Alumni and Supporters

When students step into proud science ‘nerd at heart’ Chris Lambe’s Sci-Tech-inspired primary school classroom, they don’t just see a teacher and his full-sized puppet-skeleton, Steve, encouraging them to explore the world around them; they see an educator who truly cares about them and their future.

“For anybody thinking about going into a teaching career, this is one of the most rewarding jobs you can get, and it's not the financial rewards, but you can get big rewards in terms of the impact you've had on someone's life,” he said.

“And it's a joy. I'm not built to sit behind a desk. I love that my day making bread to going outside and looking at bugs, to helping at a sports carnival, to programming robots using computer.

“There's so much variety in what you do in teaching.”

From the young age of eight, Chris always wanted to be a teacher.

Inspired by his mum, an experienced and dedicated education assistant; the Year Three teacher, who allowed him to take over her class and put his first teaching plan into action; and by his favourite teacher, Mr Della, whose inspirational, innovative, hands-on teaching style had a lasting impact on him.

"What better job in the world is there? As a teacher in your classroom, you get to choose the way you're going to do it, and you get to be creative.

“I could be dancing, playing with puppets, building things, drawing, or doing amazing investigations.”

As part of ECU's first cohort to study comprehensive primary program spanning Kindy to Year Seven, Chris learnt how to adapt his teaching style to each child, regardless of age, engaging them in a love of hands-on, play-based learning.

A philosophy that still stands the test of time today because it encourages children of all ages to learn in creative and curious ways.

“We forget play and disengage kids the older they get because we lose a lot of the things early childhood does really well,” he said.

“Learning in early childhood has to be hands-on. Pre-primary kids love playing with Play-Doh. Year Sixes love playing with Play-Doh.

“No day is the same. If there's something about kids, (its) you can't stick to the script. You've got to be flexible.

“I think probably the biggest thing for me is, I want learning to be fun, and I've never forgotten what it's like to be a kid.”

When reflecting on his 25-year career, Chris – who is a Science Specialist at Grandis Primary School- believes that caring is fundamental and it is what makes the teaching profession so incredibly important.

As the winner of the 2025 Teacher of the Year Award, Chris said the beauty of the recognition was that it elevated and showcased just how many different types of roles in teaching there are, and what people are doing to make it special.

He is convinced that there are hundreds of teachers in Western Australia doing amazing work that largely go unrecognised.

He views it quite simply that caring is what sets these quiet achievers and great teachers apart, and it’s this attribute that will allow the profession to withstand the AI revolution: “If real estate is about location, location, location, then teaching is about relationships, relationships, relationships,” he said.

Chris’ impact goes beyond the walls of the classroom, having played a huge role in the leadership of the Fathering Project at his school, which has brought fathers and caregivers actively into school life, strengthening family school connections and promoting positive role modelling.

“For years, I've been selling a message of ‘We need good male role models in schools', and I'm by far in the minority in terms of the male-female ratio in schools, so to actually show kids how to be a good male and someone who can deal with problems in a way that's not aggressive or angry, but also to help dads,” he said.

“Mothers are really great at connecting, particularly when they pick up the kids after school, or have mothers’ groups and things like that. There's a real absence for dads as to what their role looks like and how to do it well.

“It’s teaching dads to be there for their kids, unconditional love and making their kids feel special. It's a simple message that I've been sharing now for 12 years.”

According to Chris, it's through empathy and seeing the world anew that teachers nurture ever-curious, engaged kids.

He emphasises how important it is to remember the ‘ordinary can be extraordinary’ when it’s experienced for the first time by a child.

Chris adds that something as simple as reading to kids every day can instil a lifelong love of learning. This care-first approach has a profound impact, as Chris reflects:

“Some of the kids who’ve had the biggest impact on me, have been kids who often have the biggest behaviour problems. They would tell me stories about why they weren’t succeeding because they weren’t being read to everyday. It’s the little things that you do in the role of a teacher, and you don't realise how much impact it has. We often discount teachers and their importance.”