Celebrating Father’s Day in Early Childhood Education: EYLF Activities, QIP Examples and Inclusive Family Celebrations

Perfect for Father’s Day 6 September 2026

By BEST Childcare Consulting

Father’s Day is much more than making a card or a gift. Within early childhood education, it provides an opportunity to strengthen children’s sense of belonging, celebrate the important relationships in their lives and recognise the many people who provide love, guidance, security and care.

While many children will celebrate a father, others may wish to acknowledge a stepfather, grandfather, uncle, foster carer, older brother or another significant adult who plays a fathering role. By approaching Father’s Day with inclusion and sensitivity, educators create opportunities for every child to participate in ways that reflect their own family.

The Early Years Learning Framework V2.0 (EYLF) reminds educators that children’s learning is strengthened through secure, respectful relationships and genuine partnerships with families. Celebrating Father’s Day in an inclusive manner supports children’s identity, belonging and wellbeing while recognising the diversity of Australian families.

Why Father’s Day Matters in Early Childhood Education

Father’s Day is about so much more than making a card or a gift. It is a chance to celebrate the people who make children feel loved, safe and supported. While many children will celebrate their father, others may wish to honour a grandfather, stepfather, uncle, foster carer or another special person who plays an important role in their life.

In early childhood education, these celebrations provide meaningful opportunities to strengthen children’s sense of belonging, build genuine partnerships with families and encourage children to express love, gratitude and appreciation through play, creativity and conversation. By embracing the diversity of modern families, educators can ensure every child feels included and proud to celebrate the people who matter most to them.

The Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) V2.0 reminds us that secure, respectful relationships and strong partnerships with families are at the heart of children’s learning. Father’s Day offers another wonderful opportunity to bring these principles to life through meaningful, child-led experiences.

Hosting a Father’s Day Celebration at Your Service

A Father’s Day celebration at your service is a wonderful way to strengthen relationships with families and create lasting memories for children. Rather than focusing on formal performances or elaborate activities, keep the event relaxed, welcoming and child-centred. Invite fathers and other special people to spend time with their child through simple play experiences such as building with blocks, completing a nature scavenger hunt, reading stories together, creating collaborative artwork or sharing a light morning tea or barbecue breakfast. Display children’s artwork and learning documentation throughout the environment so families can see the learning behind the celebrations. Most importantly, ensure the event is inclusive by welcoming any significant adult chosen by the child, creating an atmosphere where every family feels valued, respected and connected to the service community.

Educational Programming Ideas

Babies (Birth–2 years)

Memory Keepsake Canvas

Provide babies with non-toxic paint to create handprints, fingerprints or textured artwork on small canvases or quality card. Educators can document children’s exploration and learning through photographs and learning stories, adding the baby’s own “voice” where appropriate.

Rather than producing identical artwork, allow babies to explore colours, textures and movement at their own pace. The finished artwork becomes a treasured keepsake celebrating both learning and relationships.

Learning opportunities

  • Sensory exploration
  • Secure attachments
  • Fine motor development
  • Language through educator interactions
  • Belonging and identity

Ideas:
https://raisingchildren.net.au

Toddlers (2–3 years)

“My Special Person” Nature Treasure Hunt

Invite toddlers to collect natural materials such as leaves, flowers, seed pods and sticks during outdoor play. Children decide how to arrange their discoveries into a collage or nature frame for someone special.

Throughout the experience educators encourage conversation by asking:

  • “What does your special person like doing?”
  • “How do they make you feel happy?”
  • “What do you enjoy doing together?”

This child-directed experience encourages agency while connecting learning with the natural environment.

Ideas:
https://www.natureplaywa.org.au

Three-Year-Old Kindergarten

Building Together Challenge

Provide loose parts, recycled materials, wooden blocks and natural resources, inviting children to build something they would enjoy sharing with their father or special person.

Children may build:

  • A cubby
  • A boat
  • A bridge
  • A playground
  • A robot
  • A family home

Educators document children’s planning, collaboration, problem-solving and conversations rather than focusing solely on the finished product.

Learning opportunities include:

  • STEM
  • Collaboration
  • Critical thinking
  • Oral language
  • Creativity
  • Engineering concepts

Loose Parts inspiration:
https://inspiredecm.com

Four-Year-Old Kindergarten

Interview My Hero

Children develop interview questions to ask their father or another important adult.

Examples include:

  • What did you enjoy doing when you were little?
  • What makes you laugh?
  • What is your favourite family memory?
  • What are you proud of?

Families complete the interview together at home before children share their discoveries with the group through drawings, dramatic play, writing or storytelling.

This authentic literacy experience values family knowledge while strengthening partnerships.

Conversation ideas:
https://raisingchildren.net.au

Outside School Hours Care

Community Makers Workshop

Invite children to design and create something they genuinely believe their father or special person would appreciate.

Possible projects include:

  • Bird feeders
  • Herb planter boxes
  • Handmade key holders
  • Paracord bracelets
  • Photo frames
  • Outdoor games
  • Recipe books
  • Recycled timber projects

Children choose their own materials, manage budgets where appropriate, solve problems and evaluate their creations.

This approach promotes genuine agency rather than producing identical gifts.

Inspiration:
https://www.natureplaywa.org.au

Supporting Diverse Families

Father’s Day can evoke many emotions for children and families. Some children may have experienced separation, bereavement, foster care, family violence or changing family circumstances. Others may have two mothers, two fathers or multiple significant carers. High-quality practice acknowledges these realities respectfully.

Educators can support inclusion by:

  • asking families who the child would like to celebrate
  • using language such as “Dad or someone special”
  • ensuring books and displays represent diverse family structures
  • allowing children to choose whether or not to participate
  • focusing on relationships rather than titles.

Every child deserves to feel represented, valued and included.

Linking Father’s Day to the EYLF and National Quality Standard

Meaningful Father’s Day experiences support numerous EYLF outcomes.

Children develop a stronger sense of identity (Outcome 1) as they recognise important relationships within their lives. They become connected with and contribute to their world (Outcome 2) through conversations about family and community. Emotional wellbeing is strengthened (Outcome 3) through positive relationships and expressions of gratitude. Rich opportunities for language, storytelling, art and collaborative play promote confident learners and effective communicators (Outcomes 4 and 5).

These experiences also demonstrate the EYLF Principles of Partnerships and Secure, Respectful and Reciprocal Relationships and reflect responsive, play-based pedagogy.

QIP write up 

Quality Area 1 – Educational Program and Practice

Embedded Practice

Educators intentionally planned inclusive Father’s Day experiences that reflected children’s family structures, interests and voices. Learning was documented through observations demonstrating children’s agency, creativity and family connections.

Critical Reflection

The team reflected that moving away from template crafts resulted in richer conversations, greater child ownership and more authentic learning evidence.

Meaningful Engagement

Families shared stories, photographs and traditions which were incorporated into the educational program, strengthening home-service partnerships.

Quality Area 2 – Children’s Health and Safety

Embedded Practice

Educators supported children’s emotional wellbeing by recognising that Father’s Day can have different meanings for different families. Children were offered choices regarding participation and who they wished to celebrate.

Critical Reflection

Reflection identified that inclusive language reduced anxiety and ensured every child experienced belonging regardless of family circumstances.

Meaningful Engagement

Families were consulted before celebrations to ensure experiences respected individual family situations, cultures and preferences.

Quality Area 3 – Physical Environment

Embedded Practice

Indoor and outdoor environments were arranged to encourage collaborative building, creative arts, loose parts exploration and natural play inspired by family relationships.

Critical Reflection

Educators observed that open-ended environments encouraged deeper engagement and significantly more sustained shared thinking than highly structured craft activities.

Meaningful Engagement

Families contributed recycled materials, photographs and natural resources that enriched children’s learning experiences.

Quality Area 4 – Staffing Arrangements

Embedded Practice

Educators collaborated when planning experiences, ensuring consistency in inclusive language and respectful practice across all age groups.

Critical Reflection

Professional discussions strengthened educators’ understanding of diverse family structures and reinforced reflective, relationship-based practice.

Meaningful Engagement

The educational team welcomed ideas from colleagues and families to ensure celebrations reflected the community.

Quality Area 5 – Relationships with Children

Embedded Practice

Educators engaged children in meaningful conversations about important people in their lives, listening carefully to children’s stories and recognising their individual experiences.

Critical Reflection

The team reflected that genuine conversations were significantly more valuable than focusing solely on producing gifts.

Meaningful Engagement

Children confidently shared family experiences, photographs and memories, strengthening relationships throughout the learning community.

Quality Area 6 – Collaborative Partnerships with Families and Communities

Embedded Practice

Families actively contributed photographs, interviews, family stories and shared experiences to enrich children’s learning.

Critical Reflection

Educators reflected that involving families in planning strengthened children’s sense of belonging and resulted in more authentic educational experiences.

Meaningful Engagement

Family participation extended beyond Father’s Day itself, encouraging ongoing collaboration and respectful partnerships throughout the year.

Quality Area 7 – Governance and Leadership

Embedded Practice

Leadership ensured Father’s Day celebrations aligned with the service philosophy, inclusion policies, EYLF V2.0 and the National Quality Standard.

Critical Reflection

Review of the celebrations informed future planning, highlighting the value of child-led, relationship-focused experiences over product-driven activities.

Meaningful Engagement

Continuous improvement processes incorporated feedback from children, families and educators to strengthen future family celebrations.

Links and Resources

From the BEST Team

Father’s Day reminds us that children’s strongest learning begins in relationships. When educators intentionally recognise and celebrate the important people in children’s lives, they strengthen children’s identity, build genuine partnerships with families and create lasting memories that extend far beyond a single celebration.

Whether through a shared story, a nature walk, an interview, a construction project or a simple conversation, the greatest Father’s Day gift we can offer is helping every child feel proud of the people who love and support them.

As always, use these inspirations to lead your service throughout the whole year in your everyday practices to truly earn an Exceeding rating. 

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