Rated as Exceeding National Quality Standard, our approach embraces children’s identity and wellbeing through community, participation and agency. These important elements are central to all that we do, guiding our work alongside children and families. We are passionate about the role of play and understand that children’s learning unfolds in infinite and unrestricted directions when they are purposefully connected to the people, materials and environments that surround them.
Friends’ Early Learning is guided by the School’s Purpose and Concerns and strives to create authentic contexts for children’s relationships, skills and understandings to grow. We embrace Quaker values from the very first days of children’s participation as we build challenging, engaging, significant and relevant programs that cater for all children’s learning journeys.
Embracing simplicity at Friends’ Early Learning gives definition and connection to our community of learners through a core focus on the intrinsic worth of every person, the careful selection and use of purposeful resources and thorough attention to acts of compassion and generosity towards others.
Living peacefully is a thread that connects daily experiences and interactions. Developing peaceful relationships, effective self-regulation and communication skills supports children to understand themselves, others and the world around them in deeper and more harmonious ways.
Acting with Integrity is an enduring focus for everyone in our Centre; it shapes our interactions, gives definition to our rights and responsibilities and makes visible our intentions and principles through everyday action.
The Learning Community at Friends’ Early Learning is central to everything we do. Built on positive and trusting relationships we strive to encourage and support children and families’ well-being, self-efficacy and agency through inclusion, intention and collaboration.
Equality is a value that guides the practices, systems and approaches we bring to every aspect of care and education. Listening is the heart of our practice, ensuring that everyone’s voice is able to be heard and that divergent perspectives continue to guide our collective understandings, decisions and directions in learning.
The learning environment is thoughtfully designed and resourced with earthcare in mind. Our programs encourage children to encounter the earth, natural materials and environments in sincere and respectful ways, building awareness and shared dispositions of responsibility.