The Red Nose organisation has long been a reliable source for early childhood services, as well as families all over Australia. Instrumental from its earliest days in research to prevent ‘cot death’, Red Nose continues to fund life-saving research, advocacy and public education about all forms of sudden, unexpected deaths in infancy. The most recent […]
Be alert not alarmed Fear of digital devices including iPads for young children is an ‘archetypal moral panic’, according to Professor Nicola Yelland, currently at Flinders University in South Australia and heading for the role of Professor of Early Childhood Studies at the University of Melbourne in 2019. Amplify editor Bec Lloyd interviewed Prof Yelland […]
1.3 million children, 900,000 families While the ALP has drawn sector attention with its record-breaking election commitment to the early childhood education sector, other news was released last week from Education Minister Dan Tehan’s office. If you’ve been using older national data for your reports or research, make sure you update your figures now. According to […]
After we shared on Amplify the expertise of learning specialist Kerrie Maguire in developing an early childhood education service Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP), your responses confirmed that creating a RAP is a high priority and linked to your Quality Improvement Plan (QIP) goals. Since there’s nothing educators like more than learning from colleagues’ experiences and […]
Positive psychology, values education, character strengths: these terms are increasingly common in both schools and workplaces, but not yet mainstream in early learning settings. Victorian educator Lisa Baker talks about her research into character strengths and values in a Victorian early years service attached to a school. The program is, she says, boosting children’s wellbeing […]
Do as I say, not as I do, is an old adage. Has it outlived its time in a children’s learning setting? How much should children be expected to share their toys, for example, when adults prize ownership and privacy above many other values in our community? By CELA writer Margaret Paton One of your […]
We continue sharing stories to help your early learning service compile its Reconciliation Action Plans (RAP). Writer Margaret Paton spoke to CELA’s Learning and Development Specialist, Kerrie Maguire, who offers starting points for services to begin to acknowledge and respect Aboriginal Australia. This article is presented in Kerrie’s words, shared directly with you. Begin the […]
Last month we shared a story on the startling $30,000 pay gap that exists between teachers who have the same kinds of degrees and same kinds of responsibilities: early childhood teachers, after 10 years of work, can expect to earn $30K less than their colleagues in primary schools. Clearly, it struck a chord. The article shot instantly […]
Darren Brisbane returns to Amplify with another practical, thoughtful post addressing a major pain-point in outside school hours care (OSHC): how do you keep senior students occupied? With a leap in his service’s senior student numbers this year, Darren’s team had to get creative. 2018 has been an interesting year for Sherpa Kids St Paul’s. […]
Two-thirds of Australia’s children’s services provide food each day, and those meals and snacks can provide up to 70% of a child’s daily nutrients. With an average daily budget of $4.50 per child, how well are we catering for individual needs? A new, free, Australian Health Department website promises to tick all those boxes when […]
