Our son has now been at Guardian Queen Street for 1.5 years and we could not ask for a better place to be part of our village.
Even though he often has a hard time at drop off I never worry about him during the day.
It's incredible for us that we only have to worry about sending him with spare clothes and a water bottle. Guardian provide all food, nappies, hats, sunscreen. The menus are incredible and the in house chef and kitchen is located so that the toddler room can watch all the action.
I've heard from other parents that moving rooms can be difficult on children because they don't get to see their beloved educators anymore. It's wonderful that the centre often combines children at the beginning or end of the day so they still get to see their previous educators.
Guardian uses the KindyNow app which is invaluable. I can use the app to advise of absences but even better, I can use the app to book a casual day. Say your child doesn't normally attend on Mondays but then Sunday at 11pm you put your back out and need to rest the next day, rather than run after a toddler, you can use the app to book them in for Monday if there is a space.
The Storypark app is used to give a summary at the end of the day about the events of the day, with photos included. It's wonderful and so nice to be able to build upon learnings and themes and chat with the children about their day, especially when communication is still developing.
Being on the 5th floor might seem odd at first of you've only ever seen suburban daycares but the children love being able to watch the Brisbane river, construction projects and passing vehicles. They have multiple sandpits and water play areas. And equipment for big motor skill play like balance beams and jumping off platforms into large pillows.
It's never a problem that I drop him off at odd times and whenever I do, the children are happy and having the best fun.
Some of the many, many activities they have put together include: examining insect specimens in resin, making fruit smoothies with leftover fruit salad, sink and float experiments, making family trees, dance parties, lots of arts and crafts and incorporating other learning such as letter recognition into these activites. There is also lots of time and space for free play.
I truly wish I could attend and play too!
Response from the owner:Thank you for your feedback about our centre in Bethany! We are happy to hear such good things about you and your little one’s experience with us. At Guardian, we’re all about partnering with our families to deliver the best quality outcomes for our children and really appreciate your review.
