Nau mai ki tenei wiki Kōrero. There is a lot of information in this week's edition about Conference. Please make sure you have a good read of it, take note of any dates, and print it off for reference. Today we have some of our teachers graduating with their degrees from Open Polytechnic. We congratulate and celebrate with them. If you have had any of your team members graduating over the last few weeks please send in a photo, we would love to share their success with everyone. Jane. 
Welcome To Whanganui Kindergarten Association Readers From this week, the Kōrero is being sent to Whanganui Association kindergartens, so welcome to all our new readers from Whanganui, Waiouru, Ohakune, Taihape and Maxwell! In future editions of Kōrero we hope to bring you more news from the 15 Whanganui kindergartens ahead of them officially joining Whānau Manaaki on 1 July. This week a special meeting of Whānau Manaaki Kindergartens was held to change our constitution to provide for the expansion of our geographical borders. Thanks to all those who attended this meeting to provide for our future.
Pay Day 4 June Please can you have your timesheets, returns and Infocare confirmed and sent to timesheets@wmkindergartens.org.nz by 10am on Friday 31 May. With Monday 3 June being a Public Holiday there is extra pressure on the payroll team to get the pay processed on time. Your assistance with this is much appreciated. If you have any questions you can contact Karen at karen.skett@wmkindergartens.org.nz or on 021 857 826.
Ministry Of Education RS7 Reporting Just a reminder that the Association has to report “RS7” information about your kindergarten to the Ministry of Education for the current funding period (1 February – 31 May 2019) by Friday 7 June 2019. All of the information we require is generated from your enrolment and staff timetable information in Infocare, so we need your help to ensure that all of this is complete and accurate. As with normal month end requirements can you please ensure that, for the all weeks in this funding period (which ends Friday 31 May), the following is completed in Infocare by 4pm on Tuesday 4 June: - Sign in sheets marked in Infocare (actual attendance)
- Fee invoices are created and committed
- Staff timetables (“staff hour count”) are completed
- Online sign off of your monthly roll return
- Frequent absence review competed
- Any ratio, attendance or roll issues are communicated to the Association (please call Tania or Cathryn)
If your support staff is unavailable to work on Tuesday can you please ensure arrangements are in place so that this deadline is met – this may mean that these tasks need to be completed by teaching staff before the cut off. We will be reviewing your Infocare RS7 data so you may receive reminder emails or queries on Wednesday 5 June. Note that no changes to Infocare for the 1 February – 31 May 2019 funding period will be able to be made after 4pm, Tuesday 4 June.
2019/20 Kindergarten Budgets Thanks to all those who have completed and submitted your 2019/20 Kindergarten Budgets. These will be reviewed by the Senior Management team over the coming weeks and we will be in touch with any further questions we may have. If you have yet to submit your budget please email it ASAP to brendon.fyfe-gits@wmkindergartens.org.nz otherwise your plans for spending may not be included in next year’s Association budget.
Environments Workshop A reminder that there will be an Environments workshop at Raumati South Kindergarten on 6 June starting at 3.30pm. This workshop will give you an opportunity to be inspired by a beautiful outdoor environment. Amanda, one of the teachers at the kindergarten, will talk about how they have re-engaged with the Enviroschools programme focusing on zero waste and water conservation. Carolyn, from Heretaunga kindergarten, will then share highlights from the Enviroschools hui she attended last year. Please enrol on HR.net. We look forward to seeing you there.
Event Packs Our event packs are slowly growing!
Each area has an event pack to share. These could be used at your kindergarten or community events. If you wish to use the pack or parts of it, you will need to arrange this with the designated kindergarten in your area.
So far each pack includes:
- 1 x Gazebo
- 1 x Banner - 2 x flags - 1 x pad of flyers
The designated kindergartens are as follows: Horowhenua – Te Timatanga Hou Kapiti – Raumati Beach
Porirua – Toru Fetu Wellington North – Tawa Central
Wellington City – Newtown Upper Hutt – Silverstream Wairarapa – South End
In some cases flags have been lent out to kindergartens needing a little extra promo. If you have any questions, queries or suggestions please let us know!
Advertising Poster We have designed a poster that you can use on your facebook page advertising our services. You can save the image below and post it to your page. 
Office Staff Profiles We are going to start profiling the office staff so you can put a face to names and so you are aware of who to contact should you need help. The first team is our Payroll/HR team.  Paula, Leigh, Ellen, Andrea and Sharon from the HR Team.
Ellen, Sharon, Paula, Andrea and Leigh make up our payroll/HR team here at WMK. These guys can help you with:
- Leave balances - Queries about your pay including: - checking the hours you’ve been paid for
- queries about increments
- set up or talk about deductions
- ACC payments as they work with your pay
- request documentation about your pay for other employers/agencies such as WINZ
- to change your tax code
If you have query about a vacancy - advertising or co-ordinating appointments to vacancies
- return application packs to
- return unsuccessful applications
- organise, discuss interviews
- return acceptance for new appointments
Click here to download our latest Who to ask in the office to ensure you are contacting the correct person with your query.
Samoan Language Week 
Next week is Samoan Language week. Here are some key proverbs that you may want to use during the week: Ia ō gatasi le futia ma le umele – May the essential components, be of equal strength Ia soso’o le fau ma le fau – Allow two of equal strength, follow each other O le aso ma le filiga, o le aso ma le mata’iga tila – A day to focus on the job at hand, another to reflect A malu i fale, e malu i fafo – Respect yourself and others will E tua le fale tele i le faleo’o – Even the mighty, needs others You can access a number of resources through the following website www.mpp.govt.nz Some of these resources include: Please let us know how you celebrated the week by emailing through your stories and photos to korero@wmkindergartens.org.nz
Big Initiative To Combat Family Violence The government has announced that $320 million will be allocated in next week’s budget to counter family violence and sexual violence, which affects nearly 300,000 children each year – that’s more than a quarter of all children. The money will be spent over four years on prevention programmes as well as support services and major changes to court processes. Announcing the package, which is part of the ‘wellbeing’ budget, the Prime Minister said one million New Zealanders a year are affected by family and sexual violence. The initiative involves eight portfolios, is the result of the first ever joint Budget bid from multiple government departments and so it represents a new way of working. More than $130 million has been set aside for expanding essential specialist sexual violence services and to moving towards fully funding services that currently have to spend a lot of time fundraising rather than supporting victims. Almost $50 million will be spent on prevention. Jan Logie, under-secretary for Justice, says the money gives providers funding security while making available significant funds to break the cycle of violence and provide more women, men and children the help they need. "We know this is a long-term project. The package we're announcing today lays the foundations for a violence-free Aotearoa New Zealand," The $320 million across four years will be spent on: - Expanding specialist sexual violence services and moving towards fully funding services – $131.1 million
- Creating safe, consistent, effective responses to family violence in each community – $84.3 million
- Reforming the criminal justice system to better respond to sexual violence victims – $37.8 million
- Strengthening system leadership and supporting new ways of working - $20 million
Intensive Support For Families The government is to change the way it works with children at risk, providing intensive social worker support to families in homes. The idea is to reduce the number of children removed from their homes by helping families under stress cope better. A record number of children have been removed from their families in the past year, the majority of them Māori children. Oranga Tamariki (the Ministry for Children) has been criticised for the way it removes children. The evidence shows that children removed from their families are over-represented in prison and are more likely to face drug and alcohol issues. The Commissioner for Children, Andrew Becroft, has welcomed the preventative approach of support and assistance. "Its purpose is to walk alongside whānau, providing support so they can provide safe care for their children. Whānau will have the opportunity to choose their family support worker and some funding will be available to help meet the specific needs of individual whānau." The service will be resourced by Oranga Tamariki but delivered by Māori or other community organisations, he added. "It is the kind of family-centred model that could help drive down our unacceptably high rates of abuse, neglect and removal."
You Too Can Look Like This .... Here are head teachers Cristie (Lyall Bay) and Tara (Seatoun) modelling the branded clothing wear at a recent head teachers meeting in Kilbirnie. Don’t forget you can buy beanies, caps, t shirts, dri-fit T shirts, hoodies and coats from Whānau Manaaki Kindergartens. If you want anything contact Jan at the office and she can tell you all you need to know. 
This Week On Facebook  This is the way we start our day here at Newlands Kindergarten. What a great way to start the day 😊 
Handy Facebook Pages  The Nest - An informative page for anybody interested in education and child intervention. They also share a lot of quotes that you might like to share on your pages 😊 
Mana Atua He Whānau Manaaki o Tararua Staff Conference 2019 Update No 3 Kia Ora Koutou Welcome to our third conference update – don’t forget to print it off (if you want to) so you have a record of it for easy reference for your whole team. We’ll be putting updates in each weekly edition of Kōrero. Accommodation The really urgent thing for you to do if you live in Waikanae or further north, or if you live in the Wairarapa is to email Lorraine at Lorraine.coulston@wmkindergartens.org.nz now if you want accommodation. You definitely need to have done this done by 1 June, but please, if you know you want accommodation, just email Lorraine after reading this. It’s a pretty huge task to facilitate accommodation for all staff requiring it, so thanks. Remember: non-teaching staff who are attending the workshops etc on the Monday morning (8 July) are able to stay over on the Sunday night (if you live in Waikanae or further north, or if you live in the Wairarapa), and others who are attending the teacher conference on the Tuesday (9 July) and want to stay over on the Monday night (if you live in Waikanae or further north, or if you live in the Wairarapa) are the ones who need to email Lorraine now. Whole Staff Meeting The following is some information for teams regarding attendance at the Whole Staff Meeting, which starts at 12.45pm on Monday 8 July 2019. Teachers and Kindergarten-based Students The Whole Staff Meeting on Monday afternoon is compulsory for all permanent and long-term relieving Teachers and KBSs. It will be four hours. If a teacher or KBS doesn’t usually work on a Monday, or works less than four hours, they will be paid for this extra time. They will need to fill in a time-sheet for these extra hours, which we will have available at the sign-in desk. There will be someone at the sign in desk to help you if you are not used to filling in a timesheet. Relievers Relievers who attend the Whole Staff Meeting on Monday afternoon will be paid for four hours. This information will be taken from the sign-in sheet available before the meeting so Relievers will need to sign in, in order to be paid. Kindergarten Support Staff (Administrators, Teacher Aides, Kaimahi, Cooks) Full Year Kindergartens - this is normally an Annual Leave week for Full Year Support Staff, because kindergartens are closed. Any Full Year Support Staff who normally work on a Monday and who attend the whole staff meeting will not have Annual Leave deducted for that time, and can take Annual Leave for their normal hours at another time. If they attend for more hours than they normally work on a Monday, they will be paid for that extra time. If a Full Year Support Staff person, who doesn’t normally work on a Monday, attends one or both sessions, they will be paid for that time. Information for pay and leave will be taken from the sign-in sheets available at both sessions so Support Staff will need to sign in for either or both sessions they attend. Part Year Kindergartens - this is normally an unpaid, ‘unworked’ week for Part Year Support Staff as it is term break. Any Part Year Support Staff who attend on Monday will receive additional pay for that time. Information for pay will be taken from the sign-in sheets available at both sessions so Support Staff will need to sign in for either or both sessions they attend. Further Speakers Confirmed This week we’re really pleased to profile some of the presenters and workshop facilitators we have confirmed for our Staff Conference. The following are extracts drawn largely from our presenters’ & facilitators biographies. On the Monday 8 July: For our TONI Home based educators Tualoaina - Latu To’omaga, who is from Porirua and has a Masters in Educational Psychology, Bachelor of Teaching and Diploma of Primary Teaching and is a Brainwave Presenter and Fitness instructor and Assessor, will be presenting about well being in the community with a “Pasifika flavour”. Lynn Harris will be presenting to our Administrators on Monday morning. Lynn’s initial experience was in health and education, specialising in healthy communities, adolescent health, and rehabilitation. She completed a Degree in Anthropology and Education in 1995 and established her own consulting business in 1994 specialising in behavioural change. A wide range of private and government clients within New Zealand and Australia know Lynn for her versatile approach to motivational, technical, group, and 1:1 learning and development. Lynn will be presenting attendees with information about how to develop skills in: listening and interpretation; negotiation and empathy; giving and taking instruction; and generally cooperating with colleagues. On the Tuesday 9 July: Jason Te Patu is from Ngāti Apa, Ngāti Ruanui and Ngāti Tūwharetoa. He has been teaching in the health and wellness sector for 27 years. All of his life’s work has led him to sharing yoga, meditation and mindfulness. He is co-owner of Awhi Yoga and Wellbeing, a teacher trainer, facilitator, keynote speaker and creator of M3 – Mindfulness for Children aged 5-10 years. Jase’s students include the All Blacks, the Hurricanes, the Pulse, the NZ School of Dance contemporary students and many more high-performance athletes. Jase was a presenter and trainer for Les Mills. He has also taught dance in schools throughout Aotearoa and traveled Australasia as a professional performer. Jase was the winner of the NZ Exercise Industry Awards – Body/Mind Teacher of the Year in 2018. He also won a NZ Lifekeeper’s Award for Suicide Prevention for the work he does in the mental health space for men and youth. He is an Ambassador for Youthline and was also the recipient of the Regional Local Hero medal as part of the New Zealander of the Year Awards 2018. Jase will be facilitating a workshop which will introduce his programme that he believes ensures that our young tamaiti grow up learning simple mindfulness tools that will allow them to create better choices for themselves in times of challenge. Jase uses the model of Hauora - or Te Whare Tapa Whā to instill some long lasting habits that may have a profound effect on the overall health and wellbeing of our young ones now... and into the future!
Richie Hardcore is a well-regarded public speaker, MC, and Muay Thai champion. After a career in Muay Thai spanning 20 years, Richie left the mat to be a campaigner for social change, although he is still involved with the sport as a fight coach and personal trainer. Richie lives in Auckland and is a board member at White Ribbon New Zealand. He is a Ministry of Social Development 'It's Not Ok’ Champion, working to end men's violence against women. He is an educator and public speaker, focusing on exploring masculinity and ending rape culture, sexual and family violence. He often appears on TV and radio panels and shows discussing social issues. Always making an effort to have a PMA (Positive Mental Attitude), Richie’s day to day goal is to do his best to leave the world a slightly better, healthier and happier place than how he found it. Richie will be presenting about his experiences as a board member at White Ribbon New Zealand and Ministry of Social Development ‘It’s Not Ok’ Champion, working to end men’s violence against women. He will also talk about his role as an educator and public speaker, focusing on exploring masculinity and ending rape culture, sexual and family violence. Richie will also speak about mental health and wellness, and as a former alcohol and drug harm reduction community worker, on how he believes we can address alcohol & drug issues in our society. Mid - Year Celebration his year we are going to hold the Whole Staff Celebration on the Monday night (July 8) of conference atMacs Bar from 5pm to 9pm. This is in place of the end of year celebration we had at Macs Bar last year. We are aware that it can be difficult for staff who live outside of the Wellington area to attend our end of year celebration, so we thought we’d try to have a celebration at a time when most people would be in Wellington. We will be putting on food and having subsidised drinks. This will be a wonderful opportunity to mix and mingle with each other. We haven’t decided how we will organise end of year celebrations going forward – this will be something we’d welcome your feedback on. Feel free to email Hannah on Hannah.toomaga@wmkindergartens.org.nz with any ideas.
Congratulations! Jamie Rolston, from Te Timatanga Hou, recently welcomed a beautiful baby boy, Wyatt James, born 8 May 2019. Congratulations from us all! 
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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