Exploring inclusive practices with The Northern Nursery School

The Northern Nursery School is a 60-place community preschool located in Mosman, New South Wales, on the traditional lands of the Cammeraygal people. 

The preschool provides support for children with additional needs, currently supporting six children in areas including sensory, speech and behavioural development.

Staff from the service recently shared insights, observations and tips for success with representatives from the NSW Department of Education. An extract of their conversation appears below. For the original content, please use this link. 

“By cultivating an invested, caring community, children experience the joy of working and playing with others, while developing an appreciation for diversity and inclusive ways of being,” Preschool Director Natalie Cordukes said, explaining how the service focuses on nurturing a strong sense of community for each child and family which is essential to fostering connections that inspire collaboration and advocacy.

Establishing secure and informed connections

Careful planning has gone into The Northern Nursery School’s enrolment and orientation processes to promote inclusion and a sense of belonging from day 1 of attendance– values that are at the heart of its philosophy.

“A culture of care, respect and mutual understanding forms the foundation of all relationships and interactions within the preschool,” Ms Cordukes said.

Families are invited to attend orientation or play visits so children can become familiar with and feel comfortable in the preschool environment. Interactions and information shared during the visit help the service build a comprehensive understanding of each child’s individual needs, strengths and skills, and how to best support them as they transition into and progress through preschool.

The service uses staggered start times and smaller group sizes at the commencement of the school year to support children to transition. These practices also allow educators to have focused interactions and continue building meaningful relationships with early learners, fostering a sense of security, confidence and belonging.

Responsive relationships and environments

The Northern Nursery School team views each child as capable and competent, and supports them to play an active role in decision-making. This fosters their sense of autonomy, independence and agency as valued members of their early learning community.

“Our daily rhythm is designed to be flexible and responsive to the individual needs of each child,” Ms Cordukes shared.

“We make use of different areas within our learning environment – both indoors and outdoors – as well as varying group sizes and sensory and communication tools that support inclusion and participation.”

Sensory spaces with resources like kinetic sand, textured resources and headphones are available across the service, along with communication tools, such as social stories and visual routines further support skill development and smooth transitions for children.

Funding support boosts educator numbers

The Northern Nursery School receives funding under the NSW Department of Education’s Disability and Inclusion Program to support children with high learning support needs enrolled at the community preschool. The funding is used to employ learning support educators to increase the educator-to-child ratio.

“Learning support educators have enabled teams to work in smaller groups in a more responsive and inclusive way, promoting intentional and engaged interactions,” Ms Cordukes explained. “Increased ratios not only support smoother transitions throughout the day, but educators can dedicate more time to collaborate and plan with allied health members and discuss approaches to better support children.”

The community preschool also works closely with a KU inclusion consultant, who provides tailored support to help the service enhance its inclusive practice. This includes guidance on implementing inclusive strategies like the Zones of Regulation, Phoenix Cups and self-soothing techniques into daily interactions with children.

Collaborating with family and community

Educators are committed to leveraging connections with their local community to improve outcomes for children, networking with local allied health professionals to provide children with disability or additional needs and their families with another layer of support.

“The goals of external allied health professionals are incorporated into individual and group planning, including proposed environmental and routine adjustments,” Ms Cordukes said.

Environmental adjustments are also made on an as needed basis, including aspects such as lowering tables, adding steps to a sink, and including pencil grips on drawing materials. These changes, some of which are only small, help to increase access and independence for all children in the service. 

To read the original coverage of this story please see here.