waite campus childrens centre...and lowering the lights to let the body know it is time to slow...
TRANSCRIPT
Those all important Diary Dates:
End of year closure dates 6.00pm Friday 20th December to
8.00am Monday 6th January. There will be no charge for this
period.
Closure Day: November On November 28th the Centre will be
having a closure day for the educator and staff team to engage
in professional development, learning the art of key word
signing. There will be no charge for this day.
The Parent Advisory Group (PAG) meets on
Mondays for this semester, from 1pm to 2pm at
the Lirra Lirra Café on campus. Our November
meeting finalised the program review for 2019.
To see the educators report to PAG please scroll
to the last pages!
The Adelaide University Childcare Services Inc.
Board (AUCS) meeting was Monday 25th
November.
Waite Campus Childrens Centre
Family News November 2019
Some wise words…. From past Director Kaarin Wilkinson, on her Kind Mind Consulting blog Friends are important for our quality of life and our mental health. Friends provide us with the opportunity to experience philial love, the care and warmth of mutual friendship. Through friends we learn about ourselves as we share our life and enjoy common experiences. The people we make lasting friendships with are the ones we put effort into knowing, we learn to trust and respect them. We enjoy their company and they enjoy ours. They usually share some of the same interests as us and we do things we both love together. It takes time to make true friends and both people need to apply some effort towards getting to know the other person and to be open to letting them get to know you. Friends can lean on one another when life is tough and share the joy and happiness of special events and achievements. A true friendship requires both giving and receiving. Some of us are happy we have a few close friends and other more sociable people may have a very large group of friends they share different interests with. Some friends we have for life and some are good friends for a shorter time at different stages of our life or as we mature, change homes or move into a new career.
“Friendship, knowledge and food are the three most valuable things in the world.”
Old Burmese saying
We form social bonds with many people, work colleagues, neighbours, service providers and people in the local community. We may develop friendships with some of these people but mostly we will interact with them in a friendly way without developing the closeness of true friendship. This is what we teach young children. They do not need to be friends with all their peers, however, they should always be friendly. One of the biggest difficulties I see in the world today is the lack of friendly behaviour to those we don’t know and/or don’t understand. Being friendly means being polite and courteous, showing good manners in your interactions. It is unfortunate that many of our community leaders, especially those at high levels of responsibility and accountability frequently use language that is not friendly. We hear too much anger and hate and negativity and it seems the social bonds we build within our communities are not as strong as in the past.
“If there is righteousness in the heart, there will be beauty in the character. If there is beauty in the character, there will be harmony in the home.
If there is harmony in the home, there will be order in the nations. When there is order in the nations, there will peace in the world.”
A smile when passing someone on the street or walking the dog, a thank you for service given, a helping hand for someone who seems to be struggling, generally being friendly to all builds a stronger community.
“Every breath we take, every step we make, can be filled with peace, joy and serenity.” Thich Nhat Hanh
From Megan Daly who brought you the 100 best books for sustainability comes a list of what to read next. This
list has suggested books to read from birth all the way through to 50 and beyond! Read some or read them all.
Happy reading!
https://childrensbooksdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Children%E2%80%99s-books-daily-ebook-design-2.pdf
Parent Night with Dino Mennillo
For those of you who were not able to make it to our parent night with Dino Mennillo, here is a summary of what he spoke about.
Dino (from Occupational Therapy for Children) spoke at WCCC on Tuesday 5/11/19 and provided us all with an information packed
session, so much information that it is difficult to get it into a cohesive summary. He provided a good mix of real life stories from his own
family experiences, as well as information backed by research and theory. He spoke of the detrimental effect of screen time for young
children, the importance of sensory play, the significance of daytime sleeps, and positive sleep routines, a parent’s role in play, and the
importance of consistency in a child’s life.
Dino says children are not academic beings, they are physical beings, social beings and emotional beings. Children need to engage in
play that supports efficient brain development. The brain is a muscle and needs to be worked and stimulated to develop. The best way
of stimulating your brain is through sensory integration – using all the senses to help the brain organise information. Stimulating the
brain through touch, both inside and outside your body, sight, sound, smell and taste, as well as the lesser known senses, needing
movement and the pull of gravity. That is the vestibular sense; how movement affects your body; how force impacts your head position,
and proprioception; where you are in space; if you close your eyes you still know where you are.
The other impact on successful growth and development is sufficient sleep, supported by a consistent daytime and night time sleep
routine. Sleep is the time that pathways in your brain are ‘laid and cemented’, all the learning from the experiences of the day are
organised and filed ready for future use. Dino emphasised that night time routines should consist of television off to reduce stimulation,
and lowering the lights to let the body know it is time to slow down, preceded by some rough and tumble play. Rough and tumble is the
perfect way of letting off some steam before bed, as well as developing the close connections that are critical between you and your
child. Reading your child’s signs will let you know how much rough and tumble to do. They will tell you when they have had enough, and
this is the time to stop. If you stop before they are finished you will only succeed in revving them up, not settling them down.
One of Dino’s strongest messages is to be present in your child’s life and to take a consistent and active role in their play. He
acknowledges that being a parent is one of the hardest roles you will have to play in your life, but says you don ’t have to be child
minded to be a good parent. He says play is important across the lifespan. If you can say ‘yes’ to your child then always say ‘yes’, and
ignore the ‘do I want to?’. Dino emphasised the importance of letting your child fail, so they develop the resilience to recover from
failure, and to have them win at games naturally, not letting them win. Providing consistency in your child’s lives gives them a stable
base from which to grow.
Dino can be found at https://occupationaltherapychildren.com.au/.
Our iconic butterflies are
finally back. They may
look a bit different as
their colouring had to
change. But the shapes
are still the same. Here are some
photos for those of you who do not
often make it to the centre.
Connecting to Place Week
For a few years now WCCC has been celebrating Connecting to Place, a time to come together in Pilyabilyangga
and celebrate connections to each other and connections to the land we are on. As part of our education in
sustainability, and in teaching the understandings of the First Nations people, the importance of the land and our
influence on the land is highlighted to children. Starting our day in Pilyabilyangga and spending extended time in
the garden enables children the opportunity to understand and know their place, and to understand their effect on
land.
Land is of significance to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and their knowledge and understanding
of the living environment is a reciprocal relationship, based on respect. “Land sustains and provides for people,
and people manage and sustain the land through culture and ceremony” (Common Ground First Nations).
Aboriginal peoples understanding of land and water is passed down from generation to generation, and the living
environment is fundamental to identity. Children at WCCC are taught and expected to respect the land they are
given to play and learn on, and are taught the impact their actions have on land. As evidence suggests that there
are positive physical health benefits from living and working and learning on the land, this is an important teaching
for children.
Connecting to Place 2019 ended with a whole centre walk together. This is the first time the whole centre has
come together for a walk around the grounds of the Waite Campus, and a shared lunch on the grass of Urrbrae
House. Sandwiches made by Grace provided a delicious lunch to share. Connections were fostered as children sat
together on rugs in the shade of the trees and building and enjoyed their lunch, with much discussion of the
different sandwich fillings. Please look to the next page for some photos of the week.
https://www.commonground.org.au/learn/connection-to-country
https://www.qm.qld.gov.au/Find+out+about/Aboriginal+and+Torres+Strait+Islander+Cultures/Land#.Xdo6AdV9g2w
End of Year Celebration
Keep the evening of Tuesday 17th December free for our
end of year celebration at the Gum oval (Waite Campus).
Entertainment will be from My Oopy (you may remember
him from last year). There will also be a face painter
available for small pieces. We will provide sausages and
bread for all and ask that you bring a plate of salad or
fruit to share. The event will be from 6.15pm to 8.00pm.
Program and Service Review 2019
Each year we ask families for feedback on the year we have had and the education and care service provided here
at WCCC. This is done in the form of an online survey. You can follow the link here https://
www.surveymonkey.com/r/F3YZQY5 or scan the QR code to complete the survey. It will take less than 10 minutes
to complete.
The responses we collect from the survey will help with goal setting and educator reflections for the
coming year. Please complete this survey once for each child. Thank you. We value your input and
reflections. QR Code
Staff matters
Stefi has resigned from her position in Room 1 to
continue her studies and has successfully gained
employment in her field of study. She will not be
returning to Waite. We are all sorry to see her go but
wish her all the best for her future endeavours.
Tamala will be continuing in Room 1 until the end of
the year, and the position will be advertised next year
after consideration to utilisation.
Emilie R3 and Karen R1 will be taking extended leave
over the break for some time with family.
All Things Green National Recycling Week
Our Fresh Produce and Seed Swap table was a hit! All week delicious produce, seeds and bulbs were shared and taken home by families. So popular that a sharing table is becoming a permanent fixture in reception so all year round we can share the spoils from our garden. Think about herbs, vegetables, seeds, eggs, fruits, seedlings, preserves, jams…. The list goes on….
National Bird Week
National Bird Week was recognised from Monday 21st October to Sunday 27th
October. As part of National Bird Week children participated in the Aussie Backyard
Bird Count with Birdlife Australia. This involved acting as citizen scientists and
noticing and counting the birds seen in your environment in a 20 minute period each
day. Birdlife Australia was interested in both the types of birds seen as well as how
many. We downloaded an app to one of the Room 3 tablets to manage the recording
of information. Dani also produced a paper copy so children could engage more
closely with the survey. Some children even took the survey home and completed it
at home too, involving siblings, and becoming more aware of the life around them.
Over the week, we identified 11 different types of birds including the Yellow-tailed
Black Cockatoo and counted over 500 birds.
There are some very keen bird watchers developing from this!
Rye straws
Looking for an alternative to the plastic drinking straw? An entrepreneur in South Australia, “Mister Rye”, has
come up with the idea of making drinking straws from the hollow stalks of rye left over during harvesting. They are
re-useable, biodegradable and can even be put in the dishwasher. Mister Rye is aiming to produce one million rye
straws from the first harvest, which will take place in December in South Australia’s Riverland. Apparently rye
straws were the original straws, used long before plastic.
When not disposed of properly, plastic straws have significant negative impact on the environment. They can take
hundreds if not thousands of years to break down (if they ever do?). They are a danger to marine life and result in
toxic waste in landfill, if they make it to landfill. For more information go to….
https://www.kidsnews.com.au/environment/rye-straw-could-replace-plastic-straws/news
-story/7984c5672d7056ef8d027dfbc3dc60e8
https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2019-10-11/recycled-rye-straws-an-option-to-help-
environment-and-farmers/11589450
Educator Reports to families
Room One
Becoming capable cooks
In recent weeks Room One children have had the opportunity to participate in several weekly cooking
experiences. Our first experience was a simple stir- fry adding chopped tomatoes with soy sauce to eggs.
The children enjoyed breaking and whisking the eggs into the mixing bowl. We all watched as the mixture
was cooked in the electric frypan on the kitchen bench by Lingling. The sounds and delicious smells of the
food cooking got everyone’s appetite primed ready for afternoon tea. We followed this by making
Indonesian Coconut pancakes (Dadar Gulung) and discovered how many of the children like the taste of
coconut. We also made an African favourite- Ugali (from maize) with Tamala and Grace’s help to
accompany a Kenyan stew for lunch. Cooking offers an engaging, multisensory experience and
contributes to a shared sense of belonging and well-being, with a good measure of fun thrown in. There
are also a range of skills to practice and develop such as physical motor skills as children coordinate
cracking eggs, whisking and stirring and pouring ingredients. Cooking involves learning good hygiene
practices for food handling, following a sequence, observing cause and effect, counting and measuring,
following directions, taking turns and offers benefits towards developing a varied taste palate, which the
children are already exposed to with Grace’s wonderful diverse menu.
Community connections and visits
Many of the Friday Room One children ventured to Room Three to see Byron, a snake handler with his
pet python talk about “snake awareness”. As we know, snakes are an important part of the local
biodiversity but there is also the need to provide children with knowledge about being safe around
snakes. It was encouraging to hear several Room One children return from the visit communicating the
message of “Don’t touch a snake”.
Our other nearby community visit was to the Netherby Kindy to share in their planned Police visit. I am
sure many of the older children found this of interest seeing the police car and hearing the sirens! Such
mini excursions are a great way for the children to explore beyond Room One to parts of the
neighbourhood with their trusted educators, with the support from Eleanor and current students Saru
and Maddie.
Singing Songs
We continue to sing songs daily with the children and often get positive feedback from families that the
children go home singing many of their favourite songs. Some of our recent faves that you may not find
on Spotify include: “One little finger”, “I had a little turtle…….”, “Jump in the middle, jump jump Josie”,
“You are my sunshine”, “Hop little bunnies” and “I can sing a rainbow” to name a few. Such experiences
provide a sense of a predictable routine for the children times of transition, supporting a sense of calm
and promoting language and communication. So keep singing with your children whenever you can.
Room Two
Friday 8th November Byron, a snake handler, came him with his pet carpet python. The children learnt
about what to do if they saw a snake in our yard. Byron told us to move away, and go tell an educator.
Now if you ask the children what to do if we see a snake in the yard, they will tell you “Run away and tell a
teacher”
On Monday 11th November, we joined Netherby Kindy in a visit from SAPOL. The children got to look at
some of the police uniform and equipment, and Police Officer Sam took us to see the back of the police
car (Paddy wagon) and we got to hear the siren.
The children have been interested in dancing with the disco lights on. They are so interested, that the
dancing gets abandoned to watch the lights.
Other interests have been animals, dolls and blankets, reading stories especially “The Bear Hunt” acting
out stories in their play, body awareness songs, watching the tortoises and fish, and yoga.
Room Three
Aussie Bird Week was a week full of bird identification and counting. The Room 3 children were extremely
interested in the bird count and were excited to create their own tallies and share them with their family.
This has continued over the next few weeks and Dani is in the process of developing a butterfly
observation sheet to further extend the children’s interest in nature and the world around them.
The addition of the Tortoises, Fluffy and Scruffy, to the centre have added lots of learning opportunities.
Children have been enjoying observing the tortoises when they have their outside time in the sun and
watching them swim in their tank.
We celebrated Outdoor Classroom Day last Thursday by sending time in the Adventure Playground and
enjoying our lunch together outside. We also discussed our favourite things we like to do outside. The
most popular things the children like to do are jumping on their trampolines, playing with friends, running
and climbing.
The scarecrow project has been well enjoyed by all of
the children and we received a 3rd place for Rainbow
Violet and a certificate of merit for Bobby Dave. The
children would like to make a whole scarecrow family
so this is something we may continue until the end of
the year and the beginning of next year.