As this is our final blog for 2022, I decided this would be a great opportunity to reflect on all the wonderful learning and experiences we have shared this year.
At the start of the year, our centre was fairly quiet as we got into the rhythm that was 2022. Our first highlight was our staff training which happened in February. All our educators undertook First Aid refresher courses, CPR training and Child Protection training. This was great to have all our Grow staff take part in. We can feel confident and know our educators are ready to respond to any accidents or scenarios that might occur within our centres.
Our first major celebration was our Easter Hat Parade in April. This was one of our highlights of the year as the turn out was unexpected and we had so many families who attended. The children showed off their beautiful hats they created together and marched around the rooms, putting their hats on display. It was a lovely event.
After this event, we were gifted a brand-new backyard! The renovations took two weeks, but to see the transformation unfold was amazing! The nice new yard was very much needed, and everyone was so excited to see the final result and go for a play in the yard.
Following this, our Grandparent’s Day was by far the biggest and most popular event of the year. We had so many grandparents attend and participate in the festivities. We painted pots and planted seeds in them. We played bingo with shapes and created art with them. It was a great event. One of our grandparents even read all the children a story. It was very nice.
Our Beyond the Beanstalk Program was also a huge highlight of the year as this spanned over 10 weeks and taught the children many different things about our world. The children engaged in scientific experiments, received pets and plants to look after, and discovered new concepts about science and our world. It was an amazing learning course and we will most definitely consider having them again.
To end the year, we celebrated with a farewell for our Graduates of 2022 and sent them off with a performance, disco and luncheon. It was such a nice event and we received lots of wonderful feedback from our families who attended the event.
Lastly, I would like to note our End-of-Year Christmas Party which took place this month. It was an absolute smash! We had lots of fun, Christmassy experiences for our families and children to participate in. The face painting and reindeer cookie making were the star activities, but the major highlight of the event was when Santa came for a visit to give all the children a present. It was a magical event.
From all the staff here at Grow ELC Killarney Vale, we would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and safe holiday period. We will see you all next year!
