Our Educators

At Cuddly Bear Templestowe, we are incredibly proud of our long-term team of passionate and dedicated educators. Having been established for nearly three decades, many of our educators have been part of the Cuddly Bear family for 10, 15 and even 20+ years, with some educators having been with us since we first opened our doors in 1999. This longevity has allowed strong, trusting and meaningful relationships to develop with both children and families across generations within our community.

We believe consistency is so important during a child’s early years. Familiar faces help children feel safe, secure, confident and supported as they learn and grow within our warm and homely “second home” environment.

When additional educators or relief staff are needed, we use our own trusted pool of regular casual educators who already know our children, routines, families and values. We do not rely on external agency staff. This helps ensure continuity of care, strong relationships and a calm, familiar environment for the children each and every day.

Our educators are highly qualified, experienced and committed to providing nurturing, high-quality early childhood education and care in a warm and welcoming environment.

All educators at Cuddly Bear Templestowe hold their own level of qualifications within the Early Childhood Education and Care field, ranging from Certificate III, Diploma, Advanced Diploma and Bachelor qualifications.

All our educators also hold certificates and complete ongoing professional development in areas including:

Child Protection and Child Safety
First Aid, CPR, Asthma & Anaphylaxis Management in Early Childhood
Food Safety & Nutrition
Safe Sleep & Infant Safety
Child Safe Standards
EYLF & National Quality Framework Training

See below to meet our wonderful team of educators. Each of us is looking forward to welcoming and getting to know your family as part of the Cuddly Bear Templestowe community.

Management Team

Rebecca (Bec) CO DIRECTOR

(Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday)

Qualifications- – Diploma and Advanced Diploma in Children’s Services, along with Food Safety Supervisor certification.
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: since- 1999
Languages- English
Interests- Spending time with my family, husband Karl and daughter Charlotte, family holidays, watching Charlotte’s sporting activities, weekend brunches and shopping days, coffee catch-ups with friends, too much social media and proudly supporting the Brisbane Lions!

I have been part of the Cuddly Bear Templestowe family for almost three decades and feel incredibly proud to be part of such a special centre within the Manningham community. I love co-leading an amazing and dedicated team and assisting educators to grow and fulfil their passion within the early childhood field. Supporting and mentoring our educators, while creating a positive and welcoming environment for both staff and families, is something I truly value.

Working closely alongside families to provide the highest quality care and education for their beautiful children is one of the most rewarding parts of my role. I am passionate about creating a warm, homely “second home” environment where children feel safe, secure, supported and encouraged to reach their full potential.

Over the years, I have built many meaningful and lasting relationships with children and families, and I feel so grateful to be part of their early learning journey. I take great pride in our long-term team of educators, the strong sense of community within our centre, and the trusting relationships we build with our families each and every day.
Jenna CO DIRECTOR

(Monday, Tuesday & Thursday)

Qualifications- Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care. and Food Safety Supervisor.
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: since- 2011
Languages - English
Days: Monday, Wednesday & Thursday
Interests - My family includes my two sons, Ari and Levi. I enjoy music, movies, food, sewing, dirt bike riding, spending quality time with family and friends, and supporting the Carlton Football Club. One of my favourite things to do is going to the footy with my boys and sharing our love for the game together. Coming from a large and close-knit family, I have always been surrounded by children, which inspired my lifelong passion for early childhood education. As a leader at Cuddly Bear, I feel incredibly proud to guide and support our dedicated team of educators in creating a warm, nurturing, and inspiring environment for every child. I am deeply passionate about supporting children through their early years, helping them grow with confidence, curiosity, and a strong sense of belonging. I believe every child is unique, and I strive to encourage their individual interests, strengths, and personalities while building meaningful relationships with both children and families. .
Natalie 2IC, Educational Leader & Qualified Educator in al

(Wednesday, Thursday & Friday)
Qualifications - Advanced Diploma and Diploma of Children services
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: since- 2013
Languages - Arabic and English
Interests - Shopping, Friends, Brands, Food, Coffee Dates with Friends

I understand the importance of working with children and their families during their early years. I am the Educational Leader at Cuddly Bear Templestowe and work closely with our educators to ensure that each child at Cuddly Bear Templestowe receives the best possible care that is tailored to their individual needs. They also strive to support families in working together with our team to provide high-quality care.

I enjoy collaborating with educators and providing curriculum direction and guidance, supporting our team in effectively implementing the cycle of planning and enhancing programs and practices and I ensure that the children's learning and development is guided by the learning outcomes of the Early Years learning framework.

I work alongside Bec and Jenna to develop and review professional development plans for educators to reflect on their teaching practices and love helping educators provide age-appropriate and child-centered activities for all children, with a focus on fun and building friendships at Cuddly Bear Templestowe

Educators

Pas Qualified Room Leader Pre-Kinder Room

Qualifications - Diploma in Children’s Services
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: since-2003
Languages - English and Italian
Interests - family, catching up with friends, Netflix and long walks

I’m Passionate about encouraging children to explore their surroundings and watching their curiosity grow, building relationships with children and their families and working with talented team of Educators to exceed the high on going performance to the best of our abilities.
Danielle Qualified Educator in all rooms & Cook

Qualifications - Diploma of Early Childhood education.
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe - Employed at Cuddly Bear Templestowe since 2003
Languages - English
Interests - Spending time with family, Travelling, Beaches, Gym , cooking and nature.

I love working with children –I love enjoy working alongside and supporting families by caring and educating their children by providing a range of learning experiences. I enjoy watching children grow and develop in all areas. I believe I learn as much from the children as they do from adults.
Rosy Qualified Educator in all rooms and Lunch Reliever

Qualifications - Diploma in Early Childhood Education and Care
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: since- 2005
Languages - Arabic, French and English
Interests - Catching up with friends, Coffee, Laughing, Food, Gardening, Travel

As an educator I strive to provide the best care and nurture for all children. I enjoy interacting with families to work together in gaining knowledge to further extend on children’s development. I like to keep all families involved in decision making and part of our community. I like to build a sense of community by helping families feel comfortable.
Rebecca W Qualified Educator in the Toddler Room

Qualifications - Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: since-2012
Languages - English
Interests - Music, Gardening, Camping and seeing the world.

I LOVE working with children. Where else can you go to work, play and laugh and have fun all whilst making a difference in someone’s life. To walk into work and be greeting by smiling faces and big cuddles, you just know it is going to be a good day. To form bonds and have children let you in and trust you enough to share their world with you is just magical.
Chloe 3/4 yr old Kindergarten Teacher

Qualifications - Bachelor of Teaching and Learning Early Childhood, Bachelor of Education (Honours) (Primary) and Diploma of Children’s Services
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: since- 2015
Languages - Mandarin and English
Interests- Travelling, cooking and watching movies

I love guiding children to achieve their full potential, it is the most rewarding job I can think of! I have genuine passion for children because I admire children’s honesty, creativity and resilience. Watching children grow and learn is amazing. I love that no single day at work is the same.
Daphne Qualified Room Leader in the Toddler Room

Qualifications - Diploma of Early Childhood and Education
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: June 2017
Languages - Greek and English
Interests - Spending time with family and friends, and reading.

I love seeing children interact with one another whether it's in their play or through conversations. Engaging in conversations with children and listening to them when they speak. Also, I love seeing children being happy and my favourite is when I hear children's laugher- can't help but laugh with them.
Fotini Qualified Educator in all rooms

Qualifications - Diploma of Early childhood Education and Care
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: since- June 2018
Languages - Greek and English
Interests - I love to travel and spend time with my husband and my two children Maki and Elefteria.

I really enjoy my job, getting down on the children's level to take part in lot of exciting experiences with them. My greatest satisfaction is seeing how much children grow and develop during a year and knowing I played an important part in that.
Ellen Qualified Educator in all rooms

Qualifications -Diploma Early Childhood Education and Care
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: since-2018
Languages - Mandarin and English
Interests - reading, cooking, singing

Every child is unique and all are special. I love children and I enjoy working with children because I love the way they look at the world. I love to see them grow and I love to see all the things they learn and how surprised they are at things.
Clare Qualified Room Leader - Babies Room

Qualifications - Diploma of Community Services (Children's Services)
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: since-Feb 2018
Languages - English
Interests - travel, country music, spending time with family.

I love to know the care we provide may help nurture them into kind, resilient, respectful and accepting individuals as they grow older.
Jenny Qualified Educator - Babies Room

Qualifications - Diploma in Early Childhood Education and Care.
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: since- March 2018.
Languages - Croatian and English
Interests - Travelling, being outdoors/nature/bushwalking and gardening.

I love watching the children grow and develop especially if I have been with them since they have been in the babies room and seeing all their milestones/achievements.
Katarina Qualified Educator in all rooms

Qualifications: Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: since December 2019
Language spoken: English
Interests: Love spending time with family which includes my 5 adult children; and especially my four grandchildren Ari, Harper, Levi and Addalyn. Like to watch movies, watch AFL footy and my husband and I definitely have the travel bug and love to explore the world as much as possible.

I love working with children as they are always honest and have a unique perspective of the world. They can make you laugh with the funny little things they say, do and tell you; and it is a very rewarding job to be able to nurture, care and develop their individual personalities and interests.
Yafit Chef/ Centre Cook

Qualifications - Certificate 5 in hospitality management, commercial cookery & patisserie, food safety supervisor, child protection in early childhood and first aid
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: since June 2019
Languages - English & Hebrew
Interests - cooking & baking, music, traveling in Australia & overseas, and spending time with my family.

I love cooking and I love seeing the children enjoying the different meals. I enjoy creating a variety of dishes that are colorful, nutritional and tasty that support the children throughout their busy days at Cuddly Bear.
Julia Qualified Educator in all rooms

Qualifications - Diploma of Early Childhood education.
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: Employed at Cuddly Bear Templestowe since 2022
Languages - English and Chinese
Interests - Sewing reading and dinging in my spare time.

I love working with children, I love everything about children during their early childhood years, and I like to communicate with young children. I think its so wonderful for me to be involved in the centre that is passionate about children’s development as I know I make a differences.
Cassia Childcare Assistant in all Rooms

Qualifications- Certificate III Early Childhood Education
Languages- English, Portugese

Why do you love working in the Early Childhood Field: I love interacting with young children and really enjoy helping them to develop and grow.
I'm married with three adult children.
I have been working in Early Childhood Education for many years and have had the chance to work in diverse educational settings.
My key strength as an educator is my interaction with children, getting down to their level, really listening and spending high quality time with them.
I genuinely enjoy working with young children and love to see their growth and development.
I understand the importance of strong collaboration between home and the centre. I'm looking forward to building a positive relationship you and your family.
Laura Qualified Educator in all rooms

Qualifications - Diploma of Early Childhood education.
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe - since October 2023
Languages - English
Interests - Writing Books, Rading, Video games and travelling.

I work with children because it is such a joy to watch them grow and experience the world. It’s nice to be part of their journey.
Garima Four-year-old Funded Kindergarten Teacher

Qualifications- Bachelor in Early Childhood Education
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: Since May 2024
Languages- English, Hindi, Rajasthani
Interests- Music and Yoga
Why do you love working in the Early Childhood Field- I love working in the early childhood field as it gives me the opportunity to be an essential part of their crucial age and to be able to support their initial development and skills.
Helen Educator in all rooms

Qualifications – Certificate Three in early Childhood Education and care.
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: Since November 2023
Languages- English, Greek and French
Interests- I love being with my family, and like reading books and singing too.

I love working with children, Seeing them grow and develop and to support each child to become independent. It is such a rewarding profession that I feel blessed to be part of the children’s lives in the first 5 years of their lives.
Maureen EDUCATOR IN ALL ROOMS

Qualifications- Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care
Employed At Cuddly Bear Templestowe: Since June 2024
Languages- Mandarin
Interests- Gardening & Painting

Working in early childhood is the opportunity to impact the youth and get significant inspiration from them positively. I like to get along and grow together with the children.

* Years of Service as of May 2026