The established view among experts is that quality childcare and early education leads to better outcomes in life.
The reason for this is that all the experiences a child has during the critical formative years have a strong - and lasting - effect on their academic and social success and on both their physical and emotional wellbeing.
Simply put, high quality early childhood education gives a child the best start in life. A careful choice of childcare provider is an investment in your child’s future and will improve the likelihood of later success.
What constitutes ‘quality childcare?
Childcare isn’t babysitting. The staff aren’t merely child minders. Childcare isn’t just a convenient drop-off spot where toddlers can socialise and let off steam while parents go to work or continue with their busy lives.
Childcare should be where a child’s holistic wellbeing is comprehensively looked in order to prepare them for life going forward.
A quality childcare centre will help children develop skills needed for engagement and success as they transition to school. It should provide ample opportunities for positive interactions with adults as well as other children and should be a warm, welcoming and inclusive space where diversity and difference are respected.
Children in childcare need to be safe, healthy and happy and they need to experience a wide range of activities which go beyond mere academic goals.
Parents and caregivers have to have every confidence that their child is being well looked after by loving and professional staff and that their child’s best interests are being served.
Why quality childcare plays such an important role in a child’s healthy development
Here’s why quality childcare is essential:
- It helps set a strong foundation for the development of cognitive, physical, social and emotional skills
- It introduces young children to basic mathematics concepts and boosts their language, pre-literacy and communication skills
- It exposes children to simple routines and behavioural expectations eg taking turns, sharing, working collaboratively, setting boundaries, listening, resolving conflicts appropriately etc
- It supports and nurtures a child’s natural curiosity and creativity
- It can help instil a lifelong love of learning
- It sets a child up for easier integration, progress and success as they transition to ‘big’ school
- It establishes key building blocks for shaping the child’s future in later life
Quality childcare supports a broad range of learning and development goals
At childcare, children have the opportunity to participate in a myriad activities and experiences which helps them develop a wide range of skills. By learning through play, they learn essential numeracy and literacy skills, as well as communication skills and cognitive skills like critical thinking and problem-solving. Using music in the learning environment is another way to boost early childhood development.
By participating in physical activities, children hone their fine and gross motor skills plus they learn about things like taking risks, resilience and overcoming fear. If a child is particularly shy or introspective, an experienced educator will gently reassure them and encourage participation and positive social interactions so that their fears can be allayed.
A good childcare environment will also provide opportunities for quiet or rest time and help those more energetic children learn how to wind down.
All of these vital skills are necessary for preparation and readiness for ‘big school’.
Quality childcare encourages and nurtures a child’s innate desire to discover their world
Every child is curious about the world around them and a quality childcare environment will support enquiry and experimentation as the child discovers new things. Even an activity as simple as picking up fallen autumn leaves and crushing them can open up opportunities for children to be creative, learn and express themselves.
A quality childcare service provider will employ experienced educators who will know exactly how to encourage each child to pursue lines of enquiry which appeal to their individual interests and which ignite their capacity - and willingness - to learn.
Quality childcare will help a child be accepted unconditionally
For a child to grow up to have good emotional intelligence, to have empathy for others, to have strong social skills, to be engaged and responsive and to have respect for others regardless of diversity or difference, they need to start off in a high-quality childcare environment.
If toddlers and young children are treated with respect and empathy and if they’re actively encouraged to treat others the same way, they’re likely to exhibit these same qualities as they grow older.
Key takeaways:
High quality childcare programmes help children:
- Develop social, emotional, mathematical, pre-literacy, cognitive and physical skills
- Develop better reasoning and problem-solving abilities
- Have better language and communication skills
- Become familiar with concepts like routines, behaviour expectations, teamwork and quiet time
- Have positive social interactions and learn to form friendships
- Lay the foundation for healthy growth, development and learning over the long-term
A child in an early learning environment which is nurturing and stimulating and where creativity and learning are actively promoted will have a strong start to life - and will be more likely to thrive when they make the move to school and onto adulthood.
To find out more about quality childcare and early education then book a tour of one of our Evoke Early Learning childcare centres in Clayton or Albert Park. Our friendly and professional team has all the information you need to make a well-considered decision and we look forward to meeting you.
Tracey is a highly qualified educator and administrator and brings a strong combination of academic achievement, extensive work experience in the education and business sectors as well as drive and passion to her role as General Manager of Operations at Evoke Early Learning.
Tracey has a Master of Education and an Advanced Diploma of Business and holds VIT Dual Registration to teach in Early Childhood and Primary School settings. She’s also a VIT Trained Mentor Teacher and has worked in ECEC settings as a Director, Educational Leader and as a Victorian Senior Area manager. Her recognition as a state finalist in the recent Director of the Year Awards is testament to her achievements in the early education sector.
Her extensive work experience also included a stint as Head of Curriculum at the Royal Children’s Hospital Education Institute and positions as head of ICT at a number of large primary and secondary schools. Tracey is also experienced in not-for-profit sessional kindergarten settings and long daycare environments, so she has a deep understanding of what’s required to support the needs and expectations of young children, educators, parents and caregivers.
Tracey is responsible for operational management at Evoke Early Learning’s Clayton centre in Oakleigh East and their Albert Park centre in South Melbourne and is deeply committed to leading and driving effective and sustainable service delivery throughout the company.
Tracey is passionate about making a meaningful difference to young children, their parents and the wider community and under her expert guidance, Evoke Early Learning is continuing to raise the bar in quality early education and childcare.
