eve it’s The year is flying by and we cant beli August already!
Bulletin
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new The team have been flat out and our gs thin y man the look bulletin is just one of send e to we’ve been busy creating! We hop th mon a s time you these out a couple of k too. and we’d love to hear your feedbac
August 2014
ture The idea of these bulletins is to cap order news from right across our team in will that s to share information and idea assist you in your practice.
Early Childhood Education & Care Services In this update
please If you would like to share an article contact Maria via: Maria-Paula.Acevedo-Gonzalez@ windermere.org.au
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Important information to Fee Policy and Schedules
Networking
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Key training and meeting dates
Network meetings are a good opportunity
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Reflecting on Practice
for you to meet other educators, exchange ideas and share knowledge. Each meeting has a particular topic of focus and some have an open agenda to discuss any emerging issues you wish to raise. Feel free to book into all or any of those that are of interest.
Upcoming Meetings Training
Upcoming Sessions
You should receive your quarterly
($25 per session)
training calendar this week. To secure
Manual Handling
your place at any session, please contact your Educational Program Coordinator or send us an email at: enquiriesECECS@ windermere.org.au We have worked closely with the training provider to offer sessions specific to your day to day work – we welcome any feedback on these to ensure we continue
Date: Saturday 16 August Time: 9.30am to 12.30pm Venue: 48 Webb St, Narre Warren
Establishing roles and boundaries Date: Saturday 30 August Time: 9.30am to 12.30pm Venue: 1 Livingston St, Highett
to develop and deliver sessions that meet
Full First Aid Course
your needs.
Date: Saturday 8 November Time: 9am – 6pm Venue: Pakenham Springs Primary School
Cardinia /Ranges Educators linked to Jo McIntosh (Educational Program Coordinator) Date: Tuesday 19 August Time: 7.00pm – 8.30pm Venue: TBC Bayside Educators linked to Maria-Paula Acevedo-Gonzalez Date: Wednesday 27 August Time: 7.00pm – 8.30pm Venue: Highett Children’s Centre Cardinia Educators linked to Andrea Carmody (Educational Program Coordinator). Date: Thursday 4 September Time: 7.00pm – 8.30pm Venue: TBC
It’s not just play!
Playgroups
Play is an essential part of early learning.
Cardinia Playgroups:
flexibility, and verbal & non-verbal skills.
Henry Family Children’s Centre in Lakeside Pakenham will be available Tuesday mornings commencing Term 3. The playgroup will be facilitated by Educational Program Coordinators Andrea Carmody and Jo McIntosh.
Socio-emotionally they are developing their emotional intelligence –
Bayside Playgroup:
As children play they are developing the cognitive, socio-emotional and physical skills they will need to take them into a successful adulthood. They are developing their curiosity, problem solving, intentionality,
learning confidence, cooperation, negotiation, sharing, empathy and how to communicate appropriately. Physically their fine motor and gross motor skills are being practiced and developed. It’s not “just play” they are skills for life!
Grange Rd Kindergarten in Sandringham commenced in Term 3 with one educator and four children attending. The playgroup is facilitated by Educational Program Coordinator Maria-Paula Acevedo-Gonzalez.
Team News Meet our new team!
Reflecting on Practice
Welcome to our new educators Mansi Singh and Minji Piao!
Documenting and Planning In the past few months we have been
Be excited about furthering your
focusing on strengthening our ways of
understanding; after all, we are
documenting and planning to enhance
all in this process together. But
children’s learning and ensuring we meet
most importantly, remember that
the requirements outlined in National
enhancing your understanding is
Quality Standard 1 – Programming and
the beginning to walking the path to
Practice.
providing quality education and care
As early childhood practitioners, it is
in your home based environment.
important for you to also reflect on your own level of understanding regarding
Incident, Injury, Trauma and Illness Records
the National Quality Framework (NQF).
We require all educators to register
To begin this journey, we have attached
any injury or incident that occurs
an article from the Early Years Learning
with families and children, contracted
Framework Professional Learning Program
educators and staff. Forms are
titled ‘Myths and Realities’. This article
available here. As part of this new
summarises the early childhood field’s
process, please email a copy to your
views and ideas surrounding the NQF.
Educational Program Coordinator or
After reading the article did you have one of
send a copy with your timesheets.
those ideas or myths? Nothing wrong with
If you have outstanding forms from
it! Acknowledging this is a stepping stone
July, don’t forget to send them in
towards embracing the NQF.
ASAP.
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Mansi commenced in June and Minji will be commencing later this month in August. If you see them, please help us to make them feel welcome. Also a big welcome to Robyn Sheridan our Educational Program Coordinator for the In Home Care program). Robyn currently works three days a week (Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday). however will commence full time in this role next week! Please introduce yourself to Robyn if you see her around. Vacancies Team Leader for the Improvement and Compliance Team is currently being advertised. We will forward an email introducing the appointed person to you.
Bulletin 01 . August 2014
Fee Policy and Schedules
Families Need Family Day Care
As per letter dated 8 July 2014, we are in
Community Support Funding
the process of updating the Windermere
Windermere Early Childhood Education
Fee Policy, and will have this available as
and Care Home Based Service is
soon as practicable.
responding to the ongoing information
The couple of things to remember are: 1. You can’t issue parents with individual fee policies any longer. 2. You can give the generic Windermere Fee Booklet out to families. This gives you information about minimum booking hours, required notice of cancellation of bookings etc. 3. You can give families your Fee Schedule that was set by Windermere Early Childhood Education and Care Service on 30 June 2014. 4. The booking forms have not changed and are available on the Web Page. You can obtain the forms from https://www. windermere.org.au/educators/ under the tab Enrolment.
e Fee Booklet The Windermerour website! available on
on od & Educati
Care Services
Early Childhood & Education Care Services
e ServiceFamily Day Care Service Family Day Car Early Childho
Fee Information
30 June 2014
Fee Information 30 June 2014
that is being communicated through the Family Assistance Office in relation to the
families
NEED family day care
Community support funding. The changes to this funding will commence June 2015 at this stage. There is ongoing advocacy and challenges being communicated to the Family Assistance Office, so we will be taking a considered approach to this
www.familiesneedfamilydaycare.com.au
ongoing change and communication, and keep you informed of any changes that
Currently Family Day Australia is running
directly affect your small business.
a campaign The ‘Families Need Family Day Care’. As part of this campaign
“Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future”. John F Kennedy
they have issued an Advocacy Kit to all Approved Service Providers. Envelopes with postcards and information flyers for families and educators may have been provided to you from your Educational Program Coordinator. If you would like to participate you will receive envelopes which include postcards, from your Educational Program Coordinator, that you can pass onto your families to complete. Once collected forward back to the Coordination Unit ASAP. Any postcards returned will be passed on appropriately on your behalf.
https://www.windermere.org.au/educators/ www.windermere.org.au
www.windermere
.org.au
VIC 3805 Narre Warren 48 Webb Street, 3200 Phone: (03) 9705 7650 Fax: (03) 9796
Bulletin 01 . August 2014
48 Webb Street, Narre Warren VIC 3805 Phone: (03) 9705 3200 Fax: (03) 9796 7650
The Educator page is set up for your use, and ease of obtaining up to date information and forms. We are working industrially hard on these pages currently updating information, creating new branding on all our forms, and making this page as friendly as possible. Please check it regularly as it changes daily. If you need a form the Coordination unit will be directing you to the educator web page, so save yourself some time and check this out first.
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