EARLY PLAY AUSTRALIA

Federal Budget for families: May 2013

2013-05-14T20:10:00.002-07:00

Just a few facts about the recently announced Australian Federal Budget: Scrapping the Baby Bonus from March 1, 2014 Scrapping an increase to the Family Tax Benefit Part A Family Tax Benefit A recipients will get payment boost of $2000 for first child and $1000 for subsequent children, to be paid in instalments The childcare rebate will continue to be capped at a total of $7500 per year for

All about Mothers

2013-05-09T13:40:00.001-07:00

These posts are all about the mothering journey and Mother's Day which is in Australia on the second Sunday in May. I hope you can find ideas here but more importantly interest and comfort in reading other mother's thoughts and experiences. I will be adding more over the next few days. Our mothering styles at Happy Whimsical Hearts A Mother’s Meditation at lavendilly coming around, slowly (no

How we learn.

2013-04-29T15:58:00.001-07:00

A teacher is a teacher

2013-04-28T15:01:00.002-07:00

''A teacher is a teacher, no matter which sector they teach in," said Australian Education Union* branch secretary Gillian Robertson. "Whether they be in early childhood, at a TAFE or at a school, they should have parity in their professional terms and conditions." Read more at The Age. Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) says the average weekly total cash earnings in mid-2012 for early

Great parenting suggestions at EARLY PLAY AUSTRALIA

2013-04-19T18:07:00.000-07:00

Five Daily Sanity Savers. and how to implement them for every parent at Aspiring Mum. Loving Autism?? at a life less typical. she needs a good slap - a controversial topic - at Mother Who. Obedience does not equal respect at aunt annie's childcare Play – Good vs evil – what do you do? at lavendilly. Redirecting the energy {parenting reflections} at Happy Whimsical Hearts. Best advice I

Australian Early Development Index 2012 Summary Report

2013-04-18T04:39:00.000-07:00

The Australian Early Development Index (AEDI) is a population measure of children’s development as they enter school that helps communities to know how their children are fairing. The results provide communities around Australia with information about local children across five domains of early childhood development covering:  physical health and wellbeing  social competence 

teach them to long for...

2013-04-16T20:02:00.001-07:00

If you want to build a ship, don't drum up people together to collect wood and don't assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry LINKED UP AT:Create with Joy

Not hundreds but thousands of free play ideas

2013-04-10T15:02:00.002-07:00

Right here at EARLY PLAY AUSTRALIA you can get so many play ideas for young children from so many great Aussie bloggers. Just click on the blog links at left or to get you started try these: ABC Australian Animal crafts Baby water tray Baking a cake Bath Play Bush walk with the family Butterfly painting Collage: easter egg shapes Dinosaurs - 10 activities Excursion planning Finger plays

Everything You Need To Know To Be A Good Teaching Assistant

2013-04-06T04:11:00.000-07:00

Being a teaching assistant can sometimes be difficult. You need to be able to support a teacher in a range of different ways, from providing individual help to children with special educational needs, through to being able to step in and lead a lesson if needed. In this way, a teaching assistant is expected to cover a range of different duties, and has to be flexible and ready to work as part

What did you do for your Easter Break?

2013-04-03T14:41:00.000-07:00

It is often the case in Australia that parents with young children go camping at easter time - a long weekend away communing with nature. What did you do at Easter we would love to know?

Early puberty and how it affects preschoolers

2013-04-02T19:13:00.002-07:00

Children with early onset puberty start suffering emotional and social issues from preschool age, several years before the first physical indications are visible, a major Australian research project shows. The study, which followed almost 3,500 children from the age of four through to 11, found both boys and girls with an early onset of puberty had poorer emotional and social adjustment

Have a wonderful easter celebration

2013-03-28T04:55:00.002-07:00

Eco friendly blogs

2013-03-27T00:11:00.003-07:00

Little eco footprints Bowerbird Blue baby bees house earth sky sea child Caro & Co Gooseberry Jam

Digging Deeper: Looking Beyond Behavior to Discover Meaning

2013-03-26T18:40:00.002-07:00

This is a great free resource for families and teachers of very young children. It is a unit of three online lessons that explore the Responsive Process—Watch; Ask 'I Wonder' Questions; and Adapt: Using 'Flexible Responses' to the behaviors of very young children. Program staff, education coordinators, trainers, and parents will find it useful to build or refresh their

Early Years Quality Fund

2013-03-26T05:09:00.000-07:00

The Australian Government is establishing a $300 million Early Years Quality Fund to attract and retain qualified professionals in early childhood services. Funding will be to eligible services supplementing wage increases of $3.00 per hour for Certificate III qualified educators. There will be proportionally higher wage increases for diploma and degree qualified educators. Read

What can we learn from nature

2013-03-18T20:25:00.000-07:00

Let us send the children out into nature to learn from nature just what patience is and how important it is for them to learn patience." - George Bernard Shaw

We are Aussies: a fine selection of Aussie stuff for preschoolers

2013-03-16T23:31:00.000-07:00

Dot and the Kangaroo - an Australian story book Australian Easter Bilby at playfulljoy Easy Coconut Ice Eggs at Designing Early Childhood Australia 10 Aussie Activities for Kids! at Happy Whimsical Hearts Recipe for gumnut potpourri at Caro & Co 4 Australian kidsongs Australian Picture Books to read How to enjoy the bush without fearing snakes at little eco footprints Lavendilly Story

What is Playgroup all about and how you can find out first hand?

2013-03-15T16:42:00.001-07:00

In 2013, National Playgroup Week will be held from 17 - 24 March. This means each state will be holding one or more events where you can come along and join in for free. For more information on what's happening in your local area, please contact your state or territory Playgroup Association on 1800 171 882. Playgroups are for children under school age. Unlike other early childhood

Easter Family Festivals 2013

2013-03-08T16:02:00.000-08:00

Sydney Royal Easter Show 2013 - 21st March to 3rd April - held at Olympic Park Showground Bendigo Easter Festival in Bendigo, Victoria - 29th March to 1st April. Easter Sunday Parade and other activities throughout Bendigo. Tilba Easter Festival - Easter Saturday 30th March 2013 Central Tilba Ulladulla Blessing of the Fleet Easter Sunday Parade and other activities Do you know any other

Did you know AusAID supports early childhood in the Philippines?

2013-02-27T17:21:00.000-08:00

The $18M project, funded by the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) and in collaboration with UNICEF, will be implemented in 36 areas in the Philippines until 2016. The Early Learning for Life program is for the most disadvantaged children who suffer from multiple vulnerabilities as a result of armed conflict, disaster and urban challenges. “Improving the quality of

Nature Benefits for Children

2013-02-22T15:43:00.002-08:00

Dr Karen Martin from the University of Western Australia has conducted research into the benefits for children from contact with nature. She found that today’s children are spending less time outside than previous generations despite clear benefits relating to children’s health, behaviour and learning. Read the Nature

New online resources for services

2013-02-21T02:18:00.002-08:00

New information sheets are available from the ACECQA - Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority. Early Childhood Australia has a National Quality Standard Professional Learning Program, which offers free resources including articles and e-learning videos on learning frameworks and an online discussion forum for educators. For more information, visit ECA’s website.

Celebrating Summer with kids

2013-02-16T18:17:00.001-08:00

At our beach, at our magic beach... at SunSpirits Steiner Inspired Playgroup Nature as Teacher – building resilience and memories about an Australian summer holiday at Caro & Co Water Play Safety at Today at Play Photos of a beaut Aussie day at the beach, complete with Kangaroos at Happy Whimsical Hearts How to set up a water play activity at early play Simple Homemade Lemonade Recipe at

Do you celebrate Valentine's Day in Australia?

2013-02-05T04:49:00.000-08:00

Some of the fabulous bloggers here at EARLY PLAY AUSTRALIA have ideas and activities and books for you if you do celebrate Valentine's Day in your house or centre. Valentines Creation Station: Arty Hearty at Learn with Play at Home 5 great Valentine activities for kids at Learning 4 kids Heart Mosaics at Tales from the Sandpit 10 Valentine Books at My Little Bookcase A prejudice-busting

Free poster download for you

2013-01-31T19:58:00.001-08:00

Get this great poster, with excellent play quote, from Bookoola an Australia company that publishes early childhood resources