::: holy trinity kindergarten
We ventured down to the Melbourne bayside suburb of Hampton on Tuesday to visit Shauna and Travis at Holy Trinity Anglican Kindergarten.
It is just around the corner from the Hampton shopping strip, which was really handy for a refreshing cuppa and bite to eat when we left!
The centre’s philosophy highlights the role of play based learning at Holy Trinity: “Our programs at Holy Trinity are play-based because we understand how essential play is for children’s development. We encourage our children to direct their own play because this allows them to work in an exploratory and individual way. The roles of the staff are to resource and facilitate play, finding props and organising activities to stimulate play and motivate discovery. With young children, the most important part of an experience is the process rather than the product. It is in the actual doing that learning occurs.”
The kindergarten is tucked away behind the Anglican church and has a relaxed and welcoming feel to it.
Some tables and chairs set under a tree at the entrance is an inviting waiting spot for the parents.
The greeting board in many languages as you wander down to the front door is the beginning of the multicultural flavour of the kindergarten.
When we arrived the children were outside enjoying the crisp Autumn morning, so we had a quiet wander inside before going out to join them.
The first thing we noticed was Veronica the rabbit with her three babies in a large, airy cage …
with a drawing table set up next to it for the children to draw their impressions of the rabbits.
Other livestock we encountered were a spiny leaf insect and a case moth.
The playroom is an old building with high ceilings …
so perfect for hanging displays of art such as the dyed Chinese lanterns …
family drawings…
and the group mosaics.
As we wandered around the room we saw imaginative play areas enhanced with potted plants, mirrors and netting …
a table set up for weaving using recyclable plastic strips…
an overhead projector with slides of animals and buildings …
a maths corner including blocks with the children’s photos on them …
an international cafe …
a puzzle table …
and a cosy reading corner, again with mirrors to lighten up and extend the look of the reading space.
They have an adjacent art room …
which they call the “Art Gallery” .
In here we saw play dough with treasures …
an invention table …
painting easels …
and other messy play.
When we joined the children and staff outside …
we saw that the yard was fairly compact and had lots of nooks and crannies and beautiful trees …
which although were losing their leaves …
we could see they would provide plenty of natural shade during the hot months.
We loved the use of potted plant dotted around the place, used to enhance the children’s play spaces.
They had a flourishing vegetable patch complete with a scarecrow …
and a herb sensory garden.
The children were really enjoying getting down and dirty in the digging patch and in the mud kitchen.
They have a double sandpit built on differing levels …
and we loved the huge undercover decking, hammock, hammering area and gorgeous cubby! …
as well as plenty of equipment to use those gross motor skills.
We liked the idea of having the CD player outside under the verandah
to pop on whenever the urge took hold.
Holy Trinity Kindergarten and their delightful staff can be found at 8 Thomas Street Hampton (Melways 76 G6) and is part of the Bayside City Council. They run two three year old groups and two four year old groups.
This information has been added to our Education Directory page.
Wowsers! Those are some lucky kiddo’s and lucky teacher’s! I’d LOVE to teach in that classroom!
::: It was so warm, friendly and inviting there Laura that Sherry and I felt exactly the same!
I get ridiculously excited when you have a new preschool up to have a look at, and I click away saving images in a file for inspiration.
::: Well you just click away Jenny .. This one is a real beauty! Sherry and I felt we could rock up here to work every day and feel quite at home!
i agree with you both, laura and jenny!
there is nothing that inspires me more than looking at other classrooms/environments.
thank you!
::: Oh it’s our pleasure to show you around Kristin. We too are loving seeing inside these beautiful spaces!
Just like Jenny, I look forward to your showcasing a new Kindergarten. This one is just great. Double sandboxes….FABULOUS!
::: And on two levels Maria … irresisitible indeed. Maybe one day we’ll get to the U.S. add you to our directory too … You never know!
Absolutely gorgeous! I can’t wait to share some of these ideas with the team at AWCCC
::: Thanks ‘AWCCC‘ … we loved it too!
O my Gosh – this is such an inspiring, warm and thoughtfully created space for kids. I’d totally LOVE to go there everyday to play-teach!
Loved the photos.
Thank you for sharing such a wonderful tour of this kindergarden…
Look forward to more…
::: Thanks Rashmie … Over the next few weeks we will be exploring plenty more spaces very similar to this one!
I am no longer a kinder teacher but I do visit kinders and get to walk around and see the amazing work that is taking place. It’s inspiring and such hard work for the teachers, who keep coming up with one creative idea after another! i just loved this kinder. Long live ECE!
::: Thanks Beth … We love being able to venture in and discover these beautiful environments too.
