VEYLDF 2026 – Information Session 01 Early Years Professionals
[On-screen text: The Education State
Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework
For all children from birth to 8 years]
Catharine Hydon: Hello, everyone, and welcome to the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework 2026 Information Session, this time orientated towards all of those professionals who work across Victoria in the early years. A big welcome to you all.
[On-screen text: Catharine, Hydon, Director, Hydon Consulting]
Catharine Hydon: Before we get started, I'd like to take a moment to acknowledge the traditional owners on whose country we're collectively meeting today across the Kulin nation. I particularly pay respect to Elders past and present, and for the work that they have done to help us all understand what it means to learn and grow and play and thrive on country.
I like to particularly take a moment to draw your attention to the Acknowledgement of Country in the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework. It's at the front of the document. It's an important reminder to think about the ways that Elders across this land we now call Victoria have helped us understand what it is to be on country, and that we recognise that they are educators, artists and scientists. And that we're all collectively part, in all the different rolls that you play, as part of the commitments we all make to self‑determination, treaty and truth.
Thank you, everybody, for joining us. We're particularly excited in this session to welcome all of the people who work in various roles across Victoria, alongside our colleagues who are educators and teachers in early childhood education and care settings.
People who have a range of different professional roles, Maternal and Child Health Nurses, our colleagues in the beginning years of school, allied health professionals, people who work in different institutions that engage with young children and their families.
A big shoutout to you all. Thank you for engaging with this important update. For those of you who have been using the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework for some time, thank you so much for participating and being a part of that conversation, and thank you for the collaborative work that you've all been doing in various contexts to uphold the rights and best interests of children and look at quality uplift for children wherever they are.
For those of you who might be new to the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework 2026, well, welcome to you. This is an exciting opportunity to think about how the work that you do, in whatever context that is, and using the particular disciplines that you have, might intersect and align with the work that our colleagues will do in early childhood education and care contexts, and outside school hours, but also in the various places that children and their families join to help children grow and thrive.
One of the things that is a feature of our conversation today is a panel discussion with colleagues ‑ and I will introduce them to you in a moment ‑ but also we'd like to hear from you. On your screen you'll see a button. That button will take you to an opportunity where you can share questions or any comments.
You might even like to share a story or suggestions about how the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework might intersect with your work. We'd love to hear from you. Those questions and ideas will be taken by the team and woven into frequently asked questions and other resources that will emerge over the next little while. So watch this space and please share your thoughts.
You can do that throughout today. We'd love to hear from you as we progress. Of course, all of you hopefully have got a copy of the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework downloaded from the web page.
If you haven't done that already, you might want to do that. And feel free to play along as we are having our discussion in our conversations today. I would really like to now take a moment to welcome our amazing panelists.
Thank you so much for being here. We have Pippa Procter. Thanks, Pippa, for joining us. Pippa has had a range of roles across education and early childhood strategic policy development.
You have worked at a whole range of different executive levels for the Department of Education here in Victoria and in other places. So great to have you here. Currently you are the Executive Director Early Learning Practice and Participation for the Victorian Government, which supports quality early childhood education for Victorian children no matter where they are across Victoria.
You've had a very long connection with the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework, so it's great to have you here.
Welcome, Pippa.
Pippa Proctor: Thanks, Catharine.
Catharine Hydon: We're also very privileged to also welcome Professor Jane Page, who is an Associate Director of REEaCh. Let me just tell everybody what REEaCh is. The REEaCh Centre is the Research in Effective Education in Early Childhood at the Faculty of Education at the University of Melbourne. And Jane has been working for over 38 years in a whole range of roles, as a teacher, a lecturer, and also supporting a number of people thinking about quality early childhood education.
You currently focus on a whole range of practices and research initiatives that focus on the factors and processes that drive high quality early childhood education and outcomes for children. Thank you, Jane, for being here.
Again, you've had a great association with the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework over a number of years.
Professor Jane Page: Thank you, Catharine.
Catharine Hydon: So great to have a panel discussion. We would also like to invite you to have a discussion, a bit like what we're going to do, with your colleagues. This might be alongside early childhood professionals who you work with in particular settings and services, but it also might be with your colleagues. It might be a bunch of allied health professionals coming together to talk about the ways in which these ideas in the Victorian framework can inform your own and align with your own work.
So have a think about the ways that this might inform your own discussions. One of the things that's really important about the framework ‑ and some of you will have already engaged with this in the document you've downloaded ‑ is the Cultural Knowledge Stories. And we're incredibly excited to be able to share some information about those Cultural Knowledge Stories.
You will see that they feature all the way through the framework, and, of course, the extraordinary artwork has been brought to life in a really powerful way. I'm very pleased to say to you that we've got a video here which we want to share with you from Dr Aunty Sue Atkinson and Annette Sax who will share with us some of the information about those Cultural Knowledge Stories. Let's hear from them.
[On-screen Text: Cultural Knowledge Story: Ochre Artwork
Cultural Knowledge Stories read by Annette Sax
Image Credit: Ochre Artworks by Annette Sax (Taungurung), developed in collaboration with Dr Sue Atkinson AM (Yorta Yorta)]
[intriguing bright orchestral music]
[On-screen Text: Dr. Sue Atkinson AM Author]
Dr. Sue Atkinson: I would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land and waters that we are speaking from today, the Wurundjeri Woiwurrung people, and their Elders, past, present, and emerging.
The Wurundjeri calendar is made up of seven seasons. I would like to thank the Wurundjeri Woiwurrung people for sharing their knowledge of these seasons with us and acknowledge their wisdom in looking after the land and waters in harmony with these seasons by being observant of the types of birds calling, plants flowering, the lifecycle of animals, and the appearance of the sky including the stars and the phases of the moon.
My name is Sue Atkinson, I’m a Yorta Yorta woman with ancestral ties to the Wemba-Wemba people. I have been involved in the Early Childhood field for 50 years, I taught across the preschool, TAFE, and higher education sector before retiring. More recently, I spent 10 years as a volunteer on a variety of committees, including Action on Aboriginal Perspectives in Early Childhood, AAPEC.
Currently, I occasionally work as a freelance writer, and at the moment, I’m working on the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework, VEYLDF.
[On-screen Text: Annette Sax Aboriginal Early Childhood Professional Yarn Strong Sista]
Annette Sax: Wawa, my name is Annette Sax, a proud Taungurung woman, artist, educator and cultural storyteller with more than 35 years experience in the early childhood profession.
As one of the two VEYLDF artists whose work complements that of Aunty Dr. Sue Atkinson, Cultural Knowledge Stories, and the VEYLDF Ochre Artist and Designer, I am honoured to contribute artwork that reflects Aboriginal perspectives, identity, culture, and connection to Country.
My work is guided by the cultural knowledge and stories generously shared by my Taungurung Elders, with their permission to pass this knowledge on respectfully.
[intriguing bright orchestral music]
[On-screen Text: Cultural Knowledge Story: Ochre Mountain
Practice Principles - how educators work with children and families]
Annette Sax: Bunjil the Eagle and Waa the Crow represent Aboriginal culture and partnerships with families. The water hole symbolises reflective practice; the gum leaves with their different patterns and colours represent diversity. The stones underneath the leaves represent equity and inclusion. They reflect the additional support put in place to help all children achieve. The child and adults standing on Ochre Mountain symbolise the high and equitable expectations we hold for children and adults.
The family standing on and looking out from Ochre Mountain reflects assessment for learning and development. Such assessments draw on children’s and families’ perspectives, knowledge, experiences, and expectations.
The child and adult figures also represent partnerships between professionals. The land symbol as mother Earth represents the basis for respectful and reciprocal relationships. The symbols for land, water, and people signify holistic pedagogical practices based on connections to Clan and Country.
[intriguing bright orchestral music]
[On-screen Text: Cultural Knowledge Story: Scar Trees and Message Stick
Learning and Development Outcomes - what children learn over time]
Annette Sax: Gum leaves as bush medicine symbolise connection to wellbeing. The yam daisy represents the survival of a strong Aboriginal identity.
The yam daisy was central to the diet of Aboriginal Victorians. It was almost wiped out by colonisation, but has survived. The family sitting under the scar trees with a message stick and coolamon symbolises communication.
The family seated on the land symbolises the child learning through their connection to and involvement with community. A scar tree is also known as a canoe tree and is a significant artifact. Aboriginal people used the bark of the tree to make a canoe or boat.
[intriguing bright orchestral music]
[On-screen Text: Cultural Knowledge Story: River Stepping Stones
Transitions - how learning continues across settings and stages]
Anette Sax: The river stepping stones represent children and families in transition. The footprints and wheelchair tracks symbolise all abilities. Animal footprints show children and families walking proudly with culture in transition. Educators must engage with such pride in culture, with respect and authentic understanding, thereby promoting positive transitions.
Sue Atkinson: Thank you for listening to my Cultural Knowledge Stories and connecting to Annette Sax’s, Taungurung, artworks throughout the VEYLDF.
[intriguing bright orchestral music]
[On-screen text:
The Education State
Victoria State Government Logo
Department of Education
vic.gov.au/education]
Catharine Hydon: What a privilege it is to be hearing those words and seeing those extraordinary images from Aunty Sue Atkinson and Annette Sax. There'll be lots of opportunities in the next little while for us to explore the potential of those Cultural Knowledge Stories in our shared practice, and to join together with you in the various roles you have to think about the ways that we uphold the rights and best interests of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in our everyday practice. So I encourage you to take a moment to have a look at those Cultural Knowledge Stories and see how they resonate with you in your practice. We'd like to now dive into the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework.
Our panel discussion will be an opportunity to think about the various aspects of the framework and also to think about the potential for intersections with your collected work and the way that they align with what's happening in early childhood education and care settings. And then we're going to end with a bit of a conversation around practicalities.
Throughout today, please make use of that button on your screen to ask questions. As we progress from here, we'll remind you of the email address you can use to ask any specific questions after today. We do realise we've got a bunch of people here who have had various commitments and engagement with the framework.
We wanted to again confirm and congratulate all of you for your participation and your connection and engagement with the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework so far. Thank you for those of you who gave feedback in some of the review processes that took place.
And thank you for all of you who have been currently figuring out where your own work sits in relation to this important framework. We'd also like to encourage all of us to think about the uniqueness of the framework within the context of that birth to 8 space. I know there's some of you who are joining from the early years of school who are working with children 5 to 8.
Let's think about that together, and an opportunity for having shared language and shared understandings of where we'd like to go for supporting children across Victoria. One of the things that we absolutely should do before we progress too far is to think about what a framework is.
Again, for those of you who are new to this, it's understanding the purpose of a framework in bringing us together, in fact gluing the professionals that work across the early years together. Jane, can you take us into that space around what a framework is and how does it help us make decisions every day in the best interests of children?
Professor Jane Page: Thank you, Catharine. Absolutely. Well, I think, in essence, the VEYLDF really serves as a guide. It guides our planning, it guides our practice, it can guide rich conversations together in teams and across teams. I've had the real privilege of working alongside teachers and educators since the first version of the VEYLDF which was released in 2009.
So for 17 years I've heard a number of stories around how teachers and educators use the VEYLDF. And I have heard some very rich stories around how it really supports and guides thinking around planning, around everyday practice with children and families, and colleagues and professionals. But it also supports reflection.
And this is something that I hear often, reflection as an individual but reflection within teams. And part of the commentary I've heard is that reflection in and of itself actually encourages rich and deep conversations about how children learn, what is the role of the teacher, the child, the family, other professionals in the learning process, and how do we come together to optimise every child's learning progress?
And that often becomes an opportunity to start exploring shared meanings and understandings of the content within the VEYLDF and to create a common language and vocabulary, which the VEYLDF itself really aspires to and aims to do.
And I think that shared meaning and understanding and that common language and vocabulary is so important, not just for us as professionals working alongside each other, but also for the families who are navigating different services.
The VEYLDF very much speaks to the bioecological model showing that children learn and grow and thrive in multiple contexts and engage with multiple adults across settings. So here is that opportunity to really reflect deeply together about what that means and how we collectively support children's learning and development. But teachers and educators have also spoken about the fact that the VEYLDF really supports their professional judgments in the everyday, and creates greater confidence in making those professional judgments.
And often they speak to the fact that the VEYLDF distils the why, the what and the how of learning and development, so this lens on learning and development. And the VEYLDF has distilled the most contemporary research around the importance of the early years, why they matter, and how they build foundations for children's learning in the here and now but also in the future.
It also speaks to children's growth being characterised by rapid brain development ‑ and Pippa, I know you've done a lot of reading and are really passionate about brain development ‑ and how that creates really important opportunities in the birth to 8 space to connect with children, to lay those foundational concepts and knowledge early in life. But it also highlights the risks that are associated with not doing that. It also speaks to the fact that adults and children's lives really matter, that they mediate the opportunities afforded for children's learning, and that it is what the adults do and enact in the everyday that really matters.
And I think it also, in that regard, highlights that learning is a relational and social process. So how we, as adults, build relationships within teams and across services and with families really matters.
The other thing I think that the VEYLDF draws on which is really critical is the image of the child. It draws from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, and positions children as active participants in their learning and in the environments in which they grow and learn.
So that creates opportunities for thinking about how do we engage children in learning, what does that look like in practice? So the why is really clear, and then the what is the learning and development outcomes and what learning and development looks like, and then the how are the practice principles. And of course, building partnerships with professionals is so clearly embedded and woven throughout the VEYLDF.
So I think together the learning outcomes, the distilled research evidence across the principles and the learning and development outcomes really provides us with a strong, solid base for deeply thinking about child learning. And how we create the optimal conditions together to support children's learning and safety and wellbeing, and a sense of belonging.
I just also want to pause on the fact that the VEYLDF has been updated twice. So originally released in 2009, updated in 2016, and now we have the 2026 version. And I think that's really important, because when you update the VEYLDF and you go to the research literature, you can test the assumptions embedded within the VEYLDF, and you can also draw on contemporary understandings around key issues that impact on young children and their families. In addition, the Victorian Government really values professionals' feedback on the VEYLDF as well.
[On-screen text: Professor Jane Page OAM, REEaCH Centre, Faculty of Education, University of Melbourne]
So we can draw on the lived experiences of the professionals working alongside children and families to test how the VEYLDF can support them in their work. So we've really seen the format changing and very clear accessible language being embedded in this version of the VEYLDF.
Catharine Hydon: And I think that reference to this framework being something that grounds us, that anchors us in a shared understanding is such a powerful idea. And there's going to be a whole range of people who have different disciplines perhaps joining us here, which is fantastic.
We know that collaborative notion ‑ and we will come back to that in a little while ‑ but I think coming together with that shared understanding. I think the framing of this has been understanding why we do what we do collectively. Why are we delivering a fantastic program at the library? Why are we engaging with our preschool field officers? Why are we working together in the School Readiness Funding space to collaborate? Lots of different options and opportunities there. Then what are we all trying to work on together, and having a shared understanding of that, and joining those ideas together in a really coherent way. And then figuring out, you know, how do we do it? And that's where those practice principles and the suite of really fantastic strategies is incredibly powerful.
So we commend you to that idea of using it as an anchoring document in all the different conversations you are having. Pippa, we know that the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework also has aspiration to contribute significantly to quality
And we've got an amazing collection of people here online who are joining us from a whole range of different contexts and different disciplines. Can you talk to us a little bit about how this framework helps us drive quality for the children and families who are joining us in the early years in Victoria?
Pippa: I would love to, Catharine. Again, thanks for joining us today, everyone. I think starting my response to that is talking about the uniqueness, which has already been touched on through the conversations ‑ and Jane, you've mentioned lots of points already about the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework. It is a unique document that is unique in Australia.
[On-screen text: Pippa Procter, Executive Director, Early Learning Practice and Participation Division, Department of Education]
Its birth to 8 focus in particular and its audience of all professionals is something that I think is one of its key strengths. And that underpinning notion of bringing together the incredible expertise that we have across all of you and others in the sector to support children in this incredibly critical time of their lives.
So we know that that birth to 8 period is critical for cognitive, social, emotional and physical development, that absolutely sets the foundations for learning, for love of learning and lifelong outcomes. You mentioned my passion for brain science.
So I have been involved in the VEYLDF since its inception in 2009, which has been such a privilege. It was updated in 2016. When I think about the updated VEYLDF and some of the things that really aim to drive that quality ambition across all of the mix of services that support children and families during this period, I often go back to the brain science, which I think has been the big shift we've seen in the research evidence over the last 10 years. What's been amazing is it's really reinforced that underpinning evidence that was already there 10 and 17 years ago, but it has really deepened our understanding of that.
So if you will indulge me a little, I will talk a bit about some of the brain science. We now know that in the period of birth to 8 years it's a really specific time for children where their brain is highly plastic.
So it's really responsive to all of the things that are happening around them and it's responsive to change. We know now about the incredible neural connections within the brain and the process between birth to 8 that happens with expanding those and pruning those to really set amazing learning pathways.
We also know that during this time the prefrontal cortex of the brain is not quite yet rigid. So the way that children absorb information and learn is much more organic from experience within their environment and those within their environment, less reliant on some of those more structural and intellectual effort that is often guided by adults.
In some technical terms, it's when a child's procedural memory, where they learn through immersion and play and doing ‑ so that play‑based learning ‑ if they learn through those experiences, we see the learning develop much faster than the learning that develops with their declarative system which is where it is much more fact‑based learning that is much more structured and they're supported in that way. Interestingly, throughout this birth to 8 period neuroscientists have now proven that the brain develops to approximately 90% of an adult size, with two‑year‑olds having twice as many synapses as adults. So that just gives you a sense of the incredible things that are happening within our bodies during this critical period.
What the neuroscience has shown us is that optimal brain development really requires a stimulating environment, all of those critical things like adequate nutrients and social interactions to be able to develop to its fullest potential. In terms of some specific things, because it's always really great to anchor it in practicality ‑ and definitely one of the features of the updated VEYLDF that we've really heard from the sector is an important focus for us thinking about literacy.
The neuroscience has clearly shown us around linguistics that children between the ages of 2 and 7 possess a really unique window to effortlessly decode language patterns and achieve native level fluency. That natural proficiency noticeably drops around age 8. So really reinforcing the criticality of the time for emergent literacy skills, all of those foundational skills that builds those pathways into their later life. The other really exciting thing that I've been reading about is the impact on executive function in terms of the things that happen at this time.
So it really is a time where the neurological groundwork is laid for memory, for focus, for self‑regulation, emotional control. And that is really anchored in the brain's pathways by the age of 8, providing all of those cognitive tools that they need to have to be successful lifelong learners.
So moving on from the brain science and thinking more back to the role of the VEYLDF and its updated content and how that's supporting quality. You already mentioned it, Jane. It really is about refreshing that understanding about what we know children learn, and supporting our understanding of that, and how they learn that, but also what role adults can play in that process to really effectively support children's learning and development to progress.
We know ‑ and the VEYLDF is really anchored around the importance of relationships ‑ the quality of those interactions with the environment and the adults, and the intentional teaching that happens. And that's not just something that happens with teachers and educators. Everyone engaged in a child's life during this time has opportunities to teach children, from parents, from Maternal and Child Health Nurses, allied health professionals, coaching the range of professionals that are working with children and families.
The enormity of play group facilitators and everyone in this space has an opportunity to help this. So making those experiences really intentional and responsive to children and families is something that is really the anchor of quality, and the VEYLDF really aims to help that. So whether you've been working with it for a long time, or you're diving into it for the first time now, I am really confident that this document gives you tools in your professional context to support this incredible work.
Catharine Hydon: And I think there's going to be such a lot of exploration in the next little while about what that might look like and what that collaboration that happens with professionals will generate, and very excited to see what the possibilities are in that regard. And, you know, love to hear from people. Please use that button to share your thoughts. And the email address that's on the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework web page is also an important place for you to share some of your questions and thoughts after today.
One of the things that I think will be helpful now, Jane, is to actually go into the document itself and just alert people to some of the things that have both changed and stayed the same, because there is actually quite a lot that is very familiar, and I think there is also going to be opportunity for people to be excited about some of the things that are updated features. One of which we've already talked about, which is the Cultural Knowledge Stories throughout, and the extraordinary artwork which has been illuminated in a much more powerful way.
Just indulge me a little bit here, there's an image that is actually behind you there, Pippa, on the gorgeous banners which also features the museum has a Bunjils nest. I immediately think of all the children who visited and all the grown‑ups who visited that beautiful space.
Immediately there is a connection there, just in that nest and the idea of who Bunjil is and how important Bunjil is in terms of being on Kulin country, so so many amazing things to investigate. Jane, for you, can you take us through a little bit about what stayed the same and what's changed?
Professor Jane Page: As you and Pippa have been speaking, Catharine, I've been reflecting on the fact that the VEYLDF has always been intended as a shared document, and it remains committed to that purpose.
And the vision and purpose of the VEYLDF has stayed the same, that we're really coming together to enhance and optimise the opportunities for children and families in the early years, with learning and development being front and centre of that vision. But in terms of the familiar aspects, as you have noted, it's a birth to 8 focus, which is really distinctive. The practice principles have remained the same. The learning and development outcomes have remained the same. And transitions are still maintained within the VEYLDF but strengthened also through an enhanced focus on continuity of learning. We can chat about that a bit further. You've spoken about the deepening and extending First Nations' perspectives and the Cultural Knowledge Stories and artwork.
The integrated teaching and learning approaches and intentional teaching has been elevated alongside the planning cycle to show those rich connections, and the value and importance, as Pippa has highlighted, around what we say and do with children in the everyday. How can we engage children in different ways to support their learning? And there's been increased emphasis and strengthened commitment to child safety throughout.
So as you say, familiarity but also some enhancements through the feedback from professionals within the sector, as well as rethinking some of the latest research.
Catharine Hydon: And I guess the shoutout and the callout to everybody who is online today in collaboration with early childhood educators and teachers who we've been talking to in other information sessions is to work together to identify what is familiar, to do that aligning work that is an ongoing task, not something we just do once, but keeping that aligning going, and also thinking about where the opportunities lie. So there's many opportunities in here to be able to enhance components of existing practice. If you're a preschool field officer, what parts of this might be very relevant to your engagement with early childhood educators in context, and if you're a play group facilitator, what can you draw out of this to engage families, which is a good segue to talk about what some of these things might look like in practice. Here, I'm particularly drawn to aspects of the framework ‑ and you and I have got a copy in our hand ‑ and we, again, encourage you all to download yours ‑ and immediately I'm drawn to a practice principle which I feel very strongly about, the engagement and partnerships with families.
And I know some of the people who are joining us online today might have quite varied relationships with families. Again, if you are an allied health professional working alongside colleagues, you may well work in collaboration with families. You might be presenting a group conversation with families through School Readiness Funding. You might be an allied health professional who is working alongside educators in an early childhood setting. You might be an allied health professional who has an ongoing collaborative relationship with a group of early childhood educators.
In doing so, you are connecting with families. But I also recognise that there are families who are, of course, engaging at the museum, or they're sometimes really tricky times through our colleagues who work at the Royal Children's Hospital, for example. So different points when we interact with families. But irrespective of where you are connecting with families and how we are doing that, the relationship we have with families is critical to the outcomes for children. We are working and walking alongside each other. And I think if you go into this practice principle, it highlights the importance of that collaborative, respectful, connected, deeply engaged connection with families so that we are working together to ensure that children thrive.
And I think the do, see and reflect components in each of the practice principles give us a sense of the questions we might ask ourselves around how we're doing things. And I think how we're framing material, how we are approaching our collaborations. I think it also reminds us about some of the language we use. So all of us are in the business of sometimes creating documents that families get access to, either a letter we're sending or a flyer that's advertising something. But I think when you come back here and you ask questions about does this present a warm and respectful welcome to families to come and walk alongside us, how are we positioning our work so that it feels collaborative? I think this is such a grounding space to remind us of the tone that we use.
And I could meander my way through all of the principles, I have to say, in the practice principles, but I am interested in your reference to the planning cycle. And whilst it might sound like a particular planning cycle that is used only by educators in early childhood education in care contexts, the planning cycle actually is a constant continuous improvement process for us all because it asks us to, you know, think about what we know, what we see.
All of you will notice things in your interactions. Then to think about what that means, then to enact the plan. So you change the way you do play group. You change the way you do story time at the library. You change the way you might run your approaches to preschool field officer work or Maternal and Child Health Nurses, or our colleagues in early years of primary, to then implement and evaluate as we go. And welcome to the planning cycle. So it is something we can use when we reflect and observe our interactions with families, and then use it to inform our practice.
Professor Jane Page: And the observational evidence that feeds into the planning cycle is the evidence that we share with each other. We all build through our professions observational evidence of children. So the planning cycle can really support us to guide those discussions, but also to build a continuous understanding of how children learn and grow over time.
Catharine Hydon: That continuity of learning is going to be so powerful.
Professor Jane Page: Absolutely.
Catharine Hydon: Again, with our colleagues who work across the early years spaces, there is such an opportunity to talk about continuity.
Professor Jane Page: Such an opportunity. I think continuity of learning draws us into thinking really deeply about how are we creating consistent and ongoing learning opportunities for children together.
How are we recognising and building on children's progress, both within settings and across settings, and between the home learning environment and early learning and other environments. And I think that's such a powerful lens for thinking about partnerships as well. So in the VEYLDF, it really does speak to that importance of recognising and building on children's learning progress. And I think with the commitment to rolling out universal three‑year‑old kindergarten and four‑year‑old kindergarten, we're in such an important position to be able to, over an extended period of time, think deeply about these issues and support children and families over an extended period of time together.
And I guess one of the features of the VEYLDF I really love is that the practice principles create different lenses for thinking about continuity of learning. The continuity of learning in itself supports us to ask different questions of the practice principles as well. So initially when I think of continuity of learning, I think assessment for learning as the practice principle that I first think about, which is capturing what children know, understand and can do over time and what children are ready to learn. And then planning specific learning experiences that can extend individual children. And monitoring that over time. The planning cycle supports us to monitor children's progress over time. And the planning cycle is so deeply connected to that. As I was saying before, I think continuity of learning is both vertical and horizontal. So it also speaks to partnerships with families.
And what are those conversations we're having with families around children's learning at home or in other contexts? And how are we together building more nuanced and multi‑facetted understandings of children? As we've been speaking in this session, I keep thinking the VEYLDF is so committed to the whole child, and as professionals working together we can really enrich our understandings of the child's worlds and the worlds in which they interact.
But we can also share our learning and share strategies together that families can also engage in. As part of the rollout of three‑year‑old kindergarten, I had the privilege of speaking to teachers and kids and PSFOs and families around their experiences of three‑year‑old kindergarten.
I remember so clearly a conversation I had with a mother who lived in a rural community, and she sent her child to three‑year‑old kindergarten. And she said to me, "Jane, in the first month the teacher noticed that my child actually couldn't see properly. So we worked on that and got glasses for my child and he literally saw the world differently as a result." But then she noticed, "My child could have opportunities to enhance his speech." So the speech pathologist came to visit the child and did some tests. But then the speech pathologist, the teacher and the parent met regularly to talk about strategies that they could all work on to decide together what were the strategies that would support this child at that point in time, and that they could use at home and in the early learning environment to create that consistency for her child. And she said to me she was so excited about the fact that she knew that that opportunity was going to continue into four‑year‑old kindergarten and that the kindergarten had a great relationship with the school that this child was transitioning into.
So she had the confidence and reassurance that she and her child would be supported across those years. For me, that was just such a powerful story to sort of reflect on the value of continuity of those continuous and consistent experiences, but how that happens through our relationships with each other.
I think also continuity of learning supports us to think deeply of having high expectations of children that is about promoting children's learning by acting on their potential, noticing what they are interested in, tailoring learning experiences that are challenging and achievable, and also equity, diversity and inclusion. Is every child accessing and participating, learning and thriving through our educational programs and practices? So I think those multiple lenses are so exciting and essential for creating those optimal conditions and optimal opportunities for children and families.
Catharine Hydon: Pippa, picking up on that collaborative relationship with professionals, the exciting news is that there is a practice principle dedicated to the partnerships with professionals.
Pippa, I know this is very important to you, and you've been a part of many discussions around how we can make sure that professionals work well together. Can you talk a little bit about why that's so important in the Victorian context?
Pippa: I think those threads have already come out in so much of the conversation between us today, but it really is about that collaboration, continuity of learning, strengthened transitions across all of the transitions children and families make with that sustained focus on the holistic development of children and their long‑term outcomes, which I know is such a fundamental foundation of why so many of us came into this profession in the first place, being the early years profession.
One of the strengths of the VEYLDF which remains in its updated form is that it was never written for one particular profession. It was written for all to bring them together, with that really strong understanding that when services and professionals wrap around children and families, they make the best impact on their outcomes.
There is no single professional that can do this on their own. We are part of an incredible ecosystem, and it is about harnessing that power for children and families to improve their outcomes that I think is a really cool feature of the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework.
When I think about this, I think about whether you're a professional working alongside other early years professionals, as a coach, as a mentor, as an expert consultant, you are playing a really significant role in this. Whether you are engaging directly with children and families who are inevitably engaging with other early years professionals, how you're talking to them and thinking about the impact you can have in terms of those interactions, but where you can connect those networks into those services and professionals that also sit around them to have a rich and meaningful conversation about this child and the incredible things you as professionals can do to lift their learning and development.
So I think that that's a really exciting space for us to play. I have to flip over my notes. So thinking through about how does the VEYLDF do this, what is this practical tool, how can you use it, there are two particular ways I think are really advantageous, and throughout evaluations we've done over the past 17 years, our conversations ‑ and we've spoken to thousands of teachers, educators, Maternal and Child Health Nurses, allied health professionals, play group supporters as we were developing this upgraded version, these were the things that shone for them.
So we're really hoping this resonates with all of you. The first is really the two anchors that the updated VEYLDF continues to provide for these professionals. It is the outcomes. So these describe what we hope children and the evidence says they can learn throughout this critical period. In the updated VEYLDF we have reinstated what we call the learning and development maps in this version which link that progression of children's learning from birth all the way to the age of 8.
So this really importantly provides a common language for professionals to talk about their observations and the expertise that they're bringing to supporting that learning journey so that common language can help that conversation happen with other professionals. It's also important to say that those outcomes have been updated in this VEYLDF. So we have learnt more about what children learn.
So there are new things in there, so encourage people to have a look at that and engage with that with you, your colleagues and, indeed, other professionals you work with. We've spoken a lot about the practice principles, but the critical thing for me is it really builds a common set of ways of working for us as early years professionals that families can consistently expect. And we know that that makes a real difference for them. When we're delivering that consistency in terms of our approaches, respecting our professional guidelines, and the ways that individual professionals will work in their spaces for their purpose that they own and operate in, this is a way of tying some of those things together.
So it does create more sustainable ways of working for all of us. It really does help us think about that distributed effort across professionals to support families. It strengthens your team work, and we all know we do better when we work with others. We are much better when we can bounce ideas off, when we can have that critical reflection and conversation with other professionals that sparks new ideas or brings new content to our awareness and, indeed, enhances our practice. Ultimately, this is really about children and families.
When we work together, they are able to be better supported, they access services more easily, they are able to navigate this amazing ecosystem without a sense of trepidation or confusion or concern. It really strengthens their confidence of engaging with all of us to support their children's learning.
Catharine Hydon: And I think for me, Pippa, one of the things that's really fantastic ‑ and you hear it in the collaborative conversations that happen across the sector in all sorts of different places ‑ is that it actually celebrates and recognises the great work. So if there is some fantastic local work happening in, you know, the east or the west or in the City of Melbourne, it is so great to be able to go into this document and go, "And that's the reason why it's successful." Because it is not luck, it's actually really determined, quality practice, and that real intentionality of making sure that we are designing opportunities for families in very clear ways.
And likewise, when you think about something is not quite hitting the mark, or that may, you know, give you some pause for reflection, it is a great way to go in here and say, "What could we enhance? Perhaps we didn't get that quite right. We didn't have as high an expectation of children as we ought to, or we didn't have that partnership with families, or didn't quite hit the mark with our commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion." A great way to do that reflective work.
As we are coming to the end of our conversation ‑ we could probably talk for three days about this, it's very exciting ‑ we want to just talk a little bit about some practicalities. In a minute, Pippa, I will get you to talk a little bit about some of the expectations broadly across the sector. Jane, before we do that, some practical suggestions and ideas that we might share with this audience around engagement with the framework, and also maybe some intersections with other initiatives.
Professor Jane Page: Absolutely. So I think, as you and Pippa have highlighted today, the practice principles themselves have key learnings within them. I think what we've been almost modelling today is that they support us to ask questions. So they support us to say, well, how do we, and when do we, and to share our own practices with each other and build understandings. And you noted the in practice do, see, reflect, which I think are really, really helpful guides for beginning those conversations.
And over time we could come back to them over time and rethink as we're embedding new initiatives, you know, what do we think now? So there's the do. What are some of the ways in which we can embed this practice principle See? What are we observing? What are we seeing? Are we having the impact we intended to have? Which is also supported by the reflect questions.
Over time you can revisit these questions, but you can also add new questions to these and with each other, alongside each other. I think also the Victorian Government has invested in so many teaching resources, which is so wonderful. And many of those teaching resources will help rich conversations with each other as professionals, within services and across services.
The Victorian Kindergarten Learning Progressions is a document that really supports those conversations around, well, what does this child know and can do, and what is this child ready to learn? And you can really sit down together with them. And different expertise can be shared around. "This is what this means. This is how I would support it." And you can build rich understandings together through your disciplinary knowledges and expertise. And the Learning Progressions are embedded in the Early Years Assessment Learning Tool. And for kindergarten teachers and services who are using the tool, this was a tool that was developed alongside teachers and leaders and specialists in the sector across three years.
And as a tool, it really values and recognises the observational evidence that we gather in the everyday, and then supports us to answer a set of questions around children's learning and development. And it captures developmental progress from 2 to 6 years of age. So teachers and teaching teams can go to 8 modules which map on to the VEYLDF and answer a set of questions, and then it will generate some learning reports that highlight what children know and can do and what they are ready to learn. And then it maps to content within the VEYLDF as well.
And that provides such a rich point of conversation between each other. And then teachers can also distil that evidence in their mind and it can inform transition learning and development statements, as well as conversations with families.
What teachers and educators can also print out as a result of these reports are a suite of evidence‑informed teaching strategies. So again, rich conversations with each other. "I'm using this strategy, I wonder whether this one would work?", and testing ideas and adding other strategies so it becomes this sort of working document. So I'm biased because I've been involved in this project, but I think it's really an impactful tool to use that recognises the expertise of teachers and educators and, you know, supports these rich conversations with each other.
Catharine Hydon: Really, you're inviting all of the people who are online today, and others who will watch this recording, to reach out and collaborate using that very important practice principle of this partnership with other professionals to say what are you working on? How can what you're doing align with what I'm doing?
And vice versa, if you are an early childhood educator or early childhood teacher and you are working on some things specifically around assessment tools or engagement with the progressions, or other initiatives around Best Start, Best Life and funded programs, et cetera, reaching out to colleagues and saying, "I wonder whether we can have a conversation."
Of course, the space around transitions to school is such a huge opportunity for that. Again, there is so much opportunity for us to think about what that looks like as we move from very early childhood, as children move from their home environment into early childhood education and then into the early years of school, there's so much food for thought there. Pippa, as we get to the end of our conversation here, the expectations on our colleagues who are joining us here today?
Pippa: Great question. And it's an easy one for the early childhood sector. Certainly for our funded kindergartens they are required to use this. But appreciating we're talking to a much broader audience today. My starting comment would be have a read, have a conversation.
This is a tool to go into your toolbox that works alongside your practice guidelines, your service guidelines, your professional standards. It is about bringing those things together, whether it be your Maternal and Child Health key agent stage visit guidance, your Victorian Teaching and Learning Model which is guiding all of the work of our incredible teachers in our early years of schools, your professional standards as a speech pathologist.
Look at these documents in tandem and think about how you can use them to frame the way that you work into the future. I'm really excited to say that as we roll out this VEYLDF ‑ and we've intentionally designed the rollout so that professionals have time to engage with this. So we're thinking about a process over the next 18 months until the start of 2028, which sounds so far away, but about how we can support you.
So we'll be looking at updating the existing resources that we have. So we have practice guides, we have research that will tailor to different audiences. We'll be working with our colleagues in the Department of Health around that incredible green book that Maternal and Child Health Nurses use.
Indeed, we're really keen to hear from you about the things you think would help. If you're curious about something and you can't find an answer, or you think, "If only I had a bit of further information about this", we want to hear from you. So let us know what you need and we will actively engage in that feedback and address that. The other thing just to flag, for those of you who work more directly with our kindergarten sector, our preschool field officers, our SRF allied health, you might be a KIS additional assistant, we'll be updating our funding guidelines for all of those programs to reflect that alignment that you will need to make with the VEYLDF and, indeed, looking at developing additional supports and resources for all of those targeted audiences.
So the key message is go to the website, bookmark it. If you haven't signed up to the Victorian Early Childhood Update, which is our monthly email from the department that goes out and has a range of incredible information about all the great things that are happening in our space, sign up for that.
But keep checking that website and we'll have a range of resources rolling out over the next 18 months, including ones that you give us the heads‑up that you need.
Catharine Hydon: Great. Thanks, Pippa. What an amazing opportunity, I think, for all of us to think about the possibilities for our fine work with children and families and each other in the best interests of children and families across Victoria. Just a quick reminder, if you have a question, please share it. Use the email address that's on the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework web page. It's a specific web page on the Department of Education's website.
That's a space where you can share ideas and ask those specific questions that Pippa has invited you to think about. We'd really like to encourage all of you to engage with the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework, think about the principles and the way that they work within your context and your specific work. Reach out to colleagues locally, join networks and collaborative forums that might be taking place in your context. Think about it from an organisational perspective. Some of you are part of bigger organisations whereby strategic decisions about the types of things you will offer in the next 18 months, or five years, it might be, that align with the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework.
But most of all, I think begin that reflective discussion amongst your own teams about how you can align your work with the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework, celebrate the extraordinary work that's been done already and, again, thank you all for engaging in the work so far.
For those of you who are just new to this space, enjoy the opportunity to think about how your work can help all Victoria's children to thrive.
Thank you for joining us at the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework Information Session.
If you would like to know more, check out the web page and use the email address. We wish you all the best as you explore the new framework.
[On-screen text: Implementation and support
Printed copies will be distributed to services from Term 3 2026
Implementation period: 2026 to 2028
Professional learning and further resources evolving
Updated VEYLDF will be included in assessment and rating processes from January 2028
Scan the QR code for more information and send questions to: veyldf@education.vic.gov.au]
[End of transcript]
Updated