Positioned between the MCG and Marvel Stadium, RMIT’s city campus is perfectly placed at the heart of Melbourne’s creative, sporting and cultural pulse.
A short tram ride along Route 59 from Essendon, the Club visited the campus’s Children’s Centre this week to deliver its early learning program, Bomber Kids.
Through play-based activities, the program uses Australian rules football to help children develop fundamental movement skills, build social connection and grow confidence. Guided by Essendon Football Club’s community team, the sessions blend storytelling, physical activity and teamwork to ignite curiosity and strengthen the foundational learning habits children need as they prepare to transition into primary school.
Assisting Essendon staff with the delivery of the session were Essendon Education Academy (EEA) students Amelia Sacco and Maddison Cotten.
As part of the EEA course delivered in partnership with RMIT, students graduate with a Dual Diploma of Business and Diploma of Leadership and Management. Alongside their coursework, students complete industry placement hours, with hands-on opportunities such as Bomber Kids supporting their learning.
The excitement at the kindergarten was further elevated with a surprise appearance from Essendon AFLW star and Bomber Kids ambassador, Maddy Prespakis.
Prespakis shared memories of starting Auskick as a four-year-old, playing football with friends in the playground and watching the Bombers train at Windy Hill with her sister and grandmother.
Essendon Community Lead Brendan Hitchens highlighted the value of integrating EEA students into community programs and the broader impact of football at a grassroots level.
“Using their passion for sport to inspire the next generation, Amelia and Maddison were able to see firsthand the enormous engagement and social impact football truly has,” Hitchens said.
“RMIT is a commercial partner across the Club’s AFLW and Victorian Wheelchair Football League programs, but to see that partnership filter down to a grassroots level, teaching football to three- and four-year-olds on campus is incredibly powerful.
“For the children, meeting an AFLW role model didn’t just inspire them; it made the idea of ‘one day, that could be me’ feel real.”
Essendon Football Club Community and Education Coordinator and 2025 EEA graduate Eden Dias echoed the program’s impact on connection and inclusion.
“Bomber Kids isn’t just about sport; it’s about connection and helping children feel part of something bigger. Through movement and play, it brings learning to life.”
For more information on the Bomber Kids program or to book a session at your Early Learning Centre, Kindergarten or Playgroup, click here.
