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Case Study

BALEE KOOLIN BUBUP BUSH PLAYGROUP, ROYAL BOTANIC GARDENS VICTORIA, CRANBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

Description: Developed as a partnership between the Audience research: Australian institutions running playgroups
Cranbourne BG, Casey-Cardinia Library Corporation’s Library are expected to collect detailed information about the health,
Has Legs Program and Boon Wurrung elder Aunty Fay Stewart wellbeing and readiness of children for attending kindergarten.
Muir from the Victorian Aboriginal Corporation for Languages Families keep a photographic record of their playgroup
(VACL), the playgroup caters for Aboriginal and Torres Strait experiences in a scrapbook provided by the library and any
Islander children aged 0 to 4 and their families and offers an stories or artwork created by the children are also captured
early years’ indigenous pedagogy inspired by 68,000 years of for their storybooks.
traditional childrearing practices, as well as providing nature- Funding: The playgroup is funded by the Department of
based experiences that children share with their parents. The Education via the local council to allow the gardens to employ
Bush Playgroup offers a bush land area for families to gather an Indigenous Early Childhood Officer.
with Aboriginal elders and educators to share traditional cultural Challenges: The main challenge for the project is the remote
knowledge and language, so that children grow up knowing location of the gardens and lack of public transport links. To
about their Aboriginal Identity and heritage. overcome this, families work together by car-pooling to and
from the gardens each week. A local service is planning to
Focus of the project: The shared partnership goal between the donate a bus to pick up and drop off families at the train station.
Cranbourne BG, the Casey-Cardinia Library Corporation and
VACL is literacy – supporting emergent literacy development in Families built nests with clay
children as well as the plant literacy and cultural and traditional and found materials at the
language development of children, carers and families. The
project also seeks to address social issues related to health ©Balee Koolin Bubup P laygroup
and education through the preservation of traditional cultural Royal Botanic Gardens
practices and knowledge as identified by the community. The Victoria, Cranbourne
strong partnership between organizations supports families
to access elders, educators and healthcare workers. Research
indicates that through the focus on strengthening the identity
and cultural health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
children and families, their health and wellbeing improves,
putting them in a better position for learning and development.

Engagement approach: The Koolin-ik ba Kirrip Buluk
(Family & Friends) NAIDOC event held each year in Cranbourne
BG’s Australian Garden celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander culture and their contributions to our community.
This is an opportunity for visitors to the garden to come along
and enjoy learning about Aboriginal culture and importantly
provides a bi-cultural or two-way learning process between
indigenous and non-indigenous people that will strengthen
cultural awareness. This approach has informed the broader
community partnership that supports the Balee Koolin Bubup
Bush Playgroup. Planning the Koolin-ik ba Kirrip Buluk (Family
& Friends) NAIDOC event brings together a committee of
staff from the gardens, local Aboriginal organizations and
community services. The committee also formed a basis for
the development of the playgroup, getting together to design
the curriculum. The families who would be using the playgroup
were consulted to ensure it would meet their needs. Activities
selected to encourage learning are fun and free – they include
dancing, exploration of habitats and unstructured play as well
as quiet time for exchanging stories.

CARING FOR YOUR COMMUNITY | A MANUAL FOR BOTANIC GARDENS 21