About Us
& Kindergarten
Monday to Friday
Who we are
Little Dreamers is a family owned and operated business providing exceptional early learning and kindergarten to families in Melbourne for over 12 years.
Founded by mother of three Sia Doganlar an Early Learning teacher who was disappointed with the lack of warmth & quality in the early learning & kindergarten industry.
Sia set out to change the way early learning & kindergarten services were being operated. As the owner and founder of Little Dreamers ELC, she has implemented and shared her ethos of kindness, warmth & respect with all the families, educators and teachers that make the Little Dreamers team. This has created a family atmosphere for all children that not only attend our services but also for those who work for Little Dreamers ELC.
Our Little Dreamers educators & team are known for their warmth and nurturing nature, this then creates are unique and peaceful learning environment. Our educators work in partnership with our families to make decisions about the developing curriculum to ensure the learning experiences are meaningful.
Over the years Sia has introduce education-based experiences that inspire children of all ages to learn through various avenues. Sia has extensive knowledge in Bi-lingual education and has a strong passion in teaching children.
As a mother of three girls Sia also understands the anxiety and anxiousness of what families feel leaving their children for the first time. During many years as a teacher and then as mother Sia created a unique holistic orientation process that eases not only first-time families, but all families orientating of their apprehensions, worries & concerns.
Our Centre Philosophy
Our team at Little Dreamers ELC believe that the happiness and well-being of the children create a strong sense of identity and sets the precedence for children to become confident and involved learners. Educators provide this through respectfully supporting all children and scaffolding children’s interests. All educators initiating one to one interactions with children and connecting with families.
Each Child’s Learning includes daily reflections, family input, children’s portfolios and Story Park, we believe in reflecting on and valuing the many theories surrounding early childhood development and supporting children to develop self-regulation and resilience.
Healthy Eating and Active Play is promoted by educators and management through our program, role modelling and engaging activities are implemented throughout the year. Our indoor and outdoor experiences encourage children’s awareness of their bodies whilst further developing their abilities, skills, values and interests to the learning environment around them.
Environmental Sustainability is encouraged throughout; we create an increased awareness of environmental responsibility through practices that contribute to a sustainable future. Educators will embed sustainable practices within our programs each day such as, recycling, gardening, energy conservation and water conservation. We will up cycle equipment at times, and add some homemade equipment to our service to demonstrate the concepts of ‘reduce, re-use and recycle’.
Indoor Outdoor Equipment will be a combination of purpose acquired toys, natural, recycled and open-ended items. Some items will be complex that can be used in many different ways. Equipment will be set up and provided to offer challenges and risk taking within a safe environment.
Partnerships with families, we endeavour to build strong partnerships with families, children and the wider community and include them in our services day to day activities developing a sense of belonging to groups and community. Regardless of gender, religion and race children and their families are treated equally and are included, our belief is that in order to reflect the principle of belonging we need to accept and embrace each individual child, their culture and the family belief systems. We feel it’s our responsibility to share and educate the children within our centre on the beauty in diversity and to promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all races, nationalities and religions. We truly want to work towards sowing the seed of peace and unity in our amazingly diverse society.
Our Environments are known to us as the third teacher. Our educators deliberately set up our environments with purpose; they are homely with an inclusion of real-life items to provide concrete real-life experiences. They are aesthetically pleasing to children with a focus on attention to detail. They provide for the indoors to be used outside and the outdoors to be brought indoors with the use of natural and recycled materials. Equipment will be set up and provided to offer challenge and risk taking within a safe environment, layouts will change infrequently as we believe this predictability allows children to feel a sense of security, belonging and attachment through this consistency.
Qualified, Experienced & Dedicated Team
At Little Dreamers ELC we believe our team of Early Childhood educators are one of our most valuable assets and we could not achieve our goals, or honour our philosophies, without their knowledge, support and hard work. Our team understand the responsibility that comes with the role of an educator and are committed to ensuring that every child not only enjoys their time with us, but is exposed to every available developmental and learning opportunity.
Our team of educators bring an impressive range of skills, qualifications and experience, ensuring every child is supported in their learning and personal needs. Our educators participate in regular professional development, mentoring and first aid training in order to remain at the top of their profession. As a ‘feeder’ to many of the local primary schools our Early Childhood Teacher attends regular kinder networking meetings to ensure the kinder children receive a seamless transition to school.
Government Approved Kindergarten Program
Our Facilities
Our centre has been designed to create a positive and rewarding environment for children to learn, develop, play and form social bonds. Our internal environment offers naturally lit, expansive play spaces with direct access to the outdoors. Each children’s room incorporates all the facilities children and educators need to ensure optimal learning and development opportunities and outcomes.
Our natural outdoor environment includes vegetable gardens, digging patches, sandpits and with the outdoor play areas being divided across children’s age and development, we have ensured harmonious enjoyment for all children in a safe and secure environment.
Outdoor undercover areas provide the flexibility for children and educators to further enjoy the outdoors during inclement weather and we comply with the Sun Smart policy and guidelines.
Our doors are open from 6.30am to 6.30pm, Monday to Friday (closed public holidays) and fees include all meals, nappies and educational programs.
Frequently Asked Questions
What age can my child attend from?
What hours are you open?
Do I have to provide food and nappies?
Can I enrol for just 1 day?
Yes!
Families can enrol from 1 to 5 days, the choice is entirely yours (subject of course to availability). Most our families request the days that tie-in with their work or study commitments. However, some families find that earlier days in the week works well after the mayhem of a weekend, allowing them time to re-set for the week and for their child to spend some time out of the confines of home.
What rebate will I get from the government?
CCS is calculated differently for all families that are eligible.
Please visit the ServicesAustralia.gov.au website to read full information on the Child Care Subsidy (CCS)
When does the Kinder program run?
What happens if I choose to attend Kindergarten at a different location?
How frequently does my child need to attend to qualify for Kinder funding?
For three-year-olds, attendance can range from 5 to 15 hours per week. However, for four-year-old Kinder, a minimum attendance of 15 hours per week is required, typically equivalent to two days of care at Little Dreamers ELC.