Early Years Community of Practice

Introduction

Village and partners developed the Early Years Community of Practice in response to community feedback, including feedback received by the ACT Governments through its consultations with early years practitioners as part of the Best Start for Canberra’s Children: The First 1000 Days Strategy development.

The Early Years Community of Practice – Highlights

Early Years Community of Practice (CoP) is regarded as a group of people in a professional setting who have a mutual interest or passion for a topic, or a common concern and who come together to learn and share. It is a commitment to advancing professional learning by sharing best practices. It also provides an opportunity to communicate, connect and develop a supportive network. Interaction on an ongoing basis is an important part of the CoP and this relies on face-to-face meetings.

26 March 2024 – Understanding Behaviour Series II

Thank you for attending the Early Years Community of Practice, Understanding Behaviour Series II. It was wonderful to see more than 50 attendees despite the miscommunication about the venue change. Through several group discussions, attendees were able to engage and share their experiences and challenges in supporting children with complex behaviors. The presentation and suggested resources can be downloaded below.

Session II: Support strategies & consistency was delivered by Cate Hilly, Lecturer in Occupational Therapy, Jonathan Ramke, Occupational Therapist from University of Canberra and Livia Pitz, Educator at CRCS Bruce.

The presentation slides can be downloaded here and presentation handouts here

To create an environment where early years professionals can advance their learning and practice and better connect with the outcome of improving how the sector supports itself, children and families. The CoP has a focus on holistic child development including wellbeing, education, disability and the social determinants of health.

The CoP is for anyone working within the early years sector.

This includes professionals across Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) settings, preschool/primary education, health, academia and the community services. If you are an educator, centre director, teacher, health professional or work with children and families the CoP is for you!

13 February 2024 – Understanding Behaviour Series I

Thank you for attending the second Early Years Community of Practice. We were delighted to see overwhelming interest in the event, with over 100 people registering. More than 50 attendees were able to engage, learn, and share their experiences and challenges in supporting children with complex behaviors. This demonstrates a clear need and strong appetite for learning effective strategies in this area. The presentation and suggested resources can be downloaded below. We look forward to delving deeper into this topic at the next session on March 26, 2024.

Session I: Multiple causes & child lens, was delivered by Cate Hilly, Lecturer in Occupational Therapy and Jonathan Ramke, Occupational Therapist from University of Canberra.

The presentation slides can be downloaded here and presentation handouts here

Further Reading

8 August 2023 – Courageous Conversations

The first Early Years Community of Practice was held on 8th August at the Humpy Hall Scullin with over 40 practitioners from health, education and early childhood centres attending the session.

Stephanie Johnston, Community Capacity Building Lead, EACH ACT presented and discussion about:

  • Developmental milestones from birth to five years?
  • What is developmental delay and disability?
  • Strategies to build stronger relationships with families
  • Tips to effectively communicate concerns with families
  • Where to seek support

The presentation slides can be downloaded here and presentation handouts here

The CoP format includes a combination of presentations, panel and round table discussions, as well as networking opportunities. Presentations are interactive and topic experts will be available to answer questions and contribute to conversation. Topics are informed by the needs of attendees and relevant resources will be provided.

Attendees are invited to share knowledge, insights, research, and resources. An agenda will be made available in the week(s) prior to the CoP session, including a call for relevant resources to be shared.

Following the CoP, attendees will receive email containing the link to the Village CoP webpage, which will host the presentations, resources and other related information.

The CoP is a 2 hour session delivered 6 times a year during school terms, with afternoon tea provided.

It is coordinated by Village partners including Capital Region Community Service (CRCS), Community Services Directorate (Best Start and AEDC) and EACH (NDIS partner delivering the Early Childhood Approach).

  • Develop a professional network of peers
  • Build working relationships to learn from each other’s successes and failures
  • Share learnings to improve practice in your field
  • Create a sense of community
  • Connect with a range of services to support the children and families in your services and centres
  • Share practice

Related Resources

Collaborating Partners