Kinder

Important Dates

Tuesday March 4th - Water Safety Incursion, Banksia and Lasiandra

Friday March 7th - Water Safety Incursion, Wattle and Waratah

Monday March 10th - Labour Day Public Holiday (No Kinder)

Thursday March 22nd Harmony Day (more information to come)

Friday March 21st - Colour Run (more information to come)

Monday March 24th - Reponsible Pet Owners Incursion, Lasiandra

Wednesday March 26th - Reponsible Pet Owners Incursion, Waratah

Friday April 4th - Last day of Term 1

A New Kinder Year!

The new year is an exciting time for children, families and our teaching team. Welcome to those of you returning and those of you who are new to our service. It’s great to have you at our service – the years your child spends in early childhood education can help them thrive and develop skills to succeed in school and later in life.

Studies show children who attend kindergarten for 2 years have better development in language, pre-reading, early number concepts, independence, concentration, and social skills when starting school.

From all accounts the children are settling in and confidently exploring their new kinder spaces.

Our teachers are deeply committed to the children's learning and development, and are very approachable and always keen to engage with parents and families about their child's learning and progress. I know that we all have a great respect for their depth of knowledge and expertise and we will listen to their thoughts and advice closely. We feel so very fortunate to have such a great team to be part of your children’s journey as they take on this new phase of growing up.

Our teachers love feedback directly from our families too, so please feel free to speak to the teachers or write some feedback notes on the reflection books in the foyer.  This is a great way to ensure we are including our little learners home lives into our programs.

As the Director of the Kindergarten, I am here on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and I am always available for a friendly chat, I love to hear about any ideas or thoughts from our parent community. So, feel free to find me at the front office or contact me via email megan.arnold@education.vic.gov.au

Communication

We encourage frequent and open communication between families and teachers, and understand that this is the basis for a strong home-kinder partnership. Sometimes you may have questions for your child's teacher, and usually the best way to contact them initially is via email. We have amazing teachers, but they are often very busy, particularly during the morning drop off time as they settle the children in for the day ahead. Teachers will always endeavour to get back to you if you email or call as soon as they possibly can, but please be aware that teachers are under no obligation to respond to communication after their work hours. This is in line with the Right to Disconnect legislation, and something that we work hard to follow to enable our staff the best chance at a manageable work/life balance. 

Informal communication will occur from time to time at drop off and pick up times however if you or the teacher are wishing to discuss things a little more formally a time can be made to meet.  We also provide a Mid-Year Summative Assessment for all children and encourage families to reach out if they wish to chat more about this report which will come to you at the end of Term 2.  Again at the end of Term 4 another formal document of assessment will be given to families.  If your child is in 3 YO you will receive an End of Year Summative Assessment and if your child is in 4 YO this will be a Transition, Learning and Development Statement (TLDS).  The TLDS will also be sent on to the school you choose for your child with your permission.

Hot weather

If the weather is too hot (over 35 degrees) the children will be kept inside.  Often parents worry that their child will be outside on very hot days, but please rest assured if it is extremely hot, students will remain indoors in the cool. If it is raining heavily, students will be able to play outside undercover or have the option to play inside. 

The children will need to have their hat with them each day in Term 1 and 4, (or indeed every day if they prefer), and we ask that all children have sunscreen applied prior to the start of the session, we will then support the children to reapply sunscreen throughout the day as needed. We also ask that all children bring with them a drink bottle for water (only). The educators will encourage children to drink throughout the day, especially on warmer days.   Water bottles can be refilled throughout the day if needed.

Separation at Drop-off

Separating from parents/carers can be challenging for our little people, and sometimes for us adults too. If we bring it all back to brain development and what is best for our children, a quick Goodbye, can be the best thing for them. Even though it can be hard for the adults. 

As long as you are still with them, their amygdala (the part of the brain responsible for anxiety) will have hope that the separation won’t happen, and it will keep the fight or flight response going. Once you leave, the amygdala registers futility. Only then can your young one’s brain and body rest. The neurochemical surge that is driving the physical, emotional and behavioural symptoms of anxiety will start to neutralise and their anxiety will start to ease. The sooner this happens, the sooner your child can settle and get on with the day.

There might be big tears when you leave, and that’s okay. These tears are a sign that the brain has registered futility, and is moving to adaption, which lies at the heart of resilience. It’s never easy watching someone you love in so much distress, but remind yourself that they are safe, that the tears will pass quickly, and that you are providing the experience that will build resilience and courage, and show them they can do hard things.

Class Parent Representative

We are looking for one parent from each of the groups to be the "Class Parent".  This role is to help establish some communication between parents in each of the groups.  You might like to set up a WhatsApp group for ease of communication or something similar. You could then organise coffee catch ups or playground visits, or it could simply be a quick way for parents to ask questions of each other or remind each other of upcoming events.

If you are interested in helping set this up for your child's group, please let you teacher know ASAP and we can give you more information.

Late Pick ups

Please be aware that it is an expectation that children are picked up promptly at the end of their sessions.  Of course, we understand unforeseen circumstances occur, please call us in the event of you running late to pick up.  This means we can settle your child and tell them we have spoken to you and you are on your way.  

However consistent late pick ups will incur a late fee as per the rates below: