FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
3, 4 or 5 years of age. Basically, children are welcome for the 2 years prior to them being eligible to start Prep in QLD, as well as their Prep year.
The growing body of research about the growth of a child’s brain between 0 to 5 years is proving why early childhood education and development is so important. Around the time a child turns 3, there is a key window of opportunity to enhance their learning, development, social skills and emotional well-being, but by the time they are 5, around 90% of their brain development has already occurred. This is why we welcome and encourage 3 year olds (as well as 4 and 5 year olds) to Learnful.
International research overwhelmingly concludes that two years of early education before Prep has greater potential to increase a child’s outcomes across all learning areas, therefore the ideal enrolment at Learnful would be for the two full calendar years before your child attends Prep.
We recommend children attend one session per week initially, and ideally complete a full academic year with us before they enter Prep. If we feel your child needs extra classes as school approaches, we will discuss this option with you.
If time is not on your side, a term or semester before they start school will still make a substantial difference to your child's preparation for school. However, please keep in mind that due to demand, classes are usually at maximum capacity by the end of Term 2, so enrolling your child sooner rather than later will avoid disappointment.
Yes! If we have availability in a class, we are happy to offer trail sessions. These sessions run for 2 hours and are priced at $72 which is the cost of our usual class. Please get in contact with us if you would like to book in a trial session.
If after 3 lessons at Learnful, you or your child are dissatisfied with the program, we will refund the remaining classes of the term for you. If your teacher feels our class environment isn't the right fit for your child (this may be because they believe your little one would benefit from additional support or a different environment initially), we will refund the remainder of your enrolment fees and discuss further options with you that are in the best interests of your child.
Lessons are two hours in duration, which we find is the optimal time frame to keep children this age engaged in our learning activities. They are planned to suit the learning styles and abilities of each individual child and group, involve a lot of movement, and include a mix of indoor and outdoor time. Class sizes are kept small (maximum of 8 children) to ensure optimal one-on-one time for each child. Each lesson is full of exciting, hands-on learning activities where the children have so much fun, they don't even realise they're learning! Our play-based activities have been specifically designed to develop our 'Prep Readiness toolkit of critical skills' - social & emotional, language & communication, cognitive, resilience & independence, fine & gross motor and foundational literacy & numeracy skills. Engaging 'mini lessons' are also built into each session and the topics covered across a calendar year will introduce our 4 & 5 year olds to foundations of all Prep Australian Curriculum Key Learning Areas (Health and Physical Education, Humanities and Social Sciences, Science, The Arts, Technologies, Languages, Mathematics & English). Activities occur inside the classroom space, as well as outside on the wonderful grass area.
There is no formal testing in our program. Our teacher has extensive knowledge and expertise (over 15 years experience), so she is able to observe your child engage in the enjoyable learning experiences during their first few sessions with us to determine their current development, ability level and learning style, without having to do any ridged, formal testing. She will then use this information to inform her planning and teaching to ensure she is providing experiences that build on each child's prior knowledge, in order to maximise growth and learning. Your child’s progress will be evident to you in the new skills they demonstrate. Additionally, for those children entering Prep the following year, explicit feedback will be provided every term around their development and 'school readiness', so parents can make an informed decision on when to start their child at school. Receiving this feedback after each Term over a whole year with us is also a great way to see and celebrate your child’s progress and achievements.
We want you and your child to feel as comfortable as possible, therefore parents are invited to stay for their child's very first session with us if they would like to. There is an upstairs balcony area where you can relax - you will not be able to see inside the classroom from this area, but you will be able to hear the learning, laughter, singing and discussions occurring. However, as this is a school readiness program where we are encouraging independent learners, parents are not invited to stay after the initial session. You are welcome to enter the classroom at the start of each lesson throughout the term, and we ask that you arrive 5 minutes early to ensure your child doesn’t miss any part of the lesson. We will start and finish on time. At the commencement of each lesson, please leave promptly so we’re able to re-set the classroom for our next group.
No. Our program is designed to be attended alongside your child's current Kindy or daycare program. However, here at Learnful, we differ from Kindy & daycare because our sessions engage children in a lot more structured play that has been thoughtfully planned to intentionally achieve our ‘Prep readiness toolkit of critical skills'. This fills in any skill gaps your child may have from unstructured play at Kindy, and best prepares them for their future at school.
If your child is sick, or unable to attend one of their classes for any reason, we will do our best to schedule a make-up session for them (subject to availability of spots in classes). We kindly ask parents to notify the class teacher before the scheduled session class time in order to be offered a make-up session. Unfortunately, we are unable to provide you with a refund for missed classes due to any reason. This is because of the time and resources already spent in planning and creating learning experiences for your individual child for the full term enrollment.
If the classroom teacher is sick, a make-up session will be provided. If this time doesn't suit you, we will happily offer a refund for the class that was cancelled.
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