Dear early childhood education and care services
Welcome to another edition of Early Childhood Update. I trust everyone has settled into the new year, and you’re continuing to take pride in your work that does so much for the young children and families in our communities.
With the first Pre-Prep enrolments opening in roll-out areas in coming months, one of the standouts this month is our Best Start, Best Life Evening Leadership Series, which kicked off last night (Wednesday 6 March 2024) at the Victorian Academy of Teaching and Leadership in North Melbourne.
This was the first in our free events series, and was a great chance to hear from highly regarded professionals and early childhood education experts on how service leaders can prepare for Pre-Prep, which starts rolling out from 2025.
Thanks to everyone who joined us either in person or online. If you weren’t able to make it, we’ll be sharing highlights from the event in future editions of Early Childhood Update, so stay tuned.
Meanwhile, March also means Cultural Diversity Week (Monday 18 to Sunday 24 March 2024). It’s a great time to celebrate our state's diverse, vibrant multicultural communities.
Supporting diversity and inclusion plays a vital role in children’s learning and development. Children achieve better outcomes when their diverse strengths, abilities, interests and cultural practices are understood and supported. Children’s learning and development are shaped by their personal, family and cultural histories, and we know that children learn when early childhood professionals respect their diversity and provide them with the best support, opportunities and experiences. This is why Cultural Diversity Week is such an important time in our calendar. Please check out the website for information about the week’s events and other ways to get involved.
And to wrap it up this month, we go behind the scenes of our popular Kinder Kits to meet the makers of these wonderful resources, exploring what goes into making these valuable and inspiring kits.
I invite you all to read and share this month’s edition with your colleagues, while also taking time to celebrate Cultural Diversity Week.
Bronwen FitzGerald
A/Deputy Secretary
Early Childhood Education
Updated