Programs and Structures

Open for 48 weeks per year 7:30am - 6:00pm.

School Term

Early Care Program 3-5 year olds 7:30am - 8:30am

Early Learning Programs 8:30am – 3:00pm (see minimum attendance below)

3 year olds in Blue and Green Rooms

4 year olds in Gold and Red Rooms

Extended Care Program 3-5 year olds 3:00pm - 6:00pm

Early Learning Program

Every Early Learning Program Room has a registered teacher with a minimum bachelor of early childhood education qualification. Each teacher has an early childhood assistant, and the class adult to child ratio is 1:10 in the 4 year old rooms and 1:8 in the 3 year olds rooms. Please refer to Curriculum for further details.

All programs focus on:

Play – curiosity, exploration and making sense of the world around the child.

Inquiry – teachers look for the awe, wonder and special interests of the children that can link to a big idea or enduring understanding. Teachers then use these links to build, extend and co-construct their knowledge and understandings. We are a Little Scientist School which allows us to extend on children’s interests in the natural world.

Creativity – the great minds of the world regard creativity to be of number one importance. The children are encouraged to express their imaginations and creativity in many ways.

Environment – awareness, respect and responsibility for the care of our environment is embedded into our program and practices.

Community – learning to be part of our vibrant and caring Ignatius Community as full participants also extends to opportunities in our Norwood Community where children’s voice can be raised.

Minimum Attendance Requirements

To support each child to build connections with other children, adults and the environment, and to provide continuity and engage children fully in a quality program, we advise the minimum attendance requirements.

3 year olds to attend a minimum of 2 full days per week for 38 or 48 weeks per year.

4 year olds to attend a minimum of 3 full days per week for 38 or 48 weeks per year.

Our parents pay the daily fee for either 38 or 48 weeks per year. This is decided on when parents complete the Compliance Written Agreement.

When making decisions about your child’s attendance at Ignatius Early Years we ask that you consider this continuity factor in all their care. In an endeavour to reduce the fragmentation of children’s lives we encourage parents to place their child solely with Ignatius Early Years rather than splitting care and learning programs between other centres. This gives your child predictability with people and environments, allowing the continuity required to build identity and self confidence within relationships. As Carla Rinaldi writes in her Adelaide Thinkers in Residence Report (2012-2013) “Rituality, rhythms, relationships and continuity are giving the child the possibility to recognise himself and to overcome small and big stresses and predicted change”. Carla Rinaldi

Extended Care

Many of our parents also require extended care for their child and to meet this need we also provide the early morning and extended care programs and vacation care programs. Ignatius Early Years is open 7:30am – 6:00pm Monday to Friday. Early Morning and Extended Care is offered from 7:30am – 8:30am, and again from 3:00pm – 6:00pm.

The 10 weeks of the IEY vacation programs, plus the 38 weeks of the 3 &4 year old programs and the extended care programs make up our 48 weeks during the year. Ignatius Early Years is closed for 4 weeks (click here for college calendar) over the Christmas and New Year period.

School Holidays

Vacation Care Program 3-5 year olds 7:30am – 6:00pm

3 year olds use the Green Room from 8:30am – 4:30pm

4 year olds use the Gold Room from 8:30am - 3:00pm

All children arriving before 8:30am gather in the Kircher room before moving into the separate 3 and 4 year old rooms. At 3:30pm the 4 year olds head to the Kircher room. They are joined by the three year olds around 4:30pm when numbers are lower.

We are an approved long day care centre enabling our parents to access the Child Care Subsidy. Most children attend the 3 and 4 year old Early Learning Programs 8:30am-3:00pm during the school term. Children must be 3 years old before they can start due to our Licensing Agreement, and we do not have an intake in Term 4. Children who turn 3 after 1 September will commence the following year. This allows children to be grouped with children they will start school with.

For further information:

Contact person: Rosemary Allen (Head of Ignatius Early Years) or Ms Kristina Manson (Administration)

Phone: 8130 7180 (7:30am – 4:00pm) 8130 7183 (4:00pm – 6:00pm)

Address: 58 Queen Street, Norwood

Email: r.allen@ignatius.sa.edu.au