From the Office

Dear Piptree Early Learning Sunnybank Hills families,

Wow, what a month! Who could imagine that a tropical cyclone up north could have done so much damage around us? I hope you are all safe and there is no damage to your homes.

Our centre was closed on Thursday and Friday last week and your accounts were credited the gap fees. On Wednesday, we emailed you your statements. If there were any errors, please come and see me.

During the month of April, we will have a few public holidays and our service will be closed on

​Friday 14 April 2017 ​Good Friday
​Monday 17 April 2017 ​Easter Monday
Tuesday ​​25 April 2017​Anzac Day
​Monday 1 May 2017​Labour Day

Exciting time is coming and we will have an Easter Egg Hunt on Thursday, 13.4.2017 at 3.00pm. We would like to invite you all to join us for afternoon tea on the day.

The Easter hat parade will be organised only for the children in Blossom 2 and Poppies Rooms, during the Easter egg hunt for the younger children.

For the families, who are having some time off during the Easter time, hope you  all have safe holidays.

Keep smiling, Natasa and the Piptree Early Learning Sunnybank Hills team :)


Pips

Hello all!

Many of our babies are growing up very fast; we have had three babies move up just this month. We are so grateful to have been a part of their learning journey. Please feel free to discuss with Miss Melissa when your baby will be moving up to the next room and how the transitioning works.

We have made available to the babies sensory items, Miss Annie set up a sensory table with sensory bottles, sensory books and sensory blocks. Sensory play is important because it enhances babies touch, smell, taste, movement, balance, sight and hearing. It allows them to explore and it naturally encourages babies to use scientific processes while they play.

We had the chance to celebrate Harmony day with footprints and hand prints to display that all children belong no matter who they are or where they come from.

With the weather cooling down, we ask that parents pack jumpers and warmer clothing for when we go to play outside.

Lots of love, Miss Melissa, Miss Annie and Pips
Outdoor play
Lachlan playing with the hand paint

Sprouts 1

Hello all Sprouts 1-room parents,

Welcome to another busy month in the Sprouts 1 room. I would like to give a warm welcome to Arshu and Zoey who have recently joined us, as well as Lachlan, Samantha and Zyana moving up from the pips room. I am sure that they will have a good time in our room.

Last month we have had fun learning about shapes and colours. We looked at big posters and flash cards to learn the names of different shapes and colours, and did collage, hand painting for Harmony day activities. The children enjoyed all of these activities.

This month, we will continue to focus on letting the children get used to our room's routine. We will be doing some collage and various painting and Easter art activities. We are also going to learn about animals through numerous activities and songs. We will be having heaps of fun on hands-on activities that I am sure the children will all enjoy very much.

Finally, just a reminder to please make sure to bring spare clothes for your child, and check to see that they have their drink bottles, sunscreen and hat.

Thank you and till next time,
Miss Nikki

Sprouts 2

Hey guys! A warm welcome to our new children and Sprouts members. We have had some of our friends who have left us for the Buds Room and a few who have joined from the Pips. They are settling into the routine incredibly well.

We have had a fun and busy time lately in our room. We have been exploring the alphabet through songs and art activities as well as beginning counting and discovering numbers. Although this is all new, the children have enjoyed these activities.

Moreover, Easter is just around the corner and we are all eager to anticipate it. We have also been organising our Easter activities. 

Please feel free to contact us about any ideas or concerns you may have and we can work together as a team to promote the best learning for your child.

Until next time

From, Miss Sharon

Buds

Time is flying by; we cannot believe it is April already.

After the big storm last week, I hope all our families are safe and best wishes for our families not being flooded or damaged, if you need any help please let us know.

During the beginning of this year, we have been enjoying getting to know one another and finding out how everything works and adapting to routines. It has been great fun as the children explore the room, build new friendships and connections with each and further develop their skills.

Now is the time that children begin to understand what wonderful things are in store for the year ahead in their new and wider environment. We look forward to assisting your children in growing, exploring, experiencing, and nurturing their learning journeys. This year the children will continue to learn about body parts, animals and cultural awareness. They will also start learning about shapes, colours, counting, and the alphabet and there will be lots of talking and interactions to increase our vocabulary. To support this we will be involved in a variety of activities such as artwork, some home corner and dramatic play, construction, play dough, books, puzzles, posters, puppets, felt objects, manipulative toys, musical instruments, music, singing, blocks, cars and much more. We will offer children activities depending on their interests to foster their learning. We look forward to a wonderful year of fun and learning in the year ahead.

We are always displaying the children's art work in the room, please take the time to go with your child around the room to discover their latest artwork and tell them how beautiful it is and tell them how beautiful they have made the whole room. The children have been working hard using their creativity, imagination, fine motor skills, cognitive ability and confidence to present their amazing artworks. Please look at your child's artwork and praise them as your child needs ongoing and ample encouragement and appreciation for their efforts and progress especially if it is from you "Mummy and Daddy". Thank you!

Recently we have had a few children toilet training in our Buds Room. While this is a new and exciting experience for our children it is important we work with you the parents to reinforce this training at again at home and we all can very quickly get your child using the toilet and out of nappies which is a great relief for everyone. It is important that our families  provide spare clothing for their child during this time.

We would like to get to know your child better and it is a big help if you could add in the Parents Communication book some interesting things that happened at home that are important and valued by your child.

Kind Regards,
Miss Lixia, Miss Cindy, Miss Hayley and Miss Isha

Blossoms 1

Hi everyone,

Welcome to the Blossom 1 room. We have had a new few families begin recently (Anna, Yimi and Evangeline) in our room. We welcomed all of them in our room and some children moved from the Buds room (Billie and Chloe Y). At last, summer is gone. Even though it is not winter yet, cold breeze is blowing. Please pack some warmer clothes in the children's bag; they may need those clothes for early morning or late afternoon.

We did many art activities during the last couple of months. We used brush painting, string painting, marble painting, recycle paper roll painting etc. Painting can be a significant part of your child's overall development and upbringing. As Easter is coming, we are getting ready for Easter art activities.

Children are still learning their self-help skills. They are now making their own bed (putting bed sheets on the bed) with little assistance from the caregiver.

There is a friendly reminder for parents to bring an A3 scrapbook for their children's artwork to be put in. Thanks to all those parents who have already handed over their scrapbook to us.

Until next time, Sanchita and Zeljka


Blossoms 2

Hello friends and family of our kindergarten room!

During March, we had many activities planned that focused on Harmony day and colours. During the Harmony activity week, we learned some songs and dances from Serbia. Miss Lydia brought in her traditional outfit to show the children. They were very engaged in the learning experience by asking many questions such as, "What is it made of?" and "how do you wear it?" The group then learned some dance moves and we held our own performance at the end of the week. Some children also shared their cultural backgrounds and what they would wear on special occasions. It was very insightful to learn from each other and the children were excited to share their knowledge with the group. From these celebrations of diversity, we also explored family diversity and so, children created some portraits and family related projects to share with the class. We asked questions such as "who is in your family?" and "what makes your family special?" These topics are all-important to discuss as a class and is critical in children's development of their perception of their world. Such that, we want children to be able to respect and take pride in their connections to familiar places, people, language, communities, culture and their past and future. This aspect is something we wanted to emphasis in the classroom.

For science, children were interested in experimenting with different colours. They used paint and added different primary colours together to find out what they would make. The class also used colourful shapes and magnets to create their own pictures. We also created our own under the sea collage that featured lots of fish, seaweed and other creative marine life. During group time, children learnt some sign language from a "rainbow song". It was very intriguing to see them apply some of the signs during other activities throughout the day. Marble and butterfly painting were amongst the favourites of children as well.

This month, we will be focusing on Easter activities by having an egg hunt, and making bunny masks. Children will have the opportunity to raise their topic of interest and we can discuss as a group to see what we would like to learn.

The afternoons are getting a little cooler now as we are heading straight into autumn. Please make sure your child has a jumper in their bags.

Until next time,
Miss Yu-mei (Sophie)

Poppies

Hello from the kindergarten room!

On the 21st March 2017, we celebrated Harmony Day with the children choosing their own colour hand print which was placed around the edges of a bright orange colour poster of Australia. The vibrant hand prints symbolised our diverse culture, bringing awareness to each child's uniqueness within our room and worldwide. Supportive reading materials, greetings of children's nationality within our room, visual aides were some of the resources integrated into the program for the children to gain insight and an understanding into this special day.

The Easter bunny is on its way! The children are very excited realising Easter is only a week away. Some of them shared that they already have Easter eggs at home; some children said their parents hid their Easter eggs away until that special day while some are enjoying this delicious treat already.

Leading to this event next week the children will be creating their own Easter egg baskets, filled with their choice of colour straw and small Easter treats inside. Bunny games, songs, arts and crafts will be incorporated within our flexible daily program in preparation for this exciting event.

We wish everyone a happy Easter weekend!

Cheers!
Tertia & Briohny