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The latest early childhood news!

In this issue, experience big ideas, best practices and innovative directions for early childhood at the 2017 ECA Live Wires Forum—register today! ECA welcomes cost reductions for community-based preschools as a result of the New South Wales Government's Start Strong reforms; discover the sector's first Leadership Capability Framework in the ECA Leadership Program; and an additional $4.1 million will be used to extend the Flexible Literacy for Remote Primary Schools pilot into 2018. In other news, Reconciliation Australia, SBS and NITV have proudly partnered to launch the Reconciliation Film Club; Western Sydney University invites you to participate in an Australian research study; and limited tickets are still available for The Big Playgroup Meetup next week on 16 November. Hot off the press, Ethics in Action: A practical guide to implementing the ECA Code of Ethics by Dr Lennie Barblett, Catharine Hydon and Dr Anne Kennedy is suitable for all educators, managers and leaders. Other new resources include a joint policy paper, Strong Families, Safe Kids: Family violence response and prevention for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and families; a suite of resources from the Australian Institute of Family Studies to assist in the development of high-quality and consistent playgroups; and ECA is calling for expressions of interest for author/s of new publications in the Everyday Learning Series, and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander early childhood professionals to join our growing list of writers and reviewers. And finally, we fill you in on the latest state and territory news.

Jump down to find out what the various ECA teams and projects have been up to and the new resources available for the early childhood sector.

The Early Education and Care Business Growth Forum

The Australian childcare industry is booming in response to the demand for long day care centres. Providers face the challenge of ensuring ongoing sustainability in an evolving sector, as well as the challenge of adapting to recent National Quality Standard changes being implemented by ACECQA. Akolade's Early Education and Care Business Growth Forum brings together sector leaders to share strategies to acquire and retain high-quality educators, efficient methods to comply with regulations and ensure sustainability in a competitive industry. Click here and use VIP code APXE1 for the best available rates!

Write an Everyday Learning Series title

ECA is calling for expressions of interest (EOI) for author/s of new publications in the Everyday Learning Series (EDL). ECA is seeking authors for the following topics: Learning to read; and Wellbeing of parents/carers. Further information on the topics and the application process is available here. EOI submissions for the EDL series close Wednesday 22 November 2017.

New South Wales reforms welcomed

ECA welcomes cost reductions for community-based preschools as a result of the NSW Government's Start Strong reforms, and with CCSA welcomes the new Regional and Remote Early Childhood Education Strategy which supports mobile services and sets priorities on education for Aboriginal communities in culturally safe environments.

Joint policy paper

A joint policy paper on family violence response and prevention was launched at the 2017 SNAICC Conference. Strong Families, Safe Kids: Family violence response and prevention for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and families outlines the impact of family violence, the key factors behind why current policy and practice responses are failing and a detailed pathway for achieving change. Access the paper here.

Write for ECA

To ensure that ECA continues to reflect its values and produce high-quality, informative resources, we are calling for expressions of interest from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander early childhood professionals to join our growing list of writers and reviewers. If you are interested, please click here to access more information and fill in the 'Register your interest in writing or reviewing for ECA' online application form.

Playgroups in Australia

A suite of resources are available through the Australian Institute of Family Studies to assist in the development of high-quality and consistent playgroups. These resources aim to strengthen the evidence base for the effectiveness of playgroups in meeting outcomes for families and children. They are designed to provide flexible support and guidance to policy-makers and those planning, delivering and coordinating playgroups.

2017 ECA Live Wires Forum

'Did you know that early maths skills (spatial reasoning) are a better predictor of later school success? And that blocks and puzzle play can help develop these skills?' (Dr Kym Simoncini). Discover more interesting tech facts at the 2017 ECA Live Wires Forum, in Melbourne from 24–25 November. The program features international and Australian keynote speakers, as well as a tech play room—click here to register today!

Flexible literacy pilot extended

The Turnbull Government has announced that an additional $4.1 million would be used to extend the Flexible Literacy for Remote Primary Schools pilot into 2018. The innovative program was designed to boost remote students' literacy and numeracy skills.

Australian research study

Western Sydney University invites you to participate in an Australian research study for centre-based early childhood directors/managers. Completing the questionnaire will make a valuable contribution to the evidence base of our early childhood sector. Click here for more information.

The Big Playgroup Meetup

Hosted by Playgroup Victoria on 16 November, The Big Playgroup Meetup brings together the Playgroup Conference, the Play Extravaganza and the annual Playgroup Awards Night to create a blend of innovative ideas, learning, community and celebration of playgroups. Limited tickets are still available.


	Reconciliation Film Club

	Reconciliation Australia, SBS and NITV have proudly partnered to launch the Reconciliation Film Club—an online platform that supports organisations to host screenings of a curated selection of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander documentaries from Australia's leading Indigenous filmmakers. This could be a great platform for early childhood educators to engage staff more actively in their service's Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP). One beautifully shot documentary that is available is Connection to Country, inspired by the filmmaker's desire to pass on culture and Country that is in-tact for his young daughter and future generations.


	ECA Leadership Program

	Have you signed up to the ECA Leadership Program yet? The ECA Leadership Program was specifically created as a strengths-based, self-directed, short-term program for both current and aspiring early childhood leaders in diverse settings. Current participants are already beginning to receive their completion certificates—join the program today!


	In state and territory news ...

	During Melbourne International Games Week in October, early childhood, primary and secondary teachers learnt about how video games can help kids develop a passion for digital technologies; a Teaching Excellence and Leadership Academy will be created in South Australia to lift school and preschool performance; the McGowan Government has confirmed that regional education and care services in Western Australia will continue to receive support to build capacity and remain viable in the regions; the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) Government has developed a suite of new information resources to help Canberra families better understand and navigate the adoption process in the ACT; in Tasmania, the Hodgman Liberal Government is progressing a 12-month trial of Intensive Family and Youth Engagement Services to better support children and families in need; the first multimillion dollar TAFE New South Wales (NSW) Connected Learning Centre has opened in Quirindi, NSW; and Victoria is leading the way in road safety with more than 75 000 children benefiting from an Australian-first road safety education program delivered through early learning centres.

New module

Routines and transitions are enormous opportunities for potential learning and enrichment. They also play a significant role within the lives of children and the adults who work with and care for them. Through Routines and transitions: Embracing opportunities for learning, Karen Winderlich explores how routines can be utilised to offer rich and engaging experiences in this new ECA Learning Hub module.

Survey results

How do parents and children experience early learning? In the Early Learning: Everyone Benefits national surveys, parents tell us about the benefits and barriers to early learning, and children give their views. The survey found overwhelmingly high recognition of the many benefits to children's social, emotional and cognitive development, but high levels of difficulty accessing services.

Webinar for educators

Feeling capable and safe to seek help is a protective factor for mental health. Early childhood education and care communities can create environments that encourage and support children, families and educators to seek help. Join us for the Help me seek help—make it safe webinar and explore ways educators can promote help-seeking behaviour in their community. Register here.

Submit today!

Applications to present are now open for the 2018 Early Childhood Australia National Conference. The four conference presentation themes are: Leadership and ethics; Rights and respect; Contemporary practice in teaching and learning; and Risk and resilience. The conference will be held in Sydney from 19–22 September 2018.

ECA has four core publications available as subscription packages for those working, studying or interested in the early childhood sector: Research in Practice Series; Everyday Learning Series; Every Child magazine; Australasian Journal of Early Childhood. Subscribe today!

The 2018 AJEC Research Symposium encourages early childhood practitioners, students, policy-makers and academics to come together to share cutting-edge knowledge and to strengthen their research networks in Australasia and beyond. The symposium will be held from 16–17 February at QUT in Brisbane. Registration is now open.

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Early Childhood Australia disclaimer
The opinions expressed in the articles and external links are those of the authors and not necessarily those of Early Childhood Australia.

ECA WebWatch—Issue 272, November 2017.