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Marrickville Centre
Inner West Sydney Childcare Centre

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Our Philosophy – Marrickville

Lee’s Learning Centre Marrickville Philosophy

“Our philosophy is the foundation of the culture we are setting”

Our philosophy has been inspired and guided by our knowledge of current research, The Early Childhood Association Code of Ethics, The National Quality Standards and The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia – Belonging, Being and Becoming 2009.

Belonging – acknowledges children’s interdependence with others (family, a cultural group, a neighbourhood and a wider community) and the basis of relationships in defining identities.

Being – recognises the importance of the here and now in children’s lives.

Becoming – reflects the process of rapid and significant change that occurs in the early years.

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Community

Lee’s Learning believes:
In acknowledging the valuable contribution that the community can make towards the holistic development of each child. We do this by fostering links between the children, their families and the broader community. Connections with our local community encourages a sense of belonging and an awareness of broader social networks.

Lee’s learning is committed to charitable work and educating our children about the importance of helping others. Encouraging children to be generous can strengthen their attitudes towards helping others. Teaching children about global issues and encouraging empathy can help them better engage with people from a range of cultures and backgrounds. By educating children on causes and how they can create an impact, we are also empowering them to create change and to stand up for their beliefs in the future.

Lee’s Learning Centre recognises that the traditional owners of the land are Gadigal and Wangal Clans of the Eora Nation. The Aboriginal name for the area is Bulanaming.

By actively seeking engagement and consultation with our local Indigenous community we continue the traditions of teaching, loving and learning on this land. Our centre respects and deeply connects with the land on which we are situated and use it to foster children’s love of their natural surroundings.

Educators

Lee’s Learning believes:
In our educators representing our centre philosophy through our daily practice. We value each unique educator’s input and ideas that can be shared in a supportive and collaborative work environment. As a team, we have a strong belief in striving for continuous improvement and professional development. Our Educators are encouraged to take part in professional development during the year to further their knowledge and skills.

Educators’ practices and the relationships they form with children and families have a significant effect on children’s involvement and success in learning. Children thrive when families and educators work together in partnership to support their learning.

As educators, we support children’s independence and agency by encouraging them to have a ‘voice’ in what is going on around them. We do this by welcoming and responding thoughtfully and respectfully to their questions and ideas and, where possible, incorporating their ideas and suggestions when we plan and implement experiences. Encouraging children to have a voice in what goes on means sharing some of our power and control, but it also helps to promote a more positive, open and cooperative dynamic between adults and children.

We believe that Children progress well when they, their educators hold high expectations for their achievement in learning.

Children

Lee’s Learning believes:
Each child is a valued individual with unique interests and strengths. Educators guide children to make positive choices about their learning and development. Most of a child’s learning takes place during their first 6 years of life. All the

experiences a child has in this time contribute to the kind of people they will eventually become. Learning and development takes place through the medium of the child exploring their environment. The most common term for this form of learning is “play”.

Developmental play enables children to learn through concrete “hands-on” experiences such as doing, experimenting, predicting, achieving, and making mistakes.

We believe all children, have a right to be treated with fairness and equity, have the same opportunities for participation and are accepted as valued members of the community.

Through the implementation of the Early Years Learning Framework and the NSW National Quality Framework we build on children’s interests and knowledge as individuals within the group and wider community.

Children’s strengths and interests provides the foundation for Lee’s Learning educational program which is accessible for each child and family. In turn, this makes learning meaningful and enjoyable.

Each child is different, so we need to use a variety of teaching styles and be open to a variety of perspectives about child learning.

We help build their self-help skills and promote a positive attitude to encourage high self-worth. This promotes lifelong emotional intelligence.

Families

Lee’s Learning believes:
Families are children’s first and most influential educators. Learning outcomes are more likely to be achieved when early childhood educators work in partnership with families. We acknowledge that families come from a diverse range of cultures with differing practices, values and beliefs and these are to be respected and honoured by the centre, educators and program.

We believe in creating a welcoming home like environment. All families can feel safe, respected and comfortable collaborating with educators about curriculum decisions in order to ensure that learning experiences are meaningful to their children. A family–educator collaboration is very important to us when planning of quality outcomes for children.

At Lee’s Learning Centre we strive to create genuine partnerships with our families. This is accomplished through communicating freely and respectfully with each other. Our ‘open door’ policy encourages families to come into our service and take part in their children’s learning and participate in any events held at the service, in turn, this will build a sense of community within our centre.

Living document

Our philosophy is a living document and it is made available to everyone involved in the centre. All staff are supportive, understand and contribute to our philosophy. In order to ensure the philosophy continually reflects current understandings about the way children develop and how child care informs their experiences, we perform periodic collaboration with parents, children, management, staff, the wider community and all other stakeholders.