Stones Corner Community Kindergarten

Committee Newsletter April 2012

A message from the Committee President
you Mrs Edwards! The kindy year was vitally important for both of my children in very different ways and was a perfect fit for both of my two very different children. I wish you all the best in your endeavour to find the right school for your child. Don't forget to talk to other parents - they are an excellent source of information! Warmest Regards,

Dear Parents,
As we move into Term 2 (I warned you that this year goes by quickly!), many local schools are starting to organise enrolments for 2013 and naturally your thoughts will turn to Prep and the preparedness of your children for school. It's impossible for parents not to compare their child's development with other children. Someone wise once told me that the pace at which your child's teeth grow is no indication of intelligence, and the same applies for every developmental stage and skill acquired. Luckily for your child, Stones Corner Kindy uses a play-based curriculum (C&K's Building Waterfalls) that is developmentally correct for every child and teaches the children as they like to learn - through play. Please feel free to talk to Julie-Ann about the curriculum and your expectations of learning at kindy. It's a topic she loves to talk about!

Julie Isoardi
You're welcome to contact me at any time. Phone: 0422 900 548 Email: juliediehm@hotmail.com

Have you moved address?

Please make sure that your address and other contact details are up-to-date. Email sckindy@bigpond.net.au

Committee meetings
All parents are welcome to attend Committee Meetings to find out more about the management of the Kindy and to have their say. Meetings are held at the Kindy, this term's meetings are on 1 May and 30 May starting at 7.15 pm.

My two older boys both left kindy barely able to write their name, doing artwork that only a mother could love and certainly not showing any signs of Term 2 Dates being able to read. But they were completely prepared for school - Bunning BBQ Mt Gravatt: 28 April and off they flew! Their progress in - Fete: 3 June these more quantifiable skills, like reading and writing, has been - Working Bees: 14 April, 19 May, 3 June astonishing. While their progress made at kindy can't be charted - as - Committee Meetings: 1 May, 30 May a Mum it was obvious. My children matured into social creatures and developed a love of learning - thank

Committee Newsletter April 2012

8th Prize - Easter Collection - Daniel Smallcombe 9th Prize - Easter collection - Parker Family (Group B) 10th Prize - Easter collection - Sharma Family (Group A) 11th Prize - soft toy and box of chocolates - Reed Family (Group A) 12 Prize - carton of easter eggs - Andrew

Our Kindy is still collecting caps for fundraising. Please set them aside for us and drop them off to the collection box next to the front door.
A message from the Social and Fundraising team
What a lovely end of term celebration both kindy groups had! The children loved making their bunny ears and the Easter Egg hunt. Thanks everyone for bring such yummy goodies to share. Group B ended their Easter Afternoon tea with the Easter Raffle Draw. The results were as follows: 1st Prize - 6 month gym membership Casley Family (Group B) 2nd Prize - Bali Furniture voucher -Reed Family (Group A) 3rd Prize - $100 fitness voucher - Lewis Family (Group B) 4th Prize - $100 painting voucher - Fung Family (Group B) 5th Prize - Easter collection (chocolates, eggs and gifts) - Cohen Family (Group B) 6th Prize - Easter collection - Talbot Family (Group A) 7th Prize - Easter collection - Casley Family (Group B)

13th Prize - carton of easter eggs - Hall Family (Group B) Thank you everyone for donating such beautiful and generous prizes. We have a wonderful community of families and this has been showcased by the prizes and money raised so far, which now exceeds $900. A final tally will be done early in 2nd term. Well done everybody!

Scholastic Book Fair

In the coming weeks the Kindy will be hosting a Scholastic Book Fair. This is a wonderful opportunity to add high-quality books to your child's library while supporting the Kindy. Family involvement in reading has a positive impact on a child's educational achievement. Please feel free to browse the range with your child, which will be displayed on the table near the front door. The Kindy will also have a wish list on the table if families would like to purchase a book and donate it to the Kindy.

Stones Corner Community Kindergarten

Committee Newsletter April 2012 Kindy Fete is on 3rd June!

The Kindy is very excited to announce our annual fete, to be held on 3rd June from 10am 2pm. The children had a wonderful time at the fete last year, and money raised was used to fund shade sails over the sandpit and swing set. We are hoping that this year, with your involvement, we can create an even bigger and better fete, to raise the profile of the Kindy and to raise funds for the renovation of the kitchen and bathroom. Some ideas on how you can help are listed below. If you have an additional idea or would like to contribute some more, please contact Liz at dizzyred_7@hotmail.com. Donations for the trash and treasure A trash and treasure will be held during the Fete to raise funds for the Kindy. If you have any goodquality second-hand items that you can donate (books, toys, clothes, homewares, etc.), please drop them off to the Kindy, into the collection boxes near the door. Donations of handcrafts, jams, for fundraising stalls

The Kindy also be collecting new items for fundraising. We will gratefully accept lollies for lolly-bags, lucky-dip toys, balloons, jams and pickles, and handcrafts. Large items suitable for inclusion in a raffle prize (wine, chocolates, gift vouchers, etc.) are also much-appreciated. A collection box can be found in the Kindy, near the portfolios table.

Fete flyers will be printed soon, and a sign-up sheet set-up for parents to deliver the flyers to their local area. Please note down which streets you will be able to deliver to, and hopefully with everyone pulling together we will be able to get good coverage of our local area. Volunteer to host a stall If you can spare some time during the fete to mind a stall, please add your name to the sign-up roster on the main table near the Kindy door. We will also need Team Leaders to co-ordinate their stall beforehand and on the day.

Stones Corner Community Kindergarten

Committee Newsletter April 2012 National Quality Framework

Due to the introduction of the Education and Care Services National Regulations 2011 we are going through the process of "Self-Assessment" under the National Quality Framework. A big thank you to all those parents who have helped out by attending our meeting groups and also to our teachers who have been working hard to put all the information together for our Quality Improvement Plan. Our plan will be available for any parent to view after the 30th April. Please complete our survey Part of this is the Parent Survey that was emailed to every parent (there is also a hard copy on the parent sign in desk). Please take a couple of minutes to fill out the anonymous survey and use the comments section freely. The survey is an important tool to help us work out any ways in which our kindy can improve and we value your input. Please take a few minutes to complete the survey, if you haven't already. There are hard copies, if required, on the sign in desk that can be returned via the white fees box.
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Stonescorner communitykindergarten2012

parents are still divided over a paperless email system of receiving newsletters and information. Many parents provided comments in the space provided on the survey and this extra bit of information was extremely helpful as an evaluation tool. We will continue using Survey Monkey as it's a simple way to collect data and it's easy for parents to use.

We got a Junior Landcare Grant!

Thanks to the tireless efforts of Grants Officer Jane Osorio, Kindy has been successful in receiving a Coles Junior Landcare Grant worth $816.20! This money will enable us to purchase two Earthmaker compost bins as well as a StackA-Pot system for growing herbs and vegetables. These will be fantastic resources for the children to learn about the environment through outdoor learning and interaction in developing their own garden.

Paying fees
Many aspects of the administration and management of our Kindy are undertaken by parent volunteers. Debt collection of term fees is one of the responsibilities of the Parent Management Committee. If you're late in paying your fees it will be a fellow parent that is required to call you up and chase this money on behalf of the Kindy. This is not a nice job and can make relationships between parents a bit awkward. In order to avoid this, please contact Katrina (in the office between 9am1pm Tuesdays & Thursdays) or Karly our Treasurer (Luka's mum in Group A) to let us know of any issues getting fees paid on time.

Results from the 2011 parent survey The feedback we received from last year's parents via the parent survey was very positive. We are able to confirm that parents would rather participate in fundraising activities voluntarily and at their discretion rather than pay a levy per family, parents and children enjoyed their excursion to the farm although some were concerned about the extra cost, and

Stones Corner Community Kindergarten