Early Learning Centre
Welcoming girls and boys from two years of age to start their learning journey, our Early Learning Centre (ELC) is extraordinary. The only centre attached to a College in Western Australia, our educators are qualified to the highest standard of care, going above and beyond what is required. Our vision is to create environments that nurture the whole child by reflecting their identity, community and individual interests.
As our Centre is located on campus, it is extremely convenient for families with children already attending the College. Not only do they receive the very best of care but begin their learning and development with access to MLC’s wider facilities and educational programs. Our children enjoy the remarkable opportunity and benefits of being able to discover and play in the beautiful grounds of the College and become part of the MLC community.
We meet with our families regularly and communicate with photo snapshots and information about your child’s learning and the relationships they form with other friends and educators throughout their day via emails and the OWNA parent app. Our curriculum starts from 6.30am and ends at 6.30pm and in 2025, will change from 7.00am to 6.00pm. Delicious and nutritious meals are provided for children with dinner offered at an additional fee.
Our Philosophy
We follow a play-based learning philosophy with a holistic, child-centred focus. We aim to give our children agency and rich learning environments to investigate, interpret, question and connect with the world around them.
We understand that the first five years of a child’s learning journey are imperative to their future success. Therefore, we offer a safe place to learn, play and grow. We are guided by the belief that children are competent and capable learners who make sense of the world around them through wondering, research, inventing and exploring.
We hold equity, inclusion and diversity in high regard as we strive for children to become active citizens in this ever-changing world. We respectfully honour Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and are grateful for the rich perspectives and knowledge shared which we embed in our Curriculum and environments.
Our goal is to create genuine and respectful partnerships with families; we honour parents as their child’s first teacher and value their input in decision making. We recognise that it is essential to foster warm, respectful and nurturing relationships with children and their families to understand, scaffold and support their individual learning journeys.
MLC River School
The ELC launched a wonderful new program at the end of 2023 in collaboration with Educated by Nature called the MLC River School. Since we are fortunate enough to have an incredible river and bushland space right on our doorstep, this program was carefully curated following the ELC’s curriculum (Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF)) on how to utilise the foreshore for exploration and learning with our ELC students. Children are supervised to have freedom and autonomy in their explorations with sessions that include storytelling, music, games and sensory activities. These activities help our students to build a strong relationship with the natural environment and the outdoor classroom they are in. The program runs over a 6-week period in Terms 1 and 4 for our Kindergarten and Pre-Kindergarten children.
Our Rooms
Our rooms are engaging and designed for the specific age groups of children. For our two-year-old’s, the room has a ratio of one staff to four children. We also have two Pre-Kindergarten rooms. Our younger Pre-Kindergarten room has a ratio of one staff to five children and our older Pre-Kindergarten room has a ratio of one staff to ten children.
Each room comprises well-appointed, outdoor undercover areas and large indoor play spaces. We have three kitchens onsite with our chef producing delicious, balanced meals for our children.
Music and Language
Musical Me!
Music is very much a part of MLC’s DNA. At no added cost, we offer a music program which is taught by the exceptional staff from the MLC College Music Department twice a week for babies and continues through to Kindergarten. Our staff are trained in music and our Musical Me! program was developed specifically for our Centre.
Mandarin Stars
Given the many cognitive benefits of learning a second language at a young age, we offer a Mandarin language program for all our children at the Centre at no extra cost. Mandarin Stars is a lively weekly session involving music, puppets, songs and an introduction to speaking Mandarin.
Djinda Strings
Our Djinda Strings program is an instrumental music lesson conducted once a week for children from three years of age. This class provides the opportunity for our children to develop their violin, cello or piano skills with specialist tutors during individual lessons. Djinda Strings is offered to our students all the way through their learning to Year 12. *There is an additional fee for this program.
Incursions
Our incursions are exciting and fun, covering a wide range of hands-on activities. Incursions involving animals are always one of the highlights as we are visited by wildlife animal specialists who talk about the animals they bring with them. We also invite Indigenous Elders into the Centre to talk about their wonderful culture, sharing music and stories with the children.
Kindergarten
Our Kindergarten program is the bridge between our Early Learning Centre and Junior School. A spacious area purpose-built for learning and play, our specialist early childhood teachers are well-equipped to prepare your Kindergarten child for their future schooling at MLC. Through play, they develop solid foundations in pre-numeracy and pre-literacy skills that set them on the path to lifelong learning success. They also have access to everything MLC has to offer in a broader schooling sense with the chance to integrate with older school students which prepares them for life beyond Kindergarten.
Join our Early Learning Community
It is never too early to start learning. Visit our Early Learning Centre and see how your child’s development is nurtured through learning and play.
