Great Beginnings Mill Park
Great Beginnings Mill Park Centre overview
Great Beginnings Mill Park Centre highlights
- Our centre proudly offers the VIC Government-approved Kindergarten program as part of our enhanced learning program. Our Kindergarten program supports your child's learning, development and well-being, to help ensure a successful transition to school.
- Our longstanding team, including staff with several years of experience at the centre, creates a calm and nurturing environment to ensure children feel loved, safe, and secure.
- We are a multicultural early learning centre, with educators proficient in multiple languages, including Mandarin, Tamil, Hindi, Punjabi, Thai, Arabic, Assyrian Aramaic, Gujerati and Italian
About Great Beginnings Mill Park Long Daycare and Kindergarten
Welcome to Great Beginnings Mill Park. We're ideally located for families in Mill Park, South Morang, Bundoora, Epping, Watsonia North, Lalor, Plenty and Thomastown. We are located just behind the Stables Shopping Centre.
Our Long Daycare and Kindergarten Centre provides early education and care for children aged 6 weeks to 6 years.
We provide convenient, full care coverage from 9hr, 10hr or full days, 5 days per week, including school holidays.
Our longstanding, multicultural and dedicated team of Teachers and Educators provide a safe, nurturing, and inspiring learning environment - where your child can thrive, and be their wonderful self, every day.
Getting school ready? We offer the Government-approved Kindergarten program that helps ensure your child has a successful transition to formal schooling.
We offer a great variety of learning experiences at our Centre including:
- Sustainability Program: Helps children develop and understand the importance of embedding sustainable practices into everyday life. Children learn about recycling, conserving water, growing food and the importance of protecting our planet.
- Community Engagement Program: Encourages children to interact with and discover their local community. We often have visits from community services, and we go out on adventures to teach the children about their local environment.
- Music & Movement Program: Designed to develop fundamental skills that help support children’s self-regulation, memory, and concentration. Children learn to appreciate and develop an understanding of music - and of course, have fun.
- Sports Program: Allows the children to be active and learn about different sports and movements.
Fees & Vacancies
Great Beginnings Mill Park Service features
See more (15)Great Beginnings Mill Park service include:
Book a live tour at this carefully curated childcare centre and embark on the journey for your child’s growth and development
Get to know us
Kindergarten/Preschool Programs
Kindergarten/Preschool Programs
Our centre offers the VIC Government-approved ‘Best Start, Best Life’ Kindergarten Program.
At Great Beginnings, your child will benefit from the VIC ‘Best Start, Best Life’ Government-approved program as part of our enhanced learning program. Our program will support your child’s learning, development, and well-being for now, at school and beyond. We tailor our Kindergarten program across:
- Numeracy
- Literacy
- Emotional and Social Development
- Self regulation
- Healthy minds and bodies
The added benefits of our Kindergarten program include:
- VIC ‘Best Start, Best Life’ Government-approved program
- Extended opening hours
- Open all year round (excl public holidays)
- Programs developed and delivered by our Early Childhood Teachers
- Exclusive music and movement program for self-regulation
About the Curriculum
About the Curriculum
“Let the child be the scriptwriter, director and the actor in their own play” - Magda Gerber
Nursery Space: 6 weeks – 2 years
Learning starts from before birth, and our Educators have created a welcoming and nurturing nursery environment where each baby feels safe to explore and discover new things - through their senses, their communication and cues (body language, facial expression and sounds) and by experimenting. On any given day you can see the nursery children engaging in all types of play, water play, music time, story time and more. Every day provides a brand new, exciting adventure for our babies to support their development, learning and wellbeing!
Toddler Space: 2 - 3 years
Our teachers and educators encourage the children to learn through play to help enhance their sensory-motor development. This happens through carefully planned music, dance, games and reading experiences.
On any given day the Toddler children can be seen developing their numeracy by building a tower, sorting objects, pointing and identifying shapes and patterns and participating in counting songs and games.
Children in our toddler space are encouraged to participate in group play. Group play is important as it helps our toddlers develop important social skills such as, turn taking, developing self confidence and emotional self regulation. Our team helps children through talking, planning and role modelling.
Kindergarten Space: 3 – 6 years
Kindergarten is a unique time for learning with peers and developing skills for later learning including confidence and curiosity, important skills for starting school. Our play-based program encourages active engagement in learning and supports a range of positive developmental outcomes including resilience, independence, critical thinking and creativity.
The oral language supports literacy learning. A child’s oral language ability is the best predictor for later success in learning to read and write. Hearing the sounds within a language is the first critical step for all literacy learning. Our team supports our Kindergarten children's development by engaging in rich discussions, introducing new vocabulary as part of everyday conversations, as well as singing, playing games, and reading with the children daily.
Throughout the Kindergarten year, children use their language to share ideas, ask questions, express themselves, and connect with peers and adults in social settings.
Social-emotional skills, including the ability to self-regulate emotions, is supported through group learning environments. Our team supports each child’s social and emotional development by labelling and talking about emotions and supporting appropriate responses as together, they engage in new and challenging situations. Lastly, ensuring that all children are ready for the ‘big school’ by preparing them for all that ‘big school’ has to offer.
Morning
Jesse is 11 months old and enjoys sensory play outside in the sandpit with her friends. She sits near her educator who helps teach her how to scoop the sand into the bucket. Jesse is learning how to dig, carry, and move the sand. She is also exploring texture and learning what happens to the sand when she adds water!
Lunch
Jesse has finished her lunch and is preparing to take a nap. Her educator changes her nappy, prepares a bottle and reads Jesse a story before her afternoon sleep.
Afternoon
Jesse and some of her nursery friends enjoy some story time and songs outside in the shaded garden. They read ‘Peepo’ which is Jesse’s favourite book.
Morning
Nick is two and a half years old and loves to start his day at the centre outside on the climbing equipment. His friends join him, and together they pretend to be pirates on a ship looking for treasure. Through this exciting dramatic play, Nick is learning about himself and the world around him. Dramatic play is helping Nick identify his interests, abilities, likes and dislikes.
Lunch
Nick is watering the vegetables in the garden. By doing this, Nick is learning the importance of growing and caring for the veggies in the garden. Nick picks a tomato from the garden, which the Chef will use to help make Nick and his friend’s lunch - Spaghetti Bolognese!
Afternoon
Nick enjoys art, and today he is painting a beach scene from a recent family holiday. He adds the finishing touches and sets the painting aside to dry; so that he can take it home to share with his family.
While painting, Nick is learning how to express himself creatively and how to convey his ideas and emotions. Painting is also helping develop Nick’s hand eye coordination, finger, wrist and hand strength. Making marks on paper is important for self expression as well as later learning.
Morning
Daniela is almost five years old and can’t wait for today’s carpentry experience - she loves building things! Carpentry experiences allow Daniela and her friends to extend their learning through real-life experiences. While participating in carpentry, Daniela is learning to problem solve, experiment and predict. She is also improving her hand eye coordination, manipulative skills and muscular strength.
Lunch
Before Daniela sits down for lunch with her friends and educators, Daniela takes part in the centre’s sports program. Daniela loves sports. Sports helps Daniela improve her flexibility and strength (perfect for growing bodies!). Sports also allows her to practice different skills in a fun and engaging way.
Afternoon
Daniela is off to ‘big school’ next year and she can't wait to start! Daniela and her friends will be visiting the local primary school next week. In preparation for the visit, the class is creating a list of questions to ask the Principal and school children.
Health and Nutrition
Health and Nutrition
Our centre chef prepares and cooks healthy and nutritious meals daily, catering to the unique dietary requirements of every child. We believe that by encouraging active participation (such as growing their own fruit and vegetables, preparing, and finally cooking!) children learn to appreciate and understand the importance of healthy eating.
Our centre offers children nutrient-rich, unprocessed, and seasonal whole foods – created to delight the fussiest eaters.
Meet the team
Meet the team
Hi my name is Rebecca, and I am the Centre Manager here at Great Beginnings Mill Park. I’ve been working in early childhood since 2012, when I got my first job in an early childhood service. Since then I haven’t looked back. I currently hold a Diploma and Advanced Diploma in Early Childhood and I’m currently studying my Bachelor of Early Childhood and Education to learn more about children’s learning and development.
I always knew that I wanted to work in a field that could support children. One day, while on placement, I had the opportunity to comfort a child that was new to an early childhood service and was extremely upset. I spent two weeks with him, helping him, comforting him and assisting with making him feel safe in an environment he wasn’t used to. By the end of the two weeks, the child was so comfortable that he would give his parents a kiss goodbye and run straight into the centre, ready to create relationships with peers and engage in different activities.
This is when I realised that early childhood was for me. I love the idea of helping children build great confidence in their early years and being a part of their growth. I really enjoy working with their highs and lows, being able to guide their learning and watch their capable minds achieve anything. With experience in children’s party entertainment, I am also great at creating magic tricks, doing face painting and making balloon animals!
I look forward to welcoming your family to Great Beginnings Mill Park and answering any questions you may have.
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314-360 Childs RoadMill Park, VIC, 3082
Centre Reviews
The team at great beginnings are amazing and have always been attentive to my child. The team at great beginnings are amazing and have always been attentive to my child.
This is a great Child Care Center, the educators are absolutely wonderful, they are really caring about my two kids in this center.... This is a great Child Care Center, the educators are absolutely wonderful, they are really caring about my two kids in this center. Has provided great support to my family. My kids love here so much. It's sad to leave this center as we move the house, but I strongly recommend the Great Beginning to your kids if you live nearby. Thanks so much for the great team! Read more
Dear Lilac, thanks for leaving us such a wonderful review. We are thrilled that you loved your experience; our staff will definitely be happy to read what you wrote. We put customer experience and satisfaction as our priority, and your review reaffirms the hard work we put in every day. Kind regards, The Great Beginnings Team.
I absolutely love this place and the teachers. It has a very homey feeling and The teachers really make an effort to engage... I absolutely love this place and the teachers. It has a very homey feeling and The teachers really make an effort to engage the kids and develop them in a very individualised way. The manager Rebecca is so friendly and helpful. The teachers Mrs Cam and Mrs Zahra are very professional and attentive for everything happening with the kids.. I saw a big improvement with my kids. It was the first time that my kids didn’t cry when I left, instead they turned around and said bye to me. I highly recommend this place. Read more
Dear Yvonne, thanks for leaving us such a wonderful review. We are thrilled that you loved your experience; our staff will definitely be happy to read what you wrote. We put customer experience and satisfaction as our priority, and your review reaffirms the hard work we put in every day. Kind regards, The Great Beginnings Team.