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| Child care person in the spotlight
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| Emma Larsen
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What is your name?
My name is Emma Larsen and I am 23 years old.
Which centre do you work in? How many staff and children are in the centre?
I am the director and educational leader at Avenel Preschool, a stand-alone, not for profit kindergarten in North East Victoria. We have two staff members - myself and my wonderful co-educator and cater to 50 children over 5 days.
What is your professional background and career experience?
I grew up in the tiny town of Gapsted about half an hour North East of Wangaratta, Victoria where I lived with my Dad, Mum and younger brother, Dan. In 2010, I was accepted into the Early Achiever's program at Australian Catholic University in Ballarat and started my Bachelor of Primary and Early Childhood Education.
After my first kindergarten placement, I knew that early childhood education was going to be the right choice for me. I was able to refine my skills when I was offered a position as a room leader at Mountain View Children's Centre in Myrtleford in 2012.
During my fourth year of University at ACU in Ballarat, I was selected into a program managed by the Country Education Program. This program placed student teachers into classrooms in country areas– I was lucky enough to be placed at the nearby Nagambie Kindergarten, as well as spending time in several other schools in the area. I instantly fell in love with the area and community - I even managed to appear into Avenel Primary School's 175 year commemorative photo while on placement. Fortunately, a job appeared at Avenel Kindergarten for the 2014 year and I have never looked back.
In June, 2015 I was awarded the Australian Families Early Education and Care Rising Star Award. This national award aims to celebrate and acknowledging the commitment, hard work and passion by outstanding leaders in the Early Childhood Education and Care Community who have been employed in the sector for less than five years. I was nominated by my employer, Goulburn Regional Pre-School Association as a result of the changes made at Avenel.
What attracted you to a career in child care?
When I was a little girl growing up in a regional area, I chanced upon an inspirational teacher who inspired in me a love of learning, and sharing my knowledge with others. I think I knew, even then, that I was going to be a teacher.
I have a huge passion for working in regional areas, and intend to continue to do so for a long time yet.
What does a 'normal' day look like for you?
Our children arrive at 9am, ready and willing to learn. We welcome each child and their family member, encouraging children to hang their own bag on the hook, place their drink bottle in the tub and apply their own sunscreen (with assistance if required). These are their "kinder jobs".
Our family members are encouraged to stay and complete an activity with their child, and are welcome to stay for as long as they would like, in line with our open door policy.
At Avenel Kindergarten, our goal is to create a play-based, indoor- outdoor program that allows for extended periods of uninterrupted play in a nature-inspired, homelike environment- a calm yet productive place where children are encouraged to take risks, explore and imagine.
To aid this, we encourage progressive morning tea at Avenel Kinder. This allows children to learn to recognise the needs of their bodies and to eat when they are hungry. We find that this system allows children to concentrate for longer periods of time and encourages them to focus on eating, rather than rushing, desperate to get back to play.
We generally have a mat time in the afternoon before lunch. This may change depending on the needs of the children in the group. Children are invited to sit on the mat; as a group we may share a story, sing songs, dance, play games or share our ideas with our friends.
After lunch we spend time meditating. Children are encouraged to find a space by themselves, lie down and listen to their breathing while quiet music plays. This helps to settle the children and assists with managing their emotions. It is one of our most requested activities- if an educator forgets meditation, they are very quickly reminded by a chorus of disgruntled three, four and five year olds!
Our session finishes at 2 pm, however, once a fortnight, we host a combined community Playgroup and Chat & Chew. Families are encouraged to bring a plate of healthy food to share and to stay for about an hour after the end of the kindergarten session to enjoy a cup of tea and a chat while their children play. We have had a huge response- we even had to purchase more coffee mugs!
What makes your centre unique?
At our service, we believe that children have the best opportunity learn and grow when they are provided with uninterrupted periods of play and are encouraged to choose their own resources.
Our families are the heart and soul of our kindergarten. In the 1980s, the Avenel community identified the need for a kindergarten and worked tirelessly selling bags of manure at the Melbourne market to raise funds to build one.
Our indoor-outdoor program is also encompasses the wider Avenel community. As active community members, children and educators are often found to be eating lunch on the local football oval or in the paddock next door. We regularly collect acorns, play on the enormous slide or search for insects in our local park or the primary school and often visit our local general store to purchase ingredients to compliment the vegetables from our garden for cooking experiences. I encourage the children to take the lead on these community visits, encouraging their agency.
When given the opportunity to take charge of their own learning, children have the potential to examine and explore ideas in a far richer way than they would if given concrete parameters and directions. It is our challenge as Early Childhood Educators to equip them, not only with exposure to a wide range of topics, but with the tools that allow them to facilitate their own lifelong learning journey.
What are some of the advantages of working in the child care sector?
Children who are not yet school aged have such a huge capacity to learn, grow and develop- they are little sponges who absorb everything! I cannot think of a more rewarding career than spending time learning alongside a group of unique and capable learners.
What are some of the biggest challenges facing the child care sector?
I believe that one of the biggest challenges facing educators within the Early Childhood Education and Care Sector is a lack of understanding from both the general public and the wider community about the invaluable role that education of children who are not school aged has.
The first five years of a child's life is critical, with more brain development occurring in these years than at any other stage in a lifetime. As a sector, we are aware that children learn best when they are able to enjoy long periods of uninterrupted play and are given opportunities to take risks. We know about both the economic and educational benefits of providing children with high quality education and care before they start primary school, yet as a sector, we are underpaid and undervalued.
Due to a lack of education among the community at large, Early Education and Care is often discounted as "simply playing with children", or my personal pet peeve, reduced to "baby-sitting". Our role is simply not given the respect it deserves.
How has your centre changed to deal with these challenges?
As a service, we have taken a pro-active approach to talking about and promoting the power of play. We often include information about play-based learning in our newsletter and share elements of our programming on our Facebook page, an invaluable tool for fostering two way communications with parents and educators and for advocating the value of Early Childhood Education.
How does the industry need to change to adapt to these challenges?
As a sector, I believe that we need to become more adept at advocacy. We need to continue to develop our capacity to share our 'expert knowledge' about the value of play and continue to promote high quality Early Education and Care as not a luxury, but as an essential step in the lives of the children of our country.
What advice would you offer someone thinking about a career or looking for a promotion in child care?
I would encourage anyone considering working with children to maintain high expectations and to encourage children to take risks. Remember that sometimes things don't go to plan- your environment will not look Pinterest perfect all the time- and that's OK.
As a pre-service teacher on my final teaching round, I was given some advice by a principal about the three Rs of education-relationships, relationships, relationships. For me, this is the most important part of my role as an educator- to build strong relationships with children, families, the wider community and other educators that are based on sharing ideas and mutual respect. I truly believe that if you can create an environment where each of these groups feels welcome, then the rest will follow.
Working with children is one of the most challenging things you will ever do- it is also one of the most rewarding.
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