Hackham West Children S Centre News

Hackham West 9 Vintners Walk Hackham West SA 5163 Ph: 8382 6161 Facsimile: 8326 8268 A.B.N. 46 947 961 446 http://www.hackhamwestcc.sa.edu.au

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Hackham West Children’s Centre News January 2015

Welcome to term 1 2015! Hope you all had a relaxing and safe Christmas and New Year period. I would like to extend a warm welcome to all our new kindy children and families, new child care children and families & new staff that have recently joined our team.

Staff News With sadness we farewell Heather Morony as Director and wish her well as she moves into the next chapter of her career at Seaford K-7 School as Preschool Director. I will be Director for term one and would welcome your support as I navigate my new role. It is anticipated that the role of Director will be advertised during term one and the new person commence in the role in term two.

New kindy staff - Julie Winstanley (filling my usual role as teacher for term 1) - Allison Bostock (Universal Access – all day Tuesday) - Jo Hann (Early Childhood Worker) – Jo will also be doing admin support - Carol Hryniszak (Preschool Support Worker)

We welcome Bronwen Drinkell to the centre as our new Family Services Coordinator. She will be based in the Yellow Unit. Her contact number is: 0437 460 027.

We are pleased to have Tara Allen as our speech pathologist (with Allied Health) this term.

REMINDERS:

What your child needs to bring each day:  A named back pack/bag.  A piece of fruit – this is very important as the centre does not always have spare fruit on hand.  Spare set of clothes (in case of accidents/muddy play).  Broad-brimmed hat (issued upon enrolment).

Please put your child’s name on everything !

Your child should wear comfortable play clothes and appropriate footwear (for running and climbing) that he/she is able to manage on his/her own.

Child Absences Please ring the centre on 8382 6161 if your child will be absent for any reason.

IMPORTANT: Attendance information – Relevant to Kindy families ONLY! - Did you know our kindergarten and all kindergartens in South Australia are staffed on attendance? That means that if your child does not attend during the data collection reference period we cannot claim them as part of our staffing ratio. We encourage all children to attend all their sessions – unless of course they are unwell. This is critical if we are to maintain an early childhood worker in our kindergarten. We look forward to your support in this matter.

C ommunication A communication pocket is organised for your child – it is located on the wall adjacent the adult toilet in the kindy room. All written communication from the centre will be received through your child’s communication pocket. Please remember to check it regularly.

Specialist Services Please talk to staff if you feel your child may need additional support with their learning. Children attending kindy can access support services through the Education department (DECD) - speech therapists, psychologists, social workers, behavioural support and/or special educators. During term one all families attending our centre (both kindy and child care) can access the support of our Speech pathologist, Tara Allen.

Be Sun Smart Please remember to follow our Sun Smart Policy. From Monday 1st September children will need to wear sun safe clothing (ie dresses and tops with capped sleeves), their broad brimmed hat and have SPF30+ sun screen applied 15-20 minutes prior to outside play. We encourage parents to apply sunscreen to all exposed areas at home or when they get to the centre. Staff will then re-apply it for the afternoon. If you do not wish sunscreen to be applied to your child, please remind staff of this, we will ensure your wishes are recorded in their file. We discuss sun smart practices with children, encourage children to play in the shade, talk about the UV rating and encourage them to drink water throughout the day.

Literacy Packs for loan There are some great literacy packs for families to borrow - these packs - although located in the kindy room are for all children to borrow. Simply fill in the borrowing sheet located on the top of the literacy pack cupboard and when returned please put in the red box that is located in the cupboard. A great way of sharing some lovely time with your child.

 Other Useful Information: 

With the kind support of Hallett Cove Bakers Delight we are able to offer our families free bread each Friday. Even if your child is not in the centre on Fridays, you are still welcome to come in and collect some bread. We are now on Facebook and would encourage our families to access up-to-date information and parenting opportunities via our Facebook page. Check out ‘What’s On’ at the Yellow Unit or contact Milan Gligic on 0403 369 791.

PLEASE PUT THIS DATE IN YOUR CALENDAR!

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING (AGM)

Parents, caregivers and all interested persons are invited to Hackham West Children’s Centre's Annual General Meeting to be held at the centre on Monday 9th February at 6pm.

At this meeting reports will be tabled from the 2014 Governing Council, and we will also need to elect new members to form the 2015 Governing Council.

The Governing Council positions you can nominate for include; Chairperson, Vice Chairperson, Secretary, Treasurer and General Committee. Please note: the Director, Assistant Director and a staff representative (elected by staff) also hold positions.

Being on the Governing Council is a great way to become involved, make some new friends and most importantly - have a say in your child's education and how the centre is run!

Governing Council meets twice a term and meetings have traditionally been run during the day (however, this will be decided upon by the new members).

If you would like to know more about the various positions and are interested in joining Governing Council for 2015, please see Karen, Viv, or Athalie.

 From Vivienne Hills and the staff team 