Perinatal Mental Health Week: It’s more common than you think Early childhood educators have an important role in the lives of children, families and communities. Supporting families with mental health issues is complex, and an educator’s role in this sphere is not always well defined. One important way educators can offer support is by forming […]
How do you talk about early childhood education and care? The words we use daily to describe early education matter. Professional language is one way to advocate and begin the changes necessary to support the work we do every day. If we use this professional language every day with children, families and our community—in documentation, in […]
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is an international organisation that works to build better policies for better lives. It recently released the latest edition of the Education at a Glance report, which provides a global perspective on education and includes information specifically about early childhood education and care (ECEC). What does the OECD do? […]
Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, or FASD, is often described as the invisible disability. With September being FASD Awareness month, it seems like a fitting time to discuss what FASD is, some of the ways it affects children and families, and the impact it has on development, thereby hopefully making it visible. What is Fetal Alcohol […]
In the past, the word consent has not been commonly associated with young children or the early childhood education sector more broadly. Dictionary definitions of consent emphasise giving permission for something to happen—in other words empowering children to understand their own rights in regard to their own bodies. This is a basic right of each […]
ECA recently launched a new series of Learning Hub modules on Digital Documentation and Technology in collaboration with Storypark. We note here that there is no requirement to use digital documentation and if settings choose to engage in digital documentation ECA encourages thoughtful reflection as they chose the appropriate platform for their setting, staff, families […]
Educators are in positions of enormous privilege in the relationships they share with young children and their families. Such relationships are built on trust and respect, even when early childhood education and care may also be a necessity for the family concerned.—Jackie Brien For many families of young children with disabilities, their experience of the […]
A play-framework for play-based learning and intentional teaching in early childhood education Balancing open-ended play and intentional teaching in early childhood education can be difficult. Open-ended play can appear to be at odds with intentional teaching. Open-ended play provides children with important opportunities for exploring materials and experimenting with ideas. Intentional teaching considers the role […]
Celebrations. To do, or not to do? Is it even that simple? Early childhood educators are often faced with ongoing internal discussions, rules, policies or expectations about how national celebrations such as Christmas and Easter are marked. In an early childhood context, celebrations such as Easter are often a reflection of our society, history, culture […]
Books and the stories they contain have the power to connect communities and help children learn and grow values and empathy. There are hundreds of wonderful books for children written and published each year. Sometimes as educators and as parents, it can become overwhelming to figure out what books to buy or which books will […]
There’s no doubt that professional learning is essential for educators. It provides opportunities to share, network, set and achieve goals within the early education space, and it is inherently linked to quality outcomes for children. But how do you make a commitment to professional learning and make it a priority? Here are five tips to […]
Each year ECA prepares a pre-budget submission for the Commonwealth Government to ensure the views of the early childhood education and care sector can be incorporated into the Budget process. In late November 2020, the Assistant Treasurer called for submissions from individuals, businesses and community groups on their priorities for the 2021-22 budget. The 2020 […]