Starting Three-Year-Old Kindergarten is an exciting milestone for your child and family. It is a year where children build friendships, develop independence and grow confidence in a group setting.
At Choklits, our funded Three-Year-Old Kindergarten program supports children as they take their first steps into group learning. Our qualified educators create a welcoming environment where children can explore their interests, try new things and build independence at their own pace.
With Three-Year-Old Kindergarten available at our Ringwood, Croydon and Surrey Hills centres, families can access a high-quality kindergarten program with the added convenience of long day care, meals, extended hours and a team of educators who know their child.
The Choklits Three-Year-Old Program
A special place to build confidence, make friends, and fall in love with learning.
Our Three-Year-Old Kinder program runs independently of our Four-Year-Old curriculum, but the two groups mix regularly. Being around older kinder kids gives the three-year-olds a model to copy and a reason to stretch themselves, and it helps the whole kinder cohort feel like one community rather than two age brackets.
The Basics of Our Program
- Qualified Educators: Every Three-Year-Old Kinder room is run by an educator holding a Bachelor of Education and Victorian Institute of Teaching approval.
- A Full Day, All Year: Sessions run roughly 8:30am to 4:30pm across five days a week, 52 weeks of the year, so play-based learning is woven through the whole day rather than a set block of time.
- Grounded in the Right Frameworks: The program is built around the National Early Years Learning Framework and the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework.
What Three-Year-Old Kinder Gives Your Child
- Individual attention from a qualified educator who’s invested in how they’re growing.
- Two formal check-ins a year to walk through their progress with you.
- A packed calendar of excursions, special days, and one-off events throughout the year.
- A gentle, confident start to group life that builds the foundation for the kinder years ahead.
The Benefits of Kinder at Choklits
- A familiar setting, with the same friends and educators your child already trusts.
- Long day care hours that flex around a working family’s schedule, not the other way around.
- Five days of care a week, so there’s no juggling multiple providers.
- Plenty of room for families to get involved in the program however suits them.
A Closer Look at Our Three-Year-Old Program
This is the year your child moves from playing alongside others to properly playing with them. The focus areas include:
- Group Skills: Sharing, taking turns, and working out how to be a good friend in a room full of them.
- Make-Believe: Dress-ups, role play, and imaginative games that let their personality come through, whether that’s superheroes, families, or animals.
- Getting Out and About: Excursions tied to whatever the group is exploring that term.
- Open-Ended Materials: Loose parts play, where everyday objects become whatever the child’s imagination decides they should be, building problem-solving skills along the way.
- Everything Under CHOKLITS+: Three-Year-Old Kinder children take part in the full CHOKLITS+ program too, from bush kinder and music and movement to weekly cooking and messy play, all included in the standard daily fee.
FAQS
What is the Three-Year-Old Kindergarten program at Choklits?
It’s a dedicated kinder year for three-year-olds, taught within our long day care centres rather than as a separate sessional program. The day mixes stories, music, art, outdoor time, and group activities, all aimed at building the social confidence and curiosity your child will carry into the years ahead.
Who teaches the Three-Year-Old Kindergarten program?
An educator holding a Bachelor of Education and Victorian Institute of Teaching approval runs the room. Day to day, that means someone qualified to read where your child is at and shape activities around their pace, not a fixed script every child follows the same way.
What age can my child start Three-Year-Old Kinder?
Enrolment is based on the year your child turns three, with a cutoff of 30 April for starting at the beginning of that year alongside their peer group. If your child’s birthday falls close to that date, our educators are happy to talk through timing with you.
What will my child learn in Three-Year-Old Kinder?
The focus is on the building blocks of group life: sharing, listening, taking turns, and trying things that feel new. That plays out through games, dress-ups, storytime, outdoor exploration, and excursions, with language and social skills developing alongside a growing sense of independence.
Is Three-Year-Old Kinder free at Choklits?
Three-Year-Old Kinder qualifies for the Victorian Government’s Free Kinder subsidy, which cuts the cost significantly over the kinder years. On top of that, most families enrolled in a long day care setting like ours can also access the Child Care Subsidy, so it’s worth checking what you’re eligible for on both fronts.
What is the difference between sessional kinder and kinder at Choklits?
Sessional kinder typically runs a few set hours on set days. Ours runs on long day care hours instead, so kinder, meals, rest time, and general care all happen under one roof across a full working day, without needing to line up a second arrangement to cover the gaps.
Are meals included with Three-Year-Old Kinder at Choklits?
Yes, meals are prepared onsite by our chefs and included as part of the day, so there’s no lunchbox to pack. It’s one less thing on the morning checklist, and it means food, rest, and learning all sit inside the same routine.
Are extra programs and events included in Three-Year-Old Kinder?
Yes. Three-Year-Old Kinder children join in everything under CHOKLITS+ alongside the core kinder day, from incursions and excursions to the full run of specialist programs, all at no extra cost beyond the standard daily fee.
Which Choklits centres offer Three-Year-Old Kinder?
All three of our centres run the program: Ringwood, Surrey Hills, and Croydon. Whichever is closest to home or work, booking a tour is the easiest way to see the actual room and meet the educators your child would be spending their days with.
When should I enrol my child in Three-Year-Old Kinder?
Earlier is better. Places in our kinder rooms fill well ahead of the year they start, sometimes over a year out, so getting in touch early gives you the most options. Booking a tour is the natural first step, and it’s a chance to walk through funding, fees, and timing together.
