Specialist Teaching and Research - STaR Ltd

29/10/2026

Happy World Teachers' Day! 🍎 🌟

Today we're shining a light on teachers who help every child feel like they belong.

At STaR, we see every day how much a great teacher can change things for a child and their family.

To the teachers in our team, and to every teacher working with children and families: thank you. 💛

Got a teacher who made a difference for your family? Tell us about them in the comments.

AITSL

28/10/2026

We want to hear from people who know post-school transition best: young people with disability and their families.

Together with St Edmund's College Wahroonga, we've started the Post-School Transition Planning Community of Practice, a space where young people, families, educators, providers, advocates and researchers learn from each other. Lived experience is at the heart of it, and your experience belongs in the room.

Easy Read:

When school finishes, life changes a lot.

Young people with disability and their families can feel lost.

They might not know what to do next.

We started a group to help. It is called a Community of Practice.

In the group we all learn from each other.

We want life after school to be better for everyone.

You can join us.

Click on the link to find out more!

https://www.star.org.au/post-school-transition-planning-community-of-practice

27/10/2026

Looking after yourself matters too. 💙

Join our Baulkham Hills MyTime Peer Support group. A friendly space for parents and carers of children with additional needs to unwind and connect.

📍 Gooden Drive Reserve Meeting Room, Baulkham Hills
📆 Friday mornings during school terms*
⏰ 9:30 am - 11:30 am
🏷️ FREE to attend

Swipe to find out more ➡️

*Please note the group won't be running on Friday 13 November. We will return as usual on Friday 20 November.

Playgroup NSW Parenting Research Centre

26/10/2026

Happy Children's Week! 🧒 💛

This year's theme is based on UNCRC Article 30: Children have the right to use their own language, celebrate their culture and practise their religion.

At STaR, we know children share who they are in many ways. Some speak, some sign, some use gestures or pictures and many move between more than one language at home. Every voice matters.

Whether you're at home, in an early learning service or in the classroom, the NSW ACYP NSW Advocate for Children and Young People and the NSW Office for Youth have created free Children's Week learning resources to celebrate the voices, cultures, languages and stories of children in NSW.

Find them at nsw.gov.au/arts-and-culture/childrens-week

NSW Government

18/10/2026

Four days to go. Applications for the Dr Coral Kemp Scholarship close on 22 October. If you are an early childhood teacher with a passion for inclusion, or you know someone who is, this is your moment.

Apply or share: https://www.star.org.au/dr-coral-kemp-scholarship/



Institute of Special Educators

14/10/2026

Siblings often carry a lot quietly, and their experiences don't always get the attention they deserve. We're glad to share this UNSW study looking at how teenage siblings find information and support.

If you know a teen (12 to 18) with a brother or sister who has a long-term health condition or disability, please pass on this 10-minute anonymous survey.

https://unsw.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_cSErpUbE0BSGBj8

Siblings Australia
Genetic Alliance Australia
Belongside Families

13/10/2026

Your child's voice matters in Thriving Kids 🗣️

Thriving Kids is the Australian Government's new initiative to support children aged 0-8 years with developmental concerns, delay or neurodevelopmental differences. Rollout has begun, but it won't be fully up and running until January 2028, which means the decisions about how it works are being made right now.

But children are rarely asked what actually helps them.

The Murdoch Children's Research Institute - MCRI Centre for Community Child Health wants to change that. They are inviting parents and carers of children aged 5-12 with developmental delay or disability, including autism, to complete a short survey together with their child.

✔️ The survey takes about 15 minutes
✔️ Completely anonymous (your child picks a pretend name)

What children share will shape a publication on how kids can be meaningfully included in Thriving Kids decisions.

📅 Survey closes Sunday 25 October
🔗 Find the survey, Parent and Carer Guide and Note for Kids here: https://www.ccch.org.au/resource-hub/policy-brief/childrens-voices-on-thriving-kids/

Please share with families who might like to have their child's voice heard.

The Centre for Community Child Health tackles the unjust differences in children's health, development and wellbeing, known as inequities. By working together, we can ensure every child has the opportunity to reach their full potential.

12/10/2026

This week is , a time to recognise the people who care for others every day. This year's theme from Carers Australia is "Care for a carer: Making carers visible".

You can care for a carer by checking in, offering a break, or simply saying thank you.

If you are a carer, Carer Gateway has free information, advice and wellbeing support at www.carergateway.gov.au

For parents and carers of children with additional needs, MyTime peer support groups are a gentle place to connect with others who understand. You can find a group near you at www.mytime.net.au/groups

Our MyTime group meets in Baulkham Hills. If you're local, we would love to welcome you. More info at www.star.org.au/service/mytime-peer-support-group

11/10/2026

Hear Dr Coral Kemp OAM share how she found her way into special education, a field she describes as “the study of instruction, what works, how to teach.” It’s what she spent her career teaching educators to do.

One week to go: applications for the Dr Coral Kemp Scholarship close 22 October.

Early childhood teachers passionate about inclusion: we’d love to hear from you. Know someone who’d be a great fit? Please share this with them.

Apply or share: https://www.star.org.au/dr-coral-kemp-scholarship/





Institute of Special Educators
The University of Newcastle, Australia

09/10/2026

We were thrilled to be invited to the SNAICC National Voice for our Children Early Years Gathering in Dubbo earlier this year. 💛

Our Key Word Sign presenter Philippa Wong and Megan Cooper from STaR ran a session for more than 80 participants on embedding KWS into everyday routines with children, including signs that can be used in an Acknowledgement of Country.

The feedback was wonderful:
“A very practical way of learning.”
“We can use it tomorrow with the children.”
“We were already doing some of it, now we can do more.”

Even better, we’ve heard the impact is continuing. Children and an educator from Nanima Preschool have learnt and embedded KWS into their Acknowledgement of Country, which they shared at a NAIDOC event in Wellington, NSW. What a beautiful outcome! 👏

Key Word Sign Australia