Early communicators (birth - 18 months): Gesture and joint attention Children’s early communication development, including their use of gestures, eye gaze, and joint attention. Vocalisation and speech development Children’s speech development from early vocalisations, to progressively clearer speech during the first three years. Lots of trucks An experience extending upon the children’s interest and enjoyment of play with toy vehicles. Reading with children Reading with children to develop their oral language and/or emergent literacy skills. Everyday situations Using caregiving, routines, transitions, and other everyday situations to engage children in language-rich interactions. Making meaning through play Ways of creating responsive play experiences for building children’s meaning-making. Vocabulary for early communicators Ways of creating rich language experiences with young children, to build their vocabulary. Getting along with others Facilitating children’s use of language to request, take turns, share, and resolve conflicts. Early language users (12 - 36 months): Wombat stew Using dialogic reading (interactive read aloud) strategies while sharing the text Wombat Stew. Worm farm A discussion about worm farms, as children learn about what they can and cannot feed worms. Lots of trucks An experience extending upon the children’s interest and enjoyment of play with toy vehicles. Reading with children Developing children's oral language and/or emergent literacy skills. Everyday situations Using caregiving, routines, transitions, and other everyday situations to engage children in language-rich interactions. Making meaning through play Demonstrating ways of creating responsive play experiences for building children’s meaning-making. Developing conversations and social skills Developing children’s early conversation and social skills by creating engaging learning experiences. Vocabulary for early language users Interacting with children to build their vocabulary in a range of experiences. Herbs and potatoes Creating a hands-on experiences for children while they are exploring herbs and digging up potatoes. Getting along with others Facilitating children’s use of language to request, take turns, share, and resolve conflicts. Yarra river guided play Children participate in a guided play experience involving a waterhole for native Australian animals on the Yarra river. Language and emergent literacy learners (30 - 60 months): River of words Exploring children’s vocabulary, as each child thinks of ways of how the Yarra river moves. Making comics Facilitating children’s creation of narratives. Clay letters Children working with clay to make an art installation of the Yarra river. Leaf colours Inviting children to use their higher order language skills to think of names for a group of coloured leaves. Megawombat story telling Demonstrating how educators can share stories using only the spoken word. Mega wombat drawing telling Facilitating children’s reflection on the storytelling experience in which they have just participated. Journey to Healesville Participating in a drama experience centred on the imaginary problem of where to take a baby koala that has been found. Volcano Conducting an experiment representing the explosion of a volcano. Phonological awareness through music Taking part in a music experience exploring two important aspects of phonological awareness: syllables and rhyme. Yarra river guided play Children participate in a guided play experience involving a waterhole for native Australian animals on the Yarra River. Stories to tell Stories are an essential way of sharing knowledge, language, and culture. Phonological awareness through rhymes and stories Teaching practices for developing children’s awareness of syllables, rhyme, alliteration, and individual sounds. Making meaning through dance This video explores ways of using dance as a medium for children to make meaning and express themselves.