Our Program and Approach
At KU Westmead, we aim to provide a safe and responsive learning environment, where children are immersed and engaged in experiences and social interactions with educators and peers.
Our centre program is based upon the principles of the national Early Years Learning Framework, Belonging, Being, Becoming, which guides our educational program and practices.
Our play-based curriculum fosters self-identity, choice, participation and collaboration with others. We believe every child is unique, with their own personality, learning style, family background and pattern and timing of growth. Our program, environment and staff interactions with the children aim to be responsive to these individual differences.
Our natural environment offers children a nurturing space where each child is immersed in a rich tapestry of educationally interactive experiences.
Our program offers children the opportunity to engage in a wide variety of learning experiences and activities, each specifically designed to promote children’s confidence as capable, active participants in their own learning. Children are presented with a range of activities including gardening, visual arts, music and movement, physical play, block building, sand/mud and water play, science experiments, early numeracy activities such as counting and measurement, and early literacy activities such as reading, drawing and writing.
At KU Westmead, we are proud of our reputation within our local and diverse community. For over 40 years we have provided a high quality service that concentrates on individual children in a family-focussed and supportive way.
We greatly value the strong relationships between our staff, children and families, and we look forward to the opportunity of including your family in the life of our centre.
Our Specialisation
In addition to the high quality well-rounded programs we offer, all KU centres are also encouraged to develop an area of specialisation.
At KU Westmead, our specialisation is learning through the environment and visual arts.
We incorporate this into our program through a variety of activities, including the use of natural materials as tools for learning, our sustainability practices and providing opportunities for children to engage with living creatures through our frog pond and chicken coop. Our indoor/outdoor program offers extended periods of uninterrupted time for children to explore the natural setting and engage with nature through climbing trees, mud, sand and water play, and interacting with our animals including our resident blue tongue lizard.
Our Atelier (art studio) is an inspirational area where children are immersed in a variety of rich art experiences. Alongside colour exploration, children are taught different techniques and are encouraged to use a variety of media as they create.
We feel that the children benefit from this specialisation, because it develops and enhances their creative skills and connects them with their natural environment, fostering a sense of wellbeing.
Our Quality
Our centre has been independently assessed by the Department of Education NSW under the National Quality Standards, and are proud to be rated as Exceeding the National Quality Standard.
However what matters most is what our families think...
“Fantastic and reassuring staff. I felt very comfortable with the whole enrolment and orientation process." - KU Westmead parent
"I am very happy with the way KU staff are teaching the children." - KU Westmead parent
Our Environment
Each KU centre is unique. The best outcomes for children are created within relationships and interactions between children and staff, and children and their families, not within four walls. We work hard to create beautiful, interesting, homelike learning environments for children – whatever our setting.
Our centre includes a frog pond where children can experience watching tadpoles develop into frogs. We also have hens, so the children can gather eggs and learn more about looking after domestic animals.
Our playground is designed to maximise the use of the natural environment and allow children to play and explore as they would in their own backyard. We offer stimulating activities that arouse children’s curiosity and encourage them to choose from a variety of planned experiences, expanding their learning potential. Our playground includes natural elements such as sand, climbing trees, water, grass, mud, leaves and twigs, and we also offer gross motor experiences such as climbing, jumping and physical play. We foster the holistic development of each child so they feel inspired to create, imagine and play.
Our Reconciliation Action Plan
KU was proud to launch its inaugural Innovate Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) in 2016. At KU Westmead, we began our journey to develop our centre’s RAP in 2018 and we are proud to launch it now. Please view it here.
