Author Archives: Jennifer Scafidas

Childcare Compliance

BEST NEW RESOURCE ALERT: Allergy Resource for Childcare: What Educators, Managers & Families Need to Know About the Updated Anaphylaxis Guidelines (May 2026)

Posted on by Jennifer Scafidas

A major new resource has been released for the children’s education and care sector: Best Practice Guidelines for Anaphylaxis Prevention and Management in Children’s Education and Care Services (Version 3.0 – May 2026). The updated national guidelines were developed by the National Allergy Council with input from health professionals, education departments, ACECQA, allergy organisations and early childhood providers across Australia. 

These guidelines are designed to help services reduce the risk of anaphylaxis while ensuring children with allergies can fully participate in childcare experiences, excursions and everyday learning.

Importantly, the 2026 update introduces new expectations around adrenaline devices, drills, excursion planning and food allergy management training.

What is New in the 2026 Updat

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Exceeding the NQS BEST tips

Neurodiversity & Inclusion in Early Childhood: Programming Ideas, QIP Reflections & Exceeding Practice

Posted on by Jennifer Scafidas

June brings an important opportunity for educators to reflect on what true inclusion looks like in early childhood settings. Learning Disability Week promotes visibility, understanding, rights and inclusion for people with learning disabilities, while Autistic Pride Day — led by autistic communities — celebrates autistic identity, strengths and neurodiversity.

These observances encourage educators to move beyond awareness and consider how environments, routines and relationships either support or create barriers for children. Neuroaffirming practice recognises that brains develop, process information, communicate and experience the world differently — and these differences should be respected rather than changed.

Australian organisation Neurominded describes neurodiversity-affirming practice as child-centred, strengths-based, rights-based and focused on increasing participation, learning and wellbeing for all children. Their work with early learning services emphasises reducing barriers and embedding inclusive practice into everyday environments. 

Inclusion is not an extra activity completed during awareness weeks. It is reflected in how educators communicate, respond to behaviour, design environments, partner with families and support every child’s sense of safety and belonging.

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Exceeding the NQS BEST tips

National Burns Awareness Month in Childcare: Programming Ideas, QIP Examples, Exceeding Themes & Safety Regulations

Posted on by Jennifer Scafidas

Every day in early childhood settings, educators quietly do something extraordinary—they protect, respond, anticipate risk and create environments where children can safely explore the world around them. Whether preventing a spill from a hot coffee, checking playground surfaces on a warm afternoon, teaching children how to seek help, or comforting a child after a minor injury, safety is woven into countless moments that often go unseen.

June offers an important reminder of this responsibility through National Burns Awareness MonthandNational First Responders Day (10 June). Together, these awareness campaigns encourage us to reflect not only on preventing injuries such as burns and scalds, but also on the people and systems that respond when emergencies occur. More importantly, they remind us that teaching children about safety, protective behaviours and trusted helpers begins long before an emergency happens.

For young children, understanding danger is still developing. A hot drink left within reach, overheated playground equipment, hot water, cooking experiences or unfamiliar emergency situations can quickly become serious risks. As educators, our role extends beyond supervision; it includes intentionally embedding safety education, critically reflecting on practice, creating environments that minimise harm and fostering strong partnerships with families and communities.

This article explores practical ways to incorporate burns prevention, emergency preparedness and community helper education into everyday programs, while strengthening Quality Improvement Plans (QIPs), meeting regulatory obligations and building evidence toward Exceeding themes across the National Quality Standard. Because protecting children is not a one-off lesson or awareness month—it is part of the culture we create every single day.

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Safe Hands, Safe Food: Teaching Children About Food Safety in Childcare

Posted on by Jennifer Scafidas

Food is woven through every part of a child’s day — morning tea shared with friends, cooking experiences, family recipes, lunchboxes packed with care and everyday routines around handwashing and mealtimes. These moments may seem small, yet they provide powerful opportunities to teach children how to care for themselves and others.

World Food Safety Day reminds us that food safety starts long before adulthood. Young children can begin learning why we wash our hands before eating, how germs spread, why some foods need to stay cold and how safe practices help protect everyone in our community. These are lifelong skills that support independence, wellbeing and respectful relationships.

In early childhood settings, food safety education should never feel frightening or restrictive. Instead, it can be explored through play, investigation, cooking, conversation and routine experiences that empower children to become capable, informed and confident participants in their own health and wellbeing.

Teaching children about food safety is ultimately teaching care — care for our bodies, care for others and care for the environments where we eat, learn and grow.

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World Environment Day Childcare Activities: Sustainability Programming, QIP Examples & Exceeding Themes

Posted on by Jennifer Scafidas

Children are naturally curious about the world. They stop to watch butterflies land on flowers, collect leaves from the ground, ask questions about insects and notice changes in the weather. These small moments of wonder are often where lifelong respect for nature begins. As educators, we have a unique opportunity to nurture this curiosity and help children understand that caring for the environment is not an occasional event, but a shared responsibility embedded in everyday actions.

World Environment Day (5 June) and Butterfly Education and Awareness Day (6 June) provide meaningful opportunities to slow down, explore nature together and encourage children to see themselves as capable contributors to protecting the environment. Through gardening, sustainability projects, caring for living things, nature play and learning about biodiversity, children begin to understand that people, animals, plants and Country are deeply interconnected.

When children are supported to develop empathy for living things and appreciation for the natural world, we are not only teaching sustainability — we are helping to grow future citizens who value respect, responsibility and stewardship for generations to come.

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Western Australia Day in Early Childhood: Programming Ideas, Aboriginal Perspectives & QIP Connections

Posted on by Jennifer Scafidas

Western Australia Day is more than a public holiday. It is an opportunity for children to explore belonging, identity, local history, community diversity, and connection to Country. For early childhood services, the day offers meaningful ways to reflect on the many people, cultures and stories that shape Western Australia — including recognising the enduring histories, cultures and contributions of Aboriginal peoples as the First Peoples of this land.

Experiences around WA Day should move beyond flags and celebrations toward genuine conversations about community, inclusion, respect, local environments and the people who help children feel connected. These experiences align strongly with the EYLF V2.0, National Quality Standard (NQS), and support services striving toward Exceeding themes through embedded, reflective practice. Updated approved learning frameworks strengthen connections to sustainability, inclusion, critical reflection and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives.

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Childcare Compliance

Childcare Safety Compliance Practices: What Every Leader Must Know About Immunisation in Childcare

Posted on by Jennifer Scafidas

In early childhood, health and safety are not abstract ideas—they are lived, visible, and deeply felt in every interaction, routine and decision we make. For service leaders, this responsibility carries significant weight. You are not only guiding practice, but safeguarding the wellbeing of children, supporting families, and ensuring your service meets both legal and ethical obligations.

Immunisation sits at the heart of this responsibility. It is one of the most effective ways to protect children—particularly those who are too young or vulnerable to be fully immunised—from serious and preventable illness. In group care environments, where children learn and play closely together, even a single case of a vaccine-preventable disease can have far-reaching impacts.

This is where strong, informed leadership is essential.

Leaders must confidently understand immunisation requirements, maintain accurate records, respond appropriately to illness or outbreaks, and support educators and families with clear, respectful communication. These moments are not just about compliance—they are about trust. Trust that your service is a safe place. Trust that decisions are guided by children’s best interests. Trust that you will act quickly and responsibly when it matters most.

This article provides practical, up-to-date guidance for leaders in Western Australia, outlining what you need to know about immunisation requirements, managing vaccine-preventable diseases, and supporting unimmunised individuals within your service. When embedded thoughtfully, these practices do more than meet standards—they demonstrate leadership that is proactive, informed and truly committed to protecting every child.

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Embedding Children’s Rights in Everyday Practice: A Rights-Based Approach to Exceeding Quality

Posted on by Jennifer Scafidas

Every child deserves to feel seen, heard, safe, and valued—not just occasionally, but in every moment of their day. When we intentionally teach children about their rights, we are not introducing something new—we are giving language to what they already feel and deserve.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) reminds us that children are not passive participants in their world; they are capable, competent individuals with voices that matter.

Through your intentional teaching, learning stories, and adult action guides, it is evident that children are not only learning about their rights—they are living them. Whether expressing identity, contributing to decisions, using rights-based language, or setting personal boundaries, these experiences create the foundation for lifelong wellbeing, respect, and agency. 

Four main rights books that have been selected to be best resources for teaching children. I Am Me, The Big Book of Rights, The ABCs of Children’s Rights, and The Right to Be Me. If you are looking to get started or strengthen your practice, you are warmly invited to reach out—emailjennifer@braig.com.au and you will receive a starter learning story and an Adult Actions Guide for each book, supporting you to confidently implement children’s rights in your program from day one.

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ALL IN for Reconciliation: Growing Respect, Belonging and Understanding in Early Childhood

Posted on by Jennifer Scafidas

National Reconciliation Week invites us to pause—not just to acknowledge history, but to feel it, honour it, and walk forward together with purpose. It is a time to recognise the strength, resilience, and enduring cultures of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, while also holding space for the truths of our shared history. The significance of the 1967 Referendum and the Mabo Decision reminds us that change is possible when people come together—but also that the journey is ongoing.

In early childhood education, this responsibility sits gently, yet powerfully, in our hands. Every conversation, every story shared, every moment of respect we model becomes part of how children understand the world and their place within it. Reconciliation is not about having all the answers—it is about showing up with openness, humility, and a willingness to learn alongside children.

When we say we are “ALL IN for Reconciliation,” we are committing to more than a week of activities. We are committing to creating spaces where every child feels a deep sense of belonging, where cultures are honoured authentically, and where respect is lived—not just spoken. It is in the small, everyday moments—listening deeply, valuing each voice, caring for the land—that reconciliation truly begins.

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Creating Safe, Inclusive Spaces: Honouring Every Child During Food Allergy Week

Posted on by Jennifer Scafidas

For most of us, food is love. It is shared in laughter, celebration, and everyday moments of care. But for some children and families, food carries a very different feeling—one of vigilance, anxiety, and constant awareness. A simple bite can hold serious risk. A shared snack can mean exclusion. And a moment that should feel joyful can quickly become overwhelming.

During Food Allergy Week (24th–30th May), led by Allergy & Anaphylaxis Australia, we are invited to truly step into the perspective of these children and families. To slow down. To listen. And to ask ourselves—are we doing everything we can to ensure every child feels safe, included, and a genuine sense of belonging?

In early childhood settings, this matters deeply. Food is woven through our day—morning tea, shared celebrations, cooking experiences, cultural connections. These are the moments where children build relationships and identity. Guided by the evidence-based practices of Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA), we have the opportunity—and responsibility—to ensure these experiences are not only safe, but inclusive, empowering, and grounded in empathy.

Because at its heart, this work is not just about managing allergies.
It is about protecting children.
It is about building trust with families.
And it is about ensuring that no child ever feels like they don’t belong at the table.

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