STAFF

Our dedicated and caring staff are:

Four Year Old Educator & Educational Leader         Cherry Cheung

Four Year Old Co-Educator                                          Kavi Rajendren

Three Year Old Educator                                              Nyssa Lock

Three Year Old Co-Educators                                     Xiao-Yu Long and Lyn Newton

cherry cheung

4-year-old group Kindergarten Teacher & Educational Leader

Hi everyone, my name is Cherry and I am the teacher of the 4-year-old group. I come from a music teaching background, holding a Bachelor of Music (Instrumental Teaching) degree and a Master of Teaching (Early Childhood) degree. I was born and raised in Hong Kong and I can speak Mandarin and Cantonese Chinese. I enjoy playing the piano, playing board games, baking, and learning new things (whether it is a new language, a short course on calligraphy, or a new recipe!).

I am passionate about early childhood education because I value children as capable learners, explorers and creators. As a teacher I am constantly amazed and inspired by children’s perspectives of the world, their creative imagination and unique ideas. I believe the best learning environment is facilitated upon strong and positive relationships between educators, children and families; and I thrive to work in partnership with families to deliver a program that reflects on the interests and individual needs of children. My goal of teaching is to empower children to be innovators and explorers by equipping them with inquiry skills and motivating children to acquire a love of learning. I believe that children learn best when they take ownership of their learning and make contribution and choices in their learning environment. I implement a Reggio-inspired approach in my teaching practice, and I value children’s voice, their thoughts and their progression of thinking.

Prior to joining Cara Armstrong I have worked as a music teacher in a music school, a kindergarten teacher and educational leader in both long day care and sessional kinder settings. I have also had some experience as a primary school teacher and a kindergarten teacher in early learning centres.

kavi rajendren

4-year-old Co-Educator

Hello! Vanakkam (Greetings)! I’m Kavi. I am the Co-educator of the Grasshoppers at Cara Armstrong.

I have worked in early childhood education and care since 2009 with experience working with children of diverse backgrounds and varied ages ranging from a family day care setting to long day care and sessional kindergarten. I am married with 2 lovely daughters and live in Glen Waverley area. I have Diploma in Early Childhood Education and Care and am in the final stages of completing my Master of teaching from Monash university, Clayton.

As an Educator, I believe that a strong sense of self-worth and a love of learning lay the foundation for a healthy and rewarding life. Children are naturally curious about the world around them and my commitment is to encourage this natural desire by providing learning opportunities that facilitate their holistic development, critical thinking, creativity, communication and peer interaction in a supportive learning environment. The individual needs of children are paramount to effective learning, so I ensure to promote children’s active participation and empowering them to become independent learners to achieve their full potential through strong family-partnership.

I am very much looking forward to being part of the Cara Armstrong Community and getting to know the children and their families. 

nyssa lock

3-year-old Educator

 Hi Everyone, my name is Nyssa. I am the 3-year-old Kinder Teacher here at Cara Armstrong. However, I am not new to the Kindergarten as I actually came here myself as a child, and have seen my brothers go through. My mum was actually the president of the Committee back in the day as well as holding other roles so it is extremely exciting to be teaching here now and being part of this special community again as an adult! I have worked in the industry for nine years locally and have experience teaching 3 year olds. I believe that children learn through play and life experience and I endeavor to tailor my programs to suit the individual needs as well as interests of children bringing curiosity, fun, excitement and wonder to their days as they explore their world and form relationships with one another.

I believe in Howard Gardener’s theory of Multiple Intelligences and believe children have a number of ways of learning and I endeavor to cater for these in some way in my program,

My background includes: children’s entertainment, performing (Holding a Bachelor of Contemporary Arts majoring in Drama, Speech and Drama training), African drumming and recently I became a Relax Kids coach which will be part of my programs promoting self esteem, resilience and social and emotional well being.

I am looking forward to getting to know the children as well as their families and collaborating with you all here at Cara Armstrong and also looking forward to the year ahead and the exciting learning and creativity it brings us as it’s not just the children who do the learning; sometimes they can teach us a thing or two which is always fun.

XIAO-YU LONG

3-year-old Co-Educator

Hi, I’m Xiao Yu. I’m a co-educator at Cara Armstrong Kindergarten. I have worked in early childhood settings since 2010, and have worked with the 3-5 year old age groups in a long day-care centre, and then a sessional kindergarten. I’m married and have a 19 year old daughter who is now a university student.

I have a diploma in early childhood education. My initial inspiration for getting involved in early childhood education was through volunteer work in my daughter’s kindergarten and schools, which aroused my curiosity for how children learn through their interactions with people, their daily lives, and their surrounding environment. Through my experiences of working with children, I firmly believe that each child has unique strengths, personalities and interests, and each individual child learns at different rates, in different ways and at different times. As a child educator, I believe in a guidance approach, by using positive language to reinforce children’s learning, giving positive feedback for their positive behaviours and ensuring we build a strong, respectful, caring relationship with the children and their families, in providing a positive kindergarten experience for the children.

I’m looking forward to getting to know all the families, and working and having fun with the children.

LYN NEWTON

3-year-old Co-Educator

Hi everyone, my name is Lyn. I am the co-educator of the Bumblebees at Cara Armstrong

Since 2012 I have worked in early childhood education in both long day care and sessional kindergartens. I have a Certificate 111 in Children Services and Certificate of Education – Integration Aide from Deakin University. I also have Certificate of Music Theatre from Box Hill TAFE. Most of my life I have been involved with children from babies to young people.

I am married and I have a boy (James) and a girl (Ashleigh). Both will be at secondary school next year which is a very exciting time for us all. My interests include music, theatre and spending time with my family. We also have a dog called Indiana he is a beagle which brings much joy to our family. During my spare hours I volunteer at the National Boys Choir as their music librarian which enables me to hear more beautiful music sung by the boys and enjoy the company of likeminded families.

I believe that every child has their own way of progressing through their education. If I can assist the child to be more comfortable with them self, the child progress can be unlimited. If you acknowledge every person that you come into contact with has a heart, mind and a purpose it’s amazing the reward you receive as a human being. Each child has their own path it’s my job as an educator to find that path and work alongside of each child to fulfill their potential.

I look forward to getting to the know the children and families at Cara Armstrong.