For those who live on the Gold Coast, is your existing childcare meeting your needs? There are three basic types of chilcare available to you. The choices you have are Traditional Preschool, In home Childcare or a Childcare facility, and Montessori Childcare on the Gold Coast.

With traditional preschool, the children are taught by a teacher using the same lessons and activities for everyone. In this setting the learning environment is a passive one and what the children learn is limited to the information and experiences the teacher believes is important to the children. For very young children it can be hard for them to sit still for extended periods of time and this atmosphere demands that the children sit in their assigned places and listen quietly.

If you are interested in the In home Childcare or childcare facility option, thre are a few things to keep in mind. The amount of attention each child gets depends greatly on how many children there are per caregiver. This can be a good alternative because of the homelike environment. However, you must consider what activities are being used to keep the children engaged. They usually use games and toys to teach and keep the children busy. The important factor is what exactly are they teaching your child and how are they teaching it.  Many childcare facilities or homes use television or movies to keep children distracted and quiet. This doesn’t teach them anything. In fact it may have the opposite effect.

Montessori Childcare on the Gold Coast on the other hand, is based on empowering the children to learn at their own pace. They learn through their own experiences as they are engaged in the Montessori activities. The certified teacher is there to guide the child but they work on the activity of their own choosing for as long as they want. This allows the child to become more self assurred and self motivated.

Fridays Child lives and breathes the Montessori philosophy. Run by Laurena Rakauskas, a early childhood expert whose formal teaching qualifications include a three year Diploma of Teaching (Primary) from Murray Park College in South Australia, a diploma from the London Montessori School, and a Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood) as well as first aid training and a number of other workplace and health and safety certficates.

She understands that children who are actively engaged in learning are able to concentrate for longer periods of time, find it easier to stay motivated and actually love learning. She believes that television is a lazy way to keep children busy and they aren’t learning anything useful. Her priority is on safety and she and her staff only allow authorized people in the building and they are signed in and out. In addition, prior to opening each day they check all equipment to make sure everything is fine. They believe in teaching the whole child. This means emotionally, physically and spiritually as this helps to develope a child who will become a happy, high acheiving young adult who is confident in themself and ready to step out into society.

You must make sure you always do your research when deciding where to send your child. The internet is a great place to start. Once you have some idea about what sort of learning environment you want for your child, look for schools or facilities near you. You can research them on the internet as well but also, make some calls in your local area and get some feedback from parents in your area. Finally and most important, you should see how children and teachers interact with one another. This means a visit to one or more of your chosen centers. If you’re looking for Montessori Childcare on the Gold Coast, Give Fridays’ Child Montessori a real close look. To experience them first hand call (07) 55782092 and schedule a free trial day.