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Once a year, educators across our campuses pitch one idea to make children's days better. The winner gets built. Plenty of the others do too.
Educators spend all day with children. They notice what makes a toddler light up, what a kindergartener keeps asking about, and what a family is quietly struggling with. Head office doesn't see most of that.
The InspirED Award gives those ideas somewhere to go. It started in 2024 and is named in recognition of Terry, a campus manager our founder Jae Fraser worked with before Little Scholars. She joined us when we opened a campus in her community, and she passed away from cancer. Jae calls her “an incredible pillar of our sector and our company.”
Any educator can enter, on their own or as a team. They set out what the idea is, who it's for, how it helps children learn, what it costs, and what might get in the way.
Judges from inside and outside Little Scholars score each idea. Mostly they want to know two things. Is it good for children? Can we actually do it?
The winning idea goes into our campuses, and the educators behind it are rewarded. Ideas that don't win often get picked up anyway.
“It doesn't have to be fancy.”Jae Fraser, on what makes a good entry
Original, not yet done here, and ideally not done anywhere else in early learning either.
Practical on a real campus, on a real Tuesday, and in step with the National Quality Standard.
It has to help children learn and grow. Bonus points if it helps educators grow too.
The best entries name the hurdles up front and say how they'd get past them.
A few of the ideas that came from the people who spend all day with children. Not all of them won. The 2026 winner is already on every educator's wrist.
Kate House at Redland Bay South pitched virtual field trips using VR. It won the first InspirED Award and became WonderNest. Now when a kindergartener asks what it would be like to live with dinosaurs, their educator can put the goggles on them and let them see.
Learn moreNew child safety rules mean educators can't wear phones or smartwatches around children, so they lost their step counters and an easy way to check the time. Nikki Hawkins and Tahlia Potter suggested Little Scholars pedometers and watches. Jae’s response: “That is so easy.” Every educator now has one.
From Deception Bay: a council of children, with shirts and name badges they designed themselves.
Claire Muir at Nerang proposed webinars for parents on keeping children safe.
Nikki Hawkins and Tahlia Potter received the 2026 InspirED Award at our Learning and Development Day on 21 March. Their idea was Little Scholars pedometers and watches, so educators could still count their steps and check the time once phones and smartwatches had to stay away from children. Every educator now has one.
Why does that matter to you? Because the educators in your child's room are trusted to change how we do things, and backed when they do.
Educator with an idea that won't leave you alone? Bring it here.
Learn more
Come and see a campus, the studios and the people your child would spend their days with.
The InspirED Award is Little Scholars' annual innovation award for educators. Educators across all campuses pitch one idea to improve children's learning or the way the company works, a panel of internal and external judges scores the entries, and the winning idea is put into practice across campuses. It began in 2024.
Every Little Scholars educator can enter, either on their own or as a group. Group entries name one person as the main contact.
An individual winner can choose an extra week of annual leave or a $1,000 travel voucher. A winning group can choose a $2,500 equipment and resources voucher or a group event. And the idea gets built.
The first winner, in 2024, was a virtual field trip idea from Kate House at Redland Bay South. It became WonderNest, Little Scholars' educator-led virtual reality program for kindergarten children. The 2026 winners, Nikki Hawkins and Tahlia Potter, suggested Little Scholars pedometers and watches for educators, and every educator now has one.
Let us hold your hand and help looking for a child care centre. Leave your details with us and we’ll be in contact to arrange a time for a ‘Campus Tour’ and we will answer any questions you might have!
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