April 2024
Welcome to the April edition of our Educator newsletter! As we embrace the changing seasons, we are reminded of the profound connections between nature, culture, and education. Drawing inspiration from the wisdom of Indigenous knowledge systems, we encourage you to explore how the essence of Djeran (Nyoongar), Marrul (Yawuru), Warnka-mageny (Miriwoong) and Kupilya ngarrin (Ngadju) can inform and enrich early childhood play experiences that foster a deeper connection to the natural world and promote holistic learning.
Welcome
We would like to extend a very warm welcome to Wendy Nicholas who has opened her Family Day Care in Albany! We are very excited to be working with you and can’t wait to share in all the wonderful adventures that you and the children embark on.
Signing children into care
Recently it has been identified that some children have not been signed into care resulting in Guardians signing retrospectively, sometimes the next day of care or the following week for care that occurred in the previous week. This prompted Nature Alliance to contact Family Day Care Australia to ask the question – how is Public Liability affected if a child is not signed into care as the care is occurring and they are injured. This is the response direct from FDCA – In response to your enquiry about public liability insurance, it is essential to clarify that a child is covered under FDCA’s Public Liability policy only when officially signed into the educator’s care.
This means that the responsibility of the child’s safety lies with the educator during the time of any incident. However, if a child is not registered with the educator and an incident occurs, this would be construed as a private care arrangement (and potentially not approved by the service). In such cases, there is no coverage for children who are not registered under the educator’s care. It is also a regulatory requirement that children are signed into care. So, from both a legal and liability focus, it is vital to embed in Guardians the importance of signing their child in on arrival. Please also remember that if a parent forgets to sign in, you can use your Educator pin, but you must put a detailed note as to why you are using your pin. It is illegal for you to have access to your families’ pin numbers, so please don’t do it!
Shirley Pearl and her bush friends letter subscription
Through the Koori Curriculum an opportunity is available for children to receive letters (yes, in the letterbox) from Shirley Pearl. A little indigenous girl who writes about her adventures on Country and in her culture. Jenni Costa recently subscribed and her FDC children get so excited to receive Shirley’s letter and learn about what she has been doing. The children can also write back to Shirley Pearl which creates connection, literacy and further opportunity to embed culture into your service. If you google Shirely Pearls Letters you will find it easily. Thank you, Jenni for sharing this amazing opportunity.
FDSEE Reminders
Effective record-keeping practices are essential for ensuring compliance with regulations. Approved providers and family day care Educators bear the responsibility of maintaining precise and current records. FDSEE is our ultimate tool for managing records and compliance. FDSEE goes the extra mile by sending timely reminders for upcoming expiry dates, aiding you in upholding compliance standards. Upon receiving a reminder, we urge you to promptly take action to prevent oversights. Should you encounter any issues with receiving notifications, please inform us. Let’s embrace FDSEE to simplify administrative tasks and prioritise what truly matters – providing exceptional care and education to our children.
Primitive Reflexes
Discover the fascinating world of primitive reflexes! These automatic movements, controlled by the brainstem, play a crucial role in survival and early development. We’re grateful to have gained invaluable insights from a physiotherapist who visits Angela’s service. These insights shed light on the significance of primitive reflexes in early childhood development. Primitive Reflexes are indicators of central nervous system integrity and are commonly assessed by physicians and therapists. Understanding these reflexes can enhance our approach to early childhood, ensuring the best outcomes for the children we nurture.
Professional Development – Early Childhood Educator Online Workshop
WA Child Safety Services have an upcoming workshop for early childhood Educators that you may be interested in. Child Protection and Abuse Prevention in Early Childhood Workshop to be held on Tuesday, April 30th 2024 from 6:30PM TO 8:30PM (AWST) Online. Please click on this link for more details and to purchase a ticket to this event:
Farewell
We would like to wish Christine Seia all the best in her new adventures. It has been wonderful working with you over the last few years.
Mealtimes
A gentle reminder that when mealtimes are occurring at your service it is a requirement that the children clean their hands before eating, preferably with warm soapy water. You are also reminded to ensure that the table that they are eating at has been cleaned too. A great idea is to mix some cleaning vinegar with water in a spray bottle and then invite one of the children to wipe the table down before they eat. This way they can be involved in the process. If cleaning the table isn’t always an option, then you could consider using small tablecloths that can be removed after eating. Please chat to your ESO if you would like other ideas.
Mandatory Reporting Changes
The Children and Community Services Amendment Act 2021 was passed by Parliament on 14 October 2021 and, among other changes, will introduce new mandatory reporter groups for child sexual abuse. From 1 November 2024 Early Childhood Workers will become Mandatory Reporters. Nature Alliance staff recently attended training facilitated by ECRU and these changes were discussed. Educators will be receiving information from ECRU in the near future about training that Family Day Care Educators will be required to complete. It was reassuring to hear that this training will be offered in person and virtually. More information about this will be shared as it comes to light.
Child Safe Organisation
To be a child-safe organisation, you must show that you put the best interests of the children and young people first. This is exactly what Nature Alliance, and all our Educators do on a daily basis. Considering the upcoming changes to Mandatory Reporting and the focus on child safety, Nature Alliance has started the process of ensuring that the National Principles for Child Safe Organisations are clearly reflected in our governance procedures. We have downloaded the Introductory self-assessment tool for organisations to guide us in reflecting on our child safe practices in order to identify priority areas for improvement, in line with the National Principles. This is a whole Service initiative, and your input and knowledge will be valuable. We look forward to discussing our progress with you during our visits.
Policies being Updated
The following Policies are in the process of being updated. This is your opportunity to have your say and suggest any changes or updates. Please forward any feedback to Info and it will be discussed during our staff meeting.
• Policy 1.5 – Tobacco, Drug and Alcohol-Free Environment
• Policy 5.1 – Delivery and Collection of children
• Policy 5.2 – Excursions and Regular Outings
• Policy 15 – Absences from Care
• Policy 31 – Exemption for Additional Children
• Policy 32 – Social Media
• Policy 33 – Fraud Prevention
Great resource
Brain break bops are interoception activities for pre-school and early primary school students. Building interoceptive awareness (feeling more connected with your body and your bodily signals) requires students to actively notice changes in their body state. To do this, students complete a movement for thirty seconds, and pause to reflect, before completing it for a second time. Each activity has been timed to support this structure in an engaging way. The website is easy to navigate and has some wonderful activities that can be incorporated into your curriculum.
Assessment and Rating Update
Still nothing! We submitted our 64-page response on 25th March and have still not had a response! We will keep you updated!
Word of the Day
Social sustainability – addresses issues of social justice and equity, respect for diversity and inclusion, active citizenship and sense of community. In simple terms this would include creating environments where children of all backgrounds, abilities, and identities feel welcomed and valued.
Office Hours
Our office hours are 8.30am to 4.30pm. If you have a query outside of these hours, please phone and leave a message. If you need to speak with someone in an emergency, please ring Jo Georgiou and if your call is not answered immediately, leave a message and your call will be returned.
Phone Numbers
Sandra / Sue: 0431 449 567 (Mon – Fri); Joy: 0429 030 362 (Mon, Tues, Wed & Fri); Jo C: 0477 029 531 (Mon – Fri); Jo G: 0477 029 132 (Mon – Thurs); Lea: 0477 029 228 (Mon, Tue, Thurs & Fri).
To ensure that we respond to your emails promptly please send your queries to: info@naturealliancefdc.com.au
“Strength is not measured by how we avoid the storm, but how we endure it. Weathering the tempests of life, we emerge resilient, forged by adversity, and empowered by our resilience” – Anonymous