Learning in the Early Learning Centre

It is wonderful to observe the learning taking place in classrooms, and the discussion, debate and laughter that can be heard as you move through Campbell House. The children are provided with such rich opportunities each and every day to explore, investigate and inquire and they do so with such enthusiasm and vigour.

Our youngest learners in the Waratah Room have recently been fascinated by sticks. Collecting sticks has become a ritual outdoors and this interest has been harnessed as a learning opportunity. The children have taken inspiration from the story, The Stick Man, to begin creating their own stick people, which has grown into a village of stick people. This has enabled the children to not only explore the natural world, but also to explore the concepts of people and family.

Mapping in the Blue Gum Room.

The learners in the Blue Gum Room have been busily working together to create a map of the city. The children have identified many different elements of the city and city life. Through the languages of drawing and painting, the children have expressed their ideas and these have been added to a large-scale map of the city. Through this process, the children have learnt about mathematical concepts such as mapping, shape, size and direction. They have also learnt about the people, roles and life within a city.

Our older learners in the Banksia Room have been engaged in an inquiry relating to emotions. The children have been identifying different emotions and depicting these emotions through the languages of drawing and photography. They have worked in small collaborative groups to design, sew and construct a puppet that represents a particular emotion. These puppets will be used as props to assist the children to identify how they are feeling in various play situations or social interactions and to express their emotions in appropriate ways.

Children in the Wattle Room exploring the concept of air travel.

The children in the Wattle Room have been fascinated by all things relating to flight. They have recently transformed an area of their classroom into an airport as they explore the concept of air travel and make connections with culture. This was inspired by some of the children’s travels over the holiday break. The children are exploring different roles within the airport and airline industry and making geographical connections to various travel destinations. This is a great opportunity for the children to learn more about flight, travel, culture and geography.

It is exciting to see these inquiries unfolding in the Early Learning Centre classrooms and to observe the children’s level of engagement and contribution to collaborative learning.

Ms Sarah Bethune, ELC Coordinator