In the Gamilaroi language Kootingal means ‘starry night’. Our classrooms are the Mirii Room (meaning star) and Gilay Room (meaning moon) in honour of this.

Our classrooms cater for children as they build their independence, individuality and confidence. For some children this is the first time being in a preschool environment and it can be a little overwhelming. Our friendly and caring educators support each child to go at their own pace and explore the space as they feel comfortable.

We offer mixed age grouping in both of our classrooms. There are many benefits to this;

• Children can develop deeper relationships with peers and educators as they are in the same room for their time at preschool
• Different aged groupings allow children to develop strong social and collaboration skills
• It nurtures empathy, social skills and emotional intelligence – younger children are exposed to different perspectives from their older peers and the older children learn patience while helping their younger peers
• The environment is more like home – being around younger siblings or cousins etc.

At 'Kooty' Preschool, children are given lots of opportunities to build their relationships with peers and educators through planned and spontaneous play experiences. Each week educators set up spaces that allow children to extend their interests and develop their skills. As they start to become more interested in making these connections with others they begin to play collaboratively in groups and are also beginning to navigate social interactions and interacting with others, taking turns, listening and communication.

Children are learning so much through play and our play-based learning experiences come from the children’s interests and are supported by the educators. The children are fascinated by the world around them and ask questions to build their understanding. We use these questions and interests to spark conversations that grow into group projects, letting the children extend on their own learning. Their memory is developing, and they are taking in so much information that will start to form who they become.

Our safe and nurturing environment allows each child to develop at their own pace and prepare for life after preschool. School readiness skills are developed in fun and engaging ways which helps the children cope with and thrive during their transition to formal schooling. Open-ended materials are used in many activities to promote exploration and imagination.

We also offer the children the opportunity to engage with the Early Learning Languages Australia program which teaches Japanese. The children have the opportunity to take a turn on the ELLA iPad once a week and learn about numbers, days of the week, colours, foods and sports in Japanese. The language is also reinforced using our Japanese day chart.