Goodstart Early Learning Flora Hill

Did you know we invested $65.5M into our social purpose last year, a 14% increase on the year before? 👏 At Goodstart, we're proud of the impact we have on children, families and communities. As a not‑for‑profit, every dollar we earn is reinvested to improve outcomes – from high‑quality learning and educator development to extra support for children who need it most.
Because when we put children first, the impact goes further 💛

The research is clear 📚 reading aloud is one of the most powerful things we can do for our children.

When we read with a child, we’re doing far more than sharing a story. We’re building the foundations for language, confidence, curiosity and a lifelong love of learning.

Decades of research shows that children who are read to regularly:

💛 Build stronger language skills
Hearing rich varied language in books exposes children to far more words than everyday conversation alone. This growing vocabulary helps them understand, communicate and make sense of the world.

💛 Develop early literacy skills long before they learn to read
Through stories, children learn how books work – that print carries meaning, that pages turn left to right, and that stories have a beginning, middle and end. These early understandings make learning to read feel familiar and exciting.

💛 Strengthen phonological awareness
Rhymes, rhythms and playful sounds help children hear the building blocks of language.

💛 Grow their comprehension and thinking skills
Talking together about a story, predicting what might happen, wondering how a character feels, and connecting events to real life helps children develop memory, problem-solving, and higher-order thinking.

💛 Experience connection, comfort and joy
Shared reading fosters calmness, closeness, and moments of joint attention. These warm interactions support a child's sense of security and belonging.

Most importantly, children who experience positive, engaging reading moments from a young age are more likely to develop a genuine love of books - something that matters even more than early literacy skills alone.

Reading is simple, joyful, and sets children up for success in school and life.

Here is a list of some of our favourites below 👇

🐞 What is a bug’s favourite sport?
Cricket! 🦗🤣

Our Garuk children have developed a keen interest in all things bugs!

What better way to nurture their curiosity by creating our very own bug habitat? 🌿🐛

Children were excited to get up close and explore a variety of creepy crawlies through hands on investigation. Rich conversations emerged as children observed, questioned, shared ideas, and extended their knowledge alongside their peers.

Experiences such as these, foster children in developing their curiosity, language, and meaningful connections with the natural world around them.

🕷️🐞🦋

🎵✨ Hey Dee Ho Visits Flora Hill! ✨🎵

Our children look forward to our fortnightly visits from Hey Dee Ho! 🎶💛

Through music, movement, storytelling and imaginative play, the children sing, dance, explore and learn together. These engaging sessions support children’s confidence, language development, creative expression and help foster a strong sense of belonging! 🌈🎤

A special thank you to Chevy from Hey dee ho educational servicesfor always bringing such energy and fun to our centre every fortnight. We love having you part of our community! 🫶🏻

Hey Dee Ho Pickles

Every child deserves access to early education 💛

With this year’s changes to Child Care Subsidy and Goodstart’s 3 Day Guarantee, more families may now have access to increased early Education 🙌🏻

Early education supports children to build on their confidence, social connections, resilience and important lifelong skills through play, relationships and meaningful experiences each day 🌱

Read more below to see what these changes could mean for your family 👇

https://timesnewsgroup.com.au/bendigotimes/education-week/unlocking-more-days-of-early-learning-for-your-child-at-goodstart/

Have more questions?
Contact our friendly team who are more than happy to chat with you further 😊

Unlocking more days of early learning for your child at Goodstart - Bendigo Times Access more affordable early learning with the 3 Day Guarantee. Help your child build social skills and confidence at Goodstart Bendigo.

💕 Celebrating all kinds of Mums 💕
The ones who are,
The ones who long to be,
The ones who step in, and show up every day in their own way.
We see you 💗

Motherhood isn’t one story, it’s many, each one held together by love 🤍🌸

Happy Mother’s Day 💕

❤️ There’s so much more happening here than just drawing ❤️

As part of our Kimochi program, our Kinder children are learning to recognise, name, and express their emotions in meaningful ways.

Recently, children have been exploring different feelings and learning how to label them. In this moment, a child identified the feeling “cranky, connected to our Kimochi resources, and represented this emotion through their drawing and emerging writing.

We love seeing:
✨ Children confidently naming their emotions
✨ Connections being made between learning experiences
✨ Early writing used with purpose and meaning
✨ Creativity as a way to express feelings

This is what social and emotional learning looks like in action—building emotional awareness, communication skills, and a strong sense of self 🫶🏻

These moments might look simple, but they are powerful foundations for lifelong wellbeing.

⭐Immediate vacancies available ⭐

We understand that finding immediate childcare can be an emotional and challenging experience and we are here to help.

Our tour slots are open all week, you are welcome to book online or call our friendly family support team on 1800 222 543. We look forward to welcoming you and your family into our happy centre 😀