Modbury Kindergarten

Often at Kindy children organise how to play games, invent games and redesign games. Games are a learning context that offer children opportunities to explore skills and concepts.

Two children sat together looking closely at each other’s drawings.
“What is that?” S “You have to guess!” A
“I don’t know,” S “Guess!” A
“Hmmm… is it your brother?” S “Nooo,” A

The children were describing their pictures to one another without giving away the answer. Their laughter and excitement created curiosity amongst other children. Soon the table was busy with children drawing mums, dads, grandparents, fish and each other.

What began as a question became the children’s own version of ‘Guess Who?’ By pickup time, families had become part of the game too, laughing as they recognised themselves in the children’s drawings. The experience highlighted not only the children’s literacy and expressive language skills, but also the joy that emerges when children’s ideas are given time and space to evolve collaboratively.
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What began as frustration with tape not holding boxes together evolved into deeper thinking around how materials behave and how structures can be made stronger. The children tested ideas, revised designs and problem-solved together, discovering that construction is not simply about building, but about thinking, negotiating, collaborating and transforming ideas into physical form. 🧩🚜 🔨 🧠

“It keeps falling!”
“We need something stronger.”
“What if we balance it here?”

🌻Playgroup will not be running tomorrow (Thursday 27th) it will be back next week!🌻

There is something so special about the in-between seasons at Modbury Kindy and being outside this time of year. The crunchy leaves 🍁 , the days feel different from one week to the next, and nature is letting go. 🌬️

Parnati (Autumn), occurring approximately April to June, is the Kaurna season of wind, fog, and high rainfall (kudlinthi). Signaled by the star Parna, it brings cooler weather and falling trees (waadlawarnka). Traditionally, this was a time for migrating from coastal dunes to inland forests, building sturdy, weatherproof, and thatched shelters called wodli. 🔥🪾

“I see sunrise colours on Country at Kindy” A, 4.5 years old. 🌅

Families are the true experts on their children, and we value their personal and cultural knowledge and experiences. At the end of term 1 our project morning was full of chatter and curiosity from families diving into the explorations and interests that have developed.

Last year children, educators and families reimagined our sandpit area. It is now complete, a space where children can interact with the elements, tell stories, honouring what came before and ways Country can be reflected respectfully.

We welcome families in our local community to join us Thursday mornings this term in week 2,3,4,6,7,8 and 9 for playgroup.

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When a lonely truss of tomatoes and a curious group of researchers lead us to ‘Qualitaly Cuisine’! 🍅
�Inside the restaurant, children were warmly welcomed, observed how the space operates, how food is prepared and how people work together to create a shared experience for others. ✨ The children were not simply visitors, but participants, moments like these support children to understand that they are part of something bigger, that their voices, ideas and presence matter within our community. 🌍 Qualitaly Cuisine

The children had a very special lunch. This experience invited children to identify the steps necessary for setting tables for a special occasion, which demanded a fragrant and cheerful table! 🌸🎨👒🍅🍝

The close spatial, emotional, and cognitive relationships between children, educators and the food garden offer many opportunities for giving shape to ideas and projects. 🍃☀️🌧️

Thanks to children’s instinctive empathy with the natural world and an encounter with a lonely truss of tomatoes found on return to Kindy, children have observed, questioned and built knowledge on living things in their transformations. 🍅 🥕

Children noticed how string not only allows them to fly a kite but how it can join pieces together, like stitching in clothing, a way to connect, fasten and shape. Children arranged them on a piece of white cloth which helped them to evaluate the layout. The presentation of their clothing became a special event. 🪡🧶🧵👒👗👕

“The intrinsic structure of the expressive languages is such that they are able to maintain a strong connection between rationality and imagination, cognitivity and sensitivity.” Vea Vecchi 🎨🪁🪡🧶🧵

The children’s curious and competent hands discovered the limits and potentials of the materials, which they described. String, a thread holding us all together, connecting children to missed love ones, became kites in the wind, cheese on pasta and a curly wurlie snail shell. 🐌