Brilliant Bears Kindergarten has 3 priority cohorts enrolments for 2026. Two of these children attended 15 hours of Early Start Kindergarten (ESK) at the service in 2025, and the third child is from a family who moved from interstate and was told by their MCH nurse of their eligibility for Pre-Prep because they meet one of the priority cohort criteria.
There are 25 children enrolled in each Three and Four-Year-Old Kindergarten, with 15 hours being delivered to both age groups in 2026. Brilliant Bears Kindergarten is a single room service with a maximum group size of 22. The service uses a rotational model for its Three- and Four-Year-Old Kindergarten programs and is moving to multi-age groupings from next year. There will be 6 groups: 3 x 3YO groups and 3 x 4YO groups and programs will be for 7.5 hours.
The 2 children accessing ESK in 2025 are receiving 15 hours in the Three-Year-Old Kindergarten program, but in different groups.
The Committee of Management and Leadership Team meet to brainstorm options for providing additional hours to the 3 priority cohort children.
Brilliant Bears program model options
Option 1
2 days of a 7.5hr program with same 4YO group + 2 days (5hrs) or 1 day (7.5hrs) with a different 4YO group = 22.5-25 hrs, across 3 or 4 days of the week
Option 2
4 or 5 days of a 5hr group with 2 or 3 different 4YO groups + Children will have earlier finish time each day to rest of group who will attend for 7.5hrs = 20-25 hrs, across 4 or 5 days of the week
Option 3
2 days of a 7.5hr program with same4YO group + Additional day of 5 or 7.5hrs in small group (e.g. one teacher, 3 children) = 20-22.5 hrs, across 3days of the week
They all agree that small groups (Option 3) may not be financially viable for the service and reduce the capacity of the service. It is also noted that this style of program delivery may not have opportunities for children to interact with their peers and develop social skills and make friends. (See information below for additional considerations around small group sizes).
It is also agreed that having staggered start or finish times (Option 2) will increase the visibility of children from priority cohorts. It may also impact the child’s sense of belonging and peer relationships.
The Committee and Leadership Team agree the preferred approach is for children from priority cohorts to be offered 22.5 hours of Pre-Prep with 3 x 7.5-hour days (Option 1).
Table 1: Program model considerations
| What to consider | Quality | Service philosophy | Inclusion and diversity | Privacy | Funding | Team teaching | Family engagement |
| Option 1 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Option 2 | ✓ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Option 3 | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ✓ | ❌ | ❌ | ✓ |
Option 2 and 3 have some strengths and weaknesses, as shown in Table 1 above. Option 1 however, meets all parts of Brilliant Bears Kindergarten’s philosophy and is fully compliant and financially viable. The program model supports the inclusion of children from priority cohorts who are receiving more funded hours than their peers. It will provide a quality program that has stability and exposure to different groups. Families are familiar with how a rotational model works and will be given flexibility and choice to what days they attend. For example, families could choose for their child to attend on Wednesday and Thursday with the same 4YO group, and a different 4YO group on the Tuesday or Friday.
Further actions from this discussion include:
- Review and update Quality Improvement Plan
- Implement a Risk Management Plan
- Review School Readiness Funding plan to support teaching team
- Enrol Educational Leader in Victorian Educational Leadership Program (VELP) when open
- Enrol teaching team in Early Year Assessment and Learning Tool (EYALT) Online Professional Learning.
Because the service is moving to multi-age groups from 2026, the EYALT will be used to monitor learning outcomes.
Small group sizes
While delivering additional hours to small groups is unlikely to be a preferred option at most services, there may be some circumstances where this option is worth exploring further. This includes when a particular need or benefit is identified for a child or small group of children — for example, children with poor attachment histories or who have experienced trauma.
Smaller groups may provide some children with more comfort, support and safety. It may also give a teacher enhanced opportunities to better understand the learning needs of a child, and provide intentional teaching and support based around children’s specific goals.
There may also be increased opportunities in small group settings for deeper engagement with families and support workers. If a smaller group is preferred, it is important to balance the child’s privacy and inclusion within the broader service.
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