Imagine a child standing near the book area while two other children turn the pages of a large picture book. They’re watching, but they haven’t moved closer. It would be easy to call them reluctant. Yet watching tells you what the child is doing, not why.
Pause before deciding what’s happening. What do you know about this child’s interests and communication preferences? Have they shown whether they want to join, watch for a while or choose something else?
A toolkit for the next conversation
The Australian Government announced the free Inclusion Ready Toolkit on 15 September 2026. It supports early childhood education and care services with their existing inclusion obligations and doesn’t add new requirements.
The toolkit overview sets out three steps: Understand quality inclusive practice; Critically reflect on inclusive service characteristics; and Uplift inclusive capability. Looking closely at one book-area arrangement can be a manageable starting point within that broader, service-wide work. It won’t address every aspect of inclusion, but it can give the team something concrete to discuss.
Ask before deciding what’s wrong
You might begin with a simple invitation: “Would you like to look at a book here, watch for a while, or do something else?” Adapt the question to the child’s familiar ways of communicating. An answer doesn’t need to be spoken; it might come through gesture, movement, a communication aid or another response you already understand together.
The accessible-environments information sheet asks educators to consider different ways of participating, children’s views and preferences, family knowledge and assumptions that focus on deficits. A family might know which books, topics or ways of sharing stories interest the child. Colleagues may have noticed how the child approaches the area at other times. That knowledge adds context, but adult interpretations shouldn’t replace the child’s perspective.
Look at the way into the book area
Next, inspect the arrangement itself. The toolkit’s environmental scan prompts educators to examine clear pathways and furniture arrangements that allow movement while retaining supervision.
Suppose a book basket sits beside a low shelf and narrows the entrance. Look at the space from different approaches. Could a child move through comfortably? Does the position leave room for the ways children use the area? Then discuss the child’s preferences alongside what families and colleagues have noticed.
If the discussion suggests moving the basket would help access, agree on another safe position with colleagues. Check that the new spot keeps other pathways usable and still supports supervision. The aim isn’t to persuade the child to enter. It’s to offer a clearer opportunity and let the child decide what to do.
Notice what happens next
After an agreed change, pay attention to how the entrance is used, what the child chooses and anything else they communicate. Keep the description straightforward rather than assigning a motive. For example, note where the child stood, what they looked towards and how they responded to an invitation.
A short team note could use these prompts:
- What we changed
- What we noticed
- What the child communicated
- What we’ll consider next
Joining isn’t the only positive outcome, and continued watching isn’t a failure. A later choice also doesn’t prove that moving the basket caused it. The useful result is better information for the team’s next decision.
What could the team learn next?
Return to the toolkit sequence: understand inclusive-practice principles, reflect on your service’s environment and perspectives, then choose learning that responds to the team’s needs. In this example, the next conversation might be about how educators seek children’s views through communication supports already familiar to them.
Choose one arrangement, hear the child’s perspective and decide together whether a supported change is worth trying. Plan a time to listen again, then ask: What have we learnt about the child’s choices and access, and what should we ask next?