Our Staff

Kathy Phipps

Teaching Director and Nominated Supervisor

Qualification: Masters in Education

Philosophy

“Children are miracles. Believing that every child is a miracle can transform the way we design for children’s care. When we invite a miracle into our lives, we prepare ourselves and the environment around us. We may set out flowers or special offerings. We may cleanse ourselves, the space, or our thoughts of everything but the love inside us. We make it our job to create, with reverence and gratitude, a space that is worthy of a miracle! Action follows thought. We can choose to change. We can choose to design spaces for miracles, not minimums.” – Anita Rui Olds, 1999.

Like Anita Rui Olds I believe that if I create a place of warmth, beauty, security and where relationships are valued it will provide children with the opportunity to play, to enjoy the experiences of discovery and exploration. For me as an educator this type of environment enables children to apply knowledge, skills and concepts to their world that they will use for life, when they are given the opportunity to explore both structured and evolving natural spaces and take calculated risks that will foster their growth.

Theoretical Underpinnings

“Learning is seen as a function of ongoing transformation of roles and understanding in the sociocultural activities in which one participates.” (Rogoff, 1994, p.210)
“Here ‘transformation of participation’ means that knowledge is continually enacted through human participation in a changing environment.” (Rogoff, Matusov & White, 1996)
“People change through transforming their participation in sociocultural activities – in which both the individual and the rest of the world are active.” (Rogoff, 1997, p.266)

Kate Heffernan

Educator

Qualification: Diploma in Children’s Services

Philosophy

“Our highest endeavours must be to develop free human beings who are able of themselves to impart purpose and direction to their lives. The need for imagination, a sense of truth and a feeling of responsibility – these three forces are the very nerve of education” (Rudolf Steiner).

As an educator I believe that play makes us happier, healthier and smarter. I believe that children need security to explore and test themselves and their experiences in a dress free and innovative environment with trusting relationships. They need to know they can rely on the adults in their lives to provide a sanctuary for them, both while exploring and when the exploring has finished.

Theoretical Underpinnings

“Learning and teaching should not stand on opposite banks and just watch the river flow by; instead they should embark together on a journey down the water. Through an active, reciprocal exchange teaching can strengthen learning how to learn.” (Loris Malaguzzi)

Laura Smith

Teacher

Qualification: Bachelors in Early Childhood Teaching

Philosophy

I believe that children are unique with their own beautiful personalities. I believe that we can help nurture and nourish these wonderful personalities by providing opportunities for children to explore a magnitude of experiences through enriching environments we provide. Children are lifelong learners, each child learns and explores in their own way and in their own time. Children learn best through a play-based environment that caters to children’s individual needs. I believe children are naturally inquisitive and with the right guidance we are able to foster and empower children to their greatest potential.

Developing trusting relationships is imperative, I understand the importance of families and communities and how they are the children’s foremost educators. Having meaningful relationships allows us to provide warmth and security to children providing them the best opportunity to flourish while exploring the world around them.

I endeavour to meet and support children’s developing minds by providing rich and meaningful learning environments where all children have the opportunity to explore, learn and grow. Together working with our strong team, I believe I can help foster children’s development on their journeys to reach their full potential as they continue to develop and explore their individual identities and help shape the building blocks for their future.

Theoretical Underpinnings

“The secret of good teaching is to regard the child’s intelligence as a fertile field in which seeds may be sown, to grow under the heat of flaming imagination. Our aim is not only to make the child understand, and still less to force him to memorise, but so to touch his imagination as to enthuse him to his innermost core. We do not want complacent pupils, but eager ones. We seek to sow life in the child rather than theories, to help him in his growth, mental and emotional as well as physical, and for that we must offer grand and lofty ideas to the human mind.” (Maria Montessori)

Deb McCulloch

Educator

Qualification: Diploma of Teaching

Philosophy

I believe every child has a right to learn in a safe, calm and happy environment. All children are capable of learning, and all learn at different rates. Every child is unique, and all have different strengths and weaknesses, and it is our job as teachers to nurture all areas of their development so that they can develop to their fullest potential. All children bring with them a gift of individuality and it is our job to nurture this by building strong relationships with them, so that they feel safe and secure enough with us to reveal their special gift. We need to help them to believe in themselves and to know that they are truly important and have something to offer. I believe that children teach us as much as we teach them. It is important to sit back, listen and be in the moment with children, letting them guide the way with us assisting and steering when needed.

Cheryl-Ann Noonan

Educator

Qualification: Diploma of Children’s Services

Philosophy

In early childhood education, I believe the core principles of equity, child protection, safe environments and the UN children’s rights are fundamental to foster inclusive and nurturing learning environments. By prioritising equity, educators ensure that all children have equal access to opportunities regardless of their background or circumstances.

Upholding child protection measures is essential for safeguarding children’s well-being and promoting a safe and secure learning environment free from harm or exploitation. Environments that are safe provide children with the ability to enhance emotional and psychological well-being, allowing children to thrive and reach their full potential and provides a foundation for life long learning.

Kellie Winter

Educator

Qualification: Certificate 3 in Children’s Services

Philosophy

In order to recognise how children learn we need to notice, recognise and respond to children’s individual needs. We need to provide a safe, caring, happy place where children can laugh, play, have fun and where children are free to be children. We need to offer opportunities (community circles) for children to explore, investigate, create, experiment and participate in learning, and enable children to learn to respect and care for living things.

Theoretical Underpinnings

“Children’s learning occurs through scaffolding.” (Lev Vygotsky)
“Children learn through their senses; tasting, touching, seeing, hearing and smelling.” (Maria Montessori)
“Children learn by watching and copying people; they learn language and behaviour.” (Albert Bandura)

Teagan Nicholson

Educator

Qualification: Certificate 3 in Early Childhood Education and Care

Philosophy

As an early childhood educator I believe that each child is an individual and as an educator, I will value and develop each child's strengths, interests, skills, abilities and knowledge to extend within their learning. I believe the most important way for children to learn is through play which provides a way for children to explore, discover, create and imagine.

I believe that as an early childhood educator I am responsible for providing young children with positive learning experiences. I strive to model respect, patience, and care for children and adults I come in contact with.

My goal as an educator is to provide children with an environment where they feel safe to explore, initiate learning, and feel free to express themselves.

Isabella (Izzy) Holdsworth

Educator

Qualification: Certificate 3 in Early Childhood and Care

Philosophy

I have been working within early learning services with children since late 2016. I chose the childcare industry because I adore the way children are able to approach experiences and social groups with such wonder and curiosity. They teach us as educators to approach everything with an open mind and a willingness to try anything.

As an Educator I know each child is unique with their own friendships, support groups, interests, ideas and beliefs. My role is to encourage their ideas, growth and support them to engage in experiences that are of interest to them. I will create environments for the children related to their current interests, learning about them through daily play and conversation.

"The goal of education is not to increase the amount of knowledge but to create the possibilities for a child to invent and discover." Jean Piaget.

"If you follow the child, you can find out something new." Jean Piaget.

I believe each child is able to reach their own individual goals with support, trust, friendship, love and confidence from their primary carers/parents, educators and most importantly themselves. With positive social and physical learning experiences children can become the best version of themselves.

Children’s first 5 years are the most important years of their lives, their brain development is continually expanding reaching 90% developed by age 5. I agree with the hypothesis of Jerome Bruner that learning needs to be repeated and sourced in different ways (visually,physically,auditorily,socially,verbally) to achieve the best learning outcome.

Jerome Bruner (1966) ‘Bruner identified that learning occurs through enactive means (doing, which is action based), iconic means (seeing, which is visual) and symbolic means (abstract, which is in the form of ‘codes’ or symbols i.e. language).’

Talia Moreton-Stewart - Currently on Maternity Leave

Educator

Qualification: Certificate 3 in Early Childhood Education and Care

Philosophy

I believe that forming a strong, warm and positive bond with a child is essential to building a nurturing relationship. I enjoy the joy that children bring each day, their honesty and their ability to be open to new things and I see the humour in people and life around them. I have been working as an educator for the past 8 years and have a passion for supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and their families to embrace education in a community-based setting and to support all children and their families to celebrate culture and diversity within our local south coast seaside village which we all call home.

Theoretical Underpinnings

I believe imagination is a key to learning and like Marilyn Fleer (2011), I see imagination acting as a bridge between play and learning which I nurture and create with the children each day.

Lee Collimore - Currently on Maternity Leave

Educator

Qualification: Certificate 3 in Children’s Services

Philosophy

I believe every child is a unique individual and all develop through their own patter of growth and development. I thoroughly enjoy working with preschool children, their imagination is incredibly expansive and creative. They are curious and inquisitive beings and there is no limit to knowledge they can acquire. Watching a child’s eyes sparkle and twinkle when they are introduced to the vast universe that surrounds them. To watch them play, learn, grow, thrive and succeed makes me so grateful that I can share that with the child and their family.

Theoretical Underpinnings

I embrace a Constructivist pedagogy that emphasises active discovery learning. That is ‘Learning by Doing.’ I believe children learn through play given the opportunities to explore, discover, create and imagine. Children are motivated to learn when they have opportunities to make choices in an environment that is enriching and stimulating and when they feel a sense of belonging, feel safe, secure and supported and I thrive to make unique connections with every child.

I have an energetic, enthusiastic, passionate and confident approach to teaching and learning. I believe that supporting children’s self-confidence and self esteem is important in reaching developmental milestones, for it is what children see and mirror to pave the way to recognise ‘I can.’ I can do anything I set my mind on!

“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” Benjamin Franklin

Janet Linee

Educator

Qualification: Certificate 3 in Early Childhood Education and Care

Philosophy

I think children are amazing and powerful. Each child is at the centre of a unique and complex set of relationships, environments, social, cultural and political contexts. Understanding this can help us to recognise, honour and value this unique child, their relationships, ideas, interests, strengths, abilities, knowledge and skills. Building new positive relationships are key to helping create an environment where each child can feel safe, secure, be themselves, as well as have opportunities for growth, exploration and transformation.

Children want to play. The best way for children to learn is through play. Play is a process and a context for learning that is filled with meaningful, authentic experiences that contribute to their development and skills. My role is to be both advocate for children’s right to play and as facilitator in helping to create play spaces that invite exploration, risk taking, discovery and connection.

Theoretical Underpinnings

The drivers underpinning my work are the themes and discourses of equity and social justice. I believe that we should not only just reflect to inform our understandings of children and pedagogical practices but that we should also critically reflect on the politics and power of language and knowledge. It is here that we can be activists contributing to an organic, evolving educational framework that leaves nobody behind and is rich and full of transformational possibilities for children.

Stand aside for a while and leave room for learning, observe carefully what children do, and then, if you have understood well, perhaps teaching will be different from before. – Loris Malaguzzi

Cathie Mcmillan

Educator

Qualification: Certificate 3 in Children's Services

Philosophy

I believe that each child is a unique individual and that all children can learn. Programs need to be inclusive and recognize children’s varied abilities, interests, needs and learning styles. Children learn best through play, they can be successful and can discover that learning is fun.

My aim is to provide a safe, nurturing, stimulating environment that accommodates and embraces all children.

Roula El Hallak

Educator

Qualification: Training for Certificate 3 in Children's Services