Premier David Bartlett today said young Tasmanians aged up to six and their families will benefit from a range of new projects in areas such as early literacy and numeracy, school readiness and supporting young parents.
Mr Bartlett said 26 projects would share more than $310,000 funding provided through the Tasmanian Early Years Foundation 2008-09 Grants Program.
“The mission of the Foundation focuses heavily on working in partnership with the community to provide support for children and their families,” Mr Bartlett said.
“The grant program is supporting a range of government, non-government and community organisations throughout Tasmania that understand the needs of their communities and have developed projects aimed at meeting those needs.”
Examples include:
- A Transition Toolkit will be developed by Lady Gowrie Child Centre to help children make a successful transition from child care to school. The kit will help child carers and family provide information about a child, such as their strengths and interests, to the school they will be attending.
- A playgroup for mothers predominantly from African countries will be provided by Relationships Australia, Good Beginnings and TAFE Tasmania to support their desire to improve their English and parenting skills.
- Hazelwood School will help young children with disabilities to improve their literacy skills by designing books that are highly interactive and incorporate objects, symbols, aided language stimulation, songs and activities.
- Children and parents will enjoy excursions through Out and About projects at Geeveston District High School and Moonah Primary School, and through Triabunna District High School’s Li’l Travellers project.
- The St Helens Neighbourhood House Association’s Great Start In Life program will provide parenting programs and support for young parents in the area.
- A Playgroup Roadshow run by Playgroup Tasmania will take mobile baby playgroups and intergeneration playgroups to isolated families in Bicheno.
Mr Bartlett said investment in early years was crucial for Tasmania’s future.
“We need to empower communities to build better futures and this means giving every Tasmanian child the best possible start in life as a foundation for a healthy and positive future,” he said.
“The Tasmanian Government established the Tasmanian Early Years Foundation to provide strong leadership in this area.
“And my Government is supporting the Foundation’s vision through initiatives such as the $12.6 million Launching into Learning initiative, which supports parents as their child's first teacher, and our commitment to establishing 30 Child and Family Centres across the State.”
Full list of grants
STATEWIDE
The Salvation Army, $25,000: A statewide training program to develop an educative module for fathers and for workers supporting abusive men.
Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Union (LHMU), $3,000: Lifting the profile of early years professionals and the early childhood sector in communities using early childhood services in southern Tasmania through a week of recognition activities.
SOUTH
Lady Gowrie Child Centre Incorporated, $25,000: Development of a communication toolkit to help children make a successful transition from child care to school.
Relationships Australia Tasmania, $33,180: A playgroup for mothers predominantly from African countries to develop English and parenting skills.
Discipline of Psychiatry, $19,997: A review of parenting programs in Southern Tasmania.
Blair Street Kindergarten, $20,560: A kitchen garden where children plant, nurture, harvest, cook and eat fresh healthy food.
Hazelwood School, $30,000: Promotion of literacy of young children with disabilities through adaptive interactive books.
Glenorchy City Council, $12,800: Consultation to develop an Early Years Strategy.
Moonah Primary School, $5,000: Fortnightly bus excursions to museums, parks, libraries, pools etc.
Brighton Council, $10,040: Working with parents and their young children to plan, prepare, activate and consume healthy meals together.
Dover District High School, $4,580: A perceptual motor, language and social programme for children in the far south region.
Campbell Street Primary School, $8,000: An outreach worker to visit and support young families in their homes.
Triabunna District High School, $3,565: Excursions to Hobart attractions for the birth to four age group to improve their access to learning experiences and reduce their social isolation.
Collinsvale Primary School, $9,960.90: Tiny Teddies and Little Paws Program to provide services and resources to families with preschool aged children.
Geeveston District High School, $3,213.66: Out and About Project to create opportunities for young rural children and their parents to visit educational settings in and out of the Huon region.
NORTH
Playgroup Tasmania Inc, $9,976: Delivery of Mobile Baby Playgroups and Intergenerational Playgroups to isolated and under-serviced families in Bicheno.
St Giles Society Inc, $7,330: Use of music therapy as a development tool for children birth to five currently receiving speech pathology services.
Northern Early Years Committee, $14,000: Development of a Northern Early Years Plan to ensure that by 2020 Northern Tasmanian children aged birth to five years will have attained or surpassed national benchmarks in the areas of health, development and education.
Headspace Northern Tasmania, $14,000: A peer-based education programme in northern Tasmanian schools focussing on safe choices in intimate relationships.
Friends of the Library Launceston Inc, $3,960: Seminars for early childhood professionals and parent-child interactive storytelling and music sessions focusing on early literacy.
Learning Services (North), $300: Supporting teachers and parents to develop language, play and pre-literacy skills with young children through the use of a story bag resource based on the nursery rhyme Incy Wincy Spider.
St Helens Neighbourhood House Association Inc, $5,284: Great Start In Life program to maximise parenting skills in the local community.
NORTH-WEST
Devonport Online Access Centre Inc, $3,317: Young children will enjoy structured visits to the Library, Online Access Centre and Community House.
Zeehan Primary School, $5,600: Literacy and numeracy awareness program.
Rosebery District High School and Mountain Heights Primary School, $28,400: Leap Ahead Early Intervention Project to help at risk children.
Smithton High School, $7,820: Plus 1 project to encourage the young mothers in the Smithton area to return to school with their babies, one day a week, to reconnect with education.
