Early childhood is a time for young children to wonder, explore, discover and make meaning of the world. At St Catherine’s School Early Learning Centre, children are offered rich learning experiences through the educational program.

We take a holistic approach to learning and development with opportunities for the children to build upon their physical, social, emotional, personal, creative, cognitive and linguistic skills. These experiences build and expand the children’s knowledge and their understanding of the world offering a foundation for the child to transition into the next step of their educational journey once they commence Prep.

The children at the Early Learning Centre are provided with numerous learning opportunities:

Ability to interact socially and play
It is important for children to develop the essential skills to engage in reciprocal play and interaction with others, to consider other ideas, and to compromise or problem solve when things may not go to plan. These strong social opportunities in the early learning context, provide young children with the practice to develop and refine these skills.

Build on their level of independence
As young children begin trying new tasks and attempting to do things for themselves, they build on their level of independence. They develop their self-help skills in relation to managing their belongings, dressing themselves, bathroom routines and meal times. Developing competence in these areas, provides children with the confidence to independently manage these tasks when they arise during their day.

Ability to identify and regulate emotions
For successful functioning in a group context, self-regulation of emotions and behaviour is essential. Young children are faced with many challenges or demands during their busy day. It is important that they are able to adapt to changing situations, respond to tasks and bounce back when challenges arise. Resilience and flexibility are pivotal to successful functioning in the classroom context.

Expressive and receptive language skills
In the classroom environment, the ability for children to engage in reciprocal conversation with both their peers and educators is fundamental. The children also need to be able to clearly articulate their thoughts and ideas, and to follow teacher instructions. The language rich environment in the Early Learning Centre provides our young learners with opportunities to improve and build these skills.

Children require the time, space and opportunities to develop a range of skills, learnings, understandings and behaviour in their early years. This lays a strong foundation for the transition to school and successful lifelong learning. The high-quality and rich learning experiences offered at the Early Learning Centre at St Catherine’s School highlights our commitment to holistically support young children’s learning and development, and building a strong foundation for future learning.

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