Centre Manager’s Report: November and December

Tēnā koutou katoa,

Spring has been on and off so far, but it’s lovely to finally feel the sunshine and see the flowers blooming all around us. We hope you’ve all had a chance to enjoy the beauty of the season.

A warm welcome to Connie, our new student teacher, who is studying for her master’s in teaching (Early Childhood Education) through New Zealand Tertiary College.

We would also like to thank Amy for spending six wonderful weeks with us. We wish her all the very best in her future studies.

Lastly, we are farewelling Sanja. We wish her all the best for her future endeavours.

BUSY TAMARIKI KARORI KIDS                        

1.      Celebration of Sri Lankan Culture: To acknowledge our Sri Lankan community, we dedicated a special day for tamariki to learn about Sri Lankan culture. Pasan and Bimaya kindly shared some cultural artifacts, and tamariki enjoyed listening to classic Sinhala songs. This experience helped strengthen a sense of belonging for our tamariki and families. (See learning stories for more details.) 2.      Diwali:The children had a wonderful time celebrating Diwali here at Karori Kids. They enjoyed experiencing Indian cuisine, including butter chicken, sweets like jalebi and cake with barfi icing, and mango lassi. The tamariki were also busy creating art and crafts, making Rangoli patterns, and dancing. Four of our Indian parents joined in to help with reading books, applying henna/mehndi on the children’s hands, preparing food, and dancing together. (See the story for more details.) 3.      Fijian Language Week (17th–21st October):Tamariki were actively engaged in learning about Fiji throughout the week. As part of the celebration, they took part in various art and craft activities, explored Fijian culture, food, and songs. The tamariki responded with great enthusiasm, showing curiosity and appreciation for learning and celebrating a different culture. 4.      Bilingual Story Time:At Karori Kids, we are committed to sustainability and make an effort to go on excursions at least once a week. On Tuesdays, we usually visit the library for story time, where our tamariki explores a different topic each visit. These sessions support their growing interest in books, stories, and language. 5.      Building and Construction:Tamariki have been consistently engaged in building and construction using wooden blocks, magnetic tiles, and LEGO. These activities foster creativity, collaboration, and help develop important social and problem-solving skills. 6.      Transition to School:For our Thunderbirds, we continue to focus on supporting key school readiness skills such as independence, manaakitanga, and self-regulation. 7.      To strengthen these skills further, we visited Karori Normal School on Tuesday, 18th November. This visit gave our four-year-old tamariki the opportunity to experience a real classroom routine and become familiar with the school environment. Children’s Common Interests: Painting & DrawingMany children are currently exploring painting, drawing, and collage, which support creativity, fine motor development, and pencil grip. Teachers are further enhancing these experiences by incorporating natural materials and thought-provoking prompts to inspire deeper learning.

Learning Outcomes (Te Ara Whānui Whāriki and NELP) 1a. Making connections between people, places and things in their world | te waihanga hononga 1b. Understanding how things work here and adapting to change | te māramatanga ki te āhua o ngā whakahaere me te mōhio ki te panoni 2a. Making connections between people, places and things in their world | te waihanga hononga 2b. Understanding how things work here and adapting to change | te māramatanga ki te āhua o ngā whakahaere me te mōhio ki te panoni 3a. Making connections between people, places and things in their world | te waihanga hononga 3b. Understanding how things work here and adapting to change | te māramatanga ki te āhua o ngā whakahaere me te mōhio ki te panoni 3a. Showing respect for kaupapa and the rights of others | te mahi whakaute 5a. Recognising print symbols and concepts and using them with enjoyment, meaning and purpose | he kōrero tuhituh 5b. He Kōrero Pāngarau: Recognising and using mathematical concepts with purpose 6a. Expressing feelings and ideas using various materials and modes | he kōrero auaha 6b.Recognising print symbols and using them with enjoyment and purpose | he kōrero tuhituhi 6a. Recognising print symbols and concepts and using them with enjoyment, meaning and purpose | he kōrero tuhituh

Costume Party:Our costume party was a big hit! Many tamariki came dressed in a variety of creative costumes. In the morning, they enjoyed a fun and spooky dance party, and in the afternoon, they went on a ‘candy hunt’ with their little baskets.

Professional DevelopmentReena has been participating in the Incredible Years programme—a valuable series of workshops that support positive behaviour guidance and effective teaching strategies.

New Internal EvaluationBuilding on our recent evaluation, we are now focusing on children’s social and emotional competence. This evaluation aligns with Kōwhiti Whakapae and will consider our teaching practices, resources, and ongoing professional development to strengthen this important area of learning.

The guiding question for this evaluation is:“To what extent do our current assessment practices on social and emotional competence at Karori Kids align with the criteria and principles outlined in Kōwhiti Whakapae?”

We will focus on the following indicators:

1. Learning stories clearly demonstrate the development and progression of social and emotional competence, with links to the learning descriptors and progressions outlined in Kōwhiti Whakapae.

2. Teachers can articulate and demonstrate how their assessment practices reflect the principles and criteria of Kōwhiti Whakapae, particularly in relation to social and emotional learning.

3. Assessment processes actively incorporate whānau input and reflect their aspirations for their child’s social and emotional development, in line with the partnership principles of Kōwhiti Whakapae.

4. Children’s voices and perspectives are visible in assessments of social and emotional competence, in ways that align with Kōwhiti Whakapae's emphasis on identity and agency.

Upcoming Events

December

• Last Day of Term: 19 December

Reminders

• Please provide updated immunisation records for your 4-year-old child.

• As per enrolment agreements, children must attend a minimum of six hours per day.

• We kindly ask that children do not bring toys from home.

• Cultural items are always welcome and appreciated to support inclusive learning.

• News time is for sharing meaningful items—please discourage bringing toys for this.

AcknowledgementsWe would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to our wonderful parents and committee members for their ongoing support, time, and talents. A special mention goes to our committee members: Claudio, Shao, Sumit, Gaetan, Kate, Rony, and Pasan.

Your support makes a real difference at Karori Kids. We are especially grateful to our committee, whose dedication and encouragement strengthen our teaching team, the Centre, and help us provide the best possible experience for our tamariki and whānau.

     As we reflect on the importance of community, we are reminded of a Māori proverb:

   "He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tāngata, he tāngata, he tāngata!"What is the most important thing in the world? It is people, it is people, it is people!

Thank you for being such an important part of our Karori Kids whānau.

Meri Kirihimete and Happy New Year