​January has been a big month here at Oakdowns with many children transitioning to their new rooms and new families joining us! We also have many of our older children making the big and exciting transition to school.
 
Transitions offer a time of new opportunities and challenges for children and we try our hardest to make this time positive and exciting for each child.  Our educators work closely with each other and also with our families to ensure that each child feels comfortable with the process.
 
When children move into their new room our educators help each child feel secure and confident in their new environment by supporting them with the new routines and providing play spaces that they know are of interest to each child. This information is gathered from educators from the previous room and from our families.
 
We took some photos last week of these wonderful play spaces that our children transitioning into their new room get to experience throughout the day!  It almost makes you want to go back to being a child yourself!

By Emma Ramsay (working mother to 3 beautiful kids)

All too often us Mums are faced with having to juggle way too many commitments - between family, work, friends, the never-ending housework and those gorgeous kids who insist on eating every single meal time, it's hard to find the time to focus on another really important commitment - YOU!

Just taking a little time each day for yourself will give you the energy and focus to lead a happier, fuller life. And remember a happy mum = happy family.

So here's my top 4 tips for making more time for you in 2016.

1. Child Care - most of us will feel guilty at one time or another about putting our kids into care to go back to work or find more time for ourselves. But finding a quality child day care centre is key to helping you rest easy that your children are well cared for. Oakdowns Early Learning Centre is a family run business with wonderful caring educators and a program that supports your child to learn through play. Give them a call today to organise a tour of their beautiful childcare centre. 

2. Schedule time for fitness outdoors - we all know we feel better after doing something good for our bodies. So why not kill two birds with one stone by doing some exercise and getting some fresh air at the same time. We all know Tasmania has the most beautiful environment so let's make the most of it! 

3. Focus on your goals and aspirations - we often put the needs of our partner and children before our own, but taking the time to focus on what you really want, be it career or personal development, can help you work out a plan for achieving your goals. Putting something down on paper and including a time frame might be just the nudge you need to unlock your potential.​

4. Happy Mum = Happy Family - ever noticed how much easier it is to enjoy time with family after doing something for your self. Be grateful for what you have and remember happy mum = happy family.

We are excited to be hosting this year's Christmas party for our families next Thursday.  A great opportunity for our families to mix with our fantastic educational team, support staff, and other families and share some memories of the year we've had.

​Will your family be travelling over the Christmas break? Take a 3 minute break to watch, and then share this helpful video from Kidsafe with family and friends to keep all children safe.

Link to Kidsafe video on youtube here...
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​Congratulations to the Department of Education Tasmania who launched their new Kinder Ready interactive website last Monday.
It looks like a handy resource for families that focusses on the importance of relationships and learning through play for Babies to Kinder age children.
The website link is http://kinder-ready.tas-education.org/.
This coordinated nicely with the "School Week" at Oakdowns when our Starbrights children practised bringing their own lunch, and being more independent in readiness for school next year.  We offer a variety of educational activities where children learn through play every day.
Many of our families choose to keep their children enrolled with us for their kinder year having experienced what Oakdowns offer.

On 15 September this year, with the weather warming up,​ Oakdowns Early Learning Centre had the special privilege of hosting an amazing learning experience through an amazing person, Laurie Lawrence, for KIDS ALIVE DO THE FIVE.  We were very grateful and feel very privileged to be a part of this experience to assist with the education of water safety in a fun environment. 
The children sat on some mats outside and Laurie assisted the children to engage in and contribute to the shared experience with magic tricks, follow the leader around the yard, and asking questions, helping the children to explore their culture and develop their sense of belonging. 
Laurie presented the children with choices to come up to him and talk and play.  He prompted the children’s understanding of water safety through language, storytelling play, music, and role play. 
“LIFE SAVER LIL” was used as a fun visual representation of a lifeguard that sure had the moves, and along with Laurie and the “kids alive, do the five” song, the children contributed and engaged in the movement to music experience learning the actions to the song. 
The children at Oakdowns were shown through this amazing opportunity that we all belong in our community and together we can assist the children in care and safety for themselves as well as others. The WIN news crew was in attendance as well as The Mercury. 
We thank everybody who was involved as this was an amazing opportunity that was enjoyed immensely by the children and our educational team.