Philosophy

We acknowledge the Traditional owners of the land on which we work and play – The Widjabul Way-bal people of the Bundjalung Nation. We acknowledge and offer our respect to Aboriginal people past and present and emerging.

Tuntable Falls Early Childhood Centre is an evolving environment where the central focus is the care and respect of children.

Our main objective is to provide a positive atmosphere that promotes each child’s individual growth and development.

A safe, natural, loving, respectful child environment where children and adults can have fun learning together in an atmosphere that celebrates life.

In regards to our Pedagogy, we combine the best of past and present ideas about Early Childhood Education and are particularly influenced by the pedagogical understandings of Our First Nations people, Tyson Yunkaporta, Malaguzzi, Bruner, Montessori and Vygotsky.

These theories combined with our conscious observations, and those of our families and greater community, mean Tuntable Falls Early Childhood Centre can offer a unique and responsive preschool environment.

We provide a range of learning experiences appropriate to each child’s developmental levels and based upon their interests and ideas.

We promote positive identity and independence in children, and acknowledge children as capable and involved learners.

We are committed to the development of strong relationships with children and their families and our local community.

We listen attentively to children and families and use their ideas as a basis for learning.

We support children to construct their own understandings in their social and physical environments and actively respond to their interests as learning vehicles.

We promote play based, emergent curriculum that also incorporates intentional teaching and project work. We believe strongly in the environment as “the Third teacher” We are strongly committed to the environment and sustainable practice, the culture and history of our children, families and local community. We are committed to encouraging the children’s physical and creative exploration of our surrounding beautiful outdoor environment, including our creek and rainforest settings.

We are mindful of how these unique elements underpin how we work with children. We are conscious and active in our preparation of children for school.

We demonstrate and promote high quality inclusion and equity for children and their families. We are committed to an anti- bias curriculum and promote social justice issues. We are deeply passionate about incorporating Aboriginal cultural competence, embedding it in all that we do.

We are committed to ongoing quality improvement and critical reflection and reflective practice.

We abide by the National Quality Standards (We have been assessed and are currently rated as exceeding the National Quality Standards), National Quality Framework and Australian Early Childhood Association’s ‘Professional Code of Ethics’ and are committed to the Early Years Learning Framework. We are passionate about doing all we can to teach/inform children about their rights and abide by the “UN convention on the Rights of the child”.