Our Program and Approach
At our centre childhood is celebrated. When they play and explore, children's imagination and curiosity is sparked - they enjoy learning, and are inspired to continue learning more.
At KU Padstow, our educational program and practice is closely connected to the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF), which has five outcomes our educators use to guide children’s development. These are that children have a strong sense of identity, are connected to and contribute to their world, have a strong sense of wellbeing, are confident and involved learners, and are effective communicators.
At KU Padstow, we see children as strong and capable learners. Therefore, the most important aspect of establishing our daily program is child-initiated. The interests and home experiences of children often generate our daily curriculum ideas.
At our centre, children have access to all learning resources throughout the day to accommodate for individual children’s interests, developmental stages and needs.
We greatly value the strong relationships between our staff, children and families, and we look forward to the opportunity of including your family in the life of our centre.
Our Special Interest
In addition to the high quality well-rounded programs we offer, all KU centres are also encouraged to develop an area of special interest.
At KU Padstow, our area of special interest is sustainability education. Throughout our program, we incorporate activities that allow children to explore the ideas of reduce, recycle and reuse and learn how we can lower our impact on our natural resources and care for our planet for today and tomorrow.
Activities include maintaining our vegetable garden and compost, using recycled and natural materials in our art and learning experiences and involving children in the decisions we make about the types of resources we purchase and use.
We feel that the children benefit from sustainability education because it teaches them sustainable practices and behaviours for the future, ensuring children care for the environment, resources and each other.
Our Quality
Our centre has been independently assessed by the NSW Department of Education under the National Quality Standards, and are proud to be rated as Exceeding the National Quality Standard, across all seven quality areas.
However what matters most is what our families think...
“From my son’s first day of orientation, I knew KU Padstow was the right preschool for Felix. One year on, we have been provided with the most delightful, nurturing environment from his educators helping him settle in, to the wonderful bush surrounds and play setups, to the friendships he has made.” – KU Padstow Parent
"Our third child is now at KU Padstow Preschool and we love the range of activities and the equipment at the centre. The staff are friendly and caring. The outdoor area is a great size for all outdoor activities. Theodore is always asking, "Is it preschool day today?" – KU Padstow Parent
Our Environment
Each KU centre is unique. The best outcomes for children are created within relationships and interactions between children and staff, and children and their families, not within four walls. We work hard to create beautiful, interesting, homelike learning environments for children – whatever our setting.
Our centre is located in a beautiful parkland location with its own car park. We have a beautiful and expansive outdoor area to complement our spacious indoor environment. Our centre is well resourced with a vast array of materials and equipment to supplement our play-based learning program.
Our playground is designed to allow children to explore nature and discover the natural environment. We want children to be able to dig in the mud, climb trees, discover and learn about insects and enjoy connecting with nature. The many activities we offer enable children to immerse themselves in the natural elements of their surroundings and feel inspired to create, imagine and play.
Our Awards
KU Padstow was awarded one of the four SPROuts Awards given by the NSW Early Childhood Environmental Education Network for 2019, recognising the preschool's commitment to learning for sustainability. The preschool participated in ‘Becoming Eco Smart’ with KU, developing unique projects and undertaking adventures, including reducing waste, recognising the environment’s need for care and embedding sustainable practice into their program.
Our Reconciliation Action Plan
KU was proud to launch its inaugural Innovate Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) in 2016. At KU Padstow, we began our journey to develop our centre’s RAP in 2018 and we are proud to present it here.
