Welcome to our latest update of information and stories you may be interested in... We are progressing our discussions with the Whanganui Association and you can read the update this week. Jane. 
Who's Who In The Office A few people have been asking who does what in the office and who they should contact for different queries. Click here to take you to the updated Who's Who in the Office where you will find the right person to contact. It is a good idea to print this out and put in somewhere handy for future reference.
Induction And Mentoring PLD We are looking forward to seeing all Provisionally Certificated Teachers and their Mentors at our first Induction and Mentoring Seminar for 2019. Saturday 23 March 9am to 1pm Upper Hutt Cossie Club Teachers who hold a Subject to Confirmation Practising Certificate are very welcome to attend too. Please enrol on HR.Net as soon as possible so that your enrolment is confirmed (we need numbers so that we have enough food, chairs and resources for everyone – thanks) If you do not have an HR.Net login yet, please contact Hannah at the association office, who will help you with this, Hannah.Toomaga@wmkindergartens.org.nz It is expected that all provisionally certificated teachers (PCT’s) attend as it is required part of the Induction and Mentoring programme. The programme includes: - an introduction to Te Manawa for all new teachers
- a work shop specifically for Mentors (focusing on observing teachers practice and feedback/feedforward)
- a workshop on Social Competence and
- time to focus on your Induction and Mentoring Programme (please bring your induction and Mentoring/Appraisal portfolios)
Please contact Lynette (lynette.wray@wmkindergartens.org.nz) or your Senior Teacher if you have any questions or queries.
Te Manawa 101: For All New Teachers (And Anyone That Would Like A Refresher) Saturday 23 March 2019 Upper Hutt Cossie Club 9.00 -11.00 This term our introduction to Te Manawa is being held as part of the Induction and Mentoring Seminar and it’s for all PCT’s and all teachers new to WMK. Our expectation is that as a new teacher inducting into WMK, you attend workshops introducing Te Manawa. The workshop is also open to all teachers so please feel free to enrol!
Leadership Hui We are excited to announce that the next Leadership Hui will be held on Tuesday 16th April, at Te Puna (our new PLD and meeting venue next to the Association Office in Porirua). Information about the Hui has been emailed to Senior Teachers, Head Teachers, Assistant Head Teachers and Visiting Teachers Whānau Manaaki email addresses. If you have not received an email please contact Hannah at hannah.toomaga@wmkindergartens.org.nz
Applying For Bereavement Leave We do understand that sometimes applying for leave during a bereavement might be the last thing you’re thinking about. However we do need to have it recorded in the system so, if you can, please apply through iPayroll. If it’s more appropriate, it’s fine for someone in the team to email or call us and we can sort the leave from the office. We do ask that you please remember to add in the reason box (or let us know) who has passed away, specifically the relationship of the person to you. This helps us keep good information for later reporting, and also to make sure we’re being fair and consistent with our policy. If you need to talk about this at any time, please don’t hesitate to call the payroll team or contact Karen at karen.skett@wmkindergartens.org.nz or on 021 857826.
Amalgamation With Whanganui Association Last week the boards of both Whanganui Kindergarten Association and He Whānau Manaaki agreed to continue progressing towards amalgamation. The proposed date for the two associations to join is July this year, so there is a lot of work to be done. Everybody currently employed by either association will retain their roles, and any issues will be worked through with the union, NZEI Te Riu Roa. Meetings are being held in Whanganui about the process. The idea of the amalgamation is to make kindergarten stronger across the region, with better use of resources. We want to strengthen and grow our services to provide an enduring future for kindergarten with highly professional teaching and learning and fantastic experiences for every child. A webpage is being set up to keep people informed on progress and so people can ask questions and send in thoughts and ideas. If you have any concerns or questions in the meantime you can contact Jane Braun, jane.braun@wmkindergartens.org.nz
GOSH Updates The GOSH system has been upgraded to enhance some of its features, this includes: - GOSH can now be downloaded as an app to your phone or tablet. Instructions are at the end of this document
- A quicker process for signing off accident reports for parents
- A dashboard with pop up reminders for outstanding and ongoing actions
- Initial information about child accident can be completed on a short form and returned to a later time for further detail
- Induction forms can be started and saved to be returned to at a later date
- You can now access your own accident/incident registers, including being able to run reports to look at accident/incident trends in your kindergarten
Please make sure you check out all of the updates by clicking here.
Hazards Please remember to complete your Termly Hazard Checklist next week (these are completed in the 9th week of each term). Quick reminder of this process is: - Review each hazard
- Determine if the hazard should remain on your hazard list
- If it is to remain, ensure that the actions and approaches to manage the hazard are still appropriate
- Add any new hazards that you notice during the process
On the bottom right hand corner of each hazard on your register (using the edit option), there is a place to add the date the hazard was reviewed and by who.  Regional Meeting Term 1: Professional Learning And Development Opportunity - A Deeper Understanding Of Te Whāriki, Te Hohonutanga o Te Whāriki Facilitators Dr. Lesley Ramaka and Arapera Card from Te Rito Maioha Early Childhood New Zealand At this terms Regional Meetings we were able to share in some wonderful PLD which focused on developing deeper understandings of Māori concepts to support authentic learning opportunities for all tamariki. The workshop used a kaupapa Māori lens to explore the stronger focus on bicultural practice, and the importance of language, culture, and identity. It also supported us in providing ways to strengthen Māori values and beliefs, the integration of te reo Māori, tikanga Māori, Māori concepts, pedagogies and practices. Please could you take the time to respond to the Survey Monkey in the link here so that the facilitators and the Senior Teacher team can receive your feedback about this PLD – thank you in advance. The Senior Teacher team 
Virus Scam If you receive an email, as below, with the subject Virus Alert!!! please delete the email, it is a scam. Dear User, Virus activities have been detected in your email account.To keep your account safe, please follow the URL below to run a quick email scan. CLICK HERE to scan now! Note: If you ignore this notice, your account will be suspended without further notice to protect our server from Further damage. It is a timely reminder to always be vigilant with your emails. Do not click on any links in emails where you are not 100% certain of the sender. If you are unsure of any email that you receive please contact Tania by email tania.braybrook@wmkindergartens.org.nz.
Giveaway Day The next giveaway day is being held on Saturday, 23rd March, at Nuanua Kindergarten. If you have any goods you wish to donate to this giveaway day we would appreciate them being dropped off at the office sometime during the day next week. Donated goods could include clothing, bedding, kitchen utensils, furniture and linen. We are always appreciative of the generosity of our kindergartens, their staff, families and community. Thank you.
Last Chance To Make A Submission On The Government’s Draft Strategic Plan For ECE If you haven’t made a submission on the government’s strategic plan for ECE – He Taonga te tamaiti - it’s not too late, you can do it by tomorrow. Your submission can be really short – it could be just one sentence, so needn’t take you a long time. For example you can say something like: “The main priority for the government should be to reinstate the funding for 100 per cent qualified teachers as soon as possible so that services like kindergarten, with a focus on quality, can continue to provide an excellent service to the thousands of families we serve.” Make sure you put your submission in your own words though – form submissions don’t have much impact as those reading them think that the person making the submission is doing what they are told, rather than expressing their own views. Submissions need to be emailed to early.learning@education.govt.nz. Put strategic plan feedback in the subject line.
Helping Whānau In Your Kindergarten – Paid Parental Leave Recent research commissioned by the Ministry of Social Development shows that up to 31 per cent of mothers who may be eligibile for paid parental leave choose to resign from work instead, which can mean missing out on up to $564.38 a week before tax. The research shows younger women, and those from lower socioeconomic background, were more likely not to apply. That means that those who probably need the money the most may not be getting it. There may be mothers in your kindergartens who could apply for this paid leave. Note that mothers need to apply, not fathers – but the mother can transfer the entitlement to the father or another parent. To be eligible women must have worked for 10 hours a week for 25 weeks in the past year. It can be with the same employer or with several different employers. The forms ask for quite a bit of information, and families with limited English may appreciate help filling out the forms. Here’s a link to take you to the Paid Parental Leave Application Form.
Levin Kindergartens At Pasifika Celebration Over the weekend the Levin Kindergartens participated in the Pasifika Celebration Day at the Levin Adventure Park. It was an awesome day of Pacific Island culture, dance, music, food and fun!  
 
 
Fun And Games For Lansdowne Children Lansdowne Kindergarten celebrated Healthy Heart Day with a whānau sports morning at the Masterton Sports Bowl. They had running races, hurdles, egg and spoon races (using bean bags) and bean bag throw. The team are making our way to the Silver Healthy Heart Award. Everyone had a fun and exhausting morning!  
Ceremony For Completion Of Korowai At Campbell Kindergarten Campbell Kindergarten have recently completed their korowai and had it blessed at their Te Ao Māori session this week. Whaea Bea led the blessing and many members in the Campbell Kindergarten whānau attended the ceremony. It has been such a culturally meaningful and inclusive journey for their leaning community in consultation and collaboration with whānau, other kindergartens and the community.  
OMEP Meeting  The next event for OMEP will be held on Monday 18 March, a PLD session titled “Doing it Ourselves”. This presentation will explore the political and social impact of indigenous knowledge within a Western driven education system. Participants will have opportunities to discuss, share and debate the value and recognition of culture language and identity within a range of educational and social settings. We will explore teaching frameworks designed to support teachers in their attempts to offer cultural content that provides authentic learning experiences for children and families. Presentation By: Huinga Jackson-Greenland Cost: $10 for non-members of OMEP
This Week On Facebook  Unfortunately the Facebook website is "not playing the game" today so we are unable to bring you any of the cool things that have been happening in our kindergartens over the past week. So in the meantime keep uploading your items to facebook, (just not today!), and we will be back again with this section next week. Will your kindergarten feature?
Previous Kōrero Editions If you are wanting to access previous editions of the Kōrero you can find them at www.wmkindergartens.org.nz/archive or you can click here. It is a good idea to save this link as an icon on your desktop.
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