At the heart of our Arlington campus, sits the Kindergarten.

Designed to foster a ‘feeling like home’ with a large garden, welcoming indoor spaces where children are nurtured in a close community and strong relationships with teachers are developed.

The classes are lively, bustling, dynamic and diverse. The program and the way the day is structured allows for the flexibility to accommodate the pace, needs and interests of the individual. The three- and four-year-olds are together, giving the younger children the opportunity to learn from the older children, and the older children to be leaders at this young age.

The Kindergarten Curriculum

The Preshil Kindergarten follows the Primary Years Programme (PYP) of the International Baccalaureate. Children’s learning is carefully planned to broaden and extend their experiences through intentional and guided inquiry with teachers, resulting in a free-flowing program. The program is delivered by a teaching team, and consists of a balance of collaborative projects, PYP Units of Inquiry and Playworlds, small-group teacher-led experiences and free play throughout the daily routine, with a focus on smooth transitions. Children are encouraged to learn by observing, questioning, discussing, wondering, doing, making, collaborating and expressing their thinking in ways that reflect their individuality, strengths and creativity. A love of books, stories, role play, reading and writing are cultivated and form the basis of Literacy, Numeracy and Science. Specialist Philosophy, Art, Music, French and Dance teachers work with the children each week alongside the core program.

The importance of self-esteem, community, thinking skills, conceptual development and the sense of self and others, forms the basis of our program. Preshil’s teaching approach is informed by current theory and research, enabling us to work innovatively with the children to challenge and develop their ideas and understandings in the context of imagination, creativity and play. The Playworlds model sees children, together with their teachers, create shared imaginary situations, engaging in imaginative play as a platform to investigate everyday experiences and develop conceptual understandings. Imagination allows children to develop important symbolic representation and creative, critical and abstract thinking skills. Safe risks are encouraged in play and learning where children can ‘be courageous’, supported to feel proud and confident as they grow and learn more about their world and their place in it.

Family involvement is an important theme throughout children’s time at Arlington (both at the Kindergarten and Primary Years), with a strong community supporting various events, projects and celebrations. The Preshil commitment to ‘rights with responsibilities’ begins in the kindergarten and fosters principles of mutual respect and cooperation, while learning in, about, and for our environment.

Children can be enrolled in the Kindergarten from their third birthday. Families can select their preferred days for attendance which can be a minimum of two days, for three year olds, and a minimum of three days for four year olds. Each day begins at 9.00am and finishes at 3.15pm. Preshil offers an extended day  from 3.15pm when the kindergarten children join the children in the primary school for the aftercare program run by Kelly Club.
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Transition to the 5s (Prep)

In preparation to join the Primary School children when they join the Fives, the kindergarten children spend time with the Fives each week at our bush nook, exploring the natural space together. In Term 4 the four year olds spend time in the Fives classroom, called the Lighthouse, and adjoining playground. They spend time with their future teachers, and the new children who join Preshil at Prep. During these transition sessions, the children are able to explore the space as they choose to; play in the home corner, make and create in the maker space, build with the blocks or LEGO, or care for the garden. The Fives is a caring environment where children feel welcome and at home. Learning in the Fives develops confident, imaginative thinkers of the future.

Next Steps?

For further enquiries, please email the Registrar or complete the online enquiry form. Alternatively, if you would like to come and join us on a tour of the school, please register your attendance or call us on +61 3 9817 6135.

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