Blinky Bill Early Learning Portland

19/08/2026

From 22–28 August, we’ll be celebrating Book Week with this year’s wonderful theme, “A Symphony of Stories.”

Throughout the week, we’ll be sharing stories, exploring characters and ideas through play, and welcoming special visitors from our local community to join us in celebrating the joy of books and storytelling.

👗 Children and educators are invited to dress up as part of our celebrations!

At Blinky Bill, we know that early literacy is so much more than learning letters and sounds. Through our play-based curriculum, children develop literacy as they talk, listen, tell stories, negotiate play, explore books, make meaning, build vocabulary and use their imaginations.

Stories become part of children’s play and through that play, children are developing the communication, language and early literacy skills that support them as confident lifelong learners.

We can’t wait to celebrate the magic of stories, imagination and community with our children!

11/08/2026

Great news. Power has now been restored and Blinky Bill Early Learning will be operating as normal tomorrow.
Thank you to all of our families for your patience, understanding, and support throughout today’s unexpected disruption. We appreciate your flexibility and look forward to welcoming everyone back for a normal day of learning, play, and fun tomorrow!

10/08/2026

Due to a power outage, Blinky will be unable to operate today, with an estimated restoration of service at 12:30pm. Families will not be charged fees for the closure period. Updates will be communicated via text message and the OWNA App. We appreciate your understanding and patience during this time.

30/07/2026

Today we celebrate Tanya and an incredible 25 years of dedication to children and families.

Over this time, Tanya has provided children with a place where they feel safe, valued, supported and encouraged to grow. Her kindness, patience and genuine care have helped create countless happy memories and meaningful early learning experiences.

Tanya has also been a trusted support for so many families; offering reassurance, guidance, understanding and a warm welcome through every stage of their child’s journey.

The impact of your work reaches far beyond the walls of our service. It can be seen in the confidence of the children you have nurtured, the relationships you have built with families, and the community you have helped create.

Thank you, Tanya, for 25 years of unwavering care, compassion and commitment to giving children the very best start in life. Congratulations on this remarkable milestone!

27/07/2026

16/06/2026

🌿 Community Help Needed 🌿

As we continue to improve our outdoor learning environment, we are looking for a little help from our wonderful families and community.

We have a few old wooden items that need to be taken to the tip, including some large logs and an old wooden bridge that is no longer safe to use or repair.

If you have a trailer, ute, or the ability to assist us with transporting these items, we would be incredibly grateful for your support.

Please contact Tanya or Pen (63555833) if you are able to help.

Thank you for supporting our children and helping us create the best possible environment for learning and play. 💚

28/05/2026

Hi families and community 😊

We are looking for donations of any pre-loved Hot Wheels cars, tracks, ramps, garages or accessories that are no longer being used at home.

We would like to build a strong interest in building tracks, creating obstacle courses, exploring speed and motion, and working together through collaborative play within our curriculum to support children’s creativity, problem-solving, engineering thinking, and social development.

If you have any items tucked away that could be given a second life in our learning environment, we would be incredibly grateful for your support 🚗💨

Donations can be brought into the service at any time.

Thank you for helping us create exciting hands-on learning opportunities for the children.

26/05/2026

National Sorry Day is a day to acknowledge the strength of Stolen Generations Survivors and reflect on how we can all play a part in the healing process for our people and nation. While this date carries great significance for the Stolen Generations and other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, it is also commemorated by Australians right around the country.

The first National Sorry Day was held on 26 May 1998, one year after the Bringing Them Home report was tabled in Parliament. The Bringing Them Home report is a result of a Government Inquiry into the past policies which caused children to be removed from their families and communities in the 20th century.

Following this, in 2000, there was one issue that was high on the agenda at the Sydney Harbour Bridge walk for reconciliation – an apology to the Stolen Generations.

It was also high in the sky, when a group of people – independent to the organisation of the walk – had the word ‘sorry’ written in the clear blue skies above the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Such was the intensity of feeling and support for Stolen Generations members – many of whom were among the huge crowd that day.

Today, twenty-three years after the Bringing Them Home report and twelve years since the National Apology, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are still 10.6 times more likely than non-Indigenous children to be removed from their families.

We cannot begin to fix the problems of the present without accepting the truth of our history. Sorry Day asks us to acknowledge the Stolen Generations, and in doing so, reminds us that historical injustice is still an ongoing source of intergenerational trauma for Aboriginal and Torres Islander families, communities, and peoples.

14/05/2026

On Wednesday we enjoyed our first visit to Tabulam for the year!

It was a very big walk up the hill for some of our little legs, but along the way the children stayed engaged and excited as we recognised many familiar places within our community. The children spotted Portland Central School, Jett’s Nan’s house and even recognised streets that lead to their own homes.

Throughout the walk, educators supported children in learning and practicing important road safety skills such as stopping, looking, listening and staying together as a group.

Once we arrived at Tabulam, we warmly greeted the residents and joined them for a couple of games of bingo. It was lovely for educators to meet some new residents, while many of the children experienced their very first visit to Tabulam. The children showed kindness, confidence and enthusiasm as they interacted with the residents.

We are already looking forward to our next visit!