News from Learning Community 1
Learning Community 1 has enthusiastically embarked on a busy and exciting Term 4!
This term we will be exploring celebrations unique to our ELC community, including Diwali, Christmas and our Transition Celebration for children preparing to move to the Erindale room. We also intend to bring attention to and celebrate the care the children have demonstrated for their natural environment across the year. We will approach this celebration through the concept of creating with recycled materials.
Working alongside children to develop awareness about the recycling process helps foster environmental responsibility from a young age. Engaging children in hands-on experiences including sorting recyclable materials and creating art from waste makes the concept tangible and playful. Such experiences develop responsible habits and encourage children to be advocates for sustainability in their home and wider community.
In small groups, the children have been working together to construct with a range of familiar recycled materials. They have developed fine motor skills using joining materials such as masking tape, staples, pipe cleaners and glue and have challenged their problem-solving skills through trial and error. These opportunities have encouraged imagination, creativity and collaboration as we witness a wonderfully busy buzz around our construction tables. As we begin to explore Diwali and Christmas in the coming weeks, we endeavour to work alongside the children to create decorations from recycled materials to connect our explorations of celebrations and sustainability. We can create beauty with simple materials intended for the bin.
We invite you to please donate any clean recycled materials for our explorations in the classroom. The children have been particularly creative with cereal boxes, plastic containers from strawberries and blueberries, yoghurt pouch lids and milk bottles.
Annabelle Redmond
Learning Community 1 Teacher (Stonyfell Room)
Celebrate our Learning
In Week 3, we will host our much-loved ‘Celebrate our Learning Week.’ During this time, you are warmly invited to explore your child’s portfolio during drop-off or pick-up. The portfolio serves as a beautiful record of your child’s achievements, linking their learning to curriculum frameworks and early years principles, while providing a meaningful form of assessment for educators, families, and your child.
We encourage you to sit with your child in the Learning Community 1 Piazza, where they can lead you through their learning and discoveries. This is a special opportunity to share in the rich documentation of their growth and development—moments that highlight their progress and achievements.
Sun Smart in the ELC
As spring arrives and the weather warms up, it’s important to stay sun smart. Following the Cancer Council’s advice, our Centre has clear guidelines for sun protection, especially on days when the UV index reaches three or above. Recently, the UV levels have been higher during certain parts of the day, so we ask families to be mindful of the following:
Please ensure your child’s hat is returned to the ELC so we can be prepared for warmer days throughout the rest of this term and into Term 4. Outdoor activities, including visits to Ferguson Conservation Park, are an important part of our program, and children need their hats to enjoy these spaces safely.
To help us keep everything organised, please label your child’s hat clearly with their name. Thank you for supporting our sun safety practices. For more information, please visit the Cancer Council website.
The Importance of Signing In/Out at the ELC
To ELC Families,
A friendly reminder to please sign in and sign out your child/children each morning and afternoon when entering and departing the ELC.
This is part of our regulatory obligations as an early learning service and ensures our Centre has a record of your child’s attendance in the case of an emergency or evacuation.
If you forget to sign in or sign out, please call, or email our Centre at your earliest convenience with your child’s full name and room/teacher.
We appreciate your cooperation.
Centre phone number: 8155 5733
Centre email: Wolita Harding, ELC Manager: wharding@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au
Donation of Recycled Materials
We invite you to bring in recycled materials such as paper towel rolls, bottle caps, colourful packaging and ribbons for our children, so they can transform them into unique creations.
This is a wonderful opportunity for our ELC children to explore their imagination while learning about the importance of recycling. Thank you for helping us inspire creativity and foster a love for art in our children.
