Greetings

Welcome to our March newsletter! As always, we provide an overview of what is happening within our childcare community. This month we will focus on going green down under: eco-friendly, sustainable practices for daycares and childcare centres.

As climate crises arise, it falls upon childcare educators to instil the values of care and regard for nature by modelling eco-friendly and sustainable rights in their daycares and childcare centres. Embracing and implementing sustainable practices helps children learn by example how to actively respect and honor the environment and planet at large.

Why Do Eco-Friendly and Sustainable Practices Matter in Childcare?

Why should Aussie daycares and childcare centres go green? Let us count the ways.

1. Setting an Example

Children learn best by example. They most usually absorb what they see being done, not what’s being said. So walking the walk and not just hearing the talk means a lot for children. 

2. Healthier Learning Environments

Being mindful of the materials and composition of everyday objects helps ensure children aren’t being exposed to unhealthy levels of toxic and poisonous elements. Heightened exposure may lead to lifelong diseases and ailments.

3. Meeting National Quality Standards

Most parents consider a daycare or centre’s NQS ratings when they decide where to send their child for early childhood education. By having the centres take an active role in implementing sustainable practices, you’re not just going green, you’re also increasing your NQS ratings. Who doesn’t want that?

4. Cost Savings

When most business owner’s concern is how to save on operational costs, sustainable practices actually help in decreasing these costs. From having energy-efficient windows and light bulbs to organic, hardy toys that’s hard to break, childcare centre owners will be happy seeing their bills decrease.

Sustainable Practices in Childcare Settings

Sustainability in early childhood education goes beyond the lecture. It’s about turning environmental concepts into daily habits built into daily routines. Here are some ways, early childhood educators can incorporate it into their lesson plans:

• Hands-On Activities: Encourage children to explore the natural world through hands-on activities. Gardening projects, watching a seed grow, and nature walks create wonder and make children feel more connected to nature.

• Storytime with a Green Twist: Choose books that highlight environmental themes such as recycling, conservation, and the importance of protecing nature and wildlife.

• Guest speakers: Invite local environmental experts and wild animal educators to chat with the children about sustainability and conservation efforts.

Sustainable Practices That Lower Operational Costs

Here are some practical ways of greening up your childcare operations:

Energy Efficiency Measures

• Natural lighting: As much as possible, use natural lighting to reduce electricity consumption. Draw the curtains away and let natural light through.

• Energy-efficient appliance: Where possible, always opt for an appliance that has a higher energy efficiency. 

• Smart thermostats: Smart thermostats automatically regulate heating and cooling while maintaining temperature at an ideal level.  

Water Conservation Initiatives

• Water-saving fixtures: Install low-flow toilets and faucets to reduce water consumption.

• Water-wise education: Educate both staff and children about the importance of conserving water.

• Fix leaky faucets and pipes promptly: Regularly check for and repair any leaks to prevent water wastage.

Waste Reduction Strategies

• Recycling programs: always sort waste into their proper categories to make for an easier recycling process.

• Composting: create compost out of organic waste such as food scraps and fallen leaves to reduce waste.

• Reusable materials: when doing activities, always consider using recycled and secondhand materials.

Creating an Eco-Friendly Environment

Our physical environment plays a crucial role in promoting sustainability. Use natural materials as much as possible. From having wood furniture to organic fibres such as cotton and wool, your centre will remain non-toxic and these materials are biodegradable.

In terms of decor, there’s no shame in using recycled decor. Using children’s crafted decor even lends a heartwarming touch to your centre when arranged in a good and tasteful manner. 

Repurpose crates or pallets for storage to create functional but appealing spaces. 

Ensuring Child Health and Safety Through Cleanliness

A clean daycare or childcare centre is of the utmost importance. However, cleaning materials with its toxic materials can also be the top sources for toxicity and harmful elements.

Avoid using harmful chemicals. Minimize exposure to harmful chemicals by avoiding toxic materials such as synthetic fragrances, PVC, and harsh cleaning products. If it cannot be entirely avoided, only use it when the centre will be closed for at least a week to ensure any lingering trace of the chemicals have disappeared.

Try to seek out green cleaning products or tips on the internet. From using vinegar to baking soda, there are a lot of cleaning tips that’ll help you clean surfaces without requiring too much elbow grease or time. 

Community Engagement

Practing eco-friendly and sustainable practices is not a one-man team. Parents also need to be involved for it to be effective. 

Parent involvement is key to making these sustainable practices stick into children’s minds. Share your practices, habits, and tips with them so they can also try it at home.

Make local partnerships with businesses and organisations who are known to practice sustainability. Whether it’s as simple as using paper straws or foregoing straws altogether, seeing examples of sustainable practices outside of their home and school can help children believe in the importance of these habits.

The Takeaway

Implementing eco-friendly sustainable practices in Australian daycare and childcare centres is not just an idea or suggestion. It will be an invaluable investment for the future as these children grow up and take the reins of responsibility caring for the environment and planet. By embracing sustainability now and modelling it by example, you’re not just creating a healthy learning environment for the children but you’re also helping your business save on costs and increase your NQS ratings. Let’s keep at it and continue inspiring the next generation to care for planet Earth.

0-12 month development

Skin-to-skin contact is good for your baby and you – not just straight after birth

Author: Viren Swami

Parental touch is a powerful yet simple bonding activity for both parents and their baby. Studies show that even when a medical staff touches a baby, a baby can still recognise their parents’ touch from a stranger. Having skin-to-skin contact not only boosts a baby’s health, it also helps calm the baby and stimulates their interest in feeding.

Read on to find out more benefits of having skin-to-skin contact with your baby here.

1-2 year development

Group childcare positively affects toddler development

Author: Tohoku University

Think you’re starting your children too early in childcare? Researchers at Tohoku University found out that toddlers who started group childcare from 6-months old showed great improvement in their development by three years old in various areas. From communication, gross motor skills, fine motor skills, problem-solving, and personal-social skills, the children had markedly improved.

Find out more about how starting group childcare early benefits a toddler here.

2-3 year development

Toddlers understand concept of possibility

Author: Johns Hopkins University

We live in a world of possibilities and toddlers, it seems, also understand the concept of possibilities. Researchers gave children a game where improbable and impossible events are well-defined, i.e. getting a pink toy from a gumball machine with only purple toys visible or with both pink and purple toys. Children seemed to have a preconceived idea of what they can potentially get and then re-assess their knowledge after getting a pink toy from a selection of only purple toys. 

Read more about this research on how kids deal with possibilities here.

3-4 year development

Do you speak other languages at home? This will not hold your child back at school

Authors: Valeria Maria Rigobon & Rauno Parrila

Did you know more than one-fifth of Australian children speak another language other than English  at home? That is great because research shows that multilingual children develop mental flexibility. Research also shows multilingual children aren’t confused with mixing words in different languages. Instead, young children become more fluent far earlier and adopt the languages with ease. 

Read on to learn more about why learning multiple languages won’t hold back children here.

4-5 year development

9 Ways to Help Your Child Work Through Night Terrors

Author: Arielle Tschinkel

Night terrors are different from nightmares. Occurring in the non-REM sleep phase, night terrors usually happen in the first few hours of sleep. And while you might want to awaken your child when you chance upon them having a night terror, experts say that’s not advisable. 

Instead they have put out some pointers on what to do to resolve a night terror and prevent it from happening here.

Build a Paper Rocket

In this STEM activity, children will be using simple materials such as a straw and 2 pieces of paper build a paper rocket and set it off into the air. They’ll be able to experiment with different designs and see which ones are most effective in terms of flight and stability.

Get the instructions on this basic physics experiment here.

Apple Fractions

As children learn to share with their peers, learning fractions is a way to share more equally. In this STEM activity, they will be able to learn how to share an apple based on the number of peers they will be sharing it with using fractions. Cutting up an apple in equal sizes may be daunting but a trusted adult with a kid-friendly knife will be handy to be with in this STEM activity.

Get more teaching points on apple fractions here.

Solar System Hats

In this STEM activity, children will be able to familiarise themselves with the solar system and even wear it on their head as hat. This activity will help children practise their fine motor skills colouring and cutting planets. Adult supervision will be needed as kids cut the planets. 

Find out the instructions on how to make an outer space hat here.

Create a Rock Maze

In this STEM activity, children will have a fun time building and solving each other’s mazes. Start with the start and exit points. Build paths that end and only one or multiple ways to find the exit. Then have each team try other’s mazes. 

Find the instructions on how to create a rock maze here.