19-20 August 2010 - Playgroup Victoria

19-20 August 2010
Bell City Preston
A Playgroup Victoria conference for early childhood professionals focussing on
play based learning and the value of partnerships through supported playgroups

Keynote speakers
Concurrent workshops
Anne Stonehouse
Playgroup: What’s the point
The word play is used a lot to talk about
valuable ways for children to learn and is
highlighted in both the National Early Years
Learning Framework and the Victorian Early
Years Learning and Development Framework.
Understandings of play vary widely, and
sometimes play isn’t play.
Sometimes what children learn through play
isn’t what we would want them to learn. This
talk will consist of a look at what play is and
isn’t, its value and purposes in a supported
playgroup, how to encourage it, and what gets
in the way.
Anne Stonehouse AM was involved in
developing the National Early Years Learning
Framework and has written many resources
about young children. She has worked as
a consultant, editor, author, academic,
conference speaker and presenter of
professional development in Australia and
overseas over 35 years.
Anthony Semann
The importance of relatedness in playgroups
True partnerships bring strength to any
program and relationship but there lie
complexities and challenges in both
the formation and maintenance of these
partnerships. This keynote address will provide
insight into the importance of relatedness and
the diverse ways in which relationships can
become collaborative, sustainable and mutual.
Anthony Semann for the past 15 years has
worked as an educator, innovator and advocate
with a broad range of government, nongovernment
and private organisations. His
skills and expertise have seen him work with
organisations across Australia and overseas
including Columbia University, New York.
What began as a young teacher’s desire to
help individuals transform the quality of
their lives, relationships and values, led to
combining his skills and knowledge with
Colin Slattery and in 1999 founding Semann
and Slattery, a company committed to
transformative practices and philosophies.
Pre-conference panel discussion
B1 Making connections matter
Anthony Semann
The challenge of providing any programs to the
community is to ensure that those who need
them most are at the forefront of program
planning and delivery. Playgroups serve an
important role providing beneficial support to
families. It is timely to consider how programs
can support hard to reach or vulnerable
families. Marg Whalley suggests one way
forward is to rethink our approach to working
with families and perhaps see programs as
hard to reach. This approach throws many
challenges to playgroups. Join a panel of
experts to reflect on how we work in respectful
ways with families and share some strategies
to help others on their journey.
C1 Harmony in the west
Denise Jones and Kate Hills
Isis Primary Care
This workshop will explore the work that has
been done with newly arrived migrant and
refugee community members in Brimbank to
facilitate a culturally appropriate and needs
specific playgroup. The benefits that have come
from this include mixing cultural groups, using
community leaders to help with facilitation,
supporting participants to improve their
health and wellbeing, connecting participants
with the wider community, and promoting
behaviours conducive to positive child
development. Case studies will be presented
that reflect challenges faced when working
with newly arrived community members in a
disadvantaged area and benefits the playgroup
has brought to participants’ lives.
C2 Connecting through
creative arts-play
Sue van Wyk
Bentleigh Bayside Community Health
In this workshop, Sue van Wyk will discuss
the experiences of facilitating Yumi Supported
Playgroups (Yumi: a place of beauty),
playgroups for mothers with post natal
depression and anxiety. She will explain how
a creative arts-play based approach is used
to engage mothers at playgroup and how
partnerships between Glen Eira Maternal
and Child Health and Moongala Women’s
Community House have been instrumental in
establishing the playgroups.
C3 Koorie Kids Family Playgroups
Cindy-Lee Hunter Harper,
Sharon Blow and Jedda Charles
Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Association
(VACCA)
Presenters of this workshop will discuss
the way support and links to Indigenous and
mainstream services are provided through
Koorie Kids Family Playgroups to families who
may be reluctant to use universal services and
whose needs are often complex. Discussed
as well will be how sense of community that
strengthens parents’ Indigenous identity is
slowly built through using everyday activities.
C4 Apples come from trees:
gardening with children
Pattie Morgan
The Playgrounds & Recreation
Association of Victoria
Sue Ellis
City of Greater Geelong
This session will cover the practicalities
and potential of gardening with children to
promote learning about sustainable practices,
food sources, seasons, plant and animal life,
and how to help develop physical, sensory,
social and language skills. As well, there
will be an exploration of how gardening can
facilitate greater family and community
involvement in children’s services through
shared garden work. A success story will be
discussed that demonstrates how gardening
has been integrated into a supported
playgroup program.
C5 Together we play and grow
Jan McCaffrey and Doris Wong
City of Greater Dandenong
Explored at this workshop will be the
importance, benefits and challenges of
partnerships with agencies that auspice
supported playgroups, playgroup facilitators,
children and families and supporting agencies
such as libraries and health services.
Presenters will explain the process of
engaging agencies, facilitators and families,
and the outcomes of these partnerships for
families and agencies.

C6 Oral foundations
for literacy: story-play
and rhyme
Claire Jennings and Amanda Merryfull
Reading Discovery, Beyond The Rainbow
and Rainbow Rhyming
This workshop will include demonstrations
from the Rainbow Rhyming and Beyond the
Rainbow programs with props and stories that
show how play, stories and oral language is
the foundation for literacy readiness by school
age. Handouts of activities to help develop
story-play in playgroups will be supplied.
Extensive reference lists for stories will be
provided. Presented will be results from
longitudinal research with Deakin University
as well as the learnings of parents who
participate in these programs.
D1 Afghan family settlement
and supported playgroups
Shaima Shahbaz
Advocacy Disability Ethnicity
Community (ADEC)
The Afghan Supported Playgroup (City
of Casey) was established in 2007 with
one family attending regularly. Employing
strategies that were culturally and
linguistically appropriate, the playgroup slowly
grew and 11 children and their mothers now
attend. This workshop presentation will cover
the experiences and strategies employed
by the playgroup facilitator to make families
aware of the benefits of the Australian
playgroup experience and the on-going
growth of the group. The presentation will also
cover a comparison between the way children
socialise and learn in their early years in both
Afghanistan and Australia.
D2 Supporting parents to
manage stress and anxiety
Frances Eyre
PANDA
Practical strategies for how time out can
help new parents deal with day to day
stress, anxiety and postnatal depression
will be provided in this workshop. Be taken
on a meditation journey to help calm your
mind, relax your body and experience a
technique that can help with mental clarity,
depression, tiredness and increase one’s
ability to deal with day to stress.
D3 ISP Dandenong Plaza
Playspot Playgroup
Janine Regan and Paula Jormakka
Playgroup Victoria
This workshop showcases Dandenong
Plaza Playgroup, a playgroup in a shopping
centre. This playgroup was formed from
a partnership between Playgroup Victoria
and the City of Greater Dandenong, and
aims to engage vulnerable, newly arrived,
CALD, Indigenous and transient families
who are not accessing services. The session
will cover how the playgroup operates,
strategies used to engage families and link
them into their community and the strong
partnerships formed through the playgroup.
D4 Map your area for
healthy outdoor fun
at playgroup
Narelle Debenham
Natured Kids
This workshop explains how to map your
area for happy, healthy, outdoor family
playgroup fun. Young children need to
explore, experience and observe nature,
with daily doses of free play. Early outdoor
discoveries allow children to feel the world
is a safe, interesting and friendly place.
This workshop will examine how through
the Natured Kids Playgroup, children
have participated in activities to develop a
sense of empathy, wonder and creativity.
Children’s health and the future of our
environment depend on restoring the
connection of children to nature.
D5 Together we Play
and grow (see C5 for details)
D6 Oral foundations
for literacy: story-play
and rhyme (see C6 for details)
E1 Engaging with families from
refugee backgrounds
Sharon Shaw
Brotherhood of St Laurence
The need for sensitivity to family needs and
an understanding of culture differences
when engaging with families from refugee
backgrounds will be explored in this workshop.
Covered as well will be the importance of
building a trusting relationship with a parent;
opportunities playgroups offer to strengthen
the parent-child relationship and to link the
family to local support services and how
refugee experiences impact a family’s ability to
engage and participate in playgroup.
E2 Play Expo
Fiona Miller
City of Whittlesea
This workshop is a presentation, overview
and discussion of the success and experience
of City of Whittlesea Play Expo days and
training. Discussed will be how partnership
and ownership from a variety of organisations
brings families and professionals together
to discover experiences and opportunities to
enhance play in children’s services.
E3 Successful supported
playgroups: critical elements
Rupert North and Roisin Rizzo
Save the Children
An overview of Save the Children’s supported
playgroup programs will be provided at this
workshop. Using experience gained from over
20 years across Australia, Rupert North and
Roisin Rizzo will examine the critical elements
of a successful playgroup model: building
strong community partnerships, helping
families’ access local services, play, building
parents’ confidence, and program evaluation.
E4 Importance of play at
supported playgroups
Fiona Witheridge
Playgroup Australia
Fiona Witheridge will explain who supported
playgroups are for and what they are designed to
do. Discussed will be how supported playgroups
provide opportunities for families from six distinct
target groups to participate in play activities that
respond to their children’s needs, and at the
same time develop social and family support
networks within their local community.

Program at a glance
E5 Transition pathways for
supported playgroups
Jacquie Beddows
Mornington Peninsula Shire Council
This workshop explains the key learnings
gained from Playgroup Victoria’s Five
Star Playgroup Training modules within
supported playgroups. Discussed will
be ways to ensure the modules are
accessible to all families attending
supported playgroups and the importance
in the transition process of establishing
community playgroups as long term
partners to supported playgroups.
E6 Feed your children
tongue meat: an
introduction to Parent-
Child Mother Goose Program
Jacquie Simpson
Uncle Bobs Child Development Centre-RCH
(early intervention program)
This workshop will engage participants
with samples of oral language material and
discuss the history and philosophy of the
program. It will also explore how engaging
families in oral language traditions
enhances the parent-child bond, facilitates
coping skills and gives children greater
language development opportunities.
F1 Engaging with families
from refugee backgrounds
(see E1 for details)
F2 Fun with nothing much
Sally Moore and Tracey Treadwell
Early Childhood Intervention Teachers
Uncle Bobs CDC – Royal Children’s Hospital
This workshop will explore how to use
recycled materials to create fun with
children at home and at playgroup, and the
importance of play, music and movement,
pretend play, motor skills and sensory play.
Some practical activities will be provided for
everyone to enjoy.
F3 Successful supported
playgroups: critical
elements (see E3 for details)
F4 PlayConnect playgroups:
building the capacity of
communities, families
and children
Mike Quilty
Playgroup Australia
This workshop will cover how PlayConnect
playgroups give families the opportunity
to attend facilitated playgroups geared
to the needs of families with children
with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
or ASD-like symptoms. Discussed as
well will be how these playgroups build
capacity and connectedness within families
and communities, and are a soft entry
point for families beginning to navigate
their children’s treatment options. The
structure of PlayConnect playgroups will
be explained and well as the value of
playgroups for children with ASD and their
families. Recent national survey findings
will be presented.
F5 Building brighter
beginnings: bridging the gap
Amelia Harris and Darran Todd
Anchor Incorporated
Building Brighter Beginnings Playgroup
is for people who are homeless, at risk
of becoming homeless or who have
experienced homelessness. The aim of
this playgroup is to provide parents and
children with the opportunity to participate
in a community activity, build upon
their social skills and develop positive
relationships. Some families find it difficult
to access mainstream playgroups due to
their lack of confidence, social skills and
fear of being judged. Through participation
with the Building Brighter Beginnings
Playgroup, the aim is for parents and
children to work towards accessing
mainstream playgroups. This playgroup is
also a pathway for referrals for parents and
children into other services as requested.
F6 Feed youR children
tongue meat: an
introduction to Parent-
Child Mother Goose Program
(see E6 for details)
Thursday August 19
9am Registration and morning tea
9.30-11.30am Program specific workshops
A1 Supported Playgroups and
Parent Groups Initiative (SPPI)
A2 FaHCSIA Supported and
PlayConnect playgroup programs
A3 Intensive Support Playgroups (ISP)
and other mobile playgroup programs
A4 MyTime
12-1pm Lunch
1-3.30pm Pre-conference workshop
B1 Making connections matter
Panel discussion facilitated by
Anthony Semann on the successes and
challenges in working with families.
Friday August 20
8.15-9am Registrations, tea and coffee
9am Conference opening and
Welcome to Country
9.50-10.30am Keynote address:
Playgroup:What’s the point Anne Stonehouse
10.30-11am Morning tea
11-11.15am Supported playgroups in Darebin
Sue Stanecki, City of Darebin and
Narelle McNaughton, PlayConnect Thornbury
11.15-11.55am Keynote address:
The importance of relatedness in playgroups
Anthony Semann
12-12.40pm Concurrent workshops C1-6
12.45-1.25pm Concurrent workshops D1-6
1.30-2.15pm Lunch
2.20-3pm Concurrent workshops E1-6
3.05-3.45pm Concurrent workshops F1-6
Register
Early bird discount applies to all conference
registrations received before June 25.
Register here.

Telephone 1800 171 882
www.playgroup.org.au
ABN 13 094 186 877