About our Kindergarten
Our Philosophy
At Bentleigh West Kindergarten, we believe that children learn best through play. Play-based learning is central to our practice, providing opportunities for children to explore, imagine, create, and make meaning of the world around them. Through play, children develop critical thinking skills, resilience, and a life-long love of learning.
We are committed to fostering each child’s independence by encouraging choice, agency, and active participation in their learning. We support children to take risks, solve problems, and develop confidence in their own abilities, empowering them to become capable and competent individuals.
We value the development of a strong sense of self. We respect each child as a unique individual with their own strengths, interests, and cultural identity. Our environment promotes inclusion, equity, and respect, ensuring all children feel safe, valued, and a true sense of belonging. BWK upholds child safety as a paramount obligation, ensuring a secure and supportive environment for all children.
We recognise the importance of building meaningful connections within our community. We aim to create authentic opportunities for children to engage with and contribute to their local community, fostering a sense of responsibility, respect, and an understanding of the diverse world around them. This includes a close connection with the natural world through our outdoor environment and Nature Kinder program.
We believe that strong, respectful relationships with families are essential. Families are children’s first teachers, and we work in partnership with them through open communication, collaboration, and shared decision-making. We value their knowledge, perspectives, and contributions to our learning community.
At Bentleigh West Kindergarten, we are dedicated to creating a nurturing, inclusive, and engaging environment where children, families, and educators work together to support each child’s growth, development, and wellbeing.

Our children have access to creative and stimulating activities both inside and out, including a vegetable garden from which they harvest and prepare their own food, a performance stage, challenging outdoor equipment, an engaging natural environment, superior small class sizes and a wide range of quality toys, puzzles, books, natural materials and play equipment.
The children are active participants in sustainable practices, including recycling, composting, worm farm, waste reduction and water conservation.
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