Being Belonging Becoming
Teaching from the head, heart and hand.
Being a leader in Early Childhood Education is more than being gifted with children. Leadership is that sweet spot between authority, mentor and coach. Leadership is intuitive, playful and authentic. Leaders in education cannot merely focus on what they do but must be aware of who they are becoming.
It takes a village to raise a child. Once upon a time the village was a place of proximity - grandmas knitting, granddads projects, aunties pavlova, mums chickens, handmade dolls, long summer nights - learning happened everywhere! The village was a clever place.
Todays online village can leave us nostalgic for the past. We know that skills, knowledge, creativity and adaptability will be central in the economy of the future and Early Childhood Educators must be that tangible link between theory and practice by aligning teaching with the arts and the environment. Early Childhood Education (ECE) is essentially a creative craft.
ECE’s need to be grounded in pedagogy and their own personal adult learning journey, skill acquisition, creative exploration and impulse/desire to be an educator. A village of ECE’s without ‘creative skills’ is not a clever village - ECE's must activate creative spaces and experiences for children as the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) curriculum emerges in their practice.