Smithfield Public School Preschool Philosophy
We believe in acknowledging the original custodians of this land, the Darug people and all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the community.
At Smithfield Public School Preschool the philosophy is a collaboration of educators and families' vision and beliefs about how children learn. It is based on the Early Years Learning Framework for Australia - Belonging, Being and Becoming. It is the foundation for our decision making in providing quality care and education for children. Values and beliefs educators and families hold strong include respect, honesty, kindness, relationships, faith, empathy, resilience and self regulation. Incorporating wellbeing practices into our everyday routines is one of the ways we build on these values.
The Early Childhood Australia Code of Ethics and the Principles of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child is the backbone of our understanding and practice. We understand and reflect on our ethical responsibilities and the child safe standards when making decisions to create a safe and positive impact on our children and families.
The early years of a child’s life are the most important learning periods in their development. We believe that all children are individuals, and as early childhood educators, we are committed to building positive relationships that are responsive, respectful, supportive, and nurturing to foster equity and inclusion.
Play is a vital part of our preschool program as we believe this is how children learn. Through play children learn to create, imagine, discover, problem solve, role play, and explore. Children’s ideas, input and interests are represented in the curriculum through observations and open-ended conversations. We also provide opportunities for children to build on their sense of agency, independence and confidence, as they make their own decisions and have the right to be an active participant in their learning.
Smithfield Public School Preschool believes it is important to provide indoor and outdoor physical environments that are engaging and offer a variety of spaces for different learning opportunities and experiences, to cater for all learning styles and stages of development. Recycling and sustainable practices are embedded in our program to encourage children to develop a respect for the natural environment and to promote children’s understanding about their responsibility to care for the environment.
We foster positive partnerships with our families by engaging in open communication and encouraging their contribution to their child’s learning and wellbeing. Families are supported by having available information and links to services in our community.
We use reflective practice and ongoing professional development to enhance knowledge and provide a high quality educational program. We believe that teamwork is an important part of our Preschool setting by building relationships between educators based on a climate of trust, respect, open communication and recognition of each other’s strengths.
Revised April 2024