Our Village
Cornubia Park values the Importance of our Village and is inspired by the authenticity of the Reggio Emilia approach which originated in Italy in the 1940’s. Loris Malaguzzi founder of the approach made strong emphasis on the importance of family and community and the belief, ‘it takes a village to raise a child’.
“A Village” is symbolic of the ‘whole environment’ in which a child grows up. Our vision encompasses a supportive, nurturing community that values relationships and enriches education. We provide an environment for children, where they feel safe and secure, giving them the best chance of developing and flourishing. Children are given voice, are taken seriously and encouraged to believe in themselves to realize their hopes and dreams.
Along with Parents, a child’s siblings, extended family members, neighbours, teachers, elders, professionals, community members and all who are part of our centre, are considered to be ’Villagers’. The concept of the village is the notion that caring for children is a shared responsibility amongst many. As a group, the villagers may provide direct care to the children and/or support the parent in looking after their children. Our village will have the capacity to provide support and guidance to families living with adversity; to families disconnected from their immediate family and to those who in our challenging times, find it difficult to ask for help.
We understand time is precious to working parents, we are here to support your families work-life balance and help with communicating your child’s experiences within the village. We endeavour to be creative in organising times for parent participation and involvement in all areas of your child’s development. We are excited about offering the Village Café in the Main Building reception which provides an opportunity for you to share breakfast with your little ones at drop off times, we hope this will provide a moment of calm before the day begins. Other ways of involving yourself in our village, in big or small ways may include:
- Collaborating with teachers to develop interests for children, sharing ideas and/or resources from home
- Volunteering in busy bees or collecting scrap materials for our creative pursuits
- Joining our Village Group/Committee and attending Parent Meetings
- Attending social and fund-raising events, including our Annual Mothers Day, Fathers Day, Easter and Christmas celebrations, along with sustainability, nutrition, and foodie events
- Giving feedback or tips in our Village Hub (OWNA) via voting polls on Centre policy’s and procedures
If there are issues we face them together. As members of our Village we will nurture our relationships with you, support and communicate with authenticity.
Our Village Leaders
Cornubia Park has been the dream creation of the Balson Family, who over the past 30 years have created joyful spaces for children all over Queensland. Our priority along with children’s happiness is the conservation of our team of highly qualified professional educators who are committed to and passionate about early childhood education. Our staff promote the human rights, safety and wellbeing of all children and consider and respect the diverse backgrounds and needs of all children.
Rebecca
Rebecca has an exceptional drive to provide children with a happy and healthy start to life, providing children with an optimal environment to thrive. Rebecca’s vision has created the foundations of numerous centres throughout the Gold Coast and Southern Brisbane, building and running exceeding centres for the past 16 years. Rebecca and her partner Marcus have two bright teenage girls and two happy young boys that keep them connected to the younger years, and create an understanding of what families are facing in this modern age. With 20 years of holistic experience as a passionate naturopath, nutritionist and foodie, Rebecca’s passion lies in creating optimal nutrition for our special children. Rebecca designs the Centre menu with the aim of providing wholesome, nutritionally balanced meals made with the children’s tastes in mind.
Des'ree
Dear Families,
The early years are full of hope, love, and learning. I have been in the early years since 2013 and performed many different roles. With each child, class, role, colleague, and year that has passed I have grown to see the value and impact the early years have on our future. I believe children learn through play and connection, I have always wanted and enjoyed helping our children develop into amazing beings. It is inspiring working with children and even more motivating to change the world through these little people. The early years is not only for our children but also our families it is unlike any other industry, and I am proud to be apart of such a powerful movement. I hope and will strive to make positive change within myself, my peers and for our wonderful families in Cornubia Park. Welcome to our Village and thank you for the opportunity to make exceptional lifelong changes.
Sue
Starting my career as a registered nurse I made the progression across to Maternal Child Health after having two children. It was during this time that I became increasingly aware of the importance of the first 5 years in a child’s life. I then had 2 more children, and started accessing childcare for my children and recognised the importance of all children having access to quality Early Years Education and Care. This curiosity saw me enrol into Childcare studies and complete many levels of education across this sector and has since seen me work for 22 years in the field. I believe you can never stop learning to best be able to support and educate our little ones to set them up for successful, healthy and happy futures as they are our next leaders and need the skills, human and social attributes necessary to fulfil this role.
Minerva
PARENT COMMITTEE
The Cornubia Park Early Learning Centre is very proud of our Parent Committee. Made up of any interested parents, we meet usually every couple of months to discuss any future planned activities and excursions for the children, fund-raising activities, accreditation activities, special days and dates including Mother’s Day Outings, Father’s Day Celebrations, Christmas Concert etc. We really welcome any new parents who might like to come along and share a cup of tea or coffee and a chat at the meeting. It is a great way to develop new friendships.
COMMUNICATING WITH EDUCATORS
Families are encouraged to speak with their child’s educators about their child’s progress or any concerns they may have. Open communication between families and educators facilitates positive home/child care relationships based on trust and positive co-operation.
Much of the communication between educators and families occurs quickly, on the run, at an informal level as parents drop off and pick up children. Both families and educators need to be aware of the importance of passing on information which helps both parties better anticipate children’s behaviour. From the family’s perspective, it is sensible to inform educators, e.g. if your child has had a bad night, or if there are any changes occurring in the pattern of family life etc.
If families need to have longer talks with educators it is important to make an appointment with the educator outside of session times rather than take the educator’s attention away from the children. This also gives the educator the opportunity to refer to developmental records and observations.
The Director’s role is to spend time working with children and educators, and on administration matters. When the Director is in the Centre, she is available at any time to come and talk to you. Just phone during the day to arrange a meeting.
SHARED INFORMATION
Families can ask for information about the following:
- A general description of the activities and experiences given by the Centre:
- The Centre’s philosophy about learning and child development outcomes and how it is intended the outcomes can be achieved.
- The goals about knowledge and skills to be developed through the activities and experiences.
- Viewing of the Office for Early Childhood Education and Care Compliance history log book which is located on the front desk of each centre. This log contains any history from the 1st of July 2010 of compliance notices given to the centre from the Office for Early Childhood Education and Care. To date Cornubia Park Early Learning and Cornubia Park Early Learning Babies Centre have not received any compliance notices from 19th of April 1993 to date.
OPEN COMMUNICATION POLICY
“Open Communication Is the Key to our Happiness“
Dear Parents,
You are a very important part of our Centre family, and your input and precious time is highly valued.
The most important avenue of keeping in touch is through verbal communication on a daily basis. Educators ensure that each child is greeted and farewells are made each day and this is an important time for families to communicate and pass on messages about the child’s feelings, moods, progress, etc.
Our educators welcome comments and suggestions to improve the quality of care of your child. When areas of concern arise, the problem should be brought to the attention of the Group Leader who will hear your suggestion or grievance and attempt to work through the problem. If additional communication is necessary, the problem can be taken to the Director.
On enrolment, families are given a Centre Handbook, which contains Centre Policies and Procedures and other relevant information. This is an important document for families to gain information on the Centre, management and general matters.
There are also many other ways to keep our communication channels open. Each room has a specific Communication Book on display for families to leave messages for the educators. This also allows educators to write about activities during the day, providing families with an updated account of the program and a basis for which to encourage conversations with children at home. Each room also provides a Weekly Program, to advise families of upcoming activities, events and interests being extended.
The Centre provides parents with a Noticeboard, Suggestion Box, Newsletters and regular emails to keep you updated on numerous topics specific for the care of your child.
The Director also has a communication book on the front desk, so at any time you can write down a message if she is unavailable.
We believe in the emergent approach where communication and collaboration between educators and families is paramount to the children’s interests being fostered, extended and evaluated. We, as educators, can learn so much more about your child and program to their individuality if you openly share their interests, likes and feelings.
Remember we are here to work in partnership with you. ‘A problem shared is a problem solved’”.
From the Staff of Cornubia Park Early Learning Centre.