We believe that each child, family and educator is a unique and valued individual. We value and honour diversity and accept and celebrate differences in other people. We believe each person and their family’s values, culture, beliefs, abilities and language should be acknowledged and accepted and reflected in the preschool’s environment.

We believe that education is transformative and share the children’s journey of self-discovery and change. We believe learning is enhanced in an environment where you feel you belong. We believe in nourishing the children’s and educator’s soul, creativity and imagination.

We believe that play is essential in the lives of young children. We believe play values the ideal of allowing children to “just be” and recognizes the importance of early childhood. We believe play should be fun, exciting, spontaneous, hands-on, stimulating, relaxing, comforting and challenging. We believe it is important to provide opportunities for children to experiment, discover, explore, create, investigate, practice theories, solve problems and express ideas with the support of other children and the educators. We believe in celebrating children’s play, discoveries and learning through reflection and meaningful documentation.

We believe children are capable, resourceful and valued members of the community. We believe children should be encouraged and supported to follow their learning interests with the support of the preschool community. We believe that play is essential to children’s learning and that children learn most effectively within an unhurried environment with meaningful, authentic experiences. We believe young children bring delight and make a valuable contribution to the community and to the world.

We believe children should be encouraged and supported to make their own decisions and choices and seek to actively develop positive problem-solving skills in a success-orientated environment. We believe in providing children with opportunities to discover and learn about themselves, others and the environment in an atmosphere that encourages harmonious and meaningful relationships.

We believe a sense of wonder, belonging to and love of the land, nature and animals are critical for young children to develop lifelong respectful, positive and proactive attitudes to our environment and to ensure our sustainable future. We believe in giving children time to play outdoors every day when possible. We believe in the rights of children to be able to feel the sun on their face, experience the natural rhythms of the seasons and breathe fresh air. We believe this is essential to everyone’s wellbeing and development. We believe in nurturing and protecting our most precious gifts – our children and our planet.

We believe in building a community that values children, respects their rights and gives them love. We believe in building a community that enables children to develop a readiness for the transition to school and more meaningful, a readiness for life.

We believe our community are the children, their families, the educators and all people and services Dooral Early Learning Centre has made connections with since our establishment. We believe as part of this community, we have a responsibility to our children and families to establish and maintain a sense of belonging and connection to the land and to our shared Aboriginal history and culture, to actively embrace reconciliation and spread this message.
We believe in providing acceptance and support to promote the children’s, families’ and educator’s personal growth and develop their positive self-esteem and confidence. We believe in developing respectful relationships with children, families and staff through open and meaningful communication. We encourage and support children to interact peacefully and collaboratively, express empathy for other and actively challenge bias and promote social justice.

We believe in supporting and developing a partnership with families to share the nurturing and education of their children. We encourage each family to participate in the Dooral Early Learning Centre community and support and welcome their interest and involvement.