| Have Preschool Will Travel |
| Written by Meredith Flynn | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tuesday, 12 April 2011 13:49 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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For children across the Hunter Valley, it is not the wheels on the bus that go round and round, but the wheels on their preschool. Meredith Flynn looks at a unique early childhood educational service.
The benefits of early childhood education are well-documented. The play-based learning at preschool is a gentle introduction into more formal educational life for little ones. The transition to school is usually made easier and children learn to socialise with their peers at an age-appropriate level. However, many rural communities do not have high enough enrolment numbers to sustain a permanent five day a week preschool in their local area. The staff of the Lower Hunter Activity Van (or Hunter Mobile Preschool) have been taking their show on the road throughout the region since 1979, so that children living in and around the smaller towns in the Hunter Valley can experience the fun and learning that goes along with preschool. The two vans currently operated by the service travel twice a week each to Gresford, Lochinvar, Wollombi and Millfield, and once a week to Mulbring. A normal day for the teachers starts at the preschoolâs office in Weston. There they ensure that the vans are loaded with everything they need for the dayâs planned activities. They then drive to that dayâs venues and set up a full indoor and outdoor programme for their young charges. Once the children arrive, the day continues in much the same way as any other preschool, whether city or country, permanent or mobile. Time is made for all those intrinsic preschool activities - outdoor play, story time, lunch, music group time, arts and crafts, indoor free play and morning or afternoon tea. At the end of the day, the teachers pack all the equipment back into the vans and return to the office to make any preparations necessary for the following day. Preschool coordinator and teacher, Sarah Spinks, has been part of the Hunter Mobile Preschool team for over eighteen years, and understands all too well why the service is so important to the communities it reaches. âSome of the children travel up to 30 minutes to get to our preschool. If the service wasnât operating in some of the more rural and remote areas, children and families would be travelling anywhere from at least one hour to access other services. Many would miss out on a preschool experience.â In addition to the challenges of distance, the staff at the activity vans must also ensure that the preschool venues are suitable for the children and the activities they are involved in. âSome of the venues are community halls, classrooms in schools or school halls, â explains Sarah. âEach venue has its own set of issues, mostly to do with safety.â A venue management plan is completed ensuring a safe environment for the children to play in and this is monitored by the staff on a regular basis. The mobile preschool is a state-funded service, licensed and regulated by the NSW Department of Community Services. As a community service it is managed by a committee of parents and community members. Meetings are held once a month at the Weston base and, in addition to enabling family involvement in the running of the preschool, it also gives parents the opportunity to meet other mums and dads in the region. This extends the preschoolâs role from not only meeting the early education needs of the children that attend the various venues, but also offering a support network for their families. The Lower Hunter Activity Vans are of great value to the Hunter Valley communities that they serve. Mobile preschools provide fundamental early education that would otherwise be unfeasible for many families, and also assist in the social development of children in remote and isolated areas. When organising a playdate is not as easy as just hopping over the neighbourâs fence, these preschool services create opportunities for our country kids, so that they donât have to miss out on days of fun and learning in a safe and stimulating environment. More Information
Visit www.lowerhuntermobilepreschool.org.au
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When selecting a preschool for our children, the list of criteria can vary depending on our personal preferences. But one item that rates highly across most urban parentsâ lists is convenience. With mornings a constant juggle of time and organisational skills, a preschool that is in a direct line between home and work or school is a bonus that is hard to ignore. But what if your closest preschool was over an hourâs drive from your town along country roads? This is where mobile preschool services like the Lower Hunter Activity Van Association step in.
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