A Focus on Sustainability at Wanniassa

Guardian Early Learning Centre – Wanniassa is a wonderful childcare centre in the ACT. It’s a bright and happy place filled with natural light and plenty of resources to spark children’s imaginations. The team at Wanniassa are a new but enthusiastic group and are always excited to embark on new projects and explorations with the children.

One such exploration is their current focus on sustainability at the centre. Centre Manager, Michelle McCabe is a driving force behind this saying, “We believe that anything can be re-used.” She goes on to say, “We love to build resources for the centre from recycled products with the help of families and children. We have been lucky enough to have one of our families build us a wooden tepee for outside and another family build a mud kitchen which has working taps when the hose is connected.”

When asked why sustainability is important at Wanniassa, Michelle says that it’s a good way for families to get involved at the centre. It also gives the educators an opportunity to teach the children about the importance of looking after the planet. The upcycling aspect encourages people to use their imagination to create new things. Take, for example, the tepee – it was made from an old deck and pallets – and the mud kitchen was made from old pallets, recycled taps and a recycled kitchen sink.

“The tepee offers the children a variety of different experiences – they can use it to role play, as a quiet area to read books as well as an area to climb. The mud kitchen offers children a space to problem solve, explore role modelling and be creative,” comments Michelle.

One of the many positive outcomes of this sustainability focus is the relationship building and collaboration with families. Both items were built by families and Michelle says that, “all families have been amazing in donating any parts that are needed for various projects. Some of the children even created a piece of artwork using various lids that families bought in.”

So, what’s next for sustainability at Wanniassa?

The team are currently putting together a loose parts station so children can explore and expand their creativity along with problem solving skills at a higher level. They’re also busy planning some other projects that can be used in the centre – we can’t wait to see what they have in store!

Learn more about Guardian Early Learning Centre – Wanniassa

Guardian Early Learning Centre – Wanniassa is an open plan centre with a fun and energetic team who believe that children deserve and have a right to the very best education and care from a young age. The brilliant outdoor area has a garden where children can grow their own fruit and vegetables. They research what they want to plant, tend to the plants and pick what they want to take to the cook who prepares them for the children to eat!

There’s a creek bed where they can have water running down for water exploration in the summer or a dry creek bed for winter. The water used is easily turned on and off with a switch and has its very own water tank that recycles the water. To see this centre for yourself or to read more about what they have to offer, head here.