Children at Thornbury Kindergarten are set to learn Spanish this year as part of the Andrews Labor Government’s investment into language programs for pre-schoolers.

Member for Northcote, Kat Theophanous today launched the Spanish Language Program at Thornbury Kindergarten in her electorate, one of over 150 Early Childhood centres across the state to deliver a language program this year.

More than 5,000 Victorian children will have an opportunity to learn another language while attending kindergarten this year, with a $17.9 million investment into the Early Childhood Language Program from the Andrews Labor Government.

Thornbury Kindergarten will have weekly Spanish language sessions of up to three hours.

These programs across the state include in a range of languages including Mandarin, Punjabi, Arabic, Italian, Vietnamese, French, Spanish, Auslan and Aboriginal languages.

The Labor Government is providing funding for extra staff to deliver the language programs in partnership with existing staff – at no cost to parents or the early childhood services.

The Northcote Electorate is benefiting from a number of the language programs, with three other kindergartens in the electorate being funded for Italian, Greek and Aboriginal language learning.

Making Victoria the Education State starts with the early years. That’s why, in an Australian first, the Labor Government is investing almost $5 billion over the next decade to deliver a full 15 hour per week kindergarten program for three-year-old children, to be progressively rolled out from 2020.

Quotes attributable to Member for Northcote, Kat Theophanous.

“Learning a second language is a huge asset, so we are making sure to invest in the next generation of bilingual kids.

“It’s great to see the Spanish program being provided in Thornbury Kindergarten, meaning more kids in Thornbury can learn a second language at no cost.”