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Child Care News for Parents & Carers
November 29, 2017 |
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Welcome, this is our last newsletter 2017 so a Christmas greeting from us to you is in order. Also, if your child is transitioning to 'big school' next year be sure to read our checklist to help make this exciting change as smooth as possible. Finally, 10 cool Christmas craft ideas to try with your children.
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Making a smooth transition to big school
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Starting primary school is a bit like discovering play dough – it's a big event in your child's life. And whether your little learner is raring to go, or slightly reticent, there are many ways that you can help them prepare for life in the classroom.
According to the Victorian Department of Education and Training here's how you can support your child in the months and moments before that first school bell rings.
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10 kid-friendly Christmas crafts
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'Tis the season to get crafty. After all, craft is a great way for children to gain new skills, share that festive feeling and fill in the days till the big guy arrives.
There are loads of things kids can make at Christmas and we've got 10 of the best, all that's needed is a sprinkle of craft supplies, a sparkle of inspiration and a grown-up to help out if the mini-maker gets stuck.
So, without further ado, here are 10 fabulously festive ideas for kids to create:
Reindeer footprint Christmas cards This greeting card gets the stamp of approval – literally. With a child-sized paint footprint, pom pom nose and googly eyes, this Rudolph will go down in family history.
Paper roll elves Sporting pointy hats and cheeky faces, these painted elves are easy to make and cute to boot. Choose a favourite and put that elf on the shelf!
Glittery tree-shaped Christmas decorations An adult will need to cut the paddle pop sticks into different lengths and help glue them into tree shapes. Then it's over to kiddo to add jewel 'baubles' and hang the little trees on the big tree.
Stained glass star suncatchers Cut some contact and coloured paper into star shapes, sprinkle on glitter and tissue paper, then deck the windows with Christmas sparkle.
Jingle bell sticks Children and music go together like Christmas pudding and custard, so these DIY instruments will be a hit. Just attach pipe cleaner antlers, googly eyes and bell noses to a couple of paddle pop sticks, then jingle!
Festive fruit platter To craft a healthy Christmas recipe, slice up some green, red and yellow fruit, then help your mini-chef assemble a tree-shaped fruit platter. Kiwi fruit, raspberries and a pineapple star on top!
Paper plate Christmas wreath Cut the centre out of a paper plate, add green crepe paper 'leaves', make a bow out of kiddo's handprints and add pom poms. Très jolly!
Santa and reindeer stick puppets Put on a show with these puppets made from cardboard, giant paddle pop sticks, pom poms, googly eyes and a cupcake case beard for Santa.
Christmas tree corner bookmark Here's a great gift for bookworms and a fun project for older kids. To make tree-shaped origami, just combine green and brown paper with a few decorations and follow the folding instructions.
Christmas bonbons For an easy version of the handmade Chrissy cracker, wrap some toilet rolls in pretty paper and decorate them with everything festive (stickers, sparkles, ribbons, pom poms etc). Hide a paper crown, joke and small gift inside, then tie both ends with ribbon.
And with that, "Ho ho ho and Merry Craft-mas!"
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Happy holidays from Roxanne, Mark and the CareforKids.com.au team
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It's our last newsletter for 2017 and amidst the hurly burly of the end of year madness we'd like to take a moment to say a big thank you for your continued support this year and for being a valued member of the CareforKids.com.au community.
It's been a big year for us, and in response to feedback we have worked hard to refine CareforKids.com.au to ensure the best possible online experience, and to make it even easier for Australian families to find child care when and where they need it.
Improvements we have made this year include:
- Better ACECQA rating information to ensure parents have up-to-date quality scores for the services they are considering
- Addition of special offer, event and invitation features so parents know what is happening in their local providers
- Inclusion of number of approved spaces for services to support parents looking for a smaller child care provider
- More targeted Vacancy Alert locations so parents receive referrals in their area
- Enhanced 'Request a Tour' and 'Request an Interview' features, which send valuable resources to parents considering a service or hiring an in-home carer
- An expansion and update of our child care library
We are proud to report these efforts have paid off and we have broken a few personal records this year including; highest volume of visitors to the site, greatest number of new child care providers signed up and the most corporate clients to join in a single year.
We are looking forward to another busy and productive year, but in the meantime, can't wait for the summer holidays!
From everyone here at CareforKids.com.au, have a happy, peaceful and safe holiday season.
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