Specialist Early Childhood

Early Childhood Education Supports

Early Childhood Educators are experts in children’s overall development. They offer a holistic approach to your supports as well as a strong knowledge of inclusion within Education and Care settings. Our Early Childhood Educators hold a Bachelor or a Masters in Early Childhood Education and have several years of experience in the field.

Overview of Early Childhood Educator Supports

At Biala, a Specialist Early Childhood Educator (ECE) will become your family’s primary point of contact and will work very closely with you to develop a strong, positive and ongoing relationship. This is called a Key Worker. The Key Worker will work directly with your family to plan and deliver services that promote learning opportunities within your everyday routines or activities. The Key worker may call in other Therapists from Biala’s team for consultations, where some additional specialised knowledge is required.

In addition to providing developmental early childhood supports, the Key Worker can support children’s inclusion in other settings, such as your child’s kindergarten, childcare centre or school.

Supports will usually involve either a family member, carer, or educator/aide as well as the child. The involvement of important adults in the child’s life is vital to the effectiveness of their supports. When everyone is involved, a supported consistent approach to skill and knowledge development occurs, which is vital to the effective delivery of supports.

Service Delivery

Your ECE can provide weekly or fortnightly supports to you and your child. They will meet with you and discuss the progress towards your child’s goals, offer suggestions, demonstrate strategies, provide resources, listen to your thoughts, and support you to better understand your child’s skills and behaviour.

Natural Settings

Sessions within the child’s natural environments are preferred, although sometimes sessions can be provided at Biala. Natural environments could be in the child’s home or another home (such as the grandparents’ home), childcare or education settings and community locations such as swimming lessons or a park. As our Early Childhood Teachers come from Kinder and Child Care environments, they are very knowledgeable and understanding when supporting inclusion.

Capacity Building

Parents and other key adults will be provided with strategies to try before the following session. Each session will start by reflecting on these strategies before going on to discuss anything new that’s been happening in both your and your child’s lives. Finding out what works best for the child within the context of their supportive team, demonstrating techniques, coaching the important adults to implement these and to independently problem solve when things don’t go according to plan, all support families to build their capacity.

Strength Based

Supports will be tailored to the specific needs and situation of both the child and the family. Using the strengths and interests of children and their families we will provide a service that develops and supports their overall ability. Children are recognised as being capable and competent learners and each child and family member is respected for their uniqueness.

Consultations

By signing up to our Keyworker Supports at Biala you will have access to the many skills and specialties of our highly skilled team. Occupational Therapists, Speech Pathologists, Social Workers and Play Therapists can observe and assess your child and develop some specialised strategies for you and your child to implement. Your Key Worker will support you to implement these.

Cost

The costs of the Key Worker support will be outlined within the service agreement when you enrol your child at Biala. Costs are billed at the NDIS rate for Daily Living Activities plus travel when we provide services in your child’s natural environments. We use an hourly rate to generate an invoice which has 7 day terms. Many types of supports may be included, such as individual sessions with the child or child and family member, provision of strategies to Educators, report writing, support letters and consultations with other Biala Therapists. When you sign up for supports at Biala you will receive an expectations document describing all of this and more in greater detail.