Metal sculpture of a bee pollinating a flower

Welcome to Gungahlin Children's Centre

We provide a long day education and care service for children from 6 months to 6 years. The centre opens at 7:30 am and closes at 6 pm. For more details and to inquire about placement please call or email our office during business hours.

This website encourages us all to consider a child's perspective when we choose a service. As you scroll through the pages you will be sharing the journey that takes place each day at our centre. Every day, every moment, is important to us as a steptowards each child's growth and learning.

Scroll to continue the Journey

Getting to know us!

Gungahlin Children’s Centre opened on the 1st of December 2003. We have maintained a consistent highest quality standard rating since opening, most recently rated as a service Exceeding the National Quality Standard in May 2014 and November 2018. The ACT Government expanded the service in 2015, we added two new rooms, an art studio and an additional outdoor play space.

Over time Gungahlin Children’s Centre has developed into a dedicated early childhood community, we work with a wonderful team of early childhood educators to create a service that we are extremely proud of. We value meeting with each new family and discussing opportunities for providing their children with early childhood education and care.

Creative Spaces

I have worked at Gungahlin Children’s Centre since it opened and have seen how our creative spaces throughout the building have emerged and become established practise. Public spaces celebrate and share children’s ideas, creativity and visual expression. We believe that physical spaces influence our behaviours, creative responses and thinking. Every space in the centre is meaningfully presented and conveys a sense of aesthetic beauty, order and invitation to families, children and staff to enjoy and explore. The addition of two specialist teachers and the establishment of music and art studios has enriched children’s opportunities to extend their imagination and creative expression.

Karen Gergely (Director)

Children’s education has always been an important part of our centre. As we have grown our focus on children’s learning and the role of educators has become firmly established. Belonging, Being and Becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF), the first national early years curriculum was launched in 2009. The EYLF is now the standard curriculum for Australian preschools and children’s services and guides our education of infants through to primary school entry. Our teaching practices work within the EYLF and we now confidently recognise that Gungahlin Children’s Centre provides children with a comprehensive educational foundation for their future.

Samantha Menzies (Director)

“ Art is something you paint and do!”

Our Art Studio provides ever evolving provocations, books, recycled materials and art supplies to ignite and facilitate the expression of the children’s imaginations and interests. Studio sessions give children time and space to work through questions and challenges. We focus on the process of art making and finding ways for children to explore materials and express their ideas visually.

Justine Maughan (Art teacher)

In the words of our children……. Lucas smiled as he solved a design problem. “The tower kept falling because I didn’t do any edges!”

Mihir loves to draw. “Most of the time, I like to make cars, but less of the time I like to make trucks and trains”.

Kayla worked with charcoal on large sheets of paper on the floor. “The hardest thing was the big pieces of paper because it kept rolling”. Later with great joy, Kayla solved the problem by placing a little wooden chair on the edge of her paper.

Photo of Liz playing guitar in front of three children

With music and costumes
"We can turn into lots of things!"

Soundscape Music Studio is a dedicated environment for children to explore and discover a love of song and sounds. Studio sessions engage children in a variety of music related experiences including introduction to a wide range of instruments and musical styles. Children enjoy weekly singing in unison and investigation of a physical environment that is designed to inspire a deep understanding of music as a language that tells many stories.

Liz Lester (Director of Music)

“I am Mrs Flowers in the studio. I bring my bee wherever I go" Charlise as she listens to the "Bumble Bee"!

“I like to dress up like a mother lion! - everywhere Mrs Lion goes she roars!" Georgia who likes loud sounds.

“I really like to dress up as a Leprechaun" Mitchell adds as he dances around to an Irish jig!

“I turn into a dinosaur!" says Jackson as he stomps along following his friends.

Children enjoy playing ukulele's, drums, maracas, triangles and bells in the studio each week. We write many songs together to express our ideas and imaginary games.

Photo of three children playing in the sand

"We were just all on the team!"

"Educators work together with children and families to incorporate the children's interests into our curriculum and learning environments."

Erin Anderson (Pedagogical Leader)

We spend our days playing and working together. This is how we learn to listen, have conversations and share our ideas.

The construction of the Dinosaur Zoo

“How do we work together?" Justine

“We just be’d a team!" Noah

“Yeah we were just all on the team!" Jaidan

Making cement

“We’re making cement" Ben told Lydia.

“How do you make cement? asked Lydia.

“You need sand first. Then you add water and stir it" Ben explained.

“I’m making cement too" Mitchell called out.

Photo of children walking on a dirt path surrounded by grass

Photo of a child crawling under a sand bridge in the sand pit

"I make a big mountain!"

The sand pit is always a busy place!

Everyone likes to do something different there!

“Cakes" Harper
“Buckets" Luke and Isabella
“Trucks" Tobias and Cohen
“Digging!" Ella
“Cars" Thomas
“Cups!" Mikaela
“I like mixing sand in the bowls" Jayden
“I make a big mountain! I can use a shovel to dig lots of holes. Some holes are so big you can go through!" Lily

Photo of a toy koala on a climbing plant

"What is magic? What is real?"

The natural environment in and around our centre is a source of wonder and adventure! Children feel real grass underneath their feet and explore a garden landscape of mature trees, hedges, bushes and plants. Children learn firsthand about the environment and are actively involved in caring for plants including flower pots and vegetable gardens.

We find magic everywhere especially in the garden!

“The flowers are magical because they look nice" Maya said.
“Inside the big bush there is a dragonfly" added Bradley.
“Dragonflies can light up!" said Mitchell.
“Moths come out at night" Bradley said.
“Bats are real" Jalen joined in.
“Fairies are real too!" suggested Maya.
“Flies are magic and butterflies and birds and Peter Possum" said Molly and Tahlia.
“Peter Possum is really magic, sometimes he’s real" said Molly.

Photo of children learning about worms in the garden

Our gardens - where do worms live?

Outdoor play environments are designed to inspire the imagination and encourage energetic play - the emphasis is on natural beauty and sensory experiences.

Thomas, Ishaan, Kane, Mitchell and Jaisal sat in the garden and talked about worms. “Our worms live under the ground in the dirt" explained Thomas. “They hide in the mud of the dirty grass" said Ishaan.

“When I dig a big hole you can find them!" added Kane. “My mum says worms are slippery and dirty" Jessica said. “We have a worm farm, it’s got yellow and red sand so we can see the worms" explained Mitchell. “We sometimes feed them, the worms, withvegetables that we grow" said Jaisal.

“I was looking for a snail and I found one, it was under a rock! It didn’t have a shell. I was in the garden outside near the sand pit" said Noah. “Near the pot there was a live snail it was grey, it had a shell. It was moving slowly" said Kierah.

Photo of a child helping to pour cupcake batter

Food Culture

"An important part of our care of children relates to their health and wellbeing. We think critically about the quality and presentation of children's meals. Menus are planned to provide maximum nutrients and taste while minimising preservatives, additives and sugar. Children's individual dietary requirements are met and families are encouraged to talk with me about their family cultural preferences. The links between particular foods and children's behavior are researched and provide useful advice for families. We are particularly dedicated to working closely with parents to make sure their child is provided with food that meets their requirements.

Jane Elliot (cook)

Our vegetable and herb gardens are tended by the children - we harvest our produce and experience preparing meals "from garden to plate"! Cooking food and enjoying it together is part of our weekly curriculum and supports our children's awareness of sustainable and healthy lifestyles. As a member of Stephanie Alexander’s Kitchen Garden Foundation we encourage children and families to grow plants and use home grown produce.

Photo of a child wearing a hat he made for the easter parade

"Sometimes we have special days!"

As a community we celebrate the things that are important to us including our families, cultural festivals, visual art events, birthdays, children's and book weeks.

“Grandma came to Grandparents day! We read books, I showed her the quiet room and we looked at a mouse mask! She put it on! Sarah told us.

“When we had the Easter Parade we made hats with noses and whiskers - we used paper and paint on them" said Zahra. Sometimes we like to dress up on our special days.

For Eric Carle day, “I dressed up as a lady bug" Sarah told us. “Charlise was a sea horse and she had a tail! Thomas had big black legs - he was the spider!"

Photo of Erin and Paige taking the babies out in the big pram for a walk

When we go out and about!

There are always adventures to have when we take walks around Gungahlin. Erin and Paige take the babies out in the big pram for walks. “Our adventure took us out to the front of the centre where we peered through the fence. We kept on walking and found ourselves out the back near the big tree!"

Exploring our local community together helps us feel a sense of belonging with the physical spaces and environment where we spend our time!

The Preschool children walk to the Gungahlin Library each week. “Karen takes us to the library. We walk across the road and stand in the middle part and then follow the path to the library. Inside there are books and a big TV. We use scanners to borrow books and a card"

Preschool education

Preschool is a special time at our centre, the children are enjoying their senior year and preparing for big school? For the children that have progressed through our Junior Preschool the Preschool year is the culmination of their previous year’s learning and relationships – children who complete their preschool education with us benefit from the security of preparing for the school transition with the teachers and children that know them well and share in their achievements.

GCC Preschool children are provided with a comprehensive Preschool Curriculum that responds to the national Early Years Learning Framework and the ACT Education Curriculum Framework for schools - “Every Chance to Learn”.

Our Preschool teacher works with our preschool children to deliver outcomes against identified essential learning achievements. Foundation literacy and numeracy skills are supported in addition to developing the skills that support young children to become confident and active learners whithin a group environment. Our Preschool children wear their uniform proudly knowing that they are important valued senior members of our centre community.

Photo of children sitting in front of the Gungahlin Children's Centre sign

Discover More

To discover more about Gungahlin Children's Centre please call or email our office during opening hours.

To hear some songs from the Soundscape Studio music program, visit our Youtube channel.

We trust you have enjoyed our introduction