Mother Duck Childcare Gaythorne

The Kindergarten children have been spending time in the other studios, teaching their younger peers and educators our Acknowledgement of Country along with the sign language that goes with it.

The children have been listening and reading dreamtime stories over National Reconciliation Week. Dreamtime stories are ancient and sacred tales from Australian Aboriginal cultures. They are foundational to Indigenous spiritual beliefs, serving as both creation mythologies and vital survival guides that outline the lore, customs, and laws for living in harmony with the land. A couple of the current favourites are 'How the birds got their colours' and 'The echidna and the shade tree'. These books inspired creations in the mark making and clay spaces.

Starting childcare is a big transition—for your child and for you.

If this stage feels challenging at times, you are not alone.

At Mother Duck Childcare & Kindergarten, we believe in walking alongside families through this transition—with practical support, reassurance and understanding.

Katy Bloodworth offers some practical tips and shares how Mother Duck supports our families during this big transitional period.

https://loom.ly/bSFVQKg 🦆 🌸

Supporting Your Child (and Yourself) Through the Transition to Childcare - Mother Duck Child Care Starting childcare is a big transition—for your child and for you. Alongside new friendships, routines, and learning experiences, it’s also common for families to navigate periods of illness, disrupted sleep, and emotional adjustments. If this stage feels challenging at times, you are not alone....

Some of the studios have been exploring the animals who live on Country that we are indirectly looking after by caring for our plants and trees 🐨🐦‍⬛🦜

Save the date! Our Kindergarten is hosting an information morning on Saturday 18th July from 9:30 - 10:30 am. Come on down to learn all about our Kindergarten program, meet the ECT's and tour our Kindergarten studio. This information morning is open to all families who have children eligible for the Kindergarten program 2027 (starting prep 2028) 😀

Provocations in the library space create inviting environments and support literacy development through exploration and imaginative play as the children can take ideas from one context to another 📖

Process > Product

Our Pre-Kindy studio have been enjoying all aspects of painting - the feel of the paint on the paper and their hands, the way the colours mix, how paint can be transferred in many ways and colour representations 🖌️🎨

The theme for Reconciliation Week 2026 is 'All in'. Together as a whole service, we reflected deeply on our Acknowledgement of Country, which was written by a group of Kindergarten children in 2023. We asked ourselves "what does this mean?", "who is this for?", "why do we have an acknowledgement of country?", and "how do we uphold our acknowledgement?" To support our understanding of why we have an acknowledgement, we read the book "Somebody's land' by Adam Goodes and Ellie Laing.

Our first meal on our trial menu was a great success! Beef stroganoff with creamy mashed potatoes...delish!