Day in the life of Laura

Day in the life of Laura

I’m Laura, an Early Childhood & Primary Educator and a Mum to two little boys, with a third on the way. I am a newly registered Family Day Care and I am absolutely loving every minute of it! My service, Farmhouse Family Daycare is located on my 20 acre home, just 10 minutes from the small rural town of Clermont, Queensland. 

Our morning begins with child initiated play, where families enter through our enclosed veranda and the little ones have access to a variety of dramatic play spaces. These include a construction zone, a home corner, post office, hairdressers, doctor surgery, veterinarian, a variety of costumes and a shop front. Throughout the morning, little ones also have access to play based numeracy and literacy stations, where they practice their photo name puzzle, counting and explore colours and shapes.  

 We then have our fruit snack and story time, where we sit together on the play mat, munching our fruit snack together and engaging in a story book reflective of our current theme. Our favourite story book so far has been ‘A Good Place’ by Lucy Cousins, which explores four garden friends trying to find a good place to live. We also enjoy music and movement, engaging with some nursery rhymes during this time.  

After our fruit snack, we play outdoors. My little ones are always extremely excited and run to the large trees in the backyard to see what bookish play experience I have set up for them to discover, interact and engage with. I love creating interactive, hands on bookish play experiences and watching their excitement, learning and discovery that occurs as we read and play! We also enjoy exploring Indigenous Perspectives through a range of First Nations books I have collected from Jessica Staines at Koori Curriculum. We enjoy gathering around in a circle outdoors, connecting barefoot with nature, reading an Aboriginal book together and exploring through play. 

We pack away and return indoors for lunch and quiet rest time before getting stuck into some indoor play. Playdough is a favourite and we develop fundamental skills including fine motor skills, using scissors, rolling, pinching, squishing, and shaping. It is a calming and reflective activity as I add lavender oil to my playdough recipe to support relaxation. The children love engaging in block play before home time, particularly magnetic blocks. They are getting very creative with these and Paw Patrol pup houses seem to be a reoccurring theme here! 

At home time, the children are always very excited to share our day with their families. We have such fun filled day together and my little ones respond positively to the routine of our day. They look forward to each activity and feel a sense of belonging. My home is theirs, it’s a safe, secure, supportive and inviting play space with a range of experiences to explore whilst being encouraged cognitively, socially and emotionally.