What is National Recycling Week?

National Recycling Week is one of Planet Ark's campaigns and every year aims to educate and empower people to do the right thing when they're at the bin. Established in 1996, the event is held every second week of November. This year, National Recycling Week will be from the 13th-19th November 2023. 

National Recycling Week focuses on the waste hierachy - reduce, resuse, recycle. Connecting with individuals, communities, schools, businesses and the government, Planet Ark provide tools to help educate their network and run National Recycling Events. 

Click the links for more information on how to get involved at home, work, school and in the community. 

When is National Recycling Week?

From Monday 13th to Sunday 19th November 2023

Activities:

• Sorting Waste according to the red, green and yellow bin
• Sensory exploring recycled paper 
• Intentional teaching about Pollution - In general, recycling materials can produce less pollution helping to keep our environment clean.
• Encourage your educators, children and families to bring in recycling items to be used around the centre. i.e. turning an old tyre into a pot plat around your centre. 
• Make a recycling bin in your classroom, turn off lights when rooms not in use.
• Discuss and create a plan of action to reduce their waste with the children.
• Ask families to donate toys and clothes - Instead of throwing away toys your kids are done playing with, help them choose some to be donated and reused by other children.
• Implement rain buckets in your outdoor area to use to water your garden and plants.
  
  
   

What is Remembrance Day?

Remembrance Day falls on the 11th of November each year. On the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month, a minutes' silence is observed and dedicated to those soldiers who died fighting to protect the nation. Today the loss of Australian lives from all wars and conflicts is commemorated on Remembrance Day.

The wearing of a red poppy became a symbol of remembrance throughout the allied nations. 

The Education Team at the Australian War Memorial have suggested that early childhood educators might be able to adapt the following resources to use for the children in their services: 

"A Very Special Day" - https://www.awm.gov.au/learn/schools/resources/a-very-special-day

When is Remembrance Day?

• Invite children in your service make their own red poppies by using this handy activity guide from the Australian War Memorial
• Have a minute silence at 11am
• Print out images of soliders with wearing red poppies on blazers, shirts, jumpers and other items of clothing on Remembrance Day to remember those who died during a war. 
• Read the following short stories:
  • A Soldier, A Dog and A Boy by Libby Hathorn
  • Lest We Forget by Kerry Brown
  • Why are they marching, daddy? by Di Burke

What is Melbourne Cup?

The Melbourne Cup is an annual horse racing event where horses aged three or older race around a track at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne. It’s often called ‘the race that stops a nation’ due to its size and importance as one of the most prestigious racing events in Australia.

The Melbourne Cup always takes place on the first Tuesday in November. That means that the Melbourne Cup 2023 will take place on Tuesday 7th November. 

When is Melbourne Cup?

Tuesday, 7 November

You can have a day of laughter and memories in your centre by hosting your own Melbourne Cup party and using some of these ideas for activites:

• Everyone knows that Melbourne Cup is all about hats! A hat made from newspaper is easy, cheap and quick and it can be decorated with flowers and foliage collected from the garden!  Kidspot shows you a step by step way of making some smart hats suitable for Melbourne Cup.
• Why not have some racing fun, by first making your own Melbourne Cup Horse. Children to colour in their own horse printable. To make these horses ‘race-able’, sticky tape the hourse to a large papple popstick.
• For more activities click the following link: https://www.brisbanekids.com.au/host-great-melbourne-cup-party-toddlers/

From our overall summary comments:

“Your service is commended on its achievements in Exceeding the National Quality Standard. In particular, careful planning, reflective practice and willingness to collaborate with families and other community organisations to enhance children's learning and wellbeing demonstrate the commitment to quality by educators at your service.

 Management and educators demonstrate a willingness to consistently reflect on service processes to ensure the best possible outcomes for children and families are present. Practices within service delivery are fostered around meaningful engagement with families and the wider community”.

We are a 90 place service in North West Sydney catering for children aged six weeks to six years of age with approximately twenty educators working each day. We are honoured to be recognised as an Exceeding service!  It is deeply gratifying to have two officers visit our service and recognise the emphasis we place on reflection of our practices and our commitment to continuous improvement. Recognising our links with our families and the wider community also means a great deal to us as we absolutely love our families and wider community and have been proud to have been a part of this community for the past ten years.

In true Berry Patch style, we celebrated by taking all our educators out to dinner at a local restaurant.  It was a lovely celebration to highlight our achievement.  We are looking forward to the future and know our wonderful educators will proceed with even more dedication and passion for the industry than they have demonstrated thus far.  We thank all our educators, children and families for making Berry Patch such an awesome place to be!

What is Halloween?

Halloween is a popular American holiday for children and adults. It is celebrated on October 31st every year. Children dress up in costumes and  go after dark house to house, knock on the door and say  trick or treat! People then give the children "treats" like candy. Costumes can be scary. You will see many witches, monsters, ghosts and vampires but you might also see lots of children dressed up as fairies or princesses. It is also a time that people have Halloween parties where you can play fun games like bobbing for apples, go through a haunted   house, or have a costume party. You will also see lots of jack o'lanterns on Halloween.  

Many Australians celebrate Halloween, which occurs annually on October 31. It is also known as All Hallows’ Eve and is the day before All Saints’ Day. Costume parties are held and many children go trick-or-treating around this time of the year.

When is Halloween?

Tuesday, 31 October

Halloween Activities:

• Halloween dress up - children dress up in halloween outfits for the week.
• Host a halloween disco party
• Paper Strips Halloween Pumpkin - Develop cutting skills with scissors for preschool age children by making a paper pumpkin.
• Hand and foot painting - Make spooky Halloween inspired works of art with hand and foot prints.
• Fluffy Pumpkin Slime - Recipe here
• Straw Skeletons - Make a skeleton from straws or cotton buds.
• Puffy Ghosts - Glue and cotton balls, what could be more fun than that to create a super soft friendly ghost.
• Create Halloween shadow puppets

For further ideas and resources, click on the following links:

• https://one-child.com/595/10-halloween-activity-ideas-early-childhood-educators/
• https://www.weareteachers.com/halloween-classroom-games-activities-crafts/