The Hamilton and Alexandra College Newsletter

Early Learning Centre

A huge thank you to the families who were able to pop in to HIRL on Sunday. It was lovely to catch up with everyone, and the messages that were received from those unable to attend were heart-warming.  A MASSIVE thank you to Mandy and Zoe who organised all the food, to Stephen and Vincent who cooked the BBQ and to everyone for making the afternoon such a special occasion.  I will be forever grateful for the time I have spent here at the College and the Early Learning Centre.

 

A reminder that we have a box on the veranda for everyone to contribute to for the Uniting Church Christmas Hamper Appeal.  The final day for contributions is this Friday, 2 December. 

 

Piccolo

Our last Piccolo session is on Wednesday 7 December.  This is END OF YEAR PARTY DAY!  The children are welcome to dress in their favourite Christmas colours, clothes, hats, headbands – there are no limits.  Thank you to all our families for agreeing to bring in food items for the children to enjoy a shared lunch.  All food items can be left at drop off.  Staff will heat up food that needs reheating for lunch.  Our families are welcome to come in at 2:30pm to share the last Piccolo afternoon with their child.

 

Piccino

On Monday 5 December we will be taking the College bus to Port Fairy and joining Tania Moloney from Nurture by Nature for a Beach Kinder experience at Pea Soup.  No need to bring anything except a small backpack with a drink bottle and a towel.  To make things easier, I will arrange for $20 to be added to your child’s College account and this will cover food and transport for the day.

 

Tuesday 6 December is the Piccino to Year Two Nativity at the Uniting Church in Hamilton.  Children wear plain white t-shirts with light colour shorts or skirts, or white dresses. We will make some halos for the children. 

 

Monday 12 December – Piccino Water Play Fun Day at the Early Learning Centre.  A Party Food List and more details will be available soon.  Our final Piccino day is Tuesday 13 December and we finish at the usual time of 3:15pm.  There will be no after school care on this day.

 

Gratitude

 

It is important for us all to express our gratitude for all the things we have.  Encouraging our children to focus on the things they have and being grateful for those things is important, however we can all benefit from showing gratitude daily.

 

Studies have shown that gratitude can have a significant impact on our physical and mental health. Practicing gratitude has been linked with increased self-esteem, resilience and improved sleep.

 

Some ways to practice gratitude with our children are:

 

  • Encourage children to say thank you regularly. It may not seem like genuine appreciation when your child needs a reminder but encouraging them to express appreciation is important for genuine gratitude down the track.
  • Give them age-appropriate chores around the home and thank them for completing them

Suggestions for 3 year old children

  • Assist in making their beds
  • Pick up playthings with your supervision
  • Take their dirty laundry to the laundry basket
  • Fill a pet's water and food bowls (with supervision)

Suggestions for 4 and 5 year old children

  • Get dressed with minimal parental help
  • Make their bed with minimal parental help
  • Bring their things from the car to the house
  • Help a parent prepare food
  • Help a parent carry in the lighter groceries
  • Be responsible for a pet's food and water bowl
  • Hang up towels in the bathroom
    • Around the dinner table everyone shares one thing they’re grateful for from their day.

Establish a family gratitude ritual, such as:

  • Around the dinner table ask everyone to thank someone else at the table for something.
  • At bedtime, ask each child to share something they feel grateful for.

Although it might seem like gratitude should be natural rather than rehearsed, making gratitude a habit and ensuring that kids practice it on a regular basis can help to embed it in their lives.

 

2023 Meet and Greet

On Monday 5 December, 9:30am – 10:30am, our 2023 Piccino families are invited to meet and greet with our Early Learning Centre staff for next year.

 

Have a great week.

 

Frances O'Brien

Director Early Learning Centre