mutual respect and collaboration, through challenging and learning from each other; recognising each other’s strengths and skills.
• Educators and staff are personal, personable and professional, ensuring authenticity and respect in all interactions.
• Educators and staff are considerate in their responses, decisions and actions.
The Educational Program and Practice
We believe in offering a program:
• Guided by the principles and practices of the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF), the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (VEYLDF) and the International Baccalaureate’s Primary Years Programme (PYP).
• That is holistic in nature, which seeks to foster the potential of each child by supporting their learning and development in relation to their identity, connection with community, sense of wellbeing, confidence as learners and effectiveness as communicators.
• Which values learning through play and inquiry, providing a play-based inquiry program that encompasses both child-led play and intentional teaching experiences in a safe, secure and engaging environment.
• Enabling every child to explore, question and think creatively about the world around them, allowing for the best opportunity to become sustainable activists and global citizens.
• Built upon critical reflection, evaluation and assessment in all areas. The foundation of the program is based upon the strengths, ideas, knowledge, culture, abilities and interests of the ELC community.
The Families and The Community
We believe:
• In learning about and respecting the land in which we work, play, learn and share, as well as acknowledging the traditional custodians, the Boon Wurrung people of the Kulin nation and paying our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.
• Young children learn best through relationships with their peers, families, community, themselves and the world around them. We aim to build strong relationships with our Mentone Girls’ Grammar School community of students, staff and families and forge positive connections with our local community.
• In respecting the expertise, culture, values and beliefs of our diverse families and community.
• Families and our community share in decision making about each child’s learning and wellbeing.
• Effective partnerships support children’s access, inclusion and participation in the community.
The National Quality Framework and National Quality Standards sets a national benchmark for the quality of education and care for early childhood and care services throughout Australia. It aims to promote:
• The safety, health and wellbeing of children
• A focus on achieving outcomes for children through high quality educational programs
• Families’ understanding of what distinguishes a quality service.
Approved services are assessed and rated against each of seven quality areas of the National Quality Standard and the National Regulations.
Our Sarah Simpson Early Learning Centre received an overall rating of ‘Exceeding’ in our last assessment in 2022.
The benefits of girls-only schools go far beyond academic success. Girls are socially and emotionally healthier and feel more supported to find, and use, their voice.
At Mentone Girls’ Grammar, girls are empowered to be confident, happy and successful, emerging as women who seek a more inclusive and enabled tomorrow.
Freedom from gender stereotypes
Although our universities and workplaces are mixed gender, we all know that they are a long way from being genderequal. Free from gender stereotypes, unconscious bias and harassment, girls in single-sex schools thrive in subjects typically dominated by boys. They learn their own worth and establish their boundaries without social pressure. In safe and supported spaces, girls engage in discussion, debate and self-discovery; at our school, they find their voice.
Enhanced self-esteem and wellbeing
Girls who attend single-sex schools tend to feel less socially anxious. They experience increased psychological wellbeing and are more comfortable to be themselves. Girls are more comfortable about their physical appearance and are better able to cope with stress, conflict, social media, LGBTIQA+ and drug and alcohol issues. They are also significantly less likely to experience bullying and harassment.
A strong culture of academic achievement
Global research consistently demonstrates the academic benefits of single-sex schooling for girls. Both NAPLAN and PISA data reveal the powerful impact of single-sex schooling for girls, with research finding that they are up to 4.2 terms ahead in reading and 2.8 terms ahead in mathematics compared to their co-ed peers. Girls at single-sex schools are also more likely to enjoy and achieve in STEM subjects.
Key facts:
When compared to their co-educational peers, the following insights were realised:
More than 80 percent of girls’ school graduates consider their academic performance to be highly successful.
Single-sex programs create an institutional and classroom climate in which female students can express themselves freely and frequently, and develop higher order thinking skills.
Quoted research from The International Coalition of Girls’ Schools - 2023 and the Alliance of Girls Schools Australasia - 2022.
Girls’ school grads are six times more likely to consider majoring in math, science, and technology, compared to girls who attend coed schools.
More than 88 percent of girls’ school students report that they are comfortable being themselves at school, which means that they are free to focus their energies on their learning.
Every day, our ELC girls are full of excitement as they explore environments that are varied and engaging, with an emphasis on creativity, play, inquiry and learning through relationships. Guided by the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (VEYLDF) and the International Baccalaureate’s Primary Years Programme (PYP), our curriculum nurtures the girls’ innate curiosity and extends their knowledge and skills through challenging and purposeful experiences.
The Victorian Framework sets the highest expectation for every child. It identifies five Early Years Learning and Development Outcomes for all children:
• Children have a strong sense identity
• Children are connected with and contribute to their world
• Children have a strong sense of wellbeing
• Children are confident and involved learners
• Children are effective communicators.
The Victorian Framework describes each of these outcomes for children from birth to eight years, creating a shared language for all early childhood professionals and families to use when planning for children’s learning and development.
The Victorian Framework identifies eight Practice Principles for Learning and Development to support early childhood professionals to work together with children and families to facilitate learning and development. The Practice Principles are based on the pedagogy of the Early Years Learning Framework for Australia and research evidence about the best ways to support children’s development, learning and wellbeing. The Victorian Framework emphasises the importance of supporting children’s and families’ transitions as they move within and across services throughout the early childhood period.
Through the Primary Years Programme (PYP) we provide our students with a global perspective that develops internationally minded, knowledgeable young people that strive to contribute and make a difference in the world.
Student-Centred Learning
The PYP provides an ideal foundation for our students to become successful, lifelong learners by developing their:
• Social and emotional wellbeing
• Independence, as they take responsibility for their own learning
• International mindedness
• Understanding of the world and their ability to function effectively within it
• Attitudes and dispositions for learning
• Ability to take mindful, appropriate and sustainable student-initiated action
• Language skills (IBO, 2007, Making the PYP Happen: A curriculum framework for international primary education.)
Our PYP curriculum focusses on six important transdisciplinary themes, including:
1. Who we are
2. Where we are in place and time
3. How we express ourselves
4. How the world works
5. How we organise ourselves
6. Sharing the planet
In ELC, our students engage in four units of inquiry across the year, each one related to a particular transdisciplinary theme. Students acquire and apply transdisciplinary skills while developing an understanding of key concepts within each unit, including form, function, connection, causation, change, perspective and responsibility.
Learner Profile Attributes
Through the PYP, our students develop key attributes to help them become responsible members of local, national and global communities. These attributes are:
• Inquirers
• Knowledgeable
• Thinkers
• Communicators
• Principled
• Open Minded
• Caring
• Balanced
• Reflective
• Risk Takers
In our Centre, we believe in the importance of young children learning through play and relationships. Our program offers a balance of play-based inquiry and intentional teaching experiences that support the girls to discover their interests and strengths, learn and reach their full potential.
Child-led play and inquiry allows our girls to develop their emerging autonomy, interdependence, resilience and sense of agency. Our engaging environments and inquiry-based learning experiences enable our students to develop knowledgeable and confident self-identities as they build relationships, take risks in their learning, and explore their interests with enthusiasm, energy and concentration.
Guided play and inquiry reflects our intentional teaching practices. From greeting the children at the beginning of each day, through to scaffolding their ideas, interests and interactions, we promote a strong sense of belonging, being and becoming. Both planned and spontaneous, these intentional teaching experiences embrace the whole child, identifying their individuality and promoting their agency.
Adult-led learning and explicit instruction allows our educators to broaden and deepen the girls’ knowledge, skills, concepts and experiences to take them beyond what they already know and can do. Through individual, small and large group experiences, our educators provoke and challenge our students thinking and support them to develop new skills and understandings.
Our curriculum includes many key learning areas that support the learning outcomes highlighted in the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework and the International Baccalaureate’s Primary Years Programme. Our exemplary educators embed the below learning areas through play and inquiry-based experiences that encourage the girls to explore and engage with social and physical environments through relationships and play. This is balanced with individual, small and large group experiences that challenge and further our students’ knowledge and understanding.
Our approach to teaching literacy in the early years, which recognises the significance of these foundational years, is the beginning of an intentional, systematic whole School approach to literacy teaching and learning from Early Learning through to Year 12.
Opportunities for the girls to develop their literacy skills are embedded within our Early Learning program. This equips our students with a strong foundation in early years literacy that prepares them to be taught conventional literacy, which is when they learn to spell, decode words, and develop comprehension skills.
At Mentone Girls’ Grammar, conventional literacy is taught through systematic and explicit instruction in their first year of formal schooling, Prep.
Guided by the science of reading and our understanding of how young children learn best through play, our Early Learning educators intentionally plan and create engaging literacy experiences that extend student’s language capabilities. Educators teach literacy through the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework’s practice principle of integrated teaching and learning, which encompasses a balanced approach of:
- Adult-led learning and explicit instruction
- Guided play and learning
- Child-led play and learning
Our students strengthen their oral language, vocabulary and understandings of literacy through intentionally-planned shared story time, speaking and listening opportunities during small and large group discussions, and opportunities to become literacy users
within their play. Through games and explicit instruction, the girls are encouraged to: listen and respond to sounds and patterns in speech, stories and rhyme; develop their phonemic awareness; begin to identify letter-sound relationships; and develop an understanding of how symbols and pattern systems work.
Throughout their journey in ELC, the girls explore and express themselves through the graphic languages of drawing and writing using approximations of letters and words to convey meaning. Our educators enhance the girls’ interest in writing through scaffolding, modelling and celebrating every individual effort.
Throughout the year, the educators plan a variety of STEAM experiences.
Science: Experiments help the girls develop a range of skills and processes for learning such as problem solving, experimentation, hypothesising, researching and investigating.
Technology: Students use information and communication technologies, such as iPads and interactive whiteboards, to access information, investigate ideas and represent their thinking.
Engineering: The girls become young engineers through loose parts play and opportunities to experiment, design and construct with a range of construction materials.
The Arts: The girls have the opportunities to explore and express their ideas, interests and feelings through both child initiated and adult-led experiences of visual and performing arts. The girls explore a vast array of artistic materials to develop their creativity and imagination.
Mathematics: Through hands on experiences and teacher led inquiries, our students begin to explore a range of mathematical skills and concepts of shape, position, patterns and measurement. They develop their numeracy skills of counting, numeral identification, one to one correspondence and subitizing.
The following programs are taught by specialist teachers and are designed to enrich your daughter’s learning with weekly Music, Mandarin, Physcial Education, Library, Dance and Drama classes, alongside our Beach Kinder and Learn to Swim Program during the year.
Music
Our students experience the joy of music in many ways within the classroom and during our specialist Music sessions, where they are introduced to musical concepts, such as rhythm, beat and pitch. They learn to coordinate music and movement, explore music from around the world, play percussion instruments and sing a variety of new and challenging songs.
Mandarin
Learning a Language Other Than English (LOTE) in our Early Learning Centre lays the foundation for further study of languages, fosters an appreciation of the role of language and a growing awareness of different cultures. Through play and adult-led learning experiences, the children learn the foundations of communicating in Mandarin and celebrate Chinese culture.
Physical Education
The girls participate in weekly PE sessions that encompass perceptual motor activities, physical group games and other movement experiences, such as folk dancing. These sessions allow for the strengthening of their physical being, including fitness, balance, hand eye coordination, gross motor skills, fine motor skills, spatial awareness, movement memory and self-confidence. Our students are also supported to be risk-takers and to learn the value of good sportspersonship and team comradery.
During Term 4, the Kindergarten and Pre-Prep girls participate in our Learn to Swim program. Our qualified swimming instructors nurture and support each girl to learn how to swim and develop their understanding of water safety.
Library
The girls have the opportunity to visit the School Library weekly, where they enjoy engaging storytelling experiences, develop an appreciation of books, and embrace the opportunity to borrow a book to share at home.
ELC students are introduced to Drama and Dance through creative play. The girls use colourful props, scarves and puppets as an extension of self to explore using their voices and bodies in different ways. Repetition builds their confidence and supports them to become aware of their bodies and further develop their locomotor skills. The girls also develop their listening skills as they cooperate with their educators and each other. They enjoy exploring their imaginations to adopt different character roles and improvise in games of make-believe.
Dance and Drama also provides opportunities for the girls to explore their emotions and how we express our emotions through facial expression. The girls celebrate their learning and increasing confidence by participating in small performance opportunities throughout the year.
Our ELC educational visits and excursions are used to support the whole curriculum. They both provoke and summarise the classroom learning and allow the children to transfer and adapt what they have learnt from one context to another.
Careful planning is needed to ensure the success of an excursion. Planning will include risk management assessments, as well as discussions with the girls to ensure that they understand the expectations and the rationale of the excursion.
Parents will be informed of the date of any excursion via mConnect and will be asked to provide written permission via Operoo. Excursions include all on foot excursions each term to the main school campus, and visits to the local Mentone environment, such as the beach and local reserves.
To support our students to learn how to relate to, cooperate and empathise with others, they are introduced to the Social Thinking® curriculum, ‘We Thinkers!’ written by Ryan Hendrix, Kari Palmer, Nancy Tarshis and Michelle Garcia Winner (www.socialthinking.com).
To help the girls learn how to identify and regulate their emotions, they are introduced to the Zones of Regulation Curriculum® by Leah Kuypers.
Each day, our educators encourage the girls to take increasing responsibility for their wellbeing and health – including demonstrating independence in toileting, making nutritious snack and lunch choices, and expressing their needs for rest, comfort, thirst, hunger, warmth and protection from the sun.
Mindfulness experiences and opportunities for repose allow our girls to take time to rest, calm their bodies and bring back their focus to the present.
The “No Jab, No Play” Legislation requires all parents/ guardians seeking to enrol their child at an early childhood service in Victoria to provide a current Immunisation History Statement from the Australian Immunisation Register, showing the child is up to date with all vaccinations that are due for their age, unless they are unable to be fully immunised for medical reasons.
Please note, “conscientious objection” will not be an exemption, and homeopathic immunisation will not be recognised as a form of immunisation.
The Sarah Simpson ELC Beach Kinder program is offered to both our 3-Year-Old Kindergarten and 4-Year-Old PrePrep students. Our prime location - just a hop, skip and a jump from the Mentone Beach foreshore - allows our girls the opportunity to immerse themselves in our local environment where they have the opportunity to develop an awareness of local culture, the interdependence of living things, and the impact of human choice in respect to the environment. Our Beach Kinder Program offers the girls a myriad of physical, social, wellbeing and sensory benefits, in addition to fostering independence, healthy risk-taking and problem-solving skills.
Culture
Each Beach Kinder session begins with an Acknowledgement of Country. As the students take part in this respectful community experience, they develop a meaningful connection with local Indigenous culture, a positive sense of self-identity, and respectful and responsive relationships with other people and places.
Through small group, large group and independent exploration, the girls make use of play to investigate, imagine and inquire to enhance their curiosity, knowledge and wonder. They have access to a range of scientific resources, such as microscopes, binoculars and magnifying glasses. The educators use the children’s discoveries and observations to engage in spontaneous teaching moments at the beach, in addition to guiding inquiries and learning back in the ELC.
As young environmentalists, the girls have the opportunity to explore relationships with living and non-living things, both in our Early Learning Centre and on location at the beach. Through excursions to Mentone Beach, short bus trips to Rickett’s Point Marine Sanctuary and visits from special guests, they have the opportunity to explore creatures up close and engage in stimulating discussions about marine life and the human impact on our local environment.
Our students are supported in making connections between our local environment and sustainability. Through observations at the beach, photo provocations and thought provoking picture books, the girls are encouraged to question and reflect upon the impact of humans on the environment before being supported to take action both in the classroom and during our Beach Kinder sessions.
Our Beach Kinder sessions not only utilise the natural landscape for environmental discoveries, but aim to support the development of the whole child. As we participate in sporting experiences, mindful moments, artistic expression, literacy discussions and mathematical discoveries, we provide opportunities for the girls to reflect on their needs, abilities, interests and culture.
Our daily timetable is a flexible one, which allows us to continuously meet the changing needs and interests of the students and extend their thinking through the learning environment. Most days our routines are fairly similar, although there will be variation as we travel around the School to use different facilities and attend specialist classes. Developing independence, thinking skills, creativity and a love of learning are key concepts that we want to impart to the girls each day. A typical day in our ELC may encompass:
8.00 – 8.30am ELC Before Care - Complimentary
Places are limited to 22 children only via our online booking system.
8.30 – 8.45am Arrival time
Children are encouraged to independently farewell their parent/s, greet educators and complete their morning routine of unpacking their schoolbag, washing their hands and choosing where to play.
9.00am Morning meeting time
(E.g. class discussions, stories, literacy and numeracy experiences or games)
9.30am Learning through play and inquiry
(E.g. indoor / outdoor experiences)
10.30am Morning-tea
11.00am Specialist Class
(E.g. Music, Mandarin, Library, PE or Dance & Drama)
11.30am Learning through play and inquiry
12.15pm Group time
(E.g. literacy or numeracy experiences, stories, games, music and movement)
12.30pm Lunch
1.00pm Repose
An opportunity for rest/sleep, relaxation and mindfulness
2.00pm Learning through play and inquiry
2.50pm Group time
(E.g. stories, songs, games, reflection and farewell)
3.00pm Collection time
Any student who is not collected by 3.15pm (or 3.30pm for those students with older siblings in our Junior School) will be placed into After Care with our OSHC provider, Extend (charges apply).
Starting preschool is a major life transition for both children and their families. At Mentone Girls’ Grammar we acknowledge that this transition can be challenging and exciting; and is a time for change in which children, families and educators adjust to new roles, identities, expectations, interaction and relationships.
It is our aim to make your daughter’s transition as smooth as possible. Our transition program begins the year prior to starting and continues through Term 1. At times, new girls begin during the year, and a similar introductory program is designed for each girl. For children new to our centre, we encourage families to consider shorter days of attendance in Week 1, to support your daughter to gradually settle into her new learning environment.
Our educators are available to chat before or after the educational program. Additionally, mConnect (our Learning Management System) is a one stop shop for photos, videos and anecdotes of your daughter’s learning.
It is an expectation children are toilet trained prior to beginning in the ELC, as we promote independent toileting in the Centre. Our definition of independent toileting is when children recognise when they need to use the toilet and do so. If this is not the case, please discuss this with the ELC Director prior to your child’s commencement.
Toileting accidents do happen on occasion, in which case children will be supported and made to feel comfortable. If your child has frequently occurring accidents, an action plan will be decided upon between the classroom teacher and the parents.
The benefits of our intimate ELC, ensures that our educators, families and girls experience many opportunities to interact with each other across classes and feel a sense of belonging to a community. Thus, the transition from Kindergarten to Pre-Prep is smooth, supportive and calm. Our ELC community events are a wonderful opportunity for families, staff and children to spend time together and share learning, celebrations and achievements.
Our staff recognise the importance of strong, supportive relationships for an effective transition from the ELC to the Junior School. Our well planned transition program focuses on supporting respectful, reciprocal relationships between our students, families and educators.
The Pre-Prep educators and Junior School Prep educators collaborate closely to ensure handover information about students is well understood, shared and valued.
Knowing our students, understanding their strengths and their challenges enables us to provide optimum opportunities for individual children and ensures a successful and cohesive transition to ‘big school’.
The Transition Learning and Development Statement is designed to assist families and educators to share information and specific strategies to support each child’s learning and development. The government required statement allows for parents, the child and educators to inform their Prep teachers of their learning so far. Information regarding these statements will be distributed to our Pre-Prep families and schools in Term 4.
