"... Friday's Child has been a wonderful experience for my son and a massive relief for me as I found it extremely difficult to find high quality child *care* (not child minding) on the Gold Coast. The staff are caring, loving and passionate about their work. They treat children as individuals and every child is given one-on-one time, their progress (socially and educationally) is monitored and recorded each day and they are genuinely interested in helping each child develop their skills, confidence and unique personality.
Some kindies offer little more than supervised free-play all day. My son, like most pre-schoolers, has an enquiring mind and needed more than this. As well as a massive range of Montessori activities he can select from in the morning, he enjoys music/dance lessons, Jolly Phonics, computer work, small group activities and games, science and culinary experiments ... and a wonderful playground for the (still important) free-play in the afternoon ..." Justine Jones

Concentration - Independence - Joy

At Fridays Child Montessori Gold Coast, we believe that a child's natural way of being reveals itself when the child demonstrates three core signs: concentration, independence, and joy.

Concentration the Montessori way

When the level of a challenge is just beyond the level of skill, a specific task/activity can help put a child in a state of "flow". Children are naturally drawn to this period of intense concentration and emerge from it with a deep sense of satisfaction. The role of teachers is to recognise concentration and protect it so that the child can get the most from each experience.

Independence

As humans, we prefer to not be dependent on others for what we have the potential to do ourselves: giving away our independence feels like giving away our sense of self. Children are particularly attuned to this and often insist on dressing themselves, feeding themselves, and asserting their individuality. At Fridays Child we focus on nurturing that independence to fortify their sense of self-empowerment.

Joy

When their hands, hearts, and minds are appropriately engaged, children experience genuine pleasure and satisfaction. This is an indication that their performance is in harmony with their potential, and is the basis for a lifetime of joyful learning.

Teachers are also mindful that any activity can be turned into a learning experience, and actively seek out ways to reinforce learning even during times of free play.