Volume 29 Issue 3 14 Feb 2020 19 Shevat 5780

Kornmehl

Terry Aizen- Director Kornmehl  Emanuel Pre-school

Over the past two weeks, we have welcomed many new families and children to the Pre-school.

The first few weeks when a child is settling in, is a time of crucial importance to their later happiness in the Pre-school. All children are individuals and while some children will adjust fairly easily to the new environment and new routines, others will take longer to feel comfortable and secure.

The children are all settling into their new classrooms and becoming more familiar with each group’s routines and rules. They are also getting to know their teachers and friends. This takes time and we need to allow the children space to explore, discover and feel a sense of belonging and trust. We work hard in these first few weeks to establish connections and relationships with families and children in our care. We talk and explain things clearly to the children and there is repetition and familiarity from day to day. This allows children time to process and to feel safe and secure. Children who have a positive start to their new environment are more likely to feel comfortable, relaxed and valued and feel good about themselves as learners.

Separation anxiety is a healthy and protective emotion. It is the child’s way of saying “You are my safe base and I need to develop trust and confidence in alternate carers.”

Talking through the daily routine with your child each day helps to reduce anxiety. Educators also use this as a tool to familiarise children with what to expect each day, so that it is predictable, and they have time to process what is happening in their day. Although you may be feeling as anxious and emotional as your child, try to stay cheery and confident as children will pick up on your feelings of apprehension.

It is important to always let your child know when you are leaving. Tell your child you are going and will be back after sleep or rest time.

Open communication between parents and educators is crucial. It is important to share information. Parents can give educators information about the child at drop off and in turn the educators can talk to the parents about the child’s experiences during the day when they pick up in the afternoon. Please also let the educators know if your child has had a bad night or early start to the day. It’s also important for us to know if they have eaten breakfast or if they have felt ill and any medication e.g. Panadol has been administered before coming to Pre-school.

Our Educators have a vast amount of experience in helping children settle into the Pre-school and are aware of the difficulties that can emerge during this transition period. If your child is taking longer to settle in than you had expected and you still have concerns, discuss these with their teachers. Together you can agree on and put into place strategies to support your child during this time.

Parents are the safe base from which each child can branch out and explore the world, grow and learn and become socially and emotionally confident. Getting off to a good start will help support your child through this very important period in their lives. Remember that going to pre-school is an important life experience filled with opportunities for growth, skill development and fun. Like any new experience there are challenges for both the child and the parents.  We look forward to working collaboratively to make each child’s journey at the Kornmehl Emanuel Pre-school a warm, caring, nurturing and positive learning experience.

Tu BeShevat 

We celebrated Tu BeShevat in the Pre-school this past week. We all sang songs, talked about the trees and why they are so important in our lives and for the world. Afterwards we all headed out and planted four native Australian trees in our garden. The children were all extremely engaged and wanted to help, dig the holes, plant the trees and water them. Throughout the week the Pre-school has been filled with beautiful experiences related to trees.

Parent Cheese and Wine Social Evening  

We invite all parents to join us on Thursday 27 February 2020 at 7.15 pm. This is a lovely evening, where parents can meet each other, learn about each group’s routines and programs and how we work, learn and play together with your children. Parents will also get to participate in some hands-on creative experiences just as your child does during the day.

Working in collaboration and partnership with parents and families is critical to achieving our learning outcomes for each child. Partnerships are based on the foundations of understanding each other’s expectations and attitudes and building on the strength of each other’s knowledge (Framework, p.12.)

Open Day

The Pre-school will be holding an Open Day on Wednesday 4 March 2020 for all prospective families who would like to visit our Pre-school to see what we offer, walk around our lovely classrooms, meet the Director and chat about our programs and philosophy. The morning will run from 9.30am – 11.00 am. Please book in to attend the Open Day here.

Happy Birthday

We wish a very Happy Birthday to Levi Wasserman (4) and Kayla Weiss (5), Sam McKenzie (5), Miles Borovik (5), Samuel Veltman (4), Ethan Wicks (3). We also wish a happy birthday to our Special Educator Laura Meltzer. We hope you all had a lovely day.

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