Those all important Diary Dates:

With the school holidays coming up some educators will be taking some

leave during July.

Cassie (R2) will be on leave during June and returning early July.

Yvett (R1) is taking some extended leave and will be back August 11th.

Emily (R2) will be away for a coupe of days in the first week of the

holidays.

Bobbie (R2) is also taking a couple of days leave in the school holidays.

Dani (R3) is away for the second week of the school holidays.

Eleanor will be away from the 12th to 23rd July inclusive. During that

time Kathy will be doing some work during pay time, and you may see

Kaarin returning to do some work here also. Cathy (admin) will be

available in the office as always on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday.

Child Care Fees 2019-20

The Adelaide University Childcare Services Inc (AUCS) Board has approved a fee increase of $8 a day from July 1st

2019.

Childcare fees from this date will be $113 /day and $560/week for full time. This reflects our new service

agreement with The University of Adelaide which includes space charging costs and the introduction of a levy to

AUCS to meet governance requirements.

During July we will be adjusting the bond held for each family in reflection of the fee increase, and any changes to

the number of days children attend. This will result in an increase to the bond held for most families, and will

show on the subsequent invoice after the adjustment has been done.

During June we have welcomed Gene to Room 1.

Congratulations to Amnon, Shelley and Naomi (R2)on the arrival of a

brother for Naomi.

In June we completed the transitions of children to their new rooms.

The children made the change very smoothly, and have all settled well

in their new rooms. This is a reflection of the secure relationships that

children experience across the Centre and the transition process recognising children’s needs, as well as the

resilience that children demonstrate.

Parent Involvement at WCCC

The Parent Advisory Group (PAG) meets on

Mondays for this semester, from 1pm to 2pm at

the Lirra Lirra Café on campus. Our meeting for

June was cancelled, the July meeting will be on

the 8th.

To see the Room One educators report to PAG

please scroll to the last page!

The Adelaide University Childcare Services Inc.

Board (AUCS) next meeting is Tue 30th July.

Waite Campus Childrens

Centre

SHORT Family News

JUne 2019

All Things Green Plastic Free July

Plastic Free July is a global movement that helps millions of people be part of the solution to plastic pollution – so we can have cleaner streets, oceans, and beautiful communities.

Plastic Free July provides resources and ideas to help you (and millions of others around the world) reduce single-use plastic waste everyday at home, work, school, and even at your local café.

The movement has inspired over 120 million participants in 177 countries. You making a small change will collectively make a massive difference to our communities. You can choose to refuse single-use plastics in July (and beyond!). Best of all, being part of Plastic Free July will help you to find great alternatives that can become new habits forever.

“Think about it. Why would you make something that you’re going to use for a few minutes out of a material that’s basically going to last forever, and you’re just going to throw it away. What’s up with that?” Jeb Berrier, Bag It movie

Single use plastics are found everywhere, things like plastic bags, drinking straws, soft drink and water bottles and most food packaging. Some facts about plastic from ABC’S War on Waste Program…..

Australia uses over 10 million plastic bags a day – plastic bags are causing huge problems in our oceans

85% of soft plastics from bags and packaging ends up in landfill

In 2003, Coles Bay in Tasmania was the first town in Australia to ban the plastic bag. The rest of Tasmania has also since banned the plastic bag, however, it was sad to see that many places have found a loophole and are just handing out thicker bags!

It takes around 400 years for plastic to break down in water, and even then it ends up in tiny pieces that are harmful to marine life

It takes only 1 minute for Australians to produce 1 tonne of plastic waste.

We’ve generated 6.3 billion tonnes of plastic. Only 9% has been recycled and 12% incinerated. 5 billion tonnes in landfill or polluting our environment. Our oceans and waterways are being choked with plastic waste.

So how do we reduce our use of plastics?

Change your habits! Buy a re-useable bottle…... Use stainless steel straws…...Use cloth bags for your shopping and your fruit and vegetables…... Buy food in bulk to reduce packaging…... Use a re-useable cup for your take away coffee…... Bring your own glass container when you buy meat…... Make your own cleaning products…...Make your own fresh squeezed juices or eat whole fruit…..Use cloth nappies….. to name just a few.

Bat box installation

WCCC was recently given a voucher for State Flora Nursery from TAFE SA. This was to thank us for

the frequent sustainability tours that Dani and Eleanor conduct with students studying the Diploma

of Early Childhood Education and Care, completing their sustainability subject. We used this

voucher to purchase a bat box for the Centre. This will be attached to the building and will provide a

roosting place for microbats. Microbats provide us with excellent insect protection, eating up to

1200 mosquitos in a hour, and the bat box will provide some much needed shelter and warmth.

Room One PAG report

June 3rd 2019

In the past month we have welcomed Kiara and her family to Room One and she is showing that she feels secure

and supported as she develops new positive relationships beyond her family unit.

As new faces arrive in Room One some of the older children have been making the supported move onto the

delights and discoveries that await in Room Two. Initially having a familiar educator face from Room One to start

the journey with the transitioning children and over time having the confidence to have a longer day with new

friends in Room Two. Every individual sees such changes through their own understanding, experiences and

temperament and integrates changes through their own timeframe. As we often refer to building emotional

resilience in children, through seeing how well children transition from one room to another can be reflective of

their resilience and how confident and capable young children are. Transitions also have an impact on those ‘left

behind’ so we are mindful to support all children as the social dynamic of the group often undergoes change and

finds a slightly new direction.

Highlights:

Having time exploring new places and experiences with the whole Centre by visiting Pilyabilyangga and a

walk to Urrbrae House during Reconciliation Week – making strong early connections with the natural world

and socially having opportunities to build positive relationships with other children and educators.

We continue to share Mandarin language learning with the children – naming fruits, singing songs sharing

stories, even counting the steps in the bathroom! We have had several families comment that their child is

communicating some ‘new words’ at home which is great to hear. Thank you Lingling for patiently

supporting us.

The weekly Yoga sessions with Jo continue to engage the children’s senses through sensory fabrics, puppets,

music, songs and introducing yoga poses and stretches, enjoyed by all.

One significant challenge for Room One in recent weeks has been the closure of the re-sown grass area

which greatly reduces the outdoor play environment. We try to make the most of the veranda and the

sandpit areas but given there is no soft fall in these areas climbing experiences are reduced. Where possible

we have short bursts in the Room 2/Room 3 outdoor area.

Birth to Three Project

Yvett has created a comprehensive display for families and educators showing how all Room One children have

been actively engaged in supporting one another during lunch and snack times, repeatedly displaying their

enthusiasm to be active learners as they gain skills towards independence and extend kindness and support others.

Recent Project meetings have provided insights into how to find a common thread from the data (photos and

observations) collected during the past 10months to create a visual poster/banner and oral presentation in late

July. We welcome further feedback.

Warm regards

Room One Team