Our Centre
Our Rooms
In the infants room at Kirinari Early Childhood Centre, we provide a nurturing and loving environment for children (from birth to 2 years) to grow and develop in. The environment is stimulating and offers many opportunities for the children to explore and learn.
The competent, passionate and qualified Educators who care for the children, have had many years of experience. All Educators provide a genuine and personal interest in and dialogue with each child as a developing individual.
Each Educator in the room creates secure relationships with the children and their families. Communication is centered on the child through a partnership approach between the Educators and the family. This builds knowledge of the routines, interests, development and temperament of each child and the caregiving styles of the family.
Activities are provided to the children to enhance their language, social, fine/gross motor, emotional and cognitive skills. These activities are planned based on the Educators observations of the children and on each child's personal interests. These include:
- Drawing with all sorts of mediums, for example: texta's, pencils, chalk, paint etc.
- Pouring activities using water or sand.
- Play dough and finger/brush painting.
- Music activities with various instruments and dancing.
- Obstacle courses and puzzles.
Our caregiving routines and rituals are created to be predictable experiences for the children. This helps the child to learn what to expect in their day, supporting a respectful and trusting relationship between the child and their caregiver. Each routine activity is rich in language, cues and responses. The Educators provide enough time for the child to participate in their routines, creating meaningful and naturally satisfying caregiving experiences.
The Kirinari toddler room is called The Wombats. It is for children 2 years to 3.5 years.
It is a great, fun room that has a strong child-centred program. We are a busy room with many extended activities in place to stimulate the children's cognitive and intellectual development. We provide an environment that promotes autonomy and fosters self-esteem. Our art and craft activities are responsive to the needs of our very creative and hands-on toddlers.
We provide a sound, safe and changing physical outdoor environment. We have a playground surrounded by native plants and gum trees. Our indoor area is spacious with two extra rooms for group times, dramatic play and block construction. We have a designated sleep room to ensure our toddlers can rest and sleep to give them all the energy they need to grow and develop.
There are places for 20 toddlers. The dedicated, professional Educators have various recognised qualifications and a wealth of early childhood experience.
We encourage our parents to be an active part of their child's day by bringing new ideas that help enrich the program. Parents are welcomed to bring aspects of their home culture into our Centre.
In the Kangaroo room at Kirinari, we provide a nurturing and educational environment for children from 3 years to school age. The environment is stimulating and offers a wide range of experiences for children to explore and develop in.
The competent and qualified Educators who care for the children have had many years of experience and are continually updating their knowledge and skills to provide better quality care for the children. All Educators are enthusiastic and genuinely interested in the development and individual needs of the children.
The daily program focuses on individual and group-based activities which are geared to the needs, interests and strengths of the individual children. The program covers all areas of development - including emotional, social, physical, cognitive and language development.
The room is divided up into working areas including dramatic play, block/construction play, book/quiet corner, arts and crafts, exploratory play, puzzles, home corner, math play and language and literacy development. Our outdoor environment is large with many native shrubs and trees throughout the environment. We have a large play structure called Slide Mountain, swings, a sandpit, a mud hut village, yarning circle, dry creek beds, and ample space to run around and ride bikes. We teach an environmental policy that encourages us to compost food scraps, recycle paper and care for our vegetable garden, where the children plant and look after the garden by weeding and watering the plants.
We regularly utilise the facilities on campus here at UC by going for walks, visiting the post office, library, Ngunnawal Centre, the bushtucker garden and exploring the oval and bush areas around the campus. We have a qualified music teacher come to the Centre each Wednesday and have Yoga sessions with our in-house Yogi. We also have Duncan Smith and his family, the Wiradjuri Echoes, an Indigenous dance group, visit us once a month to perform for the children and to share Indigenous stories and activities with the children.
Parents in the Kangaroo room play an active part in the development and running of the program. Parents assist with making resources, joining in on group activities and celebrations and adding ideas to the weekly program.
Excursions
Excursions form a regular and enjoyable part of the program. Parents are very welcome to join us for these occasions. Some of the excursions the children have attended in the past include:- Canberra Theatre shows, National Zoo and Aquarium, Canberra Museum & Gallery, National Museum of Australia, Playschool Concert, Reptile Park, Dinosaur Museum, ACTION Bus Wash and the Belconnen Library just to name a few. We also utilise the facilities of the University on a regular basis, visiting the library, shops, restaurants, café's, the gym and the ovals.
Incursions
The Centre supports a number of local and travelling artists by having them visit us at Kirinari. We also encourage parents to take part in entertaining and educating the children with cultural stories, cooking experiences and art activities.
We have Zen Music sessions once a week.
In their approach to music education, the educators from Zen Music recognise the inherent musical potential within every child and adult. They aspire to serve as enthusiastic and effective musical role models, whether as teachers, parents, or carers. Creating a nurturing and stimulating musical environment, they honor each individual's uniqueness while laying the foundations of basic musicianship in a developmentally appropriate, playful, engaging, and educational manner.
At the core of their program is the validation of all musical efforts, fostering an environment where quality experiences of active music-making are accessible to everyone. Through a diverse and exemplary collection of musical experiences and materials, they aim to cultivate aesthetic awareness, valuing the importance of live and active music-making.
Embracing diversity while seeking common ground, they recognise the voice as their most powerful instrument. Prioritising the process approach over performance pressure for young children, they remain committed to staying informed and open to new developments in early childhood music education.
Little Champions visit us once a week.
The Little Champions Multi-Sports program is a 12-week program crafted to introduce children to the fundamental skills of four primary sports: Soccer, Basketball, Football, and Netball! Led by experienced instructors, the program prioritises enjoyment, safety, and active participation. It's a fantastic opportunity for children to familiarise themselves with sports they'll encounter in primary school. Aligned with the National Early Years Learning Framework, the curriculum rotates through different sports each week, ensuring sustained enthusiasm and engagement in every activity. Through the program, children will enhance their movement, timing, spatial awareness, and teamwork skills.
Wiradjuri Echoes visit us once a month.
Duncan Smith and his family are the Wiradjuri Echoes, an indigenous performance group. The group perform for the children and teach them about Aboriginal culture through stories, art, song and dance. Visit their website for more information, or watch this video to meet Duncan and his Mob.
In 2016 Duncan Smith was awarded the Order of Australia Medal for his service to Indigenous youth and to the community. Congratulations Duncan.