Kits for kindy kids

By Lachlan Ellis

A State MP has popped into a local kindergarten, handing out free Kinder Kits as part of a new State Government program for kids entering Three-Year-Old Kindergarten.

State MP for Eureka Michaela Settle visited Darley Kindergarten and Young Street Preschool on Wednesday 1 March, handing out kits to each child, which contain fun and educational toys, books, and resource to help them learn and thrive.

Ms Settle said there was a focus on providing high-quality, fun resources, that are all sourced from Australian businesses.

“The Kinder Kits are a wonderful innovation. Last year was the first year, and the program is really about acknowledging how important play-based learning is, and how much kids’ education is a partnership between families and wonderful organisations like Young Street Preschool,” she told the Moorabool News.

“It’s a way of the kinder interacting with families, and making sure kids have the best resources at home, to continue with the learning they’re having here. There’s some books, playdough, pencils, there’s a flip cards game – really high-quality resources, focused on our local lifestyle with beautiful Australian books with Australian animals in them.”

The free kits tie in with the State Government’s new Free Kinder Program, which provides up to $2,500 per child at Three and Four-Year-Old Kindergarten.

Darley Kindergarten and Young Street Preschool are just two of the more than 2,750 early childhood services across the state that have opted in to the program.

“The other really exciting thing about this year is the beginning of Free Kinder. Having been a mother, it’s going to make a huge difference. We know everyone’s doing it pretty tough at the moment, so just to have that bill taken off, in one of the most expensive times in life, is really important for families,” Ms Settle said.

“Through our Free Kinder reform, we’re helping families in Darley and Bacchus Marsh save thousands of dollars and making sure every child gets the early education they need to get the best start in life.”

Each item in the Kinder Kits is age-appropriate, child-safe and inclusive, and has been recommended by education experts to help families make “learning through play” part of their child’s everyday life.

For more information on the Kinder Kits program, head to www.vic.gov.au/kinderkits.