What Do Children Learn in Kindergarten?

As a parent, it’s perfectly normal to want to be a part of every stage of your child’s development. And while you’ll get the opportunity to witness a lot of their ‘firsts’ at home, when the time comes for children to start attending kindergarten, many parents often wonder about what their little ones' progression will look like while at kindy.

To put your questions to rest, here’s an overview of the skills and developmental aspects that your child will learn in kindergarten. 

What are the learning and development areas focused on in Kindergarten?

The Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) is applied Australia-wide in all early-learning centres and kindergartens and sets a standard for the learning goals of children up to the age of 5 years. Based on the EYLF, each state in Australia has its own set of guidelines for what children will learn as part of their kindergarten education. 

The Queensland kindergarten learning guideline (QKLG) is used by kindergarten teachers and educators to develop educational programs and practices covering 5 main learning and development areas:

• Identity – helping children build confidence around self-identity and independence. 
• Connectedness – helping children recognise and build on the relationships they have with their family, peers, and environment in a respectful way.
• Wellbeing – encouraging the awareness and development of positive mental, emotional, and physical wellbeing in children.
• Active learning – fostering interest and involvement in learning about new concepts.
• Communication – assisting children to understand the conventions of communication through listening, exposure to reading and other forms of written text, mark making, developing oral language and building vocabulary.

Subjects and skills that children learn during kindergarten 

Language and literacy skills

Children will learn foundational language skills during kindergarten. Educators will help children learn how to communicate their own thoughts and needs, as well as to understand what others are saying. These skills will carry over to developing their ability to read — children may take an interest in having stories read to them, or even reading on their own. 

Social and emotional skills

During kindergarten, children will have ample opportunities to interact with their peers, whether in the form of intentional planned experience to promote cooperation, or organically during play sessions. Experiences like making friends, resolving conflict, and sharing will be guided by educators as they happen to develop their social and emotional skills. 

Basic STEM learning

Children will be introduced to educational concepts from the four main areas of study (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) through play-based activities. Examples of the concepts that will be taught include learning about numbers and how to count, being able to differentiate colours, shapes and sizes, solving logic puzzles, and how the world works. 

Creativity and arts

Kindergarten education will also help children to develop their creativity and self-expression in fun ways - from role-playing sessions to making music, as well as drawing and painting experiences. Children are not so much taught creativity — they will simply be given the freedom to explore their own ways of developing an individual sense of creativity in a supportive environment. 

Physical development

Outdoor play sessions and games promote the physical development of children while helping them learn about their own bodies, and what they are physically capable of. As they jump, run, and climb, they will naturally gain more control over their gross motor skills and gain mastery over aspects such as hand-eye coordination and balance. 

How to get involved with your child’s learning

The best way to get involved with your child’s learning and development is to keep in close contact with their kindergarten. At MMCNQ, our kindergarten and early learning educators are happy to keep parents updated on the progress of their child, as well as work collaboratively with families to ensure that their little one gets a good foundation for later learning in life. Get in touch with our network of kindergarten centres in Townsville to find out more about our teaching curriculum and enrolment details.