Welcome back to all of our existing families and a warm welcome to the new families to our Centre this year.  We are looking forward to another great year at Mairangi Bay and I am sure you will appreciate the effort the teachers have put into our environments this year at our Teacher Only Day.  They are certainly trying really hard to win the “Bear Park Environments Competition” again. 

Sadly we farewell Karen Koti who has left us to move back home to Hamilton to be with her family.  We will also be farewelling Lalita this Friday as she has obtained a position which fits better with her family commitments at this time.  We will also be saying goodbye to Maria, our cook as she is moving to Wellington to be with her husband who has been transferred with his work.  I know we will miss all of these valued members of staff and wish them well in the future.

The good news is that we are fortunate to have been able to replace all of these people.  Renee Wheeler has become supervisor of the entire Childcare Licence which includes the Fantail and Kingfisher rooms.  We have appointed a new full time teacher to the Kingfisher room.  Marcia Fenwick has been working with us for a couple of weeks now following her graduation with a Bachelor of Education in ECE.  Marcia is fitting into the Bear Park team beautifully and will be getting to know all of the parents so please feel free to introduce yourselves if you haven’t already met her.

Rhianna Buchanan will be starting with us next Tuesday the 2nd of February in the Moa room.  Rhianna has just completed a Post Graduate qualification in ECE and is extremely excited about working with us.  Please also make yourselves known to Rhianna.

We also have a new cook, Beth Lee Martin will be coming in to spend a bit of time with Maria next week and will be in sole charge the following week the 8th of February.  Beth is a qualified Chef and is also very excited about being able to combine her two passions, cooking and children.  As you walk past please introduce yourselves and your children to Beth especially those parents who have children with allergies, although she will be making it a priority to get to know those children anyway.

I would also like to advise that Judy has been accepted to complete her Graduate Diploma in Special Education (Early Childhood Invervention).  Judy will be studying for the next two years and we know that her additional knowledge will be very beneficial for the Centre.  This will require Judy to attend practicums and to attend university at times during the year but we have a large pool of wonderful relievers who will be filling the gaps when required.

These are scheduled for:

Kingfisher Room: Monday 8th March 8.30-12.30

Fantail Room: Tuesday 9th March 8.30 – 12.30

Moa Room: Wednesday 10th March 8.30 – 4.30   

You will see that we have separated the rooms onto different days and different times and also that there are 10 minute interviews but they are spaced 15 minutes apart so that we are not running late and holding people up.   If you would like to make a time to have a chat with your teachers about your child then please book a time on the sheets at reception.Parents Evening

We are organising our first parents evening of the year.  We have decided to do things a little bit differently this year and are splitting it into two separate nights.  The first is a Wine and Cheese evening for the Mums on the 16th of February at 7 p.m.  The second is a Bangers and Beer evening for the Dads on the 16th of March at 7 p.m.  We will take the opportunity  to introduce all of our teachers to those of you that are new.  Please note these dates in your diary as it is a great way to informally get to know the teachers at a time when their focus is not on the children.

Family Photos
We are endeavouring to incorporate the childrens family into the Centre as part of our family oriented culture at Bear Park and also to support our community project.  If you have not already done so we would love you to bring in a photo of your family so that it can be displayed in your child’s room.

Reggio Tour
We are very pleased to announce that Sonya will be attending the annual conference in Reggio Emilia, Italy in April this year.  Sonya is incorporating this conference into a holiday in Europe and beyond for a month.  During her absence we will be filling her position with our pool of wonderful relievers.

Food in Bags
We have a number of children that attend the Centre with allergies, some of them quite severe.  We provide all food for the children during their day at Bear Park and would appreciate it if you would ensure that no food at all is left in your child’s bag.  Please also ensure that all medication is taken out and signed in should it be required during the day.

Outdoor Environment
You will see that we have completed this stage of our outdoor environment.  We are still tending to some new grass but on the whole we feel that it is a huge improvement to our outdoor areas.  If you haven’t had the opportunity to go through the rooms and have a look outside please do so.  You may even see our “river bed” in action!!!  The children are thoroughly enjoying the changes and are showing a huge amount of respect for these areas, a culture which we nurture in our environments both inside and outside.

Special Requests

• Can you please check your pockets regularly to ensure that you have collected all of the important information.
• As water play is very popular in summer please pack at least one spare set of extra named clothes so that the children can enjoy the activities provided.  If you wish they can bring in their swimming togs and rash tops so that they can have a splash around and still be sun smart.
• Please help us keep the Centre secure by not releasing the door code to anyone other than the people who regularly collect your child.  We are quite happy to open the door to those who are doing occasional pick ups.  It would also assist us if you do not open the door to people unless a staff member is aware that they have entered the premises.
• Please remember to sign your children in and out from the Centre every day.  This is extremely important as it is a Ministry requirement and we must provide evidence that this is being done when they visit us in the middle of the year for our ERO review.  We will be following up on those that forget to ensure that our records are complete.
• Please do not allow your child to bring any toys into the Centre from home as it is quite distressing for your child if they are lost or broken.
• You will see that each of the rooms has a sign in and out book for the children’s Portfolios.  Would you please help us keep track of the Portfolios by ensuring that these are completed before taking them home.  We have a number that have not yet been returned to the Centre and would be grateful if you would return them as soon as possible so that we can put in new entries.