What’s Been Happening?

On Monday, we were lucky enough to have a visit from Nadia’s mum, Amy. Amy, a qualified chef, kindly volunteered her time and skill to cook a vegan paella for our afternoon tea!

From behind the safety cones, we looked on in awe at the huuuge pan and watched as Amy expertly balanced the flavours of the herbs and spices. As the rice simmered away, the smells wafted through the air and got our stomachs rumbling! The final cooking step was to turn up the heat to create the socarrat - the crispy bottom that makes paella so special.

In discussions with the kids, we found that some had eaten paella before, while others were trying it for the first time (and enjoying it, too!). Haadiya said “It was delicious”, while Clancy said “It was really good! I liked how it was different to normal After Care, and how we got to see the cooking process in the big pan”.

In keeping with the theme, some of us later headed inside to draw portraits inspired by the Spanish artist Pablo Picasso. Using bright oil pastels, Tess and Indigo did a great job at incorporating Picasso’s cubism style into their art.

Outside, the Spanish theme continued with a new game called “Encierro” (or “Bull Run Tiggy”). Similar to games we already know and love, it involved taggers (the bulls) chasing the other players (the entertainers) from corner to corner. We loved seeing how well the children picked up the concept through listening to instructions and just observing others at play. Lennox said “I liked being the bull chasing everyone around, but I also liked dodging the bulls when it was someone else’s turn”. Henk also liked playing the role of the bull, and said “I liked that it was easy to learn because it was sort of like mushroom tiggy and octopus”. Our Educator Thalia, who was running the activity, was really impressed with the involvement and sportsmanship that players showed. “Claude and Charlie F deserve a shout out for assisting younger players - their support helped kids of all ages feel strong and capable”, she said.

Last Day of Term

On the last day of term, OSHC will operate from 1:30pm in line with the school's early dismissal. Please collect your child no later than 5:45pm. If your child usually attends on Wednesdays but will not be coming to OSHC that day, please let us know as soon as you can.

Account Payments

OSHC families will receive their usual statement this Monday, and then a final one after the last three days at school. Please ensure any outstanding balances are paid before the end of the year. If your account is in credit, this will roll over into 2024.

2024 Bookings

Thank you for your patience as we’ve been working through the booking requests for 2024. The growth of the program has exceeded expectations and we’re doing our absolute best to provide a place to all of those in need.

One by one and in alphabetical order, each family is being contacted by email to confirm the availability of their requested sessions. This is a time consuming process, but rest assured that you’ll hear back from us before the school year is over.

Summer Holiday Program

The TeamKids Summer Holiday Program is open for bookings! The program will run from Monday the 8th of January to Friday the 25th. Please see their website, www.teamkids.com.au, for more information.

Newlands OSHC will be running a full day of care on Monday the 29th of January (Day 1 of Term 1, a teachers only day). Parents can request a booking through the Xplor app by selecting the day and writing "Pupil Free Day" in the comments section.

Happy Holidays!

On behalf of everyone at OSHC, thank you for your support this year. 2023 has been a rewarding year filled with fun memories and we’re looking forward to making more in 2024. We hope everyone in the Newlands PS community has a very Merry Christmas and restful break!

Best wishes,

Jill Holmes and the OSHC Team

Year 6 Merri-Bek Youth School Holiday Programs