Newsletter - February 2016

What’s  happening AT Pukeko Corner?

We know that you have had some wonderful holiday adventures as we are hearing about it all the time.  The kete idea is a great success. Such a fantastic way to share a little of your holidayexperiences with us. If your child hasn’t shared their adventures with us, you can bring back their kete with photos, bits and pieces collected or whatever they wish. It is wonderful to see children identifying similar experiences which is sparking great conversation.

Lots of our children have been enjoying group dramatic play at the moment. Using their imaginations and creating boats to go fishing,  cars, buses and trains with the boxes outside.  Thanks Jade Sherriff for the boxes.

Have you seen the harmony garden lately, thanks to Khushraj and his gardening skills the sunflowers are looking exquisite. We have been eating the strawberries and grapes for morning tea...delish!

To continue the holiday feeling we have a Whānau Beach Day planned for Saturday the 12th March at Anzac Bay.  Bring along your picnic and beach gear, and celebrate summer and friends with us from 10am. If the weather is not looking good please check our phone message for information.

Bike Week 15th to 19th Feb

We are off again to join in on the fun at Tykes on Trikes on Friday 19th Feb at Moore Park run by Sports BOP.   So bring along your child’s bike, trike or scooter and of course their helmet (They will be taken down to the park by trailer).  We will leave kindy  about 9.45am and be back around 12.00.  The course is on grass so it can be a little tricky for some children.  If you have a free morning we welcome you to come join us. Due to all the fun and learning we have on our bikes we are having a bike week starting Monday 15th Feb so you can leave your child’s bike here all week.

Story Park

Story park is an online programme that will allow us to write learning stories, share events,  share photos and videos of learning etc and send it directly to your computer, phone or tablet. Best of all it is free to you and you are able to invite family members to view and comment on the learning. It’s very exciting!!  It will take us a little while to roll it out and learn all the ins and outs.  You will receive an information pack soon. If you are curious to learn more check out www.storypark.com

Sunhats, Sunhats, Sunhats and Sunblock!!

Please provide a named sunhat for your child; a wide brim is better.  We have a rule for Term 1 and 4... No hat, no outside play. Sounds harsh but it’s the sun that is harsh on the young skin of our children. For those new to our summer routines, please sun block your children at home and we will re-apply after lunch with our natural sunblock.

Marae Visit

We are planning a bus trip to our local marae, Te Rereatukahia. The date is still to be confirmed. At the moment we are learning about the Treaty of Waitangi, Maori tikanga (culture)  and waiata to prepare ourselves.  All are welcome to enjoy this very rich and important part of our community. Usually we leave the Marae straight after lunch and thought this year maybe while we still have the bus we visit somewhere else as well. Any ideas? I know lots of our families have farms/lifestyle blocks with different animals.  Anyone open to a bus full of preschoolers?

Teachers Only Day

Thought we would mention now that we are planning a teacher only day on Tuesday 29th March (the day after Easter), for  reviewing parts of our programme and developing action plans.

Lexham Park

We continue to build on our relationships with our friends at Lexham Park by visiting once a month. What a sight to see, our children making friends, and bringing smiles and laughter to our older generation.  Research about intergenerational relationships in Early Childhood re-affirms how beneficial these relationships are.   If the weather is a little wet we will still walk there so bring along coats and gumboots please.

Spaces available

You may have noticed a large number of our children have gone to school recently; 11 in all.  Due to this we have several spaces available so if you know any families thinking about early childhood education please invite them to ring or visit us.

Mega Fun Club

We started Mega fun Club for families who needed us to stay open longer hours. As you may be aware we don’t have many children enrolled after 2.45pm which puts us in a tricky situation.  It is not financially viable to continue as it is, so we have had to review it.  We decided to keep Mega Fun club because we see the need but unfortunately will need to raise the fees.  We will finalise the details shortly.  If you have any suggestions or concerns please discuss with Cathy.

Teachers Professional Development

This term Cathy, Dianne and Jody are attending their First Aid refresher course. All our teachers have their First Aid certificate that needs renewing every 2 years.

Kim and Corina are finishing off there Incredible Years Course for teachers  and Cathy and Jody are starting it.  Incredible Years  is a programme based on positive relationships, fostering children’s social emotional competence and emotion regulation.

Christina is starting her Early Childhood Education Training and will be a away a week each month.  We are all very excited for her.

Three pieces of fruit a week

Please remember to bring in your 3 pieces of fruit each week for your contribution towards the children’s morning teas. 

Missing Resources

We have noticed that some of our resources have gone missing , please if you have any toys/resources that belong to kindy at home please bring them back.

Spare Clothes

It’s that time of the year where we all love to get wet and some of us muddy.  Please provide your child with togs, and at least two changes of named clothes. We don’t want your child to miss out on sprinkler/slippery slide or mud fun and learning just because they have no spare clothes.

Staffing

Just for your information: Jody has Friday off, Corina - Wednesday,Kim - Monday, and Cathy Thursday.  Cathy and Kim job share Tuesdays. Grandpa Gary will now be here on Wednesdays and Fridays.  Christina is off on Friday.

We have three lovely trained teachers who relieve for us; Helen Bosson, Janet Grant, and Stacey Temple.

We have lots of cool things planned for the next few months.  Please note them in your diary or calendar.

Important Dates:

Lexham Park                                 Thurs 11th Feb, Thurs 24th March & 3rd May

Bike Week                                     15th to 19th Feb

Tykes on Trikes                            Fri 19th Feb

Whānau Beach Day                     Sat 12th March

Fire Drill                                          Tues 16th Feb

Earthquake Drill                           Wed 2nd March

Teacher Only Day                        Tues 29th March

Thanks for all your wonderful support

God Bless from Cathy, Jody, Kim, Corina, Gary, Christina, and Dianne.