A to Z of Early Learning
A glossary to help you understand the ins and outs of childcare.
BY HEJIRA CONVERY, KINDICARE
Your preschooler will happily tell you that “A is for apple” and “B is for bee,” but when it comes to the A to Z early learning, there’s a bit more complexity!
Words, like ‘pedagogy’ and ‘National Quality Framework’ don’t come up too often in normal life, but you will encounter them when navigating the wonderful world of childcare; and to get you up to speed, we’ve put together a glossary of key early learning terms and what they mean for you.
This A to Z isn’t exhaustive, because “C is for Child Care Subsidy, curriculum, centre-based services, community partnerships and child-led learning,” but it is a great start, and there are lots of links if you’re looking for more info.
Feel free to read this glossary word-for-word, or skip to the terms you're a bit fuzzy on, and whatever your approach, here goes!
A is for Australian Children’s Education & Care Quality Authority
Known as ‘ACECQA,’ this independent national authority works with all state and territory governments to do good by families, and support the education and care sector to improve quality outcomes for children.
You pronounce their name “a-see-kwa,” and there’s more about them here.
B is for Breastfeeding
If you’re breastfeeding, then it’s good to know that you are totally within your rights to continue doing so once your child goes to care.
No-one can deny you a childcare place because you’re breastfeeding, or encourage you to wean your little one earlier than you’d like, and this article contains some practical tips to help you continue breastfeeding once you return to work.
C is for Child Care Subsidy
This subsidy is very important (and welcome), because as long as you meet the government’s eligibility criteria, they will pay money direct to your childcare service to bring down your fees.
If you have more than one young child in care, you can get a higher subsidy for your younger child/ren, and Services Australia has lots of info to make sure you get the childcare assistance you're entitled to.
C also stands for ‘calculator’ and the KindiCare Childcare Subsidy Comparison Calculator is a great tool that helps you estimate what fees you’ll pay at different services, with your family’s Child Care Subsidy applied.
D is for Director
Your centre director (or centre manager) wears a lot of hats.
They are responsible for the smooth-running of your service, which means they’re team leaders, financial stewards, family support people and community partners.
If you have questions, concerns or just some great feedback, your centre director is there to talk it through, and this article provides a great wrap-up of what centre directors do.
E is for Early Years Learning Framework
Belong, Being and Becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia (aka the EYLF) is the national approved learning framework for under-fives, so early learning services must use it to guide and support their educational program.
The EYLF recognises that young children learn through play, and that communication, language, social and emotional development are important.
F is for Family Day Care
Family day care is an approved type of childcare that happens in the home of a family day care educator, under the ‘umbrella’ of a family day care service.
FDC caters to all children, from birth to 12 years, and operates under the same National Quality Framework (see below) as childcare centres do.
You can get the Child Care Subsidy for FDC, and lots of families love the ‘home-away-from-home’ feel, small group sizes and deep bonds that come with this type of care.
G is for Gap Fee
This is the amount you actually have to pay for childcare, out of your own pocket.
The gap fee is the difference between what your provider charges for care, and what the government contributes with the Child Care Subsidy, and every family has to pay a gap fee, unless there’s a big emergency, like an out of control pandemic.
As of 1 July 2023, all gap fees must be paid by electronic transfer, and there’s more info about all of this here.
H is for Holidays
Although it might seem weird that you have to pay for childcare your child doesn’t actually get, it’s common practice for services to charge fees when you’re on holiday or away for another reason, like sickness.
The good news is that some services, like Goodstart Early Learning, don’t charge for public holidays; some services offer ‘holiday discounts’ or ‘make-up days;’ and the government provides ‘absence days’ – which means they’ll pay the Child Care Subsidy for a certain number of days when your child is away.
This article has more info, and it’s best to ask your service about their particular approach to absences.
I is for In Home Care
In Home Care is a flexible form of childcare that’s provided in the home (as its name suggests).
Places are limited, though.
‘IHC’ is only available to families who can’t access other types of childcare, because of their unusual work hours, remote location or complex or challenging needs, and if you think this is you, there’s more information here.
J is for Jobs
Or more specifically, Kindicare Jobs!
This app and web platform makes it easy to search and apply for roles in the early learning sector, so you can launch or level-up your childcare career.
There are different roles in many locations, and you simply tap the 'For Job Seekers' tab in the KindiCare app or head to https://kindicare.com/early-childhood-and-childcare-jobs to get started.
K is for Kindergarten
Also known as ‘preschool’ (depending on where you live), kindergarten is for ages three to five, and it’s funded by state and territory governments.
Some kindy programs are delivered in stand-alone services, while others happen as part of an education and care service, and school prep and play-based learning are the focus.
Victoria and Queensland are two places where the government is committing extra money to pay for free or cheaper kindy, and this article provides a good wrap-up of kindy/preschool around Australia.
L is for Long Day Care
This type of approved, centre-based day care is popular because it caters to newborns, babies, toddlers and preschoolers!
You can book your little one in for long days or specific sessions (with your Child Care Subsidy applied), and as they near school age, kindergarten/preschool programs are offered.
There are lots of long day cares to choose from, and KindiCare will help you find a service, based on key criteria like availability, quality, affordability, location and value for money.
M is for Montessori
Montessori is an alternative educational approach that’s offered at a number of Australian services, including Montessori Academy
The Montessori Early Years programme is in line with the approved early learning framework that all services must base their program on.
However, children use specially prepared Montessori materials in specially organised Montessori classrooms to direct their own learning, and you can read more here.
N is for National Quality Framework
The ‘NQF’ is Australia’s system for regulating long day care, family day care, preschool/kindergarten and outside school hours care services.
It includes:
- The National Law and National Regulations, which set out the legal obligations of people and services providing educations and care, and
- The National Quality Standard, which sets a high national benchmark for services.
Services are assessed and rated under this system; minimum qualifications and educator to child ratios are set out under the NQF, and there’s lots more detail here.
O is for Outside Schools Hours Care
Outside school hours care is an approved type of care for primary school-aged children.
It includes before and after school care, and vacation care, to fill the gaps when us parents are hard at work, and the Child Care Subsidy can help with the cost of this fun and flexible care.
P is for Pedagogy
The simplest way to explain pedagogy is to say that it’s the ‘how’ of teaching – the method and practice by which educators educate!
It involves building and nurturing relationships, curriculum/program decision-making, teaching and learning (so says the EYLF), and all of this matters a lot for your early learner.
Q is for Qualifications
Passion and patience are two things to look for in an educator, but proper training is also important, and the National Quality Framework sets out the minimum qualification requirements for centre-based services and family day care.
There’s a good wrap-up here, and it’s also nice to know that the 2023-2024 Budget allocated more than $70 million to help childcare workers upskill and complete the practical part of their Bachelor or Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education.
R is for Ratios
Educator to child ratios set out the minimum number of educators that must be working directly with groups of children.
There are different ratios for different ages and service types, and you can delve into the detail here, safe in the knowledge that your child is getting the attention they need.
S is for School Readiness
There are certain dates and ages when your child can, and must, start school by, but if you have a choice of one year or the next, then school readiness comes into play.
A great school readiness program at childcare will help your child prepare socially, emotionally, physically, cognitively and communication-wise for school, and educators can also help you decide whether to send your child to school next year, or next, next year.
T is for Transitions
Going to school is a big transition in your child’s life, but it’s not the only one!
Starting at childcare, moving between rooms, getting a new educator or shifting from outdoor play to indoor rest are all examples of transition times, and Starting Blocks has some great advice to help you support your child during times of change.
U is for Under-five
There’s no doubt that the first five years of your child’s life are critical!
A massive 90% of your little one’s brain development happens when they’re under five, and quality early childhood education programs are designed to get the little grey cells going, with a play-based approach to learning.
V is for Vaccinations
The government has a ‘no jab, no pay’ policy, so if you want to get childcare fee assistance from them, you need to ensure your child meets these immunisation requirements.
W is for Waitlist
Every early learning service has a specific number of places, and quality services in popular areas can fill up fast!
This means you might have to join a waitlist (or three) before your child successfully snags a spot, however a little bit of luck and a lot of proactivity does help, and this article contains some top tips to avoid (or lessen) waitlists.
X is for Xylophone
This instrument is an all-time hit with early learners, because it’s colourful, noisy and fun to use.
Playing the xylophone flexes your child’s fine motor skills and hones their hand-eye coordination, and there’s a lot of evidence that music-making of all kinds is good for kids' developement.
Y is for Yoga
Yoga has benefits for children’s bodies and minds, and an increasing number of services offer regular yoga sessions.
This article explains the benefits of yoga for under-fives, and there are also some tips for practising yoga as a family.
Z is for Zeal
Zeal means ‘great enthusiasm in the pursuit of something,’ and we hope you feel some zeal when looking for childcare!
Instead of just settling on a place, it’s important to find somewhere you and your child are excited about (or at least happy with), and ‘feel’ definitely matters when you're contacting, touring and choosing a service.
And that’s a wrap!
Now that you’ve learnt the A to Z of early learning, you can explore childcare, armed with this new knowledge; and if something doesn’t make sense to you, never be afraid to ask centre staff to explain.
They’ll be happy to, and understanding is really important.
