Early Childhood Australia


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The latest early childhood news!

In this issue, the ECA National Conference 2018 is approved to provide NESA-endorsed professional development for teachers accredited at Proficient Teacher level; families across Australia are being urged to make the switch to the new Child Care Package before 2 July; and ECA is taking this opportunity to assure you that it respects and protects your privacy, and is compliant with all relevant laws. In other news, an Australian Government Initiative, Family Relationships Online, is now available; and the Early Learning Languages Australia (ELLA) program has received additional funding to extend into primary schools. Around the country, Gail Mabo has been announced as the Ambassador for National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children's Day 2018; the Australian Institute of Family Studies is evaluating the Child Care Package via a survey; and New South Wales has introduced universal access to community preschools for children aged from three years. New resources include: a number of teaching guides and resources available via the NAIDOC website; a new Northern Territory produced educational web series; and safety articles for babies from Raising Children Network. 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.

Family Relationships Online

Family Relationships Online is an Australian Government Initiative aimed at helping families build better relationships. The site provides information for all families, whether together or separated, about family relationship issues; and a range of services to assist families in managing these issues. Click here to access the site.

ECA Privacy Update 2018

Recent changes to European Union privacy laws have prompted many multinational organisations to ensure compliance by confirming subscriber details. ECA, is taking this opportunity to assure you that it respects and protects your privacy and is compliant with all relevant laws. Read ECA's Privacy Update, in full, here.

Ambassador announced

SNAICC—National Voice for Our Children has announced that Gail Mabo will be the Ambassador for National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children's Day 2018. Gail is a multi-disciplinary artist, with a passion to empower community and pride in culture. She continues the work of her father, Eddie Mabo (Koiki), by keeping the connection to culture and Country strong.

Rising Star web series

An exciting new Northern Territory produced educational web series, specifically targeted at young Aboriginal children, was launched earlier this month. The Rising Star web series uses music, dance and stories to engage children in both English and Aboriginal languages, to improve crucial early development. Click here to access this great resource and learn more today.

ELLA expansion

It is hoped that additional funding for the Early Learning Languages Australia (ELLA) program will see the number of preschools participating double to 5000, and the program extend into 300 primary schools—reaching 30 000 school-age students across Australia. Read more about the expansion here.

Preschool access

ECA welcomes the NSW announcement of the introduction of universal access to community preschools for children aged from three years. Previously, state funding covered only four-year-olds under the federally funded National Partnership Agreement. Click here to read ECA's media release.

Safety articles

Raising Children Network has made available a number of safety articles for babies, which could be used in homes or early learning settings. Article topics include: CPR; bath and water safety; outdoors; home and pets; and car safety. Click here to access the full range of articles.

Make the switch today!

With less than two weeks to go, families across Australia are being urged to make the switch to the new Child Care Package, or risk missing out on their subsidies from July. Click here to find out how to make the transition today, before the new Child Care Package starts on 2 July.

NAIDOC teaching guides

A number of teaching guides and resources are available via the NAIDOC website, which directly relate to supporting teachers in addressing The Australian Curriculum: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Culture cross-curriculum priority. Click here to access the guides.


	Survey of Early Learning and Care Services

	Did you receive a letter about the Survey of Early Learning and Care Services? Services that were randomly selected to participate will have received a letter, followed by emails from selcs@srcentre.com.au, with 'Survey of Early Learning and Care Services' in the subject line—be sure to check your Junk inbox. The survey results will be used by the Australian Institute of Family Studies (AIFS) in the evaluation of the Child Care Package, so please take this opportunity to contribute to the service level perspective of this evaluation. It's very important that the government understands the full impact (good and bad) of the new Child Care Subsidy, so please engage in the evaluation and share your experiences. To find out more about the evaluation, click here to visit the AIFS website.


	In state and territory news ...

	In New South Wales (NSW), a new $100 Creative Kids rebate will allow young people to experience cultural and learning activities outside of school and help ease the cost of living pressure for parents; the Hodgman Liberal Government in Tasmania has launched the Tasmanian Child and Youth Wellbeing Framework; children of Alpurrurulam in the Barkly region of the Northern Territory are off to the best start in life thanks to a new $2.5 million preschool that has been officially opened; the Palaszczuk Government has announced an annual commitment of $5 million to continue popular learning initiative First 5 Forever, which aims to make sure that promoting the joys of reading to young Queenslanders remains a priority; in Western Australia, the McGowan Government has announced it will provide Wanslea with $125 000 to extend the Grandcarers Assistance Program for an additional 12 months; and in Victoria, 219 kinders have been successful in securing grants for new equipment—the Inclusive Kindergartens Facilities Program provides up to $10 000 per kinder for one or more items that promote inclusiveness and diversity.

Available now!

'Emotion coaching: A transformational tool', a webinar by psychologist Beth Macgregor, explores the five steps of emotion coaching: emotional awareness, connecting, listening, naming emotions and finding good solutions. Emotion coaching can be used by educators and other professionals working with young children to build trusting and respectful relationships.

Three-year-old subsidy

The latest blog post from the Early Learning: Everyone Benefits campaign discusses why the New South Wales Government's new subsidy for three-year-olds in community preschools is good news—click here to read the top three reasons why.
Help spread the word about the benefits of early learning—join the campaign today!

KidsMatter Check-in event

Professional learning leads to networking and the development of learning communities and professional relationships. KidsMatter Early Childhood Check-in events are where educators can ask questions, share stories, celebrate successes, re-focus and learn from each other. Haven't started KidsMatter? Start KidsMatter today!

Early Childhood Australia Reconciliation Symposium

Are you using your professional development budget to invest in leadership? The ECA Leadership Program has been specifically created as a strengths-based, self-directed, short-term program for current and aspiring early childhood leaders in diverse settings—the program is on sale until the end of the financial year! Click here to learn more.

Write for ECA!

ECA is seeking authors for the following Research in Practice Series topics: Spirituality; Mentoring and coaching; Trauma-informed practice; and Transition to school. The call for Expressions of Interest, and further information on each of the topics, is available here. Submissions for the above topics close Monday 2 July 2018. Don't miss out!

Book now!

There is just over one week to go until early bird prices close for the 2018 ECA National Conference. Find out what's on offer including international keynotes, local experts, NESA-endorsed professional development for NSW teachers, and travel subsidies—stay up to date with the conference newsletter. Click here to book now!

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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 286, June 2018.