Learn Play Thrive Early Education Podcast

Navigating the NQS #12: Standard 6.1 - Supportive relationships with families

Welcome back to Navigating the NQS, the National Quality Standard breakdown for licensed Early Childhood Education and Care settings in Australia. In this episode, host S

Building Inclusive Early Learning Environments

Host Simone Brand sits down with Dina Petrakis, CEO of Ethnic Community Services (ECS), to dive into the vital role of cultural inclusion in early childhood education. Dr

S2E7 Little Library: The Thing About Christmas

Celebrate the true spirit of Christmas in this episode of the Learn Play Thrive Little Library! Join host Linda Harrison as she sits down with award-winning illustrator B

Strengthening Professional Identity and Educator Wellbeing

In this episode of the Learn Play Thrive podcast, host Simone Brand sits down with early childhood teacher, advocate, and play therapist in training -- Emma Rattenbury. B

Road Safety in Early Education #6: Making Road Safety Musical

Music and movement take centre stage in this episode of Learn Play Thrive, as host Linda Harrison chats with Amanda Menzies and Bec Dunn from Macquarie University's

Why Health Literacy Starts in the Early Years

In this episode of Learn Play Thrive, host Simone Brand sits down with Lisa Woodward and Michelle Weisbaum from Life Ed Australia—the powerhouse team behind the iconic He

Play Provocations #10: Sensory Play

In this episode of Play Provocations, host Linda Harrison is joined by lead early childhood educator Michelle Jackson to explore the vital role of sensory play as a corne

Tamworth Pedagogy in Practice: Early Education Conference Panel

In this special panel episode recorded live at the Pedagogy in Practice: Early Education Conference in Tamworth, the Learn Play Thrive podcast brings together four leadin

Navigating the NQS #11: Standard 5.2 - Relationships between children

In this episode of Navigating the NQS, host Simone Brand dives into Quality Area 5, Standard 5.2 to explore how early childhood settings support children in building sens

Attracting, Sustaining and Preparing Quality Teachers in Early Childhood

In this episode of Learn Play Thrive, host Simone Brand sits down with leading researcher Professor Sandie Wong to unpack groundbreaking ARC-funded research on the early

S2E6 Little Library: My Nonno Loves

In this episode of Learn Play Thrive’s Little Library, host Linda Harrison sits down with acclaimed children's author Adelle Frittitta to discuss her heartwarming pi

Embedding Diverse Languages in ECEC

In this episode of the Learn Play Thrive podcast, host Simone Brand sits down with Amanda MacDonald, Early Learning Specialist at Education Services Australia (ESA). Th

Road Safety in Early Education #5: Early Numeracy in Everyday Travel

In this episode of the Learn Play Thrive mini-series on Road Safety in Early Education, we welcome back Amanda Menzies and Bec Dunn from Kids and Traffic—the Early Childh

Celebrating Early Learning Matters Week 2026

In this special feature episode of the Learn Play Thrive podcast celebrating Early Learning Matters Week 2026, host Simone Brand chats with three distinguished early chil

Play Provocations #9: Construction Play

In this inspiring episode of our Play Provocations mini-series, host Linda Harrison is joined by lead early childhood educator Michelle Jackson to explore how intentional

Bush Kindy Australia

In this episode of the Learn Play Thrive podcast, host Simone Brand sits down with Bec Burch, the visionary founder of Bush Kindy Australia. As Australia’s leading provid

S2E5 Little Library: Ships In The Field with Susanne Gervay

In this episode of Learn Play Thrive’s Little Library mini-series, host Linda Harrison sits down with Order of Australia honoree and award-winning author Susanne Gervay t

Connecting the Dots Between Music and Self-regulation

In this episode of the Learn Play Thrive podcast, we welcome Amelia, former Early Learning Music Specialist at International Grammar School and founder of Rhymey. After w

Navigating the NQS #10: Standard 5.1 - Relationships between educators and children

Welcome back to the Navigating the NQS podcast mini-series with host Simone Brand! In this episode, Simone dives straight into the absolute heart of daily early childhood

Building Sustainable Quality at Gilgandra Preschool

In this inspiring episode, Simone sits down with the leadership and pedagogical powerhouse team from Gilgandra Preschool. Together, they share how they have pioneered a m