Pope Road Kindergarten

At PRK, the climbing tree is a place of meeting, interactions, curiosity, relationships, growing confidences and learning about oneself, in relation to others. 
Children are encouraged to climb, explore, and challenge themselves in safe and supported ways. 
Adventurous play supports children to assess and respond to risks, test boundaries, manoeuvre, and trust their abilities.

Our families, our stories, all woven together; each thread representing where we come from and the rich diversity within our kinder community. Children “bring their diverse experiences, home languages, perspectives, expectations, and cultural ways of knowing, being and doing to their learning” (Early Years Learning Framework, V2.0, p. 8)

*Photos blurred for privacy

At kindergarten, gumboots are a must!  With a collection at the ready children are actively encouraged to explore muddy puddles, wet grass and sand, mud play and more. When children dig, splash, plant, and investigate the outdoors, they’re building confidence, resilience, coordination and an awareness of and respect for nature.

Last week a e celebrated ‘Thank a First Responder Day’ 🚨
We are so grateful for the firefighters, police officers, paramedics and all the everyday heroes who help keep our community safe. The children loved learning about the important role first responders play in our community.
To show their appreciation, the children baked cookies and we invited our local paramedics, police officers and firefighters to visit Pope Road Kindergarten. We were incredibly lucky to receive visits from all three services and the children were delighted to personally hand over their cookies and say thank you for everything they do.
A wonderful experience that helped bring our learning about community helpers to life.

Thursday 11 June marks United Nations International Day of Play. This year’s theme is ‘Protect play, protect childhood’ - a reminder that play is integral to happy and healthy childhoods.
 
Through play, children engage with people, places and objects around them. Play builds creativity, resilience and social skills. Play helps to develop positive attitudes to learning, whilst fostering persistence, curiosity and imagination. As outlined in the Victorina Early Years Learning and Development Framework, play-based learning is central to developing children’s cognitive skills and wellbeing.

Support our wonderful kindergarten by grabbing a snag at our sausage sizzle on Sunday 🌭

Pope Road Kindergarten’s commitment to supporting children’s rights and wellbeing is reflected in the Committee’s recent decision to retain five-hour sessions for the Three-Year-Old Group in 2027, while also responding to the Victorian Government’s Best Start, Best Life reforms by increasing the program to 15 hours per week.

For 2027, the Four-Year-Old Group will transition from a rotational model to a single group of 24 children, attending two 7.5-hour sessions each week (15 hours per week).

Our 2026 Free Shop is up and running 💛

Reflecting on the purpose underpinning this shared initiative, the children are exploring concepts of inclusion, participation, kindness and caring for Country. The children’s agreement is that, ‘We only take what we need’. 
 
The Free Shop operates with welcomed donations from families and the teaching team, and food grown at kindergarten.

This week we acknowledged Reconciliation Week and invited the children to Wear it Yellow, in support for Children’s Ground; a not-for-profit organisation working alongside First Nations communities to create a future where children can thrive with strong cultural identity, opportunity and wellbeing.

Children wore yellow, donated their money and together we raised $500 to donate to Children’s Ground.

Pope Road Kindergarten acknowledges
National Reconciliation Week, May 27 – June 3
.

National Reconciliation Week is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.

This year’s theme is ‘All In’. Join us in this call to action
for all Australians to commit to reconciliation every single day. Pope Road Kindergarten understands that reconciliation requires all of us to do our part, every day.