Reflections of an Educator

the artist formerly known as the Educator's Symposium & Resource Emporium 

We started our journey as the Educator's Symposium & Resource Emporium, more fondly known as ESRE. In 2021 we realised that the name of our Reflection Journal was a more fitting name for our business. We had moved in slightly new directions and were no longer running the combined conferences with markets! So, Reflections of an Educator is our new name! 

Reflections of an Educator is the love child of Phoenix Support for Educators and Sticks & Stones Education. We began as a Symposium & Emporium, running together side by side. Two crazy kids with a wild plan ...

Sandi & Gaby

Things then took a twist, as they do in life, and we decided to publish reflective journals, planning diaries and calendars for early childhood educators. We spent months mapping out our ideas and intentions. We met up in Newtown and gathered our thoughts and dreamed big and ate Thai and vegan gelato 

We researched and set about creating products that were nothing like those already on the education landscape. We wanted educators to have a beautiful publication so we enlisted an amazing graphic designer to bring our ideas to fruition.

Or vision was to create beautifully designed publications of the highest quality that would provide educators with the perfect blend of structure and creative freedom. We certainly achieved that vision with our publications being used by thousands of educators across Australia. In fact educators across the globe are discovering the beauty and versatility of our products. 

In 2020 we forged a new path and added digital products to our online store. We continue to evolve and meet the needs of our customers. 

Gaby Flavin 

Gabrielle Flavin, is an Early Childhood Teacher. She really prefers to be called Gaby. Gabrielle is her naughty name. In her current incarnation, Gaby is a teacher as well as the owner of Sticks & Stones Education.  Gaby decided that working full time, fostering orphan kittens and running a side business wasn’t enough. She really needed another project in her life, and that was where the Emporium met the Symposium and ESRE was born.

In her not so past life, Gaby was an Educational Leader to Educational Leaders; also known as a project coordinator who supported the Educational Leaders of 25 children's services ranging from Family Day Care through to Long Day Care and Out of School Care services.  When you write it all out, it looks like a lot! Her role consisted of meeting with Educational Leaders and educators, chatting about their service’s curriculum, documentation, and pedagogical story sharing. It also involved collaboratively solving challenges and supporting services to navigate the complexities of the National Quality Framework, including Assessment and Rating.   This was a two year funded project that sadly came to an end, however the love of working with educators and exploring reflective practices lived on …

Sandi Phoenix 

Sandi is the founding company director and Principal Facilitator at Phoenix Support. Her framework, The Phoenix Cups, have revolutionised how staff not only work with children’s behaviour, but how teams view each other’s behaviour. The approach provides a framework of how to understand and respond positively to differences and conflict. The Phoenix Cups adds a new perspective to understanding each other and learning to work and live in harmony together.

Sandi’s coaching and consultancy style comes from a strengths-based perspective and is informed by a comprehensive understanding of the National Quality Framework and underpinning theory. Sandi takes a positive approach to guiding expected behavioural choices within inclusive learning environments, following vast experience working with children with disabilities and children who display complex behaviours in both early childhood settings, youth care, and school-age care since 1998.

Since 2009, Sandi has been involved in supporting educators and teams to implement the National Quality Framework through various roles. These roles range from individualised in-service coaching and mentoring, presenting at conferences, teaching the Diploma of Early Childhood Education, developing written resources, and consulting in the design of software that supports efficient and effective curriculum planning and service operations. She is highly regarded nationwide as a speaker, coach, mentor and Professional Development Facilitator for the education and care sector.

Sandi's qualifications include a Bachelor of Psychological Science and Cert IV in Training and Assessment.

Sandi is an Affiliate of the Australian Psychological Society and currently holds membership of the APS.

Our Reflection Journals, Planning Diaries, and Calendar

Reflections of an Educator - Reflective Journal

Our Reflective Journals stand apart. The ESRE founders, Sandi and Gaby designed a journal for educator reflections unlike any other journal on the market.  Our journals were designed by an amazingly talented graphic designer using the knowledge and experience of both founders. 

When engaging in personal reflections, it is sometimes difficult to know just where to start. That is why our journals are perfect. They are the perfect

Our journals are designed for the individual, and designed to be private. We believe that The Personal Reflections of an Educator should be the sacred private space for educators to reflect. Educators may choose to share their reflections with their colleagues or mentors. 

Planning Diary 

Our Planning Diary also very much sits apart from the others on the market.  It is a unique documentation tool for educators planning for children’s learning. Many of the planning diaries on the market are highly prescriptive and lock educators into a set format with boxes to tick with very little room to move and no space to innovate. The ESRE Planning Diary is an open ended resources that provides open-ended writing spaces. Educators may choose to write narratives illustrating the learning within their spaces, or they may be more visually creative and mind-map, web or collage.

The Planning Diary is also designed by Gaby and Sandi, but it is definitely Sandi's baby. Sandi has worked with hundreds of education services and schools and thousands of educators across Australia. Gaby worked as an Educational Leader managing a project working with 25 Educational Leaders and their services in exploring the Early Years Learning Framework and implementing the National Quality Framework. Together Sandi and Gaby collaborated and came up with a book that they felt gave educators a balanced flexible framework - something they could make their own.

Planning Calendar 

Our Planning Calendar is the perfect companion for our other two products. It's also a perpetual calendar that enables people to use the blank pages as they see fit. We have seen some amazing samples of educator's work. One educator uses it as a vision board for  the team to be inspired with setting up the learning spaces. 

EYLF Scrapbook Series 

We designed the Scrapbook series to compliment the Planning Calendar. We took the key themes from the Early Years Learning Framework and with our amazing graphic artist and designer Sonya, turned them into a series of printables that educators can use to document their planning and children's learning. Other educators use it for webbing and others use it to note down the learning and significant moments in the children's learning - including photos. 

Professional Development Notebook 

We pulled our professional notes sections together and created a handy dandy professional development notebook! This is a space for you to keep your notes and ideas that you gather when engaged in professional development - either face to face or virtually. We've made this both a digital download as well as a printed notebook. 

Professional Support Resources

We are actively working on more support resources for you ... Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to keep abreast with all the awesomeness.