Building Aboriginal ways of knowing and being

On Tuesday, we were lucky enough to have Aboriginal artist and designer Graham Tooney visit the Pre-school for three and a half hours. Graham engaged the children in a hands-on, interactive workshop, learning all about Aboriginal culture, traditions and art. He talked to us about the bush and what kind of animals lived there. Suggestions from the children included lizards and snakes.

We learnt that Aboriginal people have ceremonies and faces are painted using ochre which is paint made from the earth. Girls’ faces are painted with spots and boys’ with stripes.

Sticks were rubbed together to make a fire. A boomerang was used in several different ways and these included to hunt for birds, for digging, as a plate and when playing sports to throw and catch.

The coolamon was used to put babies in. Feathers and soft leaves were placed on the bottom for warmth and comfort.

After the talk the three groups engaged in a collaborative art experience. Graham painted a blue circle in the middle and told us that it symbolises that we are all gathered together: “This is our place”.

We are salt water people because we live near the ocean. The people who don’t live near the ocean, are the fresh water people. The dots symbolise us at Kornmehl. It’s about us being in this place: Kornmehl Pre-school.

Each child then painted their hands to make a hand print on the canvas. We’re a community of learners.

What a truly meaningful and authentic experience! We thank Graham for coming in to teach his passion and impart his knowledge to us all.

Yom Yerushalayim

On Wednesday, the Pre-school children built a Kotel out of blocks or cardboard boxes. The children engaged in writing special notes that express peace and kindness for the world and placing them in the cracks in the wall. It was wonderful to see how easily these concepts and ideas come to children and how freely they are able to express themselves.

Baby packs

We are overwhelmed with the generosity of our community in supporting our Baby Pack project. Packs have begun to pour in from near and far and the Pre-school foyer looks like a Baby Pack factory. Families have been more than generous in what they have purchased for the Aboriginal pregnant mums and their babies. What a fantastic gift to give them all! Many thanks to Evelyn Marczak, Zoe Boothman and Samantha Schwartz for helping to sort and pack the Baby Packs this week. Gunawirra has begun to collect the Baby Packs this week and will continue to do so over the next few weeks. Our goal is to collect 1000 Packs. To date we have collected 200, so keep them coming.

Building resilience – part 1

“One of the keystones for me about resilience is that it is very hopeful – that building it is an ongoing process and you’re never too old to learn new tricks.”  Anonymous parent

Life can be challenging and may include many stressful situations. Parents and children can feel overwhelmed by different things at different times like sudden changes, relationship difficulties, serious challenges, hectic schedules, feelings of isolation, discrimination and financial hardships.

Resilience is the ability to steer through serious life challenges and find ways to bounce back and to thrive.

We are born with the capacity for resilience. But resilience is not something we have or don’t have. We work on it throughout our lives and we need to start as early as possible. Parents are the most important people to help build their children’s resilience.

Children learn a lot by watching their parents. When parents cope well with everyday stress, they are showing their children how to do the same.

Why is it important to develop resilience?

Resilience makes a big difference in people’s lives. People who respond to hardships with resilience are:

• healthier and live longer
• happier in their relationships
• more successful in school and work
• less likely to get depressed.

What builds resilience?

Many of the things that support healthy development in young children also help build their resilience, including:

• a secure bond with a caring adult
• relationships with positive role models
• opportunities to learn skills
• opportunities to participate in meaningful activities.

We need both outside supports and inner strengths to build our resilience.

Outside supports include:

• caring relationships
• positive role models in families and communities
• community resources such as community centres, parent-child drop-in centres, faith groups and support programs for children with special needs.

Inner strengths include:

• self-control
• thinking skills
• confidence
• positive outlook
• responsibility and participation.

Outside supports and inner strengths work together to develop our resilience.

Building a close, loving relationship with your children is the most important thing you can do to support their resilience. Children do best when they feel loved, understood and accepted, and are protected from harm. Feeling wanted and loved helps us get through the hard times in life.

Children learn to feel safe and secure through a close attachment with at least one caring person. They also learn that their needs will be met. All of this gives them the confidence to explore their world.

• Caring relationships provide accepting places where children can learn to regulate their:
  • bodies
  • feelings
  • attention
  • thoughts
  • behaviour.

Positive daily interactions with parents teach children how to have caring relationships with other important people in their lives and it makes it easier for them to reach out to others when they need help.

Taken from Building resilience in Young Children – A booklet for parents from birth to six years

www.beststart.org/resources/hlthy_chld_dev/pdf/BSRC_Resilience_English_fnl.pdf

Kornmehl movie night

A reminder to reserve Sunday 18 June for our exciting Kornmehl movie night from 5.00 pm to 7.30 pm in the MPH. Tickets are available by clicking on the link below:

www.trybooking.com/QEWT

Happy Birthday

We wish a very happy birthday to Alfie Berger (5) and our special Educator, Julie Bowman, who both celebrated their birthdays in the past week. We hope you had a special day.