Glen Education Glover Street

Working in Partnership with Families

Jodie Goldfinch, Early Childhood Educator 

Collaborative partnerships enhance children’s inclusion, learning and wellbeing. Families are at the heart of what we do. You are so important to your children and the stories they share with us are always filled with love and pride; their family is the best one in the whole world! You are their first teachers, their protectors, their biggest fans, and greatest advocates. 

We are privileged to share in their learning journeys and to collaborate with you to ensure their success. The partnerships that we establish with families make it possible for us to achieve greater outcomes for children. What you share deepens our understanding of who they are, what they need, and what interests they have. We become a village that has the children’s needs at its core. 

These partnerships are where the magic happens! We work together to make sure the needs of the whole child are supported so they can thrive and achieve the goals you have for them. We also know that partnerships come in all shapes and sizes. For some it’s a quick hello, while for others its talking through strategies to maintain consistency between home and kindergarten.  Some families have a skill or occupation that they’d like to share with the group. Others come and help care for the garden or stay and play. Some accompany us as we undertake our excursions into the local community.

Our collaborations also provide rich learning opportunities about diversity.  They support us to honour traditions and celebrations that are important to the children and families in our community.

Getting out and about in the local community allows the children to feel connected to it, we meet the neighbours and say hi, admire the beautiful gardens, and learn to be respectful as we admire the gardens from the footpath. 

When we visit local businesses, the children take on the role of shoppers, exploring their independence, and practicing road safety as we walk to and from our destinations.  Being active participants in the community gives the children a sense of pride and builds confidence as they realise how capable they are. These experiences support the development of social responsibility which they will apply throughout their whole lives.

A big thank you to Lachlan Natoli a parent from our Echidna Group for sharing his thoughts and experiences with us:

We have had a long and happy history with Glover Street Kindergarten. Our first kid Jack started there in 2013 and throughout the years since, we have sent three more knuckleheads through the doors. Our last one is there now and is in her last 6 months. Having the benefit of seeing kids develop post Kinder it is easy to see how instrumental the Kinder year/s have been in making them who they are. 

Also vital to their Kinder experience has been the inclusion of family in the day to day kinder life. The five or ten minutes spent with our kid doing a tour of the sandpit, the locker room and the art section for the 4,000th time doesn't seem that valuable to me but on reflection it is time well invested and encourages confidence, self pride and good communication. Then for the kids to be able to seamlessly pass from the care of the parent to the educator has been an important process for all of our kids. Although not obvious it is a delicate collaboration between us and the educator and it makes the kids feel safe and secure - a perfect starting point for a day of learning and deep play.

Parents over the years have had amazing contributions to make that have enriched our kids learning experiences. Countless times the kinder has organised a parent with a special skill or talent to spend time with the kids and it is a highlight for many of them, particularly when it has been coupled with the associated learnings set up by the kinder staff. A real group effort to provide these kids with positive learning experiences. 

Sometimes I can't wait to drop the kids off because, let's face it they are real pain in the neck a lot of the time. I shouldn't take for granted though the existence of kinder as a huge learning and development institution and the effect that my input along with the great work the educators do - which will turn our little pain in the necks into good and decent humans.

- Lachlan Natoli

We are very happy to be back out in the community and to have our families back in the kindergarten this year. This was one of the trickiest things to navigate as we minimised the covid-19 risks over the past two years. Limiting access to the indoor environment meant that the opportunities to connect with the community and face to face with families was minimal. Welcoming everyone back has been fantastic for us and amazing for the children.