Kornmehl

Terry Aizen – Director Kornmehl

Father’s Day breakfast

We celebrated our Father’s Day breakfast on Monday morning with 60 very excited children and 60 equally excited Dads. The atmosphere in the room was warm and filled with so much energy.

Dad’s and their kids enjoyed a scrumptious breakfast prepared by a few very capable mums. Thank you to Natalie Cromer, Leona McGee and Lauren Hockley for their help in preparing the breakfast. It was delicious and almost every last piece was consumed by our hungry kids and Dads. A thank you must also go to Anita Weinberger and Gaby Kahn for shopping for all the ingredients for Father’s Day and to Justine Hoffman, Odin Kaye, Kyra Phillips and Talia Kersh for the delicious baking. All your help is very much appreciated.

After breakfast, it was special to see the dads relaxing with their kids by either reading a book, building with blocks, squeezing fresh orange juice together, playing in the sandpit or outside, participating in woodwork, or painting a pebble, having a back massage or designing an abstract construction using straws and sticks or a special tie to wear to work.

Each dad received a beautiful photo frame decorated with items from nature that the children collected when they were at Bush School as a special gift, as well as a personalised card and heartfelt message.

Early Childhood Educators Day

On Wednesday, we acknowledged and celebrated all our wonderful educators at Kornmehl.

The purpose of Early Childhood Educators Day is to recognise and celebrate the work of early educators working in long day care, community care and preschool services, for their enormous contribution to the wellbeing and healthy development of the young children in their care.

Early Childhood Educators Day is a day to acknowledge the valuable work of the early years’ educators in educating and caring for tomorrow’s leaders.

Families at Kornmehl joined us in thanking all our wonderful educators by adding a message to our ‘Appreciation Wall’.

Each educator received a gorgeous gerbera flower, a certificate acknowledging their commitment, dedication and passion to Early Childhood Education and a yummy cake baked by the school canteen.

I am proud to say that many of our Kornmehl Educators have been at the Pre-School for more than 17 years!

Parent feedback:

“Thank you to all the wonderful educators and assistants whom go above and beyond their duty every day to accommodate the needs of our children and ease any concerns parents have. Not only do they do an amazing job in teaching life skills, but their attention to the positive core values which are shaping the personalities of our children, is by far the most worth mentioning. We appreciate all your efforts as we place our trust in you every time we leave our children in your care. Thank you immensely! ” Maria Alonza/Wicks

“Thank you,Terry, teachers and assistants – Kornmehl feels like a big family, a close-knit community where our children are nurtured and loved. You have carefully integrated their early education with play and fun activities, ensuring they are never bored as they learn about the world! Love Lindy Lowenstein”

“The educators and support staff are so warm and familiar but at the same time have years of experience behind them. For these two reasons we feel and have felt so safe depositing our daughters at the Kornmehl gates. Thank you for all the joy and energy you bring to your workplace every day and the effort you put into the development of all the children. It doesn’t go unnoticed. “Lauren Hockley

“To the wonderful Kornmehl educators,

We have, from the moment we entered this extraordinary community, been so appreciative of the hard work, love, and total devotion shown by each Kornmehl teacher and assistant. You love, respect, and nurture our children in ways not found elsewhere; your celebration and appreciation of every child’s unique personality contributes to their sense of security and belief that they can go on to achieve great things in the future, both within and outside of Emanuel School. We are all composed of the few – yet crucial – people who have cared for us. As a family, we are tremendously fortunate that our children will carry your influence throughout their lives. Thank you to all of you. With love, the Phillips family. “

“To all Kornmehl educators:

While you do EVERYTHING well, I’d like to highlight the way that all of you make us feel welcome and like we are walking into our second family when we arrive in the morning. Parents are encouraged to stay and do an activity in the morning, we are not rushed out, we are seen as partners with the teachers and the children feel safe knowing they are part of such a wonderful place. Parent involvement in weekly activities, excursions and other events and the community feel is something I will miss next year. All teachers are very approachable, and this makes parents feel comfortable. Kornmehl educators, we thank you for making us feel at home day in and day out! You are all special.
Warm regards, Sharon”

Rosh Chodesh Elul

The children learnt this week about the meaning of Rosh Chodesh Elul and how this is a special month before Rosh Hashanah, where we wake up our minds and think about doing good deeds and saying sorry to other’s that we might have hurt or made sad during the year.

Mr Adam Carpenter came down to Kornmehl to blow the Shofar for us. The sound of the Shofar tells us to wake up and listen! These blasts serve as a daily reminder that Rosh Hashanah is on its way and we must focus and reach down deep into our hearts to ask for forgiveness. The shofar also reminds us that our words have extreme power and we must think carefully about what we say and how we say it.

During the month of Elul, we will be encouraging the children to think about doing Mitzvot and acts of kindness – Tikun Olam. It’s also a great time for families to talk to their children about the concept of “forgiveness.”

National Child Protection Week

National Child Protection Week has been coordinated by NAPCAN, (National Association for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect), with the support of the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs. The campaign aims to engage and educate all Australians to understand they have a part to play in keeping our children and young people safe from violence, abuse and neglect.

NAPCAN works to promote the safety and wellbeing of children and young people. “Protecting children is everyone’s business.”

National Child Protection Week is a wonderful opportunity for everyone in the community to think about how we can work together to keep all children safe.

Importantly, we want to remind everyone that:
• We ALL have a part to play in protecting ALL children
• Even small actions can help to improve a child’s future
• By building stronger communities, we are creating safer environments for our children

How can I start playing my part to protect children today (and every day!)?
• Be a good role model for children
• Be kind to children, parents (and yourself!)
• Take the time to really listen to children and believe them if they tell you something
• Learn about what help services are available so you can support others if they need help
• Don’t judge other parents and families; remember that we’re all trying our best
• Look out for all children, not just your own
• Be a friendly, helpful member of your local community
• Don’t be afraid to ask for help or to ask someone if they need help

Teachers play their part to protect and care for children and young people in their community by building relationships with their students and showing that they respect and value them.

Parents play their part to protect and care for children and young people in their community by showing how to have respectful relationships.

ENVISION – HELPING HANDS PROJECT

Envision is a small community focused organisation, who are collecting bottle caps/plastic lids from schools which are then used to make prosthetic limbs for disadvantaged people and communities throughout India and other 3^rd world countries.

Kornmehl has become a collection point for all your bottle tops. So please wash them and bring them in and place them in the basket in the foyer. Please talk to your children about this amazing project and how they can make a difference in a young person’s life by doing one small action such as collecting and recycling their bottle tops. Involve your child in the process of washing the lids and bringing them in, so they can experience the feeling of Tikun Olam. Let’s turn waste into opportunity!