October 14, 2024 • 46 mins
Curious about the world of Family Day Care and how it might be the perfect fit for your child? Join us as we sit down with Victoria Edmond of Big Hearted Education and Rainbow Bridge Family Daycare Service. Victoria takes us through her inspiring journey from long daycare disillusionment to creating her own nurturing Family Day Care service and debunks the myth that family daycare can't be profitable.
We cover:
- What is the difference between Family Day Care and Long Day Care and why might you choose one over the other as a parent?
- How do children access nature in a Family Day Care Service?
- What about child protection concerns in Family Day Care?
- How can I transition out of Long Day Care into Family Day Care?
- And we bust the myth that you can’t make a profit as a family day care service. So let’s welcome Victoria to the show!
We know as a parents, making the choice between Long Day Care, Family Day Care and Kindy can be a hard choice. Hopefully today’s episode with Victoria will answer a few of your burning questions and give you some tips on what to look out for in any service. And if you’re an educator listening today, we hope it answers some questions you have around why you might choose to become a Family Day Care provider and what to look for when joining a service.
As always, we love your thoughts, feedback and questions, so feel free to DM us with any questions you may have over on our Raising Wildlings Instagram.
Stay wild!
Ever wondered how to bring the magic of 'Nature Play' into your child's education? Or how to say goodbye to your worries about snakes and ticks? With Nature Play Now, crafting an epic outdoor program is easier than you think. You’ll boost your confidence, skill sets, and have parents eager to enrol. Join the adventure for just $57, exclusively for Raising Wildlings listeners. Visit our Raising Wildlings website for more details today!"
www.r Hey it’s Nicki here interrupting this episode to quickly say, if you’re like us and feeling torn between your career as an educator vs. your beliefs for child development, We’ve created a 5 step e-guide to unlock your purpose without compromising your values. This Treasure Map is completely free, takes ten minutes, and is available from our Raising Wildlings website. So dive in and s If you enjoyed this episode of Raising Wildlings. We invite you to check out Your Wild Business, our signature business course for education change-makers who are ready to create or refine their own nature play businesses. Your Wild Business is the only program that focuses on the business side of nature play, with sustainable practices, processes, and systems that will cut down your administration work, giving you more time to focus on building a business that is centered around your e Other ways we can help you:
1. Ready to create your own Nature Play business? Head to www.raisingwildlings.com.au/wildbusiness to access the roadmap to starting your business journey.
2. Keen to find your purpose in 10 minutes? Download our FREE treasure map to find your passion without compromising your educational values.
3. Want to know how to craft an epic outdoor program that has parents and directors lining up to enrol? You need Nature Play Now our $57 Workshop and Bundle series (people are saying this is a steal!)
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
On today's episode we're chatting with Victoria
Edmond of Big Hearted Educationand Rainbow Bridge Family
Daycare Service.
With 11 years supporting familydaycare educators and four
years as one herself, victoriahelps educators feel more
connected to their business byusing smart strategies that
prioritise their wellbeing,resulting in high quality,
authentic care.
(00:20):
So today we're talking allthings family daycare.
What's the difference betweenfamily daycare and long daycare
and why might you choose oneover the other?
As a parent, how do childrenaccess nature in a family
daycare service?
What about child protectionconcerns in family daycare?
How could I transition out oflong daycare into family daycare
(00:41):
as an educator?
And we bust the myth that youcan't make a profit as a family
daycare service.
So if you're curious aboutwhether family daycare is the
right choice for you and yourfamily, whether that's as an
educator or as a parent, thentoday's episode is for you.
I'm your host, nikki Farrell.
Welcome to the RaisingWildlings podcast.
We like to acknowledge thetraditional custodians of the
(01:06):
land on which we record todaythe Kabi, kabi and Gubbi Gubbi
people.
We recognise their continuedconnection to the land and
waters of this beautiful place.
We recognise Aboriginal peopleas the original custodians of
this land and acknowledge thatthey have never ceded
sovereignty.
We respect all Gubbi Gubbielders, ancestors and emerging
elders and all First Nationspeople listening today.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
Welcome to Raising Wildlings, a podcast about
parenting, alternative educationand stepping into the
wilderness, however that looks,with your family.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
Each week, we'll be interviewing experts that truly
inspire us to answer yourparenting and education
questions.
We'll also be sharing storiesfrom some incredible families
that took the leap and aretaking the road less travelled.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
We're your hosts.
Vicki and Nikki from WildlingsForest School, Pop in your
headphones, settle in and joinus on this next adventure.
Speaker 1 (01:59):
Good morning, Victoria.
Thank you so much for joiningus on the podcast.
It's been a while.
For those of you that listen toRaising Wildlings, we have
taken a I was going to say shortbreak, but it's been a bit
longer break because we've had abunch of great projects going
on.
We're so excited to haveVictoria Edmond with us today,
(02:19):
kind of breaking our dry spell.
So thank you, Victoria, forinspiring me to get back on the
podcast today.
Speaker 3 (02:31):
You are most welcome and I will say that it is your
podcast that inspired me tostart my podcast, so I'm totally
having a bit of a full circlemoment here.
So it's an absolute honour anda pleasure to sit with you today
, nikki.
Speaker 1 (02:40):
I forget.
I think that's reallyheartening to hear and, I think,
re-inspiring because I thinkyou know we've been doing this
for four years and Vicky and I,at the start of the year, we've
got some big projects coming up.
We don't want to lose thepodcast because it's been really
a really big turning point inour business and has really, I
(03:02):
guess, grown our reach, and wealways forget our reach and the
impact that it has, Because,again, I think you're the same
Like we just record from home intheir little old house.
It's often in my pajamas.
I got out of my pajamas todayjust for you, Victoria.
Not really, but let's go withthat.
So thank you for that reminderand I'm so glad that you've got
(03:24):
your podcast too.
Do you want to?
That's a great segue start bytelling us what you do and how
you ended up here and how andwhy you started your podcast too
.
Sure.
Speaker 3 (03:39):
I would love to.
There's nothing more I lovethan talking about this story,
because I think so many peoplewill see themselves in it in
some form or another.
So many moons ago I startedearly childhood education.
I studied and I got a job and Iwent into long daycare and it
(04:00):
was the first day that I got inthere that I was shocked,
horrified and mortified at theway I saw children being treated
and I knew that this career wasnot to be long lived for me.
I come from a Steinerbackground, so truth, beauty and
goodness is a cornerstone ofwhat I believe and has been
(04:20):
instilled within me, is the bestthing for young children has
been instilled within me, is thebest thing for young children.
So seeing people not be so kindor even aware of what they were
saying really grated on me andI left and started a family
daycare service.
So I started Rainbow BridgeFamily Daycare with a couple of
(04:41):
business partners and we've hada few iterations of people with
me being the constant in there,and we're now very, very settled
, 11 years later.
And through the pandemic, Istarted a support page for
educators because none of usknew what was going on.
And from there, one day Ihappened to mention that I
(05:02):
started a planner for my serviceand I don't know about two 300
people messaged me and likewhat's that planner?
And I went, oh okay, theremight be something here, yeah.
And so then a second businesswas born called Big Hearted
Education, and that's where Ifound you, because I was
(05:23):
listening, because I, like, Ireally wanted to start a podcast
, didn't really know how to doit.
And then I came across yourpodcast and I was just
enthralled and I went backthrough the whole back catalogue
and I listened to all of themup until that point and was just
like that's it, this is so good, there's so much information
shared.
And then I got to business andstarted my own podcast and we
(05:47):
also do online courses and wesell resources for family
daycare educators and I'm nowstarting to move into speaking
and presenting.
So it's been a wonderfuljourney that I get to visit
educators across both Queenslandand New South Wales, because we
have services with RancorBridge across both states and
(06:07):
whenever I can, I will visitwith other educators outside of
my service because I just loveto see what people do.
I'm just so inspired byeducators, especially in the
family daycare setting, becausethey're, you know, doing their
own thing and they're doing whatis alive within them and
sharing that with the children,and I just think it's so
(06:28):
important.
So that's how I got here.
Speaker 1 (06:32):
Oh, I just there's so much about your story that I
love and resonate with, becauseyou know, the same thing.
I was like, oh, teaching, yay,ticks.
All the boxes got into theclassroom.
I was like, oh, okay, yfdc, yay, ticks.
All the boxes got into theclassroom.
Was like, oh, oh, okay, um, whyFDC?
So what made you go?
Because, you know, I understandthat feeling of oh and also
(06:53):
that grief I think of.
For me it was like, oh, Ireally had so many hopes pinned
on this.
I really thought I could be theteacher I wanted to be in in
this space and when I realized Icouldn't, it was a real you
know.
All right, buckle up, I'm justgoing to make do with what I can
until I realised that my bodywasn't allowing me to make do.
(07:13):
So how did you find FDC?
And what is it about familydaycare that feels so much
different to long daycare thatyou've been able to make a you
know career that you love out ofit?
Speaker 3 (07:27):
I have first heard of family daycare when my children
were little and so, before Ieven studied, and someone said
you should do family daycare.
So I contacted the local familydaycare service and was
immediately put off because allthey did was send me the list of
compliance and I was just likeI'm not interested, that's way
(07:48):
too difficult, I'm not going todo that.
And it was years later that Iwent and studied and then I went
into long daycare and then,through the study that the
educator that was teaching metalked about family daycare and
I was like, oh, that's, that'sreally sweet, but meh.
So when I was working in thelong daycare, a friend of mine
(08:09):
actually approached me and saidI want to start a family daycare
service and you've got thequalifications, so I need you.
And I looked at it, and Ireally looked at it, and then I
realized that the gap that I wasseeing was the professional
development that was availableto educators was severely
(08:30):
lacking when it came to lookingholistically at children, and
the first person you must lookat when you're working with
children is yourself, and thatwas completely, utterly missing
from everything that I saw.
So this idea was sort of seededand born, and so when my friend
approached me and said you know, I want to start family daycare
(08:51):
, we looked into it and we didit and what?
The thing that always has set usapart has been the professional
development that we provide andhonouring that each educator
has something special that'salive within them that they
share with the children.
So what I really love aboutfamily daycare is that there is
(09:15):
a framework that we all mustoperate under across long
daycare and family daycare.
But as the family daycareeducator having only daycare
educator, having only fourchildren like preschool age
children in your care and underyou really get to work
intimately with those childrenand create those fundamental
(09:38):
connection pieces very like,very quickly and first, and
they're authentic.
You don't have 15, 16 otherchildren running around, you
don't have another educator whowants to talk to you and blah,
blah, blah, so your focus andattention can be squarely on the
children and you deliver theprogram that you know is right
(10:02):
for those children, based onwhat you see and the lens of
life that you look through.
So for me, family daycare Ipersonally would have put my
children into long daycare everagain, and unless it was a very
top-notch place, but it wouldlike the boxes that I would have
(10:24):
to take to get in there, andI'm not talking my own children,
now 23 and 21, so it would bemy grandchildren, and I'll be
horrified if my kids don't usefamily day children.
But, like you know, I'm notlooking forward to those
conversations.
You know anyway, those grandmasout there know what I'm talking
(10:45):
about, absolutely.
So for me, being able toprovide what I know from my soul
is so important, and I believethat children don't come to you
just by chance.
I truly believe there's a soulagreement between each educator
and each child that you willguide each other, because we
(11:09):
both have things to learn fromeach other, and that you will
guide each other for howeverlong you're destined to be
together.
And I think that in that familydaycare setting that really is
allowed to blossom and flourish,because there's less disruption
, there's less noise, there'sless everything, so things can
(11:31):
be simple and beautiful and calm, and I really feel like in
today's world, children needthat.
Speaker 1 (11:40):
So, yeah, I love that .
That's a great segue to aquestion.
I often get asked all the timefor recommendations for long
daycare, kindies, FDC and alsothe difference.
So people actually ask me wouldyou send your children to FDC
or long daycare?
If you had the choice, whatwould you choose?
And I always say FDC.
(12:02):
However, the most commonobjection I guess I get from
parents is oh, but you justdon't know who's coming into the
house.
Can you answer this question?
Because I know you will betterthan me than I say back.
You'll be much moreprofessional about the way you
answer this than I will.
Speaker 3 (12:20):
Oh, don't put that out there.
No, look, I didn't send my ownchildren to family daycare
because and this is 20-odd yearsago the very first thing I
thought was who's there watchingthem Like they could do
anything, and blah, blah, blah,blah, blah.
Long daycare is for sure muchsafer, however, having been on
(12:42):
the inside of the boat.
Now we still have to meet all ofthe same criteria in terms of
working with children's checks,police checks, all of that sort
of stuff.
Every single person over theage of 18 that resides in the
home has to have a working withchildren or blue card check, and
they are known to the serviceand like there's a lot of
(13:05):
stopgap measures that are inplace there.
I think now we have to get realwith the very difficult
conversation around childprotective behaviours Things you
need to be teaching yourchildren, the conversations you
need to be having with yourchildren because in 2022, that
(13:28):
man was discovered having workedfor over 10 years in long
daycare settings across multiplestates and countries and was
arrested with thousands ofimages of children that he had
collected and done things withand then put on the dark web.
These predators are everywhere.
(13:49):
They are everywhere.
It is absolutely horrifyingwhen you start looking into this
.
There are things you can do,and I'm going to.
I didn't ask if I could do this, but I'm going to.
Christy McVie is a childspecialist interviewer from the
Western Australian Police Force.
(14:10):
She has just released a seriesof cards that are for
preschool-aged children.
There's a whole series of themfor the different ages where you
can talk and have conversationsthat come specifically from the
10 years of experience she hasin this particular area about
teaching protective behavioursto children.
(14:31):
So I would suggest, doesn'tmatter where you send your
children, no, you could besending it to your family
Exactly, and there can be issuesin that in that.
So we have to stop lookingoutside of ourselves for this
conversation and the answers tothis conversation, to this
(14:51):
question, and really get that.
It's up to us.
We as adults, as parents of ourchildren or caregivers of our
children, need to be havingthese conversations so that we
can arm the children with theright words to be able to say
when things happen, because theyknow the difference.
And you need to start that fromvery, very, very young age.
(15:12):
So it's not so much about goinginto different settings,
because it's everywhere and likeit's honest when you start
looking at it.
And if you really want to divedown that rabbit hole, I
recommend the children in thepictures podcast.
It's not easy listening.
However, you will get a verysolid understanding of how they
(15:34):
are operating, because most ofus didn't operate with the
internet.
No, we don't understand the waythe predators have access to
our children.
Speaker 1 (15:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:48):
It's terrifying as young as, like, children get on
tablets.
I mean, I'm really going tostart a whole series around
talking about this and openingthis conversation because AI and
the internet like keep yourchildren off it until they're
about 16.
Yeah, there's people.
(16:09):
How is that gonna do?
You know what?
You're never gonna let yourchild drive a car without giving
them lessons first, and it isexactly the same with the
internet.
You should not be giving yourchildren free reign access to
the internet because you areputting them in danger.
It's not when they go to theirlocal family daycare educator,
(16:32):
it's when you're giving themthese devices.
So sorry, I get ranty about this.
I'm so.
People don't understand.
We don't like.
It's when you start looking atit and going down these pathways
that you start realising you gooh my, I was not exposed to
this when I was a kid.
No, you know, I had to ask myparents to get off the phone so
(16:52):
I could use the internet.
Like that's how much of acancer I am.
But I think that's it.
So I have an idea.
Speaker 1 (16:58):
It's the good reminder again, though, that
actually check your house andyour family first and again.
Predators are so insidious andexperts at grooming that you
more than likely won't knowanyway.
So you need to, exactly likeyou said, teach your children
those behaviors to look out forand and to the confidence in
(17:21):
themselves to.
They need to know the names oftheir real body parts.
They need to.
You know that's.
The first thing they look foris confidence in a child and
confidence that a child knowstheir body parts.
Speaker 3 (17:32):
So, yeah, please don't shy away from those
conversations no, and and let'snot abdicate the power and the
responsibility that you, as aparent, have.
Don't put that on youreducators, no well this is the
problem we're seeing, though.
Speaker 1 (17:50):
Right as a I'm a ex high school pe teacher and we
would get letters every timethis is year nine, we would be
doing sex ed, and quite often itwas actually relationships ed.
To start with, it was eitherpure biology or relationships,
so we're not actually talkingabout sex, but we would get
letters most terms that westarted this saying they're too
(18:12):
young, you're teaching, you'regrooming these children, and I
just think your children aregoing to be the ones that get
preyed upon because they don'tknow, they have no information.
The information they're relyingon is coming from groomers,
predators or friends that haveno idea, so don't bury your head
in the sand.
There were pregnant teenagersin year seven at the schools
(18:34):
I've been working at, becausethey didn't know they could get
pregnant.
They didn't even know that whatthey were doing was sex or they
were being harmed, doing sexualacts that they didn't realise
could harm them.
So they're going to do it ifyou don't tell them, and they're
going to do it in ways that areharmful to themselves and
others if they don't know aswell.
Speaker 3 (18:53):
Absolutely, absolutely, others if they don't
know as well, absolutely,absolutely.
I mean.
And it comes down to parentstaking their power back and
trusting their own abilities.
And that's what I'm noticing inearly childhood education is
parents don't know how to parentnow and and they are looking
for advice, and there's so muchadvice out there that it's and I
(19:15):
understand it it's sooverwhelming.
It's so overwhelming and this iswhere I feel like the pendulum
has come so far this way.
I'm really trying to pull itback this way to say hang on, we
need to get back to basics.
We need to, and this is where Ifeel like family daycare and
businesses like like what you do, too, and businesses like what
you do too, like nature-basedbusinesses.
(19:36):
Nature doesn't lie Like naturedoesn't lie.
It does what it does and itdoes it cyclically, and we have
to fit in with it.
And it's the same with, youknow, businesses that you
support and businesses that Isupport and humans that we
support.
I'm not going to be foreverybody.
You're not going to be foreverybody.
You're not going to be foreverybody, but what we need to
(19:58):
do is share this information sothat people who are interested
and have a real passion forensuring the sacredness of early
childhood is kept where itshould be can have options
either way.
So this is why I was so excitedto come and talk with you,
because I know that there'sgoing to be people who want to
(20:22):
do what you do but don't feelthe confidence, and so perhaps
family daycare could be aperfect stepping stone for them,
and vice versa.
There may be people alreadydoing what they're doing,
feeling a bit lost, and sofamily daycare can help.
Or there's family daycareeducators that are like you know
what I'm feeling a little bitrestricted because you do have
to operate with policies andservices in mind.
(20:45):
Perhaps there's people who arefeeling more confident, that
want to leave family daycare andcome and do a more nature-based
program where they can have abit more room to stretch their
wings more nature-based programwhere they can have a bit more
room to stretch their wings.
So I think we have a beautifulcollaboration here where we can
really help educators andfamilies to be able to find more
of what they're looking for.
Speaker 1 (21:06):
Yeah, and that's a hundred percent, is that if
you're feeling a bit lost,whether that's as a teacher and
early years educator, know thatthere are other options.
If you get nothing out of thisepisode between the two of us,
it's that there are otheroptions and you don't have to
stay where you are and it'sworth calling people up and
asking the questions and takethem out for a coffee and really
(21:26):
get you know what do you loveabout your job, what do you hate
about it, what do you loveabout owning a business or
working with a service?
Really ask those questionsbecause we've all you know,
there's people that have beenthere and in your exact same
shoes, that have found solutionsfor them and, like you said, my
solution might not be it andyour solution might not be it,
but it might get you to whereyou need to be down the track
(21:49):
yeah, exactly.
I had another question, uh, whenyou mentioned nature before how
, as a family daycare, and, andagain, I would just want to bust
these myths, right, because Iget asked them all the time.
Yeah, but you know, the reasonwe come to wildlings instead of
putting our child in a familydaycare is because you know they
can't access nature.
Don't worry, I bust that forpeople.
(22:12):
But can you bust that forpeople please?
Speaker 3 (22:14):
A hundred percent it depends on.
This is incorrect.
Yeah, like my educators.
Uh, get out in nature.
Uh, we've got educators thatrun bush programs, like bush
kinders they have.
Maybe they're lucky enough tohave acreage which they go
foraging on.
A lot of educators run paddockto plate programs as well.
(22:35):
They do nature walks.
They get out into the localreserves.
It really depends on theservice your educator is aligned
with or registered with.
We do a lot.
I don't let my team go to thebeach as yet because I just I
know I'm like financiallyresponsible at the end of the
(22:56):
day should anything happen.
So that would be something thatI would really need to work
one-on-one with an educator.
There would be some people whoI would straight away go yep,
you've got it.
You've got that supervisionpiece right there, and then
there were other people.
You know you're a little bitscattered.
Um, I myself wouldn't takechildren to the beach because I
(23:17):
know that I'm easily distractedbecause, oh, look at all these
little soldier crabs and there'stwo kids.
Um, I would never let thathappen.
Speaker 1 (23:27):
No, but it's.
I know your point, it's aratios thing yeah, totally,
totally.
Speaker 3 (23:33):
so it depends on who your educator is registered with
, but it also depends on youreducator too, because it can be
daunting to take other people'schildren, especially Australia,
like everything's here to killyou, like snakes and spiders and
prop bears and all that sort ofstuff.
(23:56):
It's all here.
So, yeah, it does depend onyour educator and it does depend
on the service that they areregistered with.
But you just search around,search around for those services
that you know are aligned withnature play.
Speaker 1 (24:13):
Yeah, and I would also add there that wildlings is
a very.
We are just so incredibly luckywhere we are that we have big,
large tree spaces, but nature iseverywhere.
And children, you know they'relittle people.
They are small children who canfind and connect with nature
anywhere.
(24:34):
So even if you have anapartment block, they will find
the little blades of grass orthe little ants or watch the
butterflies.
They will connect with nature.
So it depends what you meanwhen you say you know they don't
get connection with nature.
What I think some people aresaying is they don't have a lot
of space to run, and that's avery different thing.
(24:56):
So again, that will come downto the service and the space
that that person is operatingwithin.
So please don't paint FTC witha blank.
You know, paint the hell, it'sthat term.
Don't paint it with the samebrush.
Tire it with the same brush.
You need to go and meet theeducator in their space.
Speaker 3 (25:16):
Yeah, 100%.
I mean, my space wasn'tanything flash, that we had, it
doesn't need to be.
However, no, no.
So we used to go walking to thepark just down the road, and
then also we had two drivewaysin between our house I live in
the bush, I live up on amountain, so we had two
driveways in between our house.
(25:36):
I live in the bush, I live upon a mountain, so we had two
driveways in between my houseand my brother's house next door
, and in between those drivewayswere these really big trees.
So we used to go and do allsorts of stuff because we could
hear the cars coming in eitherdirection.
So we played on the drivewayall the time.
We used to collect kindling forthe fire, we'd play within the
trees and we'd throw rocks andwe'd do all the time.
We used to collect kindling forthe fire.
(25:57):
We'd play in the trees and we'dthrow rocks and we'd do all the
things.
But it was just simple and easyand it was enough for the
children.
I used to teach them to tawnyfrog mouth hunt, because we had
a pair of tawnies that lived inthe trees on those driveways and
even now one of my old familydaycare children, who's now in
class three, would walk past andstill looks for the tawny
(26:20):
frogmouths in those trees.
So you know these lastingconnections to nature.
And she sees the sorts of treesthat tawny frogmouths they love
the tallow wood trees becauseit really fits with their
camouflage.
So she now, when she goesplaces, notices the tallow wood
trees and starts looking fortawny frogmouths.
Speaker 1 (26:42):
This is what I mean.
Right, you can connect withnature wherever you are.
So go and check the space out.
And really I think sometimes weput adult expectations on
children as well.
Children don't need a lot.
They need connection food, air,water no, it is deeper than
that, but you know, it's thethings we think they need.
(27:05):
Actually, like seeing thattawny frog mouth and having that
connection.
It's connection to space, it'sconnection to community.
It's all of the things that arein the frameworks that we work
within.
We're ticking all the boxes ata level that children need to
access them at, not these big,grandiose ideas that we think
children need in the early years.
Actually, what they need isconnection absolutely.
Speaker 3 (27:27):
I mean, we have ornamental figs that sit at our
front door and every year we getthe common crow butterfly
coming and laying eggs andhaving chrysalises in the tree
every year.
They're ornamental figs, theyserve zero purpose other than I
like them at my front door.
Uh, and you know that's notsomething that's big, grandiose
(27:49):
in nature, but it happens everyyear and the children come to
rely on that.
Silkwormworms.
You know you can have amulberry tree or you know.
Just there's so much like thegarden, the paddock to plate,
like garden in pots.
Absolutely Like you can doincredible things in tiny spaces
and you know, one of ourfavourite things was to lay on
(28:12):
the water tank and watch theclouds.
Yeah, you know.
Speaker 1 (28:16):
And I think this is the thing that, perhaps because
you and I see so many spaces aswell and we see where children
are happiest and most at ease,sometimes I think parents forget
that a lot of the services thatwe're visiting it's artificial
turf.
Sometimes they're two threestory buildings where the only
(28:37):
nature the 120 children canaccess in that three story
building are in pots anyway.
So when you're comparing longdaycare to FDC, again you can't
compare it unless you'revisiting each space, because the
variation between long daycaresand family daycares is vast.
So again, you can connect withnature anywhere, but don't
(28:59):
assume that LDCs have moreaccess to it always.
Speaker 3 (29:05):
Oh, I would say that family daycare, being that it's
a home environment, has far moreaccess to things that are
happening within the community,just by being in a home
environment, rather than a longday care setting which is so
uniformed.
Speaker 1 (29:25):
You know it never changes, like it's just yeah
yeah, I hear you really biased,which is I want people to be
biased to the things they'repassionate about, because it
shows your passion.
All right, I'm aware of ourtime, so what I would love to, I
would love to hear from youthree tips, or a couple of tips
(29:49):
that you might have for peoplethat are looking into FDC.
What would you recommend fromthe start that they either look
out for or do to help thattransition for them?
Speaker 3 (30:01):
Okay, first and foremost, I think you need to
get clear on what it is that youare wanting to do, like, ultra
clear.
Are you an educator who reallywants to go adventuring, or are
you an educator that just wantsto focus in your own yard and
feel safe in that?
And you, you might have a greatyard that you want to improve
(30:23):
and develop and you know, like,what is it you want?
Do you want a service that'sgoing to give you a huge amount
of support and be there, or areyou a person who's like no, no,
I just want support from afar?
You know we have to visiteducators.
We're bound to do unannouncedand announced visits, so you're
(30:44):
always going to have a servicethat comes and visits you.
But there may be someone whosays, oh, you know, I want you
to come and see me every weekfor the first couple of weeks.
Like, get really clear on whatit is that you want, because
what that's going to do is helpyou to align with a service that
is equal in your values or thatyou can feel like there's
(31:05):
things, places, that you cancompromise and you know you can.
That's not as important as thisfor you.
So this is a non-negotiable.
This one I'm able to be, youknow, a bit flexible with.
So get really really clear onwhat it is that you want,
because that's going to help younarrow down the services that
you talk with.
Ask them questions, ask them,like what do they do when things
(31:30):
go wrong?
How do they handle things whena mistake has been made?
How do they share informationwith their service?
How do they want you to shareinformation?
How, like, what's appropriatefor contact, for not, like, just
get really clear on all thosethings, because a service that
can't answer those questions foryou is going to be a no, and a
(31:54):
service that like oh, that'sgreat, yeah, we do, blah, blah,
blah, blah, you're going toalign more with them.
So getting with a service thatis going to fit you and you fit
them is essential, because itcan make or break you yes and
it's, it's, it's, it's notimpossible, but it's frustrating
(32:14):
to have to change, so you kindof want to get something, just
sink into it.
The other thing that I wouldsuggest is that, around
budgeting, like it's soimperative that you're running a
business so you need to look atthe numbers.
Numbers matter, like everyone'slike oh, we're not in childcare
to be profitable.
(32:35):
You know what I?
I don't, I don't agree withthat.
I disagree running yeah, I'mrunning a business.
I'm putting my heart and soulinto this business.
I'm not a charity like thefamilies that are with me now
are going to be nowhere near mewhen I'm 70 right, they're not
(32:57):
going to help me when I retire.
So you have to have a mindsetthat you need to pay annual
leave, sick leave, super, andyou need to take a wage and
after that you've got resourcesthat you've got to pay for.
You've got insurances.
You you've got business costs.
So money matters and you shouldbe iterated for the work that
(33:20):
you do, because the first fiveyears are so vitally important
for children and it costs youlife force and energy and there
should be an equal exchange.
Speaker 1 (33:34):
The undervaluing of women's work infuriates me,
because it is the most valuablework we can do as a society, so
do not let yourself not beremunerated for the incredible
work that you're doing forchildren and families.
Speaker 3 (33:48):
A hundred percent, I mean you can't price yourself
out of the market.
But, also, once you build yourreputation, it doesn't matter.
There is no market because youare the go-to person, and this
is what I teach educators to do.
I teach family daycareeducators how to stand out, how
to work less and how to earnmore.
(34:10):
There is a huge furphy that weneed to be working.
Outside of ours.
There's a billion long daycareeducators who are completely
burnt out because they're doingwork at home over weekends.
Family daycare educators sufferthat even more, but there is a
framework and there is a way toensure that you don't do that.
(34:30):
You do your work in your workhours and this is where you've
got to ninja your time andyou've got to be really focused.
So this is where family daycareis not going to be for
everybody.
You've really got to be lookingas a professional, in a
vocation.
So it would be aligning withthe service budgeting and um
(34:53):
professional development,finding professional development
that lights you up from theinside out, because when you
love what you do and when you'reengaged in what you do, people
will flock to you.
You will have an abundance ofenergy.
You won't I mean you'll be tiredat the end of the day, but
(35:14):
you'll be looking forward toyour work.
You, you won't be dreading yourwork.
So when you're inspired and youengage with people like Nikki
and Vicky and people like myselfwho are genuinely internally
lit up by what they do, thatspreads over to you and
encourages you to really findwhat it is in you that makes you
(35:39):
lit up.
And when you, when you shinethat light, the right people
come.
So I think they are very muchthe three top things that I
would suggest that you reallyhave a focus on.
Oh, they.
Speaker 1 (35:54):
It's funny how you know again, we run a business.
I feel we have the exact samevalues of.
You know, work with the peopleyou want to work with, you're
aligned with your values, valueyourself, oh my goodness.
But yes, pd.
I mean we still, vicky and Iand the team, we still make sure
we book ourselves into a coupleof PDs a year, whether that's
things that we feel like theteam needs, but more often than
(36:18):
not, what's fun, what's going tofloat our boat, what's really
exciting?
Because if you're in a careerand quite often particularly
women in these careers, ineducation and childcare for 20,
30, 40 years, how do we keep itexciting?
How do we keep it exciting, howdo we keep the inspiration?
(36:39):
Because we've all seeneducators and teachers who
should have retired 20 years agobecause they're no longer
inspired and passionate.
So it's so important forchildren in our care to still be
passionate.
Speaker 3 (36:52):
A hundred percent.
I've worked with some educatorsthat were bitter, like oh,
horrific, like it's awful andit's awful for the children,
like it's awful for them.
They're wasting their life,like you've got one life.
You know, just for me, workingwith children it's such a joy
(37:14):
and I go to my educators likefrequently, oh, I really miss
working.
But I do know that I have abigger light and my light can
very much like overwhelm thechildren.
So I'm better focusing my lifewith the educators and then I
(37:34):
get to jump in and jump out withthe children now but my thing
is like I feel like my light'sso big that it needs to be
shared with with more than justone small cohort of children.
I get to in, like, like, assistand help and and touch so many
more children doing what I donow.
So for for some people that'soverwhelming and it doesn't
(37:58):
float their boat.
In fact it makes them go publicspeaking, whereas me I go hand
me the microphone.
Speaker 1 (38:08):
It's great and I can see it.
I don't shut up.
It's beautiful that I just love.
These episodes just alwaysreiterate to me that there's a
space for everyone.
You do just have to take thetime to find it.
It's not going to land on yourlap.
You can't just expect, you know, if you're unhappy and you're
just staying in the same careerbut not doing your research, not
making those phone calls, itwon't land in your lap.
(38:30):
You have to be proactive aboutfinding what your purpose is.
So I will.
We have a link to a purposefinding map and it may lead you
to family daycare.
Like it's not there to lead youto us.
It is there.
Honest to goodness, it's one ofmy little passion projects is.
I'm the same as you, victoria.
I cannot handle people tellingme over and over again for five
(38:55):
to ten years that they hatetheir job.
Like it drives me a bit bonkers.
I'm like I hear you and I'vebeen hearing you for ten years.
Here's five different thingsyou could do right now to
explore your options, and theymay not, you know they may not
come to fruition.
But please, for the love of allthings holy, try something.
Yeah, try anything.
Speaker 3 (39:15):
Yeah, change the record mate it's.
Try something.
Yeah, try anything.
Yeah, change record mate it'sboring.
Speaker 1 (39:20):
Yes, exactly, so I will link that in the show notes
.
There's the free purposefinding treasure map.
Hopefully it leads you tosomething new so that you don't
feel like that broken record.
All right, quickly before we gohave you got time for a couple
of rapid fire questions?
Sure, all right.
What are you currently reading,or what's your favourite book?
(39:43):
I know that's like choosing afavourite child.
Speaker 3 (39:50):
I'm currently reading Hold On To your Kids, which is
Gabor Mat I can't say his nameright, but I'm currently audio
listening to that, and there isa non-Ppg book that I'm not
going to share is it very smartby any chance?
No, it's, it's different, smart, lovely.
I love it.
Speaker 1 (40:12):
Two weeks so I started the book that I'm
toggling between see, See,you've got to have the things
that light up your life in allthe ways.
We are here for all pleasure aswell.
All right, next one If youcould change one thing about the
education system, just one whatwould it be?
Speaker 3 (40:33):
I'd get rid of the government out of it yeah, that
might be the best answer.
Speaker 1 (40:37):
Yeah, victoria, but honestly, actually, truly, truly
.
Yeah, I like it all right.
I've got nothing to add to.
Actually, I think you've justsolved all the education
problems in one answer when doyou go or what do you do after a
(41:03):
rough day to reset?
Speaker 3 (41:09):
Internally, actually, because I'm away from home so
often and I don't have a regularspot from home.
So often I don't have a, youknow, a regular spot, so I go
internally and I'm a humandesign projector, so I really
like to frame things up so I'lljust sit wherever I am, whatever
(41:29):
I'm doing, could be driving inthe car, I could be at home, I
could be wherever and I go.
I, I yeah, that's what I do toground myself, because I have to
make sense of it from alldifferent angles and so I've got
to look at it from all thedifferent perspectives and once
it all lands, then I'm I'm clearand I'm okay.
So, yeah, but if I had to havea thing, probably the bath.
Speaker 1 (41:53):
I don't have a bath at this house and it's hard.
Speaker 3 (41:58):
Yeah, I don't have a bath at my house either.
So my favourite Airbnb I bookit because it's got a bath
that's so big I can almost floatin it.
Speaker 1 (42:08):
That's on my dream list for this house in the next
couple of years.
All right, and last one isthere anything you'd like to
tell us about that's coming upin business, and kind of two.
Where can we find out moreabout what you do in both of
your businesses?
Speaker 3 (42:25):
Okay.
So I have lots of things alwayshappening.
I am launching the next coursefor the essential elements,
which is the big course that Irun that launches in October.
So you will want to jump ontoBig Hearted Education on all the
socials.
I'm on Facebook and Insta, butif you jump on and follow me,
(42:48):
you'll be in for all of thelaunch fun.
I do that twice a year.
I also host a summit during theyear and next year I'll be
putting on a conference.
So your best place, your bestplace to find me, is a big
hearted education, all the W's,andcom, the website.
There's also a free coursethere called the Kickstarter
(43:10):
course.
So if you're interested infamily daycare, it's a great
place to start.
It is free, um, and yeah,there's the podcast so you can
listen to that.
Today's episode went live thismorning and I got a bit ranty on
that one.
So if you want to hear the truepassion come out, I had to rein
myself in um talking about um.
(43:32):
You know the benefits ofconnection with children.
Speaker 1 (43:35):
so, uh, yeah, there's heaps of places to find me, so,
yeah, so for all your FDC needs, pd planners, obviously
everything head over to BigHearted Ed and Rainbow Bridge as
well.
We'll put all that in the shownotes.
Thank you so much, victoria.
It's always a pleasureconnecting with you.
(43:56):
I love that we found each otheron the deep dark web and that
we've connected here.
It's the best part about thepodcast, I think, is that
there's just been this amazingthe tangled webs we weave, but
they're the most beautifulSteiner-esque, nature-based webs
that we've woven and it justbrings me the greatest joy.
So thank you so much for coming.
(44:16):
Just brings me the greatest joy.
Speaker 3 (44:17):
So thank you so much for coming oh, you're absolutely
welcome and thank you for beingso generous with your time when
we had the summit and forhaving me here, and I really see
that we'll.
We'll meet in person one day,and it's going to be a match
made in heaven, I can assure youcan't't wait.
Speaker 1 (44:34):
Let's find a great Airbnb With a bath.
Yes, sold.
Thanks so much, Victoria.
Speaker 3 (44:42):
My pleasure, thank you.
On today's episode we're chatting with Victoria
Edmond of Big Hearted Educationand Rainbow Bridge Family
Daycare Service.
With 11 years supporting familydaycare educators and four
years as one herself, victoriahelps educators feel more
connected to their business byusing smart strategies that
prioritise their wellbeing,resulting in high quality,
authentic care.
(00:20):
So today we're talking allthings family daycare.
What's the difference betweenfamily daycare and long daycare
and why might you choose oneover the other?
As a parent, how do childrenaccess nature in a family
daycare service?
What about child protectionconcerns in family daycare?
How could I transition out oflong daycare into family daycare
(00:41):
as an educator?
And we bust the myth that youcan't make a profit as a family
daycare service.
So if you're curious aboutwhether family daycare is the
right choice for you and yourfamily, whether that's as an
educator or as a parent, thentoday's episode is for you.
I'm your host, nikki Farrell.
Welcome to the RaisingWildlings podcast.
We like to acknowledge thetraditional custodians of the
(01:06):
land on which we record todaythe Kabi, kabi and Gubbi Gubbi
people.
We recognise their continuedconnection to the land and
waters of this beautiful place.
We recognise Aboriginal peopleas the original custodians of
this land and acknowledge thatthey have never ceded
sovereignty.
We respect all Gubbi Gubbielders, ancestors and emerging
elders and all First Nationspeople listening today.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
Welcome to Raising Wildlings, a podcast about
parenting, alternative educationand stepping into the
wilderness, however that looks,with your family.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
Each week, we'll be interviewing experts that truly
inspire us to answer yourparenting and education
questions.
We'll also be sharing storiesfrom some incredible families
that took the leap and aretaking the road less travelled.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
We're your hosts.
Vicki and Nikki from WildlingsForest School, Pop in your
headphones, settle in and joinus on this next adventure.
Speaker 1 (01:59):
Good morning, Victoria.
Thank you so much for joiningus on the podcast.
It's been a while.
For those of you that listen toRaising Wildlings, we have
taken a I was going to say shortbreak, but it's been a bit
longer break because we've had abunch of great projects going
on.
We're so excited to haveVictoria Edmond with us today,
(02:19):
kind of breaking our dry spell.
So thank you, Victoria, forinspiring me to get back on the
podcast today.
Speaker 3 (02:31):
You are most welcome and I will say that it is your
podcast that inspired me tostart my podcast, so I'm totally
having a bit of a full circlemoment here.
So it's an absolute honour anda pleasure to sit with you today
, nikki.
Speaker 1 (02:40):
I forget.
I think that's reallyheartening to hear and, I think,
re-inspiring because I thinkyou know we've been doing this
for four years and Vicky and I,at the start of the year, we've
got some big projects coming up.
We don't want to lose thepodcast because it's been really
a really big turning point inour business and has really, I
(03:02):
guess, grown our reach, and wealways forget our reach and the
impact that it has, Because,again, I think you're the same
Like we just record from home intheir little old house.
It's often in my pajamas.
I got out of my pajamas todayjust for you, Victoria.
Not really, but let's go withthat.
So thank you for that reminderand I'm so glad that you've got
(03:24):
your podcast too.
Do you want to?
That's a great segue start bytelling us what you do and how
you ended up here and how andwhy you started your podcast too
.
Sure.
Speaker 3 (03:39):
I would love to.
There's nothing more I lovethan talking about this story,
because I think so many peoplewill see themselves in it in
some form or another.
So many moons ago I startedearly childhood education.
I studied and I got a job and Iwent into long daycare and it
(04:00):
was the first day that I got inthere that I was shocked,
horrified and mortified at theway I saw children being treated
and I knew that this career wasnot to be long lived for me.
I come from a Steinerbackground, so truth, beauty and
goodness is a cornerstone ofwhat I believe and has been
(04:20):
instilled within me, is the bestthing for young children has
been instilled within me, is thebest thing for young children.
So seeing people not be so kindor even aware of what they were
saying really grated on me andI left and started a family
daycare service.
So I started Rainbow BridgeFamily Daycare with a couple of
(04:41):
business partners and we've hada few iterations of people with
me being the constant in there,and we're now very, very settled
, 11 years later.
And through the pandemic, Istarted a support page for
educators because none of usknew what was going on.
And from there, one day Ihappened to mention that I
(05:02):
started a planner for my serviceand I don't know about two 300
people messaged me and likewhat's that planner?
And I went, oh okay, theremight be something here, yeah.
And so then a second businesswas born called Big Hearted
Education, and that's where Ifound you, because I was
(05:23):
listening, because I, like, Ireally wanted to start a podcast
, didn't really know how to doit.
And then I came across yourpodcast and I was just
enthralled and I went backthrough the whole back catalogue
and I listened to all of themup until that point and was just
like that's it, this is so good, there's so much information
shared.
And then I got to business andstarted my own podcast and we
(05:47):
also do online courses and wesell resources for family
daycare educators and I'm nowstarting to move into speaking
and presenting.
So it's been a wonderfuljourney that I get to visit
educators across both Queenslandand New South Wales, because we
have services with RancorBridge across both states and
(06:07):
whenever I can, I will visitwith other educators outside of
my service because I just loveto see what people do.
I'm just so inspired byeducators, especially in the
family daycare setting, becausethey're, you know, doing their
own thing and they're doing whatis alive within them and
sharing that with the children,and I just think it's so
(06:28):
important.
So that's how I got here.
Speaker 1 (06:32):
Oh, I just there's so much about your story that I
love and resonate with, becauseyou know, the same thing.
I was like, oh, teaching, yay,ticks.
All the boxes got into theclassroom.
I was like, oh, okay, yfdc, yay, ticks.
All the boxes got into theclassroom.
Was like, oh, oh, okay, um, whyFDC?
So what made you go?
Because, you know, I understandthat feeling of oh and also
(06:53):
that grief I think of.
For me it was like, oh, Ireally had so many hopes pinned
on this.
I really thought I could be theteacher I wanted to be in in
this space and when I realized Icouldn't, it was a real you
know.
All right, buckle up, I'm justgoing to make do with what I can
until I realised that my bodywasn't allowing me to make do.
(07:13):
So how did you find FDC?
And what is it about familydaycare that feels so much
different to long daycare thatyou've been able to make a you
know career that you love out ofit?
Speaker 3 (07:27):
I have first heard of family daycare when my children
were little and so, before Ieven studied, and someone said
you should do family daycare.
So I contacted the local familydaycare service and was
immediately put off because allthey did was send me the list of
compliance and I was just likeI'm not interested, that's way
(07:48):
too difficult, I'm not going todo that.
And it was years later that Iwent and studied and then I went
into long daycare and then,through the study that the
educator that was teaching metalked about family daycare and
I was like, oh, that's, that'sreally sweet, but meh.
So when I was working in thelong daycare, a friend of mine
(08:09):
actually approached me and saidI want to start a family daycare
service and you've got thequalifications, so I need you.
And I looked at it, and Ireally looked at it, and then I
realized that the gap that I wasseeing was the professional
development that was availableto educators was severely
(08:30):
lacking when it came to lookingholistically at children, and
the first person you must lookat when you're working with
children is yourself, and thatwas completely, utterly missing
from everything that I saw.
So this idea was sort of seededand born, and so when my friend
approached me and said you know, I want to start family daycare
(08:51):
, we looked into it and we didit and what?
The thing that always has set usapart has been the professional
development that we provide andhonouring that each educator
has something special that'salive within them that they
share with the children.
So what I really love aboutfamily daycare is that there is
(09:15):
a framework that we all mustoperate under across long
daycare and family daycare.
But as the family daycareeducator having only daycare
educator, having only fourchildren like preschool age
children in your care and underyou really get to work
intimately with those childrenand create those fundamental
(09:38):
connection pieces very like,very quickly and first, and
they're authentic.
You don't have 15, 16 otherchildren running around, you
don't have another educator whowants to talk to you and blah,
blah, blah, so your focus andattention can be squarely on the
children and you deliver theprogram that you know is right
(10:02):
for those children, based onwhat you see and the lens of
life that you look through.
So for me, family daycare Ipersonally would have put my
children into long daycare everagain, and unless it was a very
top-notch place, but it wouldlike the boxes that I would have
(10:24):
to take to get in there, andI'm not talking my own children,
now 23 and 21, so it would bemy grandchildren, and I'll be
horrified if my kids don't usefamily day children.
But, like you know, I'm notlooking forward to those
conversations.
You know anyway, those grandmasout there know what I'm talking
(10:45):
about, absolutely.
So for me, being able toprovide what I know from my soul
is so important, and I believethat children don't come to you
just by chance.
I truly believe there's a soulagreement between each educator
and each child that you willguide each other, because we
(11:09):
both have things to learn fromeach other, and that you will
guide each other for howeverlong you're destined to be
together.
And I think that in that familydaycare setting that really is
allowed to blossom and flourish,because there's less disruption
, there's less noise, there'sless everything, so things can
(11:31):
be simple and beautiful and calm, and I really feel like in
today's world, children needthat.
Speaker 1 (11:40):
So, yeah, I love that .
That's a great segue to aquestion.
I often get asked all the timefor recommendations for long
daycare, kindies, FDC and alsothe difference.
So people actually ask me wouldyou send your children to FDC
or long daycare?
If you had the choice, whatwould you choose?
And I always say FDC.
(12:02):
However, the most commonobjection I guess I get from
parents is oh, but you justdon't know who's coming into the
house.
Can you answer this question?
Because I know you will betterthan me than I say back.
You'll be much moreprofessional about the way you
answer this than I will.
Speaker 3 (12:20):
Oh, don't put that out there.
No, look, I didn't send my ownchildren to family daycare
because and this is 20-odd yearsago the very first thing I
thought was who's there watchingthem Like they could do
anything, and blah, blah, blah,blah, blah.
Long daycare is for sure muchsafer, however, having been on
(12:42):
the inside of the boat.
Now we still have to meet all ofthe same criteria in terms of
working with children's checks,police checks, all of that sort
of stuff.
Every single person over theage of 18 that resides in the
home has to have a working withchildren or blue card check, and
they are known to the serviceand like there's a lot of
(13:05):
stopgap measures that are inplace there.
I think now we have to get realwith the very difficult
conversation around childprotective behaviours Things you
need to be teaching yourchildren, the conversations you
need to be having with yourchildren because in 2022, that
(13:28):
man was discovered having workedfor over 10 years in long
daycare settings across multiplestates and countries and was
arrested with thousands ofimages of children that he had
collected and done things withand then put on the dark web.
These predators are everywhere.
(13:49):
They are everywhere.
It is absolutely horrifyingwhen you start looking into this
.
There are things you can do,and I'm going to.
I didn't ask if I could do this, but I'm going to.
Christy McVie is a childspecialist interviewer from the
Western Australian Police Force.
(14:10):
She has just released a seriesof cards that are for
preschool-aged children.
There's a whole series of themfor the different ages where you
can talk and have conversationsthat come specifically from the
10 years of experience she hasin this particular area about
teaching protective behavioursto children.
(14:31):
So I would suggest, doesn'tmatter where you send your
children, no, you could besending it to your family
Exactly, and there can be issuesin that in that.
So we have to stop lookingoutside of ourselves for this
conversation and the answers tothis conversation, to this
(14:51):
question, and really get that.
It's up to us.
We as adults, as parents of ourchildren or caregivers of our
children, need to be havingthese conversations so that we
can arm the children with theright words to be able to say
when things happen, because theyknow the difference.
And you need to start that fromvery, very, very young age.
(15:12):
So it's not so much about goinginto different settings,
because it's everywhere and likeit's honest when you start
looking at it.
And if you really want to divedown that rabbit hole, I
recommend the children in thepictures podcast.
It's not easy listening.
However, you will get a verysolid understanding of how they
(15:34):
are operating, because most ofus didn't operate with the
internet.
No, we don't understand the waythe predators have access to
our children.
Speaker 1 (15:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:48):
It's terrifying as young as, like, children get on
tablets.
I mean, I'm really going tostart a whole series around
talking about this and openingthis conversation because AI and
the internet like keep yourchildren off it until they're
about 16.
Yeah, there's people.
(16:09):
How is that gonna do?
You know what?
You're never gonna let yourchild drive a car without giving
them lessons first, and it isexactly the same with the
internet.
You should not be giving yourchildren free reign access to
the internet because you areputting them in danger.
It's not when they go to theirlocal family daycare educator,
(16:32):
it's when you're giving themthese devices.
So sorry, I get ranty about this.
I'm so.
People don't understand.
We don't like.
It's when you start looking atit and going down these pathways
that you start realising you gooh my, I was not exposed to
this when I was a kid.
No, you know, I had to ask myparents to get off the phone so
(16:52):
I could use the internet.
Like that's how much of acancer I am.
But I think that's it.
So I have an idea.
Speaker 1 (16:58):
It's the good reminder again, though, that
actually check your house andyour family first and again.
Predators are so insidious andexperts at grooming that you
more than likely won't knowanyway.
So you need to, exactly likeyou said, teach your children
those behaviors to look out forand and to the confidence in
(17:21):
themselves to.
They need to know the names oftheir real body parts.
They need to.
You know that's.
The first thing they look foris confidence in a child and
confidence that a child knowstheir body parts.
Speaker 3 (17:32):
So, yeah, please don't shy away from those
conversations no, and and let'snot abdicate the power and the
responsibility that you, as aparent, have.
Don't put that on youreducators, no well this is the
problem we're seeing, though.
Speaker 1 (17:50):
Right as a I'm a ex high school pe teacher and we
would get letters every timethis is year nine, we would be
doing sex ed, and quite often itwas actually relationships ed.
To start with, it was eitherpure biology or relationships,
so we're not actually talkingabout sex, but we would get
letters most terms that westarted this saying they're too
(18:12):
young, you're teaching, you'regrooming these children, and I
just think your children aregoing to be the ones that get
preyed upon because they don'tknow, they have no information.
The information they're relyingon is coming from groomers,
predators or friends that haveno idea, so don't bury your head
in the sand.
There were pregnant teenagersin year seven at the schools
(18:34):
I've been working at, becausethey didn't know they could get
pregnant.
They didn't even know that whatthey were doing was sex or they
were being harmed, doing sexualacts that they didn't realise
could harm them.
So they're going to do it ifyou don't tell them, and they're
going to do it in ways that areharmful to themselves and
others if they don't know aswell.
Speaker 3 (18:53):
Absolutely, absolutely, others if they don't
know as well, absolutely,absolutely.
I mean.
And it comes down to parentstaking their power back and
trusting their own abilities.
And that's what I'm noticing inearly childhood education is
parents don't know how to parentnow and and they are looking
for advice, and there's so muchadvice out there that it's and I
(19:15):
understand it it's sooverwhelming.
It's so overwhelming and this iswhere I feel like the pendulum
has come so far this way.
I'm really trying to pull itback this way to say hang on, we
need to get back to basics.
We need to, and this is where Ifeel like family daycare and
businesses like like what you do, too, and businesses like what
you do too, like nature-basedbusinesses.
(19:36):
Nature doesn't lie Like naturedoesn't lie.
It does what it does and itdoes it cyclically, and we have
to fit in with it.
And it's the same with, youknow, businesses that you
support and businesses that Isupport and humans that we
support.
I'm not going to be foreverybody.
You're not going to be foreverybody.
You're not going to be foreverybody, but what we need to
(19:58):
do is share this information sothat people who are interested
and have a real passion forensuring the sacredness of early
childhood is kept where itshould be can have options
either way.
So this is why I was so excitedto come and talk with you,
because I know that there'sgoing to be people who want to
(20:22):
do what you do but don't feelthe confidence, and so perhaps
family daycare could be aperfect stepping stone for them,
and vice versa.
There may be people alreadydoing what they're doing,
feeling a bit lost, and sofamily daycare can help.
Or there's family daycareeducators that are like you know
what I'm feeling a little bitrestricted because you do have
to operate with policies andservices in mind.
(20:45):
Perhaps there's people who arefeeling more confident, that
want to leave family daycare andcome and do a more nature-based
program where they can have abit more room to stretch their
wings more nature-based programwhere they can have a bit more
room to stretch their wings.
So I think we have a beautifulcollaboration here where we can
really help educators andfamilies to be able to find more
of what they're looking for.
Speaker 1 (21:06):
Yeah, and that's a hundred percent, is that if
you're feeling a bit lost,whether that's as a teacher and
early years educator, know thatthere are other options.
If you get nothing out of thisepisode between the two of us,
it's that there are otheroptions and you don't have to
stay where you are and it'sworth calling people up and
asking the questions and takethem out for a coffee and really
(21:26):
get you know what do you loveabout your job, what do you hate
about it, what do you loveabout owning a business or
working with a service?
Really ask those questionsbecause we've all you know,
there's people that have beenthere and in your exact same
shoes, that have found solutionsfor them and, like you said, my
solution might not be it andyour solution might not be it,
but it might get you to whereyou need to be down the track
(21:49):
yeah, exactly.
I had another question, uh, whenyou mentioned nature before how
, as a family daycare, and, andagain, I would just want to bust
these myths, right, because Iget asked them all the time.
Yeah, but you know, the reasonwe come to wildlings instead of
putting our child in a familydaycare is because you know they
can't access nature.
Don't worry, I bust that forpeople.
(22:12):
But can you bust that forpeople please?
Speaker 3 (22:14):
A hundred percent it depends on.
This is incorrect.
Yeah, like my educators.
Uh, get out in nature.
Uh, we've got educators thatrun bush programs, like bush
kinders they have.
Maybe they're lucky enough tohave acreage which they go
foraging on.
A lot of educators run paddockto plate programs as well.
(22:35):
They do nature walks.
They get out into the localreserves.
It really depends on theservice your educator is aligned
with or registered with.
We do a lot.
I don't let my team go to thebeach as yet because I just I
know I'm like financiallyresponsible at the end of the
(22:56):
day should anything happen.
So that would be something thatI would really need to work
one-on-one with an educator.
There would be some people whoI would straight away go yep,
you've got it.
You've got that supervisionpiece right there, and then
there were other people.
You know you're a little bitscattered.
Um, I myself wouldn't takechildren to the beach because I
(23:17):
know that I'm easily distractedbecause, oh, look at all these
little soldier crabs and there'stwo kids.
Um, I would never let thathappen.
Speaker 1 (23:27):
No, but it's.
I know your point, it's aratios thing yeah, totally,
totally.
Speaker 3 (23:33):
so it depends on who your educator is registered with
, but it also depends on youreducator too, because it can be
daunting to take other people'schildren, especially Australia,
like everything's here to killyou, like snakes and spiders and
prop bears and all that sort ofstuff.
(23:56):
It's all here.
So, yeah, it does depend onyour educator and it does depend
on the service that they areregistered with.
But you just search around,search around for those services
that you know are aligned withnature play.
Speaker 1 (24:13):
Yeah, and I would also add there that wildlings is
a very.
We are just so incredibly luckywhere we are that we have big,
large tree spaces, but nature iseverywhere.
And children, you know they'relittle people.
They are small children who canfind and connect with nature
anywhere.
(24:34):
So even if you have anapartment block, they will find
the little blades of grass orthe little ants or watch the
butterflies.
They will connect with nature.
So it depends what you meanwhen you say you know they don't
get connection with nature.
What I think some people aresaying is they don't have a lot
of space to run, and that's avery different thing.
(24:56):
So again, that will come downto the service and the space
that that person is operatingwithin.
So please don't paint FTC witha blank.
You know, paint the hell, it'sthat term.
Don't paint it with the samebrush.
Tire it with the same brush.
You need to go and meet theeducator in their space.
Speaker 3 (25:16):
Yeah, 100%.
I mean, my space wasn'tanything flash, that we had, it
doesn't need to be.
However, no, no.
So we used to go walking to thepark just down the road, and
then also we had two drivewaysin between our house I live in
the bush, I live up on amountain, so we had two
driveways in between our house.
(25:36):
I live in the bush, I live upon a mountain, so we had two
driveways in between my houseand my brother's house next door
, and in between those drivewayswere these really big trees.
So we used to go and do allsorts of stuff because we could
hear the cars coming in eitherdirection.
So we played on the drivewayall the time.
We used to collect kindling forthe fire, we'd play within the
trees and we'd throw rocks andwe'd do all the time.
We used to collect kindling forthe fire.
(25:57):
We'd play in the trees and we'dthrow rocks and we'd do all the
things.
But it was just simple and easyand it was enough for the
children.
I used to teach them to tawnyfrog mouth hunt, because we had
a pair of tawnies that lived inthe trees on those driveways and
even now one of my old familydaycare children, who's now in
class three, would walk past andstill looks for the tawny
(26:20):
frogmouths in those trees.
So you know these lastingconnections to nature.
And she sees the sorts of treesthat tawny frogmouths they love
the tallow wood trees becauseit really fits with their
camouflage.
So she now, when she goesplaces, notices the tallow wood
trees and starts looking fortawny frogmouths.
Speaker 1 (26:42):
This is what I mean.
Right, you can connect withnature wherever you are.
So go and check the space out.
And really I think sometimes weput adult expectations on
children as well.
Children don't need a lot.
They need connection food, air,water no, it is deeper than
that, but you know, it's thethings we think they need.
(27:05):
Actually, like seeing thattawny frog mouth and having that
connection.
It's connection to space, it'sconnection to community.
It's all of the things that arein the frameworks that we work
within.
We're ticking all the boxes ata level that children need to
access them at, not these big,grandiose ideas that we think
children need in the early years.
Actually, what they need isconnection absolutely.
Speaker 3 (27:27):
I mean, we have ornamental figs that sit at our
front door and every year we getthe common crow butterfly
coming and laying eggs andhaving chrysalises in the tree
every year.
They're ornamental figs, theyserve zero purpose other than I
like them at my front door.
Uh, and you know that's notsomething that's big, grandiose
(27:49):
in nature, but it happens everyyear and the children come to
rely on that.
Silkwormworms.
You know you can have amulberry tree or you know.
Just there's so much like thegarden, the paddock to plate,
like garden in pots.
Absolutely Like you can doincredible things in tiny spaces
and you know, one of ourfavourite things was to lay on
(28:12):
the water tank and watch theclouds.
Yeah, you know.
Speaker 1 (28:16):
And I think this is the thing that, perhaps because
you and I see so many spaces aswell and we see where children
are happiest and most at ease,sometimes I think parents forget
that a lot of the services thatwe're visiting it's artificial
turf.
Sometimes they're two threestory buildings where the only
(28:37):
nature the 120 children canaccess in that three story
building are in pots anyway.
So when you're comparing longdaycare to FDC, again you can't
compare it unless you'revisiting each space, because the
variation between long daycaresand family daycares is vast.
So again, you can connect withnature anywhere, but don't
(28:59):
assume that LDCs have moreaccess to it always.
Speaker 3 (29:05):
Oh, I would say that family daycare, being that it's
a home environment, has far moreaccess to things that are
happening within the community,just by being in a home
environment, rather than a longday care setting which is so
uniformed.
Speaker 1 (29:25):
You know it never changes, like it's just yeah
yeah, I hear you really biased,which is I want people to be
biased to the things they'repassionate about, because it
shows your passion.
All right, I'm aware of ourtime, so what I would love to, I
would love to hear from youthree tips, or a couple of tips
(29:49):
that you might have for peoplethat are looking into FDC.
What would you recommend fromthe start that they either look
out for or do to help thattransition for them?
Speaker 3 (30:01):
Okay, first and foremost, I think you need to
get clear on what it is that youare wanting to do, like, ultra
clear.
Are you an educator who reallywants to go adventuring, or are
you an educator that just wantsto focus in your own yard and
feel safe in that?
And you, you might have a greatyard that you want to improve
(30:23):
and develop and you know, like,what is it you want?
Do you want a service that'sgoing to give you a huge amount
of support and be there, or areyou a person who's like no, no,
I just want support from afar?
You know we have to visiteducators.
We're bound to do unannouncedand announced visits, so you're
(30:44):
always going to have a servicethat comes and visits you.
But there may be someone whosays, oh, you know, I want you
to come and see me every weekfor the first couple of weeks.
Like, get really clear on whatit is that you want, because
what that's going to do is helpyou to align with a service that
is equal in your values or thatyou can feel like there's
(31:05):
things, places, that you cancompromise and you know you can.
That's not as important as thisfor you.
So this is a non-negotiable.
This one I'm able to be, youknow, a bit flexible with.
So get really really clear onwhat it is that you want,
because that's going to help younarrow down the services that
you talk with.
Ask them questions, ask them,like what do they do when things
(31:30):
go wrong?
How do they handle things whena mistake has been made?
How do they share informationwith their service?
How do they want you to shareinformation?
How, like, what's appropriatefor contact, for not, like, just
get really clear on all thosethings, because a service that
can't answer those questions foryou is going to be a no, and a
(31:54):
service that like oh, that'sgreat, yeah, we do, blah, blah,
blah, blah, you're going toalign more with them.
So getting with a service thatis going to fit you and you fit
them is essential, because itcan make or break you yes and
it's, it's, it's, it's notimpossible, but it's frustrating
(32:14):
to have to change, so you kindof want to get something, just
sink into it.
The other thing that I wouldsuggest is that, around
budgeting, like it's soimperative that you're running a
business so you need to look atthe numbers.
Numbers matter, like everyone'slike oh, we're not in childcare
to be profitable.
(32:35):
You know what I?
I don't, I don't agree withthat.
I disagree running yeah, I'mrunning a business.
I'm putting my heart and soulinto this business.
I'm not a charity like thefamilies that are with me now
are going to be nowhere near mewhen I'm 70 right, they're not
(32:57):
going to help me when I retire.
So you have to have a mindsetthat you need to pay annual
leave, sick leave, super, andyou need to take a wage and
after that you've got resourcesthat you've got to pay for.
You've got insurances.
You you've got business costs.
So money matters and you shouldbe iterated for the work that
(33:20):
you do, because the first fiveyears are so vitally important
for children and it costs youlife force and energy and there
should be an equal exchange.
Speaker 1 (33:34):
The undervaluing of women's work infuriates me,
because it is the most valuablework we can do as a society, so
do not let yourself not beremunerated for the incredible
work that you're doing forchildren and families.
Speaker 3 (33:48):
A hundred percent, I mean you can't price yourself
out of the market.
But, also, once you build yourreputation, it doesn't matter.
There is no market because youare the go-to person, and this
is what I teach educators to do.
I teach family daycareeducators how to stand out, how
to work less and how to earnmore.
(34:10):
There is a huge furphy that weneed to be working.
Outside of ours.
There's a billion long daycareeducators who are completely
burnt out because they're doingwork at home over weekends.
Family daycare educators sufferthat even more, but there is a
framework and there is a way toensure that you don't do that.
(34:30):
You do your work in your workhours and this is where you've
got to ninja your time andyou've got to be really focused.
So this is where family daycareis not going to be for
everybody.
You've really got to be lookingas a professional, in a
vocation.
So it would be aligning withthe service budgeting and um
(34:53):
professional development,finding professional development
that lights you up from theinside out, because when you
love what you do and when you'reengaged in what you do, people
will flock to you.
You will have an abundance ofenergy.
You won't I mean you'll be tiredat the end of the day, but
(35:14):
you'll be looking forward toyour work.
You, you won't be dreading yourwork.
So when you're inspired and youengage with people like Nikki
and Vicky and people like myselfwho are genuinely internally
lit up by what they do, thatspreads over to you and
encourages you to really findwhat it is in you that makes you
(35:39):
lit up.
And when you, when you shinethat light, the right people
come.
So I think they are very muchthe three top things that I
would suggest that you reallyhave a focus on.
Oh, they.
Speaker 1 (35:54):
It's funny how you know again, we run a business.
I feel we have the exact samevalues of.
You know, work with the peopleyou want to work with, you're
aligned with your values, valueyourself, oh my goodness.
But yes, pd.
I mean we still, vicky and Iand the team, we still make sure
we book ourselves into a coupleof PDs a year, whether that's
things that we feel like theteam needs, but more often than
(36:18):
not, what's fun, what's going tofloat our boat, what's really
exciting?
Because if you're in a careerand quite often particularly
women in these careers, ineducation and childcare for 20,
30, 40 years, how do we keep itexciting?
How do we keep it exciting, howdo we keep the inspiration?
(36:39):
Because we've all seeneducators and teachers who
should have retired 20 years agobecause they're no longer
inspired and passionate.
So it's so important forchildren in our care to still be
passionate.
Speaker 3 (36:52):
A hundred percent.
I've worked with some educatorsthat were bitter, like oh,
horrific, like it's awful andit's awful for the children,
like it's awful for them.
They're wasting their life,like you've got one life.
You know, just for me, workingwith children it's such a joy
(37:14):
and I go to my educators likefrequently, oh, I really miss
working.
But I do know that I have abigger light and my light can
very much like overwhelm thechildren.
So I'm better focusing my lifewith the educators and then I
(37:34):
get to jump in and jump out withthe children now but my thing
is like I feel like my light'sso big that it needs to be
shared with with more than justone small cohort of children.
I get to in, like, like, assistand help and and touch so many
more children doing what I donow.
So for for some people that'soverwhelming and it doesn't
(37:58):
float their boat.
In fact it makes them go publicspeaking, whereas me I go hand
me the microphone.
Speaker 1 (38:08):
It's great and I can see it.
I don't shut up.
It's beautiful that I just love.
These episodes just alwaysreiterate to me that there's a
space for everyone.
You do just have to take thetime to find it.
It's not going to land on yourlap.
You can't just expect, you know, if you're unhappy and you're
just staying in the same careerbut not doing your research, not
making those phone calls, itwon't land in your lap.
(38:30):
You have to be proactive aboutfinding what your purpose is.
So I will.
We have a link to a purposefinding map and it may lead you
to family daycare.
Like it's not there to lead youto us.
It is there.
Honest to goodness, it's one ofmy little passion projects is.
I'm the same as you, victoria.
I cannot handle people tellingme over and over again for five
(38:55):
to ten years that they hatetheir job.
Like it drives me a bit bonkers.
I'm like I hear you and I'vebeen hearing you for ten years.
Here's five different thingsyou could do right now to
explore your options, and theymay not, you know they may not
come to fruition.
But please, for the love of allthings holy, try something.
Yeah, try anything.
Speaker 3 (39:15):
Yeah, change the record mate it's.
Try something.
Yeah, try anything.
Yeah, change record mate it'sboring.
Speaker 1 (39:20):
Yes, exactly, so I will link that in the show notes
.
There's the free purposefinding treasure map.
Hopefully it leads you tosomething new so that you don't
feel like that broken record.
All right, quickly before we gohave you got time for a couple
of rapid fire questions?
Sure, all right.
What are you currently reading,or what's your favourite book?
(39:43):
I know that's like choosing afavourite child.
Speaker 3 (39:50):
I'm currently reading Hold On To your Kids, which is
Gabor Mat I can't say his nameright, but I'm currently audio
listening to that, and there isa non-Ppg book that I'm not
going to share is it very smartby any chance?
No, it's, it's different, smart, lovely.
I love it.
Speaker 1 (40:12):
Two weeks so I started the book that I'm
toggling between see, See,you've got to have the things
that light up your life in allthe ways.
We are here for all pleasure aswell.
All right, next one If youcould change one thing about the
education system, just one whatwould it be?
Speaker 3 (40:33):
I'd get rid of the government out of it yeah, that
might be the best answer.
Speaker 1 (40:37):
Yeah, victoria, but honestly, actually, truly, truly
.
Yeah, I like it all right.
I've got nothing to add to.
Actually, I think you've justsolved all the education
problems in one answer when doyou go or what do you do after a
(41:03):
rough day to reset?
Speaker 3 (41:09):
Internally, actually, because I'm away from home so
often and I don't have a regularspot from home.
So often I don't have a, youknow, a regular spot, so I go
internally and I'm a humandesign projector, so I really
like to frame things up so I'lljust sit wherever I am, whatever
(41:29):
I'm doing, could be driving inthe car, I could be at home, I
could be wherever and I go.
I, I yeah, that's what I do toground myself, because I have to
make sense of it from alldifferent angles and so I've got
to look at it from all thedifferent perspectives and once
it all lands, then I'm I'm clearand I'm okay.
So, yeah, but if I had to havea thing, probably the bath.
Speaker 1 (41:53):
I don't have a bath at this house and it's hard.
Speaker 3 (41:58):
Yeah, I don't have a bath at my house either.
So my favourite Airbnb I bookit because it's got a bath
that's so big I can almost floatin it.
Speaker 1 (42:08):
That's on my dream list for this house in the next
couple of years.
All right, and last one isthere anything you'd like to
tell us about that's coming upin business, and kind of two.
Where can we find out moreabout what you do in both of
your businesses?
Speaker 3 (42:25):
Okay.
So I have lots of things alwayshappening.
I am launching the next coursefor the essential elements,
which is the big course that Irun that launches in October.
So you will want to jump ontoBig Hearted Education on all the
socials.
I'm on Facebook and Insta, butif you jump on and follow me,
(42:48):
you'll be in for all of thelaunch fun.
I do that twice a year.
I also host a summit during theyear and next year I'll be
putting on a conference.
So your best place, your bestplace to find me, is a big
hearted education, all the W's,andcom, the website.
There's also a free coursethere called the Kickstarter
(43:10):
course.
So if you're interested infamily daycare, it's a great
place to start.
It is free, um, and yeah,there's the podcast so you can
listen to that.
Today's episode went live thismorning and I got a bit ranty on
that one.
So if you want to hear the truepassion come out, I had to rein
myself in um talking about um.
(43:32):
You know the benefits ofconnection with children.
Speaker 1 (43:35):
so, uh, yeah, there's heaps of places to find me, so,
yeah, so for all your FDC needs, pd planners, obviously
everything head over to BigHearted Ed and Rainbow Bridge as
well.
We'll put all that in the shownotes.
Thank you so much, victoria.
It's always a pleasureconnecting with you.
(43:56):
I love that we found each otheron the deep dark web and that
we've connected here.
It's the best part about thepodcast, I think, is that
there's just been this amazingthe tangled webs we weave, but
they're the most beautifulSteiner-esque, nature-based webs
that we've woven and it justbrings me the greatest joy.
So thank you so much for coming.
(44:16):
Just brings me the greatest joy.
Speaker 3 (44:17):
So thank you so much for coming oh, you're absolutely
welcome and thank you for beingso generous with your time when
we had the summit and forhaving me here, and I really see
that we'll.
We'll meet in person one day,and it's going to be a match
made in heaven, I can assure youcan't't wait.
Speaker 1 (44:34):
Let's find a great Airbnb With a bath.
Yes, sold.
Thanks so much, Victoria.
Speaker 3 (44:42):
My pleasure, thank you.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!