our program plan

1. “Educators at CCS are committed to using a curriculum approach to program planning that allows it to be developed on an ongoing cycle, based on children’s interests, culture and developmental needs.” our program plan Coonamble children’s services Inc.

2. Preface The purpose of this document is to give families, educators and the wider community new and existing, an insight into our program planning. The children, their families, educators and wider community are what makes a service thrive successfully. Building a quality learning environment for children should include time, space and support, where skills and knowledge can flourish. The Presentation will include- • Overview of National Quality framework (NQF), National Quality Standards (NQS), and Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) • How we program • Importance of ‘partnerships’ with families and the wider community.

3. National quality framework(NQF) Wikipedia definition on the National Quality Framework: “TheNational Quality Framework (or NQF) is part of the Australian Government’s agenda for early childhood education and child care focused on providing Australian families with high-quality, accessible and affordable integrated early childhood education and child care. The NQF aims to raise quality and drive continuous improvement and consistency in education and care services through: • a national legislative framework • a National Quality Standard • a national quality rating and assessment process • a new national body called the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA). The National Quality Framework took effect on 1 January 2012 with key requirements being phased in over time. Requirements such as qualification, educator-to-child ratios and other key staffing arrangements will be phased in between 2012 and 2020.” For more information click on the link below http://acecqa.gov.au/national-quality-framework

4. National quality standard(NQS) The National Quality Standard (NQS) is a key aspect of the NQF and sets a national benchmark for early childhood education and care, and outside school hours care services in Australia. As the NQF progresses, every service in the country will be assessed to make sure it meets the new quality standard. In the meantime, as safety is paramount all day and every day, every service must comply with rigorous health and safety requirements. To ensure children enjoy the best possible conditions in their early educational and developmental years, the NQS promotes continuous improvement in quality. The major benefits for parents and children include: • improved educator to child ratios • greater individual care and attention for children • educators with increased skills and qualifications • better support for children’s learning and development • a national register to help parents assess the quality of education and care services in their area. (ACECQA website) See more at: http://acecqa.gov.au/national-quality-framework/the-national-quality-standard#sthash.5WX9lz3A.dpuf

5. NQS Continued… The National Quality Standard (NQS) is a key aspect of the NQF. The NQS consists of seven quality areas, each containing standards and elements, that children's education and care services are assessed and rated against. The seven quality areas covered by the National Quality Standard are: • Educational program and practice • Children’s health and safety • Physical environment • Staffing arrangements • Relationships with children • Collaborative partnerships with families and communities • Leadership and service management See more at: http://www.acecqa.gov.au/Quality-Areas#sthash.vcyhyTsK.dpuf

6. Quality area 1- educational program & practice - See more at: http://www.acecqa.gov.au/Educational-program-and-practice#sthash.vjFdQGDC.dpuf The Quality Area Educational program and practice requires education and care services to have an educational program that meets children’s individual learning and development needs. The knowledge, ideas, culture, abilities and interests of your child should be incorporated into the program, with continuous assessment of your child’s learning and development. Quality Area 1: Standards and elements

7. Early years learning framework (EYLF) The national framework created in 2009- Belonging, Being and Becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework- underpins all early childhood programs and outlines learning for children aged 0-5 years. The vision the government has is that children will develop their identity through their experiences in life within their families and communities. This is characterised by their sense of Belonging, who they are Being and who they are becoming, based on these life experiences. The EYLF encourages educators to use an emergent curriculum (program) as it supports a model of curriculum decision-making as an ongoing cycle. We are encouraged to discover children’s interests, work out appropriate ways of teaching to support those interests and design the program around those. The EYLF aims to achieve the highest expectations for all children. These expectations are categorised under the: • 5 Learning Outcomes • 5 Principles • 8 Practices The Outcomes are used to assist our understanding of why we do what we do, and how the learning outcomes are facilitated by the experiences the children are having throughout each day and by the teaching we provide. The Principles outlined in the EYLF are the representative of the current theories of children’s learning and the educator’s professional practice. Educators are aware of these, but are now encouraged to incorporate them as part of the language used when planning programs. The eight aspects of practice outlined in the EYLF are underpinned by the principles, and are the basis of promoting children’s learning. It is essential for educators to be aware of these when supporting the learning of young children. For more information click on the link below: https://www.coag.gov.au/sites/default/files/early_years_learning_framework.pdf

8. THE PROGRAM guide There are four interlinking aspects to the program. • Mind map • Power point (reflective journals) • Children’s journals/ Celebration of achievement Checklist • Educator room Diaries The program will continue to evolve as living documents. They are ever changing in appearance and function and are determined by the interests of the children and their families. Some of the influences on the program such as intentional teaching, child and Parent input, might trigger very large learning projects that run over a month or more. The reflection process (power point& Achievement checklist) will help you keep track of the experiences and the overall program.

9. THE PROGRAM IN ACTION Mind map • Parents, Children, & Educators contribute to the learning process daily and can be extended on for long periods of time. • All educators are to be involved in each of the rooms mind mapping (each room will have their own colour blue, red or yellow to indicate what room they are from). • At the end of every day a photo of the mind map must be taken as evidence, this will be filed in each room’s program folder for future reference. Power point (Reflective journal) • The power point presentation expands from the mind map giving the reader an in-depth understanding of the learning carried out in each of the rooms. • The Power point display is designed for families and educators, so that it becomes a reflection journal • Photos, child observations (group & individual) & videos are taken on a daily basis relating to the experiences of the day. Children’s Journals A learning story is a brief account or snap shot of learning, written from a positive perspective of a child or group of children. This will be visible to parents on the daily power point and then filed in the children’s journals to be viewed at any time and taken home at the end of the year. Each journal includes: • Individual or group observations • Paintings or any other creations made by the children • Special yearly events • Photos Diaries (educators only) Writing a personal reflection journal helps educators to remember some of the details of the program we have run for the day/ week. It helps to outline all the things that emerged in the program and design some ideas to support the ongoing learning for the children. It also helps educators to note down what did not work and why. The diary includes the following: • Critical reflections- Educators • Group dynamics • Any other additional information

10. Other contributions to the program Centre philosophy The Centre philosophy needs to be clearly identified on the program. It outlines the beliefs and theories of teaching that all educators, families and wider community at the service follow. The philosophy can be found displayed in each room and front entrance and will be linked to the programs’ power point display. Children’s Celebration of Achievement Charts The purpose of this document is to keep educators and families up to date with what each child is achieving during their time at the centre. It is to be cited regularly by educators with dates the child has achieved each outcome. It is filed in each child’s journal to encourage families to view and discuss their child’s progress with educators.

11. Building secure and respectful partnerships with families Relationships between educators, families and wider community is imperative, in order to receive and respond to important and relevant information about each child. Today the opportunity to influence program planning is shared among all colleagues, children and families attending the service. One of the goals of the framework is ‘to encourage families and educators to work together to create learning programs that respond to ‘children’s ideas, interests, strengths and abilities and recognise that children learn through play’ (DEEWR 2009b). In February 2014 we sent out a survey to our families to gain a better understanding of what ‘best’ communication method(s) would be beneficial. The purpose of this, was so that we could start the year with a clear understanding of how we were going to better our communication skills to form secure and respectful partnerships with families. The two most poplar types of communication was email and verbal. From this, we have now a parent communication book (displayed in each room). Verbal communication is documented, to ensure each request, suggestion and input is considered in the program and email is still being used for newsletters and any additional information.