RGS Early Learning Centre

Welcome to the The Rockhampton Grammar School Early Learning Centre The Rockhampton Grammar School Early Learning Centre is on Darumbal land.

We acknowledge and show respect for the Darumbal People and their elders past, present and emerging.

My name is Adeina Shackleton.

I am the Nominated Supervisor for the Early Learning Centre, Kindergarten Unit and Outside School Hours Care.

I want to thank you for taking the time to watch our virtual information session.

OUR HISTORY The Board of Trustees for The Rockhampton Grammar School acquired the centre from the Athelstane Child Care Association Inc and has been operating as The Rockhampton Grammar School Early Learning Centre since 1st February 2007.

The service has expanded from a 3 room service to now having 8 classes including two Long Day Care Kindergarten Programs, a Stand alone Kindergarten program and an Outside School Hours program.

We cater for children from 6 weeks to 5 years with a licensed capacity of 138 children per day.

OUR WHY???

As educators we often talk and reflect on WHY we do what we do.

• We want to make a difference in each child’s life in their early years.

• We want to make sure we are providing the best possible outcomes for all children and their families.

• We want to build connections with our families and the community.

• We uphold the principles of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in that all children have a right to an education that lays the foundation for the rest of their lives, maximises their abilities and respects their family, culture and other identities and languages.

OUR STAFF • Our service is managed by our Nominated Supervisor (Adeina Shackleton) and supported by the Assistant Director and Educational Leader.

• Between the three services we employ 40 staff members on a both a permanent and part time basis.

• The majority of our educators are long term serving staff members, meaning we have a very low staff turnover.

• All of our Educators are either qualified (with the majority Diploma qualified or higher) or working towards their qualifications.

• All our educators are trained in First Aid/CPR, Safe Guarding Children (Child Protection), Fire Training and Safe Food Handling.

• In times Educators are absent we use a pool of consistent relief educators to ensure familiarity with our service families, policies and practices.

• Our educators meet regularly to discuss, plan and evaluate the effectiveness of our programs to ensure we are continuing to provide high quality education and care and meet the needs of our families.

OPENING HOURS The Early Learning Centre is opened

6:30 am to 6:00 pm Monday to Friday We are closed Weekends and Public Holidays

RATING AND ASSESSMENT Research shows quality education and care early in life leads to better health, education and employment outcomes later in life.

The early years are critical for establishing self-esteem, resilience, healthy growth and capacity to learn. Quality education and care shapes every child’s future and lays the foundation for development and learning.

The major benefits for parents and children include: •

improved educator to child ratios, ensuring children have greater individual care and attention

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educators with increased skills and qualifications

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better support for children’s learning and development through approved learning frameworks

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consistent, transparent information on educators, providers and services in the national registers.

Source: https://www.acecqa.gov.au/nqf/about

All services are assessed against the 7 National Quality Standards.

The Early Learning Centre, our Kindergarten Unit and our Outside School Hours services are all rated as:

WE PROVIDE: •

Nappies and wipes – We supply Huggies Nappies, Nappy Pants and wipes.

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Sunscreen and Insect Repellent

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Enrolment Pack – Each child is provided with an enrolment pack once their $100 enrolment deposit has been paid. The pack consists of:

Shirt •

Hat

Sheet Set

Sheet Bag

Water Bottle

Meals – At the Early Learning Centre we provide Morning Tea, Lunch and Afternoon Tea. We have a cook on site who prepares Morning and Afternoon Tea and our lunch time meals are prepared at our school kitchen and transported over. We ensure meals are varied and healthy, meeting Nutritional Guidelines and children’s dietary requirements as guided by Feed Australia. See our sample menu.

Sample of our Weekly Menu:

FEES • Our fees are set by the Board of Trustees for The Rockhampton Grammar School and are reviewed annually.

• Our Nursery, Junior Toddler, Toddler and Senior Toddler room is $108 per day.

• Our Pre Kindy and Kindy Rooms are $106 per day.

CHILDCARE SUBSIDY • Families who meet the criteria can apply for Childcare Subsidy through their MyGov account.

• Once applied the Childcare Subsidy is distributed directly to the service resulting in a reduction of your fees and Parents will then be responsible for paying the Gap to the service.

• For more information on Childcare Subsidy care-subsidy

https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/individuals/services/centrelink/child-

HEALTH AND SAFETY •

Our service has appointed fire and workplace health and safety officers.

Educators are also trained in the use of Fire Extinguishers and First Aid/CPR procedures.

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We practice regular fire evacuation and lock down procedures.

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We complete risk assessments on our environments and activities to ensure safe practices. These are available for parents to view in our reception area.

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We are a well centre – we encourage families to keep their children at home who are unwell and have in place a 24 hour exclusion policy for fevers, vomiting and diarrhoea.

We complete daily checklists to ensure the environments are safe, clean and well maintained.

OUR CURRICULUM •

Our Service Philosophy and Practices support the National Early Learning Years Framework – Belonging, Being and Becoming, the Queensland Kindergarten Guidelines and incorporates the Dimensions of Learning – Habits of Mind.

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Our service offers a play based curriculum that enhances the children’s interests, development of independence skills, gain an understanding of the world around them and engage in positive social interactions.

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We believe children are competent and capable and as such give them opportunities for developing their own ideas, engaging in calculated risks and problem solving.

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We develop a sense of belonging by creating partnerships with families. We acknowledge Families are the child’s first educators and as such we wish to incorporate your knowledge of your child into our programs by extending on interests, routines, culture, and values.

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We utilise environments as the third teacher in that they provide opportunities for extending ideas, teach children about caring for and respecting their environment and facilitate how play evolves.

PARENT INVOLVEMENT

We invite you to become involved in our program.

Spend time in our rooms and playgrounds.

Play with your child and their friends.

Share a special talent with us.

Teach us about your culture or special family celebrations.

Read our reflections and your child’s journal.

Talk about our activities with your child.

Share aspects of your home life with us.

NURSERY • •

AGE GROUP: 6 WEEKS TO 15 MONTHS RATIO: 8 CHILDREN / 2 EDUCATORS

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We believe our Nursery Room is a healthy, hygienic and nurturing environment for the babies to learn and explore every day.

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We display lots of photos of the babies playing and have resources and experiences that follow their interests to help them feel a strong sense of belonging to the room.

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We are down on the floor, playing and having lots of positive interactions with all the babies so they can continue developing important skills and milestones.

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Our learning environment is inclusive and diverse which helps the babies learn about themselves, their families and other cultures.

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We communicate with our families regularly to know all we can about their baby and let them know what they are learning here at the centre. We use communication books for daily routines, a daily journal outlining our experiences and learning (which is also emailed to families regularly throughout the week) and fortnightly Facebook posts for even more family input to our program.

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Our sleep room is darkened and relaxing, and the babies fall asleep to white noise sounds of ocean waves in the soft light of the salt lamp.

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Our playroom is set up with enough space for all the children to practice their new skills and have plenty of opportunity to socialise with their peers and educators.

JUNIOR TODDLER •

Age Group: 15 months to 2 years

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Ratio: 12 Children / 3 Educators

• In the Junior Toddler room you will find experienced, qualified, and passionate staff.

• We provide the highest level of care to ensure your child feels safe and that the ELC is their home away from home.

• Our main goal is to ensure children have a strong sense of well-being and are given the opportunities to reach their highest potential.

• We strive to build quality relationships with our families to be able to work collaboratively and value each others contribution to and roles in each child’s life.

• We start building the foundations for developing children’s self-help and independence skills.

• We provide a language rich program to help develop children’s verbal skills.

TODDLER

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Age Group: 2 years to 2.5 years (Children turning 2 between January – June) Ratio: 15 Children / 3 Educators

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In the Toddler Room you’ll find an open, home like space which is divided into zones to promote different types of learning, engagement and play.

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Our room is filled with colourful artwork created by the Toddlers, stimulating displays and family photos.

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We offer a balance of child initiated experiences, spontaneous play and intentional teaching activities.

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Educators develop secure and meaningful relationships with the children and families in our care, and we feel that family participation within our program is very valuable. We encourage our families to offer feedback, contribute information and offer suggestions at any time.

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We pride ourselves on our responsiveness to children and therefore our flexible routines reflect children’s needs and requirements.

SENIOR TODDLER •

We offer fun, inclusive and hands on learning experiences

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We believe in Family connectedness – building positive relationships with our families and valuing their input into our program.

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We endorse a nurturing and holistic approach to children’s wellbeing

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We facilitate an appreciation and respect for our world, the environment and ways we can contribute to a sustainable future.

Age Group: 2.5 years to 3 years (Children turning 3 between July and December)

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Ratio: 15 Children / 3 Educators

PRE KINDY 1

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Age Group: 2.5 years to 4 years

(Children turning

3 between January and June)

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Ratio: 22 Children / 3 Educators

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We offer a welcoming homelike environment for your child and family.

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We engage children in play-based learning to support the children’s development towards the outcomes within the Early Years Learning Framework.

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We provide a fun, stimulating and engaging curriculum to extend on the children’s developmental needs, interests and skills.

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We pride ourselves on building strong relationships with the children and families in our care. We are partners in your child’s learning journey.

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We support children to develop their own learning, ideas and interests and help to facilitate these through the provision of resources, discussions and activities.

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We start preparing your children for their Kindy year by focusing on self-help skills (using utensils, packing up after meal times, dressing after toileting, toilet training).

PRE KINDY 2 • •

Age Group: 3 years to 4 years (Children turning 4 between July and December) Ratio: 22 Children / 3 Educators

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We provide a warm welcoming environment for the children to come in and have a safe secure place to play and learn.

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We work in partnership with the parents to further the learning of your child/ren

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We strongly believe in a play base environment for the children to learn and develop their knowledge and skills inside and outside

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We believe all children learn at their own pace

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Every child is respected and valued for who they are (culture, personality)

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We focus on self-help skills (using utensils, packing up after meal times, dressing after toileting, toilet training)

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We celebrate the children’s culture within the room by acknowledging special events throughout the year

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Every child has a voice

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In term 4 we focus on skills the children will need to prepare for Kindy even if we have touched on these throughout the year. Eg. Cutting with scissors, writing with a pencil, writing their name, putting their own sunscreen on

KINDY RED

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Age Group: 4 years to 5 years (Children will by 4 by 30th June) Ratio: 22 Children / 2 Educators Teacher: Ms Emma Huf

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Kindergarten is all about developing holistically through play and social interactions.

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Here at the ELC we have qualified professional educators to assist your child on their learning journey.

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We have a magnificent playground with sensational views of the city provoking many opportunities for learning, engaging with nature and discussions about our community.

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The Kindy Rooms are purpose built with space for children to engage in wide array of intentionally planned and self chosen activities.

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Fabulous resources are available to children through specialist PE, Music and Art teachers; and our outdoor educational and recreational facilities like the school farm and our beach campus at Ritamada.

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Our relationship with the broader school community helps make the children’s transition to Prep so much easier.

We believe our room environment is extremely important in encouraging learning and providing spaces that cater to the individual needs and learning styles of the children. In our room we promote inclusiveness and respect for everyone. This is aligned with a ‘Bucket Filling’ program, which we use to encourage kindness, self-control, resilience and being a good friend to everyone.

• Within our room we incorporate quiet spaces for solitary play and relaxation such as a fairy garden, a science exploration area and a variety of puzzles. We also have a quiet reading area with large cushions.

• We have a Loose Parts play space, which also incorporates Trinkets and Treasures and creates a lot of conversation and explorative play.

• We have an Art space with freely accessible resources for the children to use however they wish.

• Children can self select games, construction and puzzles,

• We also have a ‘Letter of the Week’ space with a variety of literacy activities the children can use.

• We have an Art Gallery and a Photo Gallery, which we believe promotes a sense of belonging.

• We have a Cultural display area, featuring the different cultures in our room and the places families have travelled to.

• The children’s Learning Folders are accessible for them to look through and our room documentation is prominently displayed.

KINDY BLACK •

Age Group: 4 years to 5 years (Children will by 4 by 30th June)

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Ratio: 22 Children / 2 Educators Teacher: Mr Raymond Carrington

SENIOR PLAYGROUND Our Senior Playground is shared between our Toddler, Senior Toddler, Pre Kindy and Kindy rooms.

The outdoor space incorporates a number of areas for children to be physically active and also take time for rest and relaxation. Educators set up experiences to help challenge and engage children in problem solving, safe risk taking and interactions with others.

The service promotes sustainable practices and as such Educators engage children in activities such as gardening edible produce, composting, being water wise and energy conscious.

Activities are set up to continue supporting children’s interests and experiences from outside the service.

We are a Sun Safe service and provide lots of shaded areas for children to play in.

SPECIALIST LESSONS Our connections to the School means we have access to Specialist lessons for our Pre Kindy and Kindy Children.

Teachers from the School facilitate and engage in these lessons with the children.

Art

Music

Physical Education

KINDERGARTEN UNIT – BEASLEY CENTRE •

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We have a Stand-alone Kindergarten Program on our School Campus.

This program operates 8:20 am – 3:10 pm during Term time.

Age Group: 4 years to 5 years (Children will by 4 by 30th June)

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Ratio: 22 Children / 2 Educators Teacher: Mrs Natalie Bain Fees: $52 per day. This service does not attract Childcare Subsidy.

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The Kindy Unit children have access to our specialist Lessons in Music, PE and Art. Being on the school campus also gives us access to other areas of the school such as the Library, Oval, Dance Theatre and Prep Classrooms.

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This in turns makes transitioning to Prep easier as children are already familiar with the environment

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Our curriculum focuses on Play Based Learning providing many rich opportunities for children

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Unlike the Early Learning Centre, children at the Kindy Unit bring their own Lunch box which helps prepare children for school. Educators engage children in conversations around healthy eating and making positive food choices.

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We are small Kindy Unit community creating a close family environment. We also host family experiences outside of Kindy environment eg Mums Night Out, Family Gatherings to further enhance our community

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We use Class Dojo for Digital Portfolios and keeping families up to date throughout the day of our events and experiences. We also use Learning Journals for the children to access and reflect on their learning.

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Cultural celebrations are encouraged with such a culturally diverse group of families.

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We participate in diverse Excursion experiences including opportunities to give back to the community.

OUTSIDE SCHOOL HOURS CARE We operate an Outside School Hours Care program on our school campus for our School Age Children.

This program shares the same room as our Kindergarten Unit.

Before School Care

After School Care

Vacation Care

• This service operates from 6:20 am to 8:20 am, Monday to Friday, during term time.

• This service operates from 3:10 pm to 6:00 pm, Monday to Friday, during term time.

• This service operates from 6:30 am to 6:00 pm, Monday to Friday, during School Holidays.

• This service is for children attending The Rockhampton Grammar School.

• This service is for children attending The Rockhampton Grammar School.

• This service is for children attending all schools in the Rockhampton Region.

• We provide breakfast for the children before they head off to school to ensure they get the best start to their day.

• We provide an afternoon snack for the children.

• During Vacation Care parents are to provide Morning Tea, Lunch and Afternoon Tea for their child/ren.

• Children in Prep are walked up to the classroom by our Educators and helped to settle in. The older children take themselves to their classrooms from 8 am onwards.

• During the mornings children can finish off homework or engage in a variety of play experiences.

• Fees $11.50 per day (subject to CCS)

• Children in Prep are collected from the classroom by our Educators and helped to settle in. The older children make their own way to the Outside School Hours Room after the final bell.

• During the afternoons children can commence homework or engage in a variety of play or creative experiences.

• Children who also attend after school cocurricular activities are supported to transition to and from the service if required.

• Fees $24 per day (subject to CCS)

• At Vacation Care the children engage in a range of in-service activities and excursions out into local community.

• The children are separated into two Groups – our Senior Group (Children in Grade 4 and above) and our Junior Group (Prep – Grade 3).

Activities and experiences are planned based on the interests and appropriateness to the these age groups.

• Fees $68 per day (subject to CCS). Excursion costs are additional.

CLOSED FACEBOOK Our Service has a closed Facebook Page for Parents of our enrolled families.

On this page we share information about what has been happening in the rooms, messages from our Management Team and details for upcoming events.

For those families who don’t use Facebook we also send this information via email and it is displayed in our rooms.

Families will sign a media authorisation form upon enrolment as to whether they choose to have photos of their child displayed on the Facebook group. Families are also asked not to share photos outside of this group especially if there are other children in the photo.

PARENT POCKETS Each family is assigned a pocket found in or near your child’s room.

We use these to pass on any printed materials such as Book Club, Permission Forms, Immunisation Reminders and Birthday certificates.

Families are asked to check their pockets at least once a week.

SECURE ENTRY • •

We have a secure entry system into the service.

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All other visitors need to be provided access by a staff member.

Only parents who have children enrolled at the service are given an access code and are asked not to share their code with anyone else.

WAIT LIST • You have reached the end of the virtual tour.

• You can now complete the Waitlist Application form. This is a fillable PDF so you can complete it and email it straight back to us.

• Once added you will remain on the list until such time as you notify us that you no longer require care with us or your child has reached school age.

• If you are registering a baby who has yet to be born, please make sure you contact us to update the details once your baby has arrived.

• Currently our centre is full across all rooms. We commence our rebooking process for the coming year in August and by October, start offering any available places to our Waitlist Families.

• If you are planning to enrol your child at The Rockhampton Grammar School you will need to contact the school Registrar on 4936 0700 or registrar@rgs.qld.edu.au to obtain a prospectus.