FOUNDATIONS

A Foundation for life

“It is not the beauty of a building you should look at; it’s the construction of the foundation that will stand the test of time.” David Allan Coe

Every investment and effort we can contribute to ensure an Early Childhood Education is nurturing, relevant, experiential and connected to our world is ultimately building a better person, society and world for all.

 Think of the vision, design and construction of a great building. We do not simply create a foundation and see what it can sustain. We design backwards as we should develop curriculum. Great structures are envisioned and designed, and only then the foundation is built that will give the structure the strength, reliability and resilience to hold the vision and ambitions securely. Many foundations are ‘over engineered’ to be ‘future proof’, allowing for unplanned additions, weather conditions and major earthquakes. They are resilient, flexible and strong.

 So too in Early Childhood. I believe high-quality early education programs include teachers with a deep desire and expertise to be in early childhood education and are rewarded well financially, professionally and equally (if not more) ; small class sizes; a minimum of two hours of inquiry centred, purposeful and engaging instruction daily; daily outdoor play and learning, health and nutrition education and screening for children, workshops and inclusion for parents; and self-initiated, small- and large-group activities based on researched models of quality child development.

 I believe that every child brings with them deep curiosity and potential and this innate curiosity drives their interest to understand their world and their place within it. Children need to be provided with choice regularly in order to build inner leadership, confidence and ownership.

 Children need to be known, feel a sense of belonging and encouraged to build the social and emotional intelligence that plants the seeds for present and future success academically, socially, physically and emotionally.

Parents that are active members of the Early Learning through interaction, reinforcing learning at home and through communication to ensure that their child sees relevance in all they do, views curiosity and learning as valued and supports the child in developing and maintaining resilience and an authentic happiness for life.

Middle and Senior Schooling will change dramatically as 'Blended Learning' options will become the preference of students. Innovative and 'future proofed' K-12 Schools will become Co-Learning spaces (once called libraries) and hubs for older students (11- 25+) to access teachers and learning groups globally 24/7. Relevant and sustainable schools will still need to provide outstanding and authentic early learning and elementary education. In fact the future demands this.

Peter Kenny CEO-REO