The Seahorse Room - Ages Two to Three

Our Philosophy of Care

In the Seahorse room, carers believe it is important for toddlers to feel safe and comfortable in their surroundings. We strive to foster a sense of belonging so that children feel confident becoming involved in experiences and the within the environment.

Toddlers are unique, knowledgeable, feeling and thinking people and are therefore treated as individuals, with respect.

Toddlers are naturally curious and are eager to learn. We value play, as it is vital in their learning process.

Play is:

children’s work, self initiated and spontaneous
the way children make sense of the world and the people around them
a means of developing and practicing skills
a way of nurturing creativity and self expression
an opportunity for toddlers to use their curiosity and to explore, experiment and test ideas.

Our program is developed to meet the many and varied needs of the toddler. Through observations, carers recognise and strive to meet the toddler’s emerging skills, both as individuals and as part of a group. The environment should be “homelike”, varied and interesting. It should provide:

consistency, safety and encourage challenges, individual interests and needs
equal opportunities to participate in all aspects of the programme.

Carers in the Seahorse Room believe a partnership between carers and parents enhances the toddler’s overall development and well-being. Two-way communication between families and children is actively encouraged.

Room Goals

OUTCOME 1:
CHILDREN HAVE A STRONG SENSE OF IDENTITY.

GOAL:
For children to feel safe, secure and supported within the Seahorse Room, by developing their independence and knowledge to become confident and active learners.

Help to establish and maintain respectful, trusting relationships with other children and educators.
Spend time interacting and conversing with each child.
Respond sensitively to children’s attempts to initiate interactions and conversations.
Provide a variety of opportunities for children to engage independently with tasks and play.
Provide time and space for children to engage in both individual and collaborative play.
Provide culturally valued learning of individual children’s communities.

OUTCOME 2:
CHILDREN ARE CONNECTED WITH AND CONTRIBUTE TO THEIR WORLD.

GOAL:
For children to develop a sense of belonging within the Seahorse room by understanding that they are a part of a community, which enables them to act responsibly and fair towards each other.

Help promote a sense of community by modelling language and gestures that children can use to express ideas and negotiate roles.
Encourage children to develop skills to participate in group play and activities.
Help children to understand room rules.
Help children understand about their environment by being responsible role models.
Provide opportunities to explore diversity of culture, heritage, background and tradition within the context of their community.
Draw children’s attention to issues of fairness relevant to them in their setting.

OUTCOME 3
CHILDREN HAVE A STRONG SENSE OF WELLBIEING.

GOAL:
For children to become strong in their social and emotional wellbeing within the Seahorse room.

Show affection, understanding, and respect for all children.
Ensure all children experience pride in their attempts and achievements.
Promote children’s sense of belonging, connectedness and wellbeing through daily routines and experiences.
Encourage family participation in the programme.
Provide a variety of physical activities to enhance children’s dance, drama, movement and games.
Model and reinforce health, nutrition and personal hygiene practices with children.

OUTCOME 4
CHILDREN ARE CONFIDENT AND INVOLVED LEARNERS.

GOAL:
To provide opportunities for curiosity, cooperation, building confidence, creativity and imagination through play experiences within the Seahorse room.

By providing learning environments that are flexible and open-ended.
Modelling inquiry processes, including wonder curiosity and imagination.
Reflect with children on what and how they have learned.
Provide opportunities that encourage investigating and solving problems.
Provide resources that offer challenge, intrigue and surprise.
Share in the children’s enjoyment.
Share children’s learning and their experiences with the families.

OUTCOME 5
CHILDREN ARE EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATORS.

GOAL:
For children to interact within the Seahorse room verbally and non-verbally for a range of purposes.

Engage in enjoyable interactions through the day.
Model language and encourage children to express themselves through language in a range of contexts and for a range of purposes.
Read and share a range of books and other texts with children.
Provide a literacy-enriched environment.
Sing and chant rhymes, jingles, and songs.
Encourage children to play with words and sounds.
Build on children’s family and community experiences with creative and expressive arts.
Provide children with access to a wide range of everyday materials that they can use to create patterns and to sort, categorize, order and compare.

General Information

Carers

Preeni
Alanna
Clarissa

Carer Ratios

The Seahorse Room ratio is one carer for every five children and has a maximum of fifteen children with three carers.

Things Parents need to supply

If your child is having bottles, these will need to be provided. Please ensure they are pre-made and are named. If your child requires breakfast on arrival this needs to be provided, including any milk or spreads required.

Please pack a spare change of clothes every day and provide sunscreen if your child is allergic to the centre’s sunscreen. These must be named.

Toys from home are discouraged unless they are used for comfort and settling. If there is anything else that helps settle your child please bring it along eg dummy, rug, teddy.

Parent Information

At the start of the year, carers will give parents an information pack to fill out. This pack contains information about the seahorse room and forms for parents to complete. The information is used to share the link between home and carers to assist in building a more positive relationship, which benefits the child.

Signing In and Out

Upon arrival and departure, parents must sign and note the time of arrival or departure on the day sheet, which is located inside the front entrance of the centre.

MEALS

The Centre provides a hot lunch and morning and afternoon tea. Children have milk with morning and afternoon tea and water at lunchtime. Water is available at anytime throughout the day. Orange juice is provided on non-meat days. The menu is displayed in the room and copies are available at parents’ request. Your child may bring a drink bottle but it is preferred that water or juice is supplied, not cordial. We are a nut free centre. If your child has any allergies/intolerances please speak to the Director/staff on enrolment.

SUNSCREEN

Sunscreen is provided by the Centre. Parents may provide their own sunscreen if your child has an allergy to the one provided by us. Sunscreens can be left at the centre – please ensure these are clearly named.

ALLERGIES AND INTOLERANCES

If your child has an allergy/intolerance to anything please let the room carers know. Parents will need to fill out a special form stating these. These Allergy/Intolerance forms are kept in the room.

MEDICATION

If your child requires medication whilst in care you will need to fill in the medication sheet located in the room. Please ensure that this sheet is filled in correctly, as we are unable to give the medication if there is an error. Medication must NOT be left in the child’s bag - please hand them to room carers. Please ask carers for assistance if needed.

INCIDENT FORMS

If your child is injured or involved in an incident or accident, an incident report form will be filled out by a carer, outlining what has taken place. These forms are to be sighted by parents and signed when the child is collected. These forms are then kept in your child’s personal file at the front office.

TOILET TRAINING

This is the age group that many children are beginning toilet training. The carers are more than happy to assist you and your child with this. Please be aware that there may be differences between toilet training at home and at the centre. Children often may become absorbed in play at care and may forget to go on occasions. Please ensure there is enough spare clothing and underwear provided in case of accidents. Do not hesitate to speak to the carers about any strategies you wish carers to adhere to in regards to your child’s needs or any other concerns you may have in this area. Information on toilet training is also available – please speak to one of the carers.

SLEEPING

The Seahorse room has a sleep room set up for your child’s nap if needed (bedding is provided).

Parents please remember that if your child sleeps up to 2 or 3 hours at home that may not be the case here. Many things play a part here e.g. noise level, other children in the sleep room with your child, and general noise from the rest of the Centre. If your child has a special sleep comforter, don’t forget to provide this. If your child has a time limit on their sleep please let the carers know.

CHANGE OF CLOTHING

Due to some experiences on the room programme your child will need an extra set of clothing. Please ensure there is always a spare & named change of clothing in your child’s bag.

The weather conditions change so quickly so we need to be able to add or take off clothing as needed. NO SINGLET TOPS or THONGS are permitted - see Centre policies.

BIRTHDAYS

Parents who wish their child to celebrate their birthday at the Centre may bring a cake.

Due to many allergies and dislikes that other children have we ask that it be a plain cake free of cream and nuts or any heavy food colouring (Pedder Patter is a nut free environment!).

ART WORK

If your child has been involved in art and has art to take home it is placed in their personal folders which are located on the rear bench. Please ensure these are checked and emptied regularly.

PROGRAM PLANNING

Once a week carers in the Seahorse Room meet for two hours to plan for the children. This is referred to as program planning. Planning in early childhood settings involves the daily challenge of providing flexible, secure, supportive, peaceful, respectful and collaborative relationships and environments with in the centre. Informal chats about children’s development and care also play a large role in planning. Carers use parental input and observation of children to plan weekly experiences, which ensure the enjoyment and development of the child whilst in care. The weekly programme is displayed in the room.

The group plan is also displayed in the room for parents to view and make comments. Each child has an individual file, which contains all observations and planning. Parents are welcome to read their child’s file – please just ask one of the carers.

PLEASE NAME / LABEL EVERYTHING THAT YOUR CHILD BRINGS INTO THE CENTRE.

Activities We Enjoy

DRAWING - this helps develop fine motor skills, hand eye co-ordination and colour awareness. This is an early writing skill.
PAINTING - develops creativity, experimentation with shapes, size, texture and colour.
FINGER PAINTING - this develops gross and fine motor skills and is a great tactile experience.
PASTING - develops creativity, imagination, hand-eye co-ordination and problem solving skills.
PLAYDOH - a tactile experience to develop gross and fine motor skills and social skills.
HOME CORNER - this promotes role playing and pretend play.
CONSTRUCTION - encourages sharing, problem solving and fine motor skills.
THREADING - develops hand-eye co-ordination and fine motor skills.
WATER/FLOUR/WHEAT PLAY - these develop tactile awareness and initial measuring skills.
MANIPULATIVE TOYS - puzzles, shape sorters and hammering boards, develops sharing and waiting turns, ideas of sequence, persisting and completing tasks.
BOOKS - develops language and concentration.
SINGING, MUSIC, MOVEMENT & MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS - develops language, concepts of loud and soft, fast and slow.
STORIES - develops language, anticipation, concentration and imagination.

BEST OF ALL, THESE EXPERIENCES ARE FUN!!

Words We Use

GROSS MOTOR - use of the large muscles of the body i.e. climbing, running, balance beams, ball games
FINE MOTOR - use of the small muscles of the hands and eyes, i.e. puzzles, threading, cutting, and drawing
COGNITIVE - thinking and problem solving skills.
TACTILE/SENSORY - something that you do with your hands i.e. flour/wheat/water play, play doh
QUALITY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM – this involves the maintenance of our high standard of care to meet the requirements of the National Accreditation scheme.
DRAMATIC PLAY - includes role-playing and pretending, i.e. home corner, dressing up.
CREATIVE PLAY - includes painting, finger painting, drawing, pasting
CONSTRUCTIVE PLAY - involves blocks, collage, construction
MANIPULATIVE PLAY - includes jigsaws, threading and shape sorters.
INTEGRATION - is the process of welcoming and settling new children and families into the Centre.
TRANSITION - is the movement of children between home and care, from one area to another and from room to room.
MULTICULTURAL - presenting a wide range of materials from around the world and other cultures.
GENDER EQUITY - to ensure that each child, regardless of gender, has equal opportunity to participate in the wide range of experiences offered.

CONTACT US

You can contact us on 03 6344 9993 during business hours, or email us at childcare@pedderpatter.org.au.