By 2036, all children across Victoria will have access to 1,800 hours of funded kindergarten before school, including 600 hours of Three-Year-Old Kindergarten and 1,200 hours of Pre-Prep.
Two years of quality early childhood education has more impact than one year and can lift children’s outcomes across all learning domains.
Studies show children who attend kindergarten for 2 years have better development in language, pre-reading, early number concepts, independence, concentration, and social skills when starting school.
The first 5 years of life are a period of rapid brain development — by the time a child turns 5, around 90% of their brain development has occurred.
Two years of quality early learning programs has a particularly strong impact on children who need extra support.
Why play-based learning?
As an early childhood professional, you see how powerful play-based learning can be for young children as they explore, experiment, question and discover new concepts.
Play-based learning is now widely understood to be one of the most important ways to support children to develop the skills they need to live well now and into the future.
You may want to explain to families what play-based learning is, and that through purposeful play, children can engage with the people, places and objects around them to build an understanding of themselves and their world. Let parents and carers know that positive attitudes towards learning, such as persistence, curiosity, and imagination, are all developed during play, and it can set children up for a life-long love of learning.
As Victorian kindergarten programs will continue to be play-based when Pre-Prep is introduced, the increase in hours will provide opportunities to create deeper and more deliberate play experiences. It may be helpful to let families know this will often include a combination of physical play, dramatic play, sensory play, nature/outdoor play and creative play.
Resources
- The evidence behind 2 years and more time in kindergarten:(opens in a new window) for information about the evidence behind the reforms
- Why play-based learning:(opens in a new window)for information about what play-based learning is and its benefits
- Communicating about kindergarten to your community:(opens in a new window)contains the ‘Play-based learning and your child’ factsheet with families listed under ‘Infographics and fact sheets’.
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