Glen Education Bentleigh East

Nature Appreciation

Tracey Burns, Early Childhood Educator

At Glen Bentleigh East Kindergarten, we believe in the importance of connecting children to nature.  We encourage children to immerse themselves in experiences with natural materials to promote curiosity, creativity, imagination, problem solving, confidence in an effort to cultivate a love of the earth and a respect for natural environments. 

Alongside time spent in nature, either in the garden or on local outings into the community, we utilise the materials that nature affords us, as a way of extending children's natural curiosities and expression through art.  On the 5th March 2024, for example, we invited children to participate in 'Nature painting'. This experience encouraged children to use natural items such as sand,  sticks and leaves within their art creations. Natural resources are a great way to promote open ended learning, as they deliver interesting textures and applications. 

Engaging in experiences such as this, supports children to learn about the world we live in and embeds a culture of respect for the natural environments surrounding us. This experience also assists in enriching the children's senses, which, in turn, supports emotional wellbeing and emotional regulation.  

"Play-based learning capitalises on children’s natural inclination to be curious, explore and learn. Children actively construct their own understandings that contribute to their own learning" 

(BELONGING, BEING & BECOMING: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia, 2022).

We chose to document this experience and share this with you, as we believe this is one experience that captures the essence of Glen Bentleigh East Kindergarten and our beliefs. It is an example of how we have captured a moment when children have embraced opportunities that are provided for them within a variety of learning spaces to discover, create and imagine.  When we create quality learning environments we make learning visible.