Parent info

The information in the parent handbook will help you transition into our preschool. But if you have any questions please chat to us. We are here to support you!

Read the Woollahra Preschool parent handbook 2026.(PDF, 8MB)

Read the Woollahra Preschool parent handbook 2025.(PDF, 8MB)

The service provides a secure, private online communication portal called HubHello at no cost that is designed to document your child’s enrolment details, progress, attendance and learning and provide you with updates about your child.

Woollahra Preschool utilises the beautiful Foster Park Playground for our outdoor education program.

The playground was designed in collaboration with the children, families, staff and The Garden Makers to create a vibrant and age-appropriate space where children may connect with nature and take risks.

The playground is open to the public after hours, on weekends and during the school holidays.

It includes:

• water pump
• water way which empties into two large sand-pits,
• mud pit & kitchen,
• cubby house,
• climbing fort complete with climbing wall,
• scramble net and fireman’s pole,
• frog pond,
• native bee hive,
• bamboo forest,
• obstacle course and,
• spaces to run and hide.

We value our outdoor environment as the third teacher. It is designed to encourage children’s exploration, investigations, curiosity, sense of agency and belonging in the learning outdoor program.

The children have the opportunity to connect and explore through free-play and teacher-initiated experiences, extending their inquiries and understandings, connecting with peers through social play and ongoing sustainability experiences.

Families are encouraged to use the playground after hours, for play-dates and picnics to forge strong collaborative relationships and supportive networks.

Our Preschool offers speech screenings for children where there is a concern for their speech and/or language development and Occupational Therapy screenings for those who experience difficulties with concentration, coordination, balance, core strength and fine-motor skills.

Speech Therapy and Occupational therapy sessions are available at the preschool.

We provide a program that promotes children to build strong foundations and develop their skills. We build on children’s abilities to be confident, active participants in their own learning and to be a part of their shared learning community. We place a strong emphasis on their social, emotional and mental wellbeing aiding their transition to school. We promote co-operative and collaborative play and coach conflict resolution strategies to facilitate children to develop tolerance, empathy and pro-social skills for navigating the school environment.

We believe in empowering children to experience smooth and confident transitions to school. By offering meaningful opportunities to explore and gain familiarity with new settings, we support their sense of readiness. We work in partnership with families to assess each child’s preparedness and communicate with local schools, providing Transition to School statements for every child.

Weekly Music Sessions with Tamara O’Brien (Early Childhood Music Specialist)

During Kodaly sessions with Tamara, the children are engaged in improving intonation, music literacy, rhythm skills and singing abilities, while also enhancing perceptual functioning, concept formation and motor skills.

Children are also provided with meaningful engagement with the local Aboriginal culture through the Dharawal language program offered by the Gujaga Foundation every week. Children interact with local aboriginal educators to learn language, songs and stories to develop an awareness and respect for our first nations people.

As part of the service’s duty of care in minimising exposure to Ultraviolet Radiation (UVR) and promoting sun safe practices among children, families and staff, the service provides each child with a preschool hat and sunscreen is administered by staff where possible 20 minutes before commencing outdoor play.

The preschool is accessible by public transport and is close to a train station and/or public buses. 5 minute parking available in the Sherbrooke carpark adjacent to our building for drop-offs and pick-ups.

At Woollahra preschool, we thoughtfully and purposefully support children’s leaning through play following The Early Years Leaning Framework for Australia (EYLF) V2.0 and National Quality Standard (NQS).

Play-based learning approaches allow for different types of play and recognise the intentional roles that both children and educators may take in children’s learning. When children play with other children and interact with adults, they create relationships and friendships, test out ideas, challenge each other’s thinking and build new understandings. (Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA), 2024)

Throughout the day, all the children are encouraged and supported to act intentionally and with agency in their play. Children are fully engaged in their play as they make plans, create characters, solve problems, develop self-awareness and empathy while they learn how to co-operate, negotiate and think with others. Based on their interests, we plan and create indoor and outdoor learning centres that promote and support different types of play for children’s active engagement. We also intentionally use routines, rituals and transitions to foster learning, development and wellbeing, as a part of the curriculum.

We believe children should be empowered to experience successful transitions to school by providing them with opportunities to gain knowledge and experiences of the new setting and its people. We collaborate with families to determine a child’s school readiness and liaise with schools to share information providing transition to school statements for each child.