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www.pukekoseducare.co.nz

Join us for a fun filled night out with Dave Upfold at the Ngatea War Memorial Hall on Friday the 18th March at 7.00pm (show starts at 8.00pm) Tickets available at our Pukekos Centres, Thames 07 8685027, Ngatea 07 8677892 & Paeroa 07 8627669 BYO alcohol (nibbles & non alcoholic drinks provided

Spending time together as a family is important for building strong family ties, making lifelong memories and creating an environment that builds self-esteem and character in children. When asked, children say the number one thing they want most from their parents is time. Parents don't have to spend a lot of money to spend quality time with their children; any time spent together sharing an activity is considered quality time. Here are five reasons family time rocks. 1. Builds self-esteem in children

Children who spend time with their parents participating in activities together build a positive sense of self-worth. When children feel that they are valued by their parents, they feel more positive about themselves. Family activities don't have to be expensive or luxurious to be meaningful. Take a walk together, go for a bike ride or play a game of basketball in the driveway. The important part is just being together and enjoying each other's company. 2. Strengthens family bonds

Families who share everyday activities together as well as share vacations or daily excursions as a group form strong, emotional ties. A study published in the journal, "Family Relations", found that families who enjoy group activities together share a stronger emotional bond as well as an ability to adapt well to situations as a family. Share your favourite hobbies, sports, books, movies or other favourite activities and build strong family ties for life. 3.Develops positive behaviours

Children and adolescents who spend more time with their parents are less likely to experiment with substances like cigarettes, alcohol and marijuana. According to a 2008 study by the University of Minnesota, adolescents who shared dinner with their family five or more times a week lowered their risk of substance abuse by 50 percent as compared to adolescents who shared family meals less than two times a week. Sharing time, whether through meals or activities, lowers the risk of unresolved family conflict which is usually a catalyst for adolescents experimenting with harmful substances. 4.Creates happy memories

Family time creates warm memories for parents and children alike. Children with happy family memories are more likely to create a loving environment for their own children when they grow up. Learning to work and play as a family unit is one of the best lessons children can be taught so they can develop into competent adults and parents. 5.Helps parents and children reconnect

Spending time together as a family helps busy parents reconnect with their children. Children tend to share more information about their lives while enjoying an activity with you rather than when you ask them "What did you do today?" It is also a time when life lessons, like sharing, fairness and compassion, can be reinforced without conflict. Children grow and change quickly, so family time is a wonderful time to get to know your child better.

Family Time Brings Families Closer – Happy Easter !

THAMES DISCOVERIES

Te Tiri o Waitangi At our Thames centre over the two weeks leading up to Waitangi we learnt what a treaty is and means, and how we could implement it here at Pukekos. On a daily bases we all are encouraged to learn and practice principles that support our founding document here in Aotearoa. This year the little pukes and wha club children engaged in discussion around protection, partnership and participation. We discovered pictures that staged what it was actually like on the day the treaty was signed and with a lot of discussion wha club came up with their own ideas in making a flag to fly at pukes so everyone knew where and who we are. This process encouraged the three ‘p’s of the treaty as we began to individually and collaboratively discuss and bring forth our ideas on design and different art mediums. All these ideas, methods, use of resources, allowed us to experience and revisit technique, it encouraged us to create thoughts around our own designs of what Pukekos means to us and discuss how we all have different reasons we love Pukekos. Our process of design meant we chose the right resources that best suited a life like representation of our flag. As we all came together we all thought these were the most important things to us at Pukekos: “Sunshine makes you happy so we put this in the middle to represent our happiness, A house is our own meeting house our place of gathering, that we all can be in together filled with love, A Pukeko watching at the top as that’s our name, All the children because we are friends, we hold hands to show kindness, love and partnership, Our teachers have to be there as they play and do fun things with us every day and give us hugs if we are sad, And Henry the cat as we all love him so much.” And this is why Pukes is our place to feel nurtured, have a sense of belonging and who we are.

THAMES DISCOVERIES

Discovering Nature Some of the children in Thames have been on a journey through nature finding interesting things to explore and research

within our outdoor environments. Cicadas are out in force at the moment and so a few children have been learning about these beautiful bugs - their life cycle, how many eyes they have, the noise they make and why.

Another child chose to research jumping spiders and discovered a plethora of interesting facts. He found it particularly intriguing that jumping spiders do not spin webs and only use their silk for safety lines while jumping, to catch themselves.

“That’s so they don’t go splat!.” Another of our little Thames Pukes has been using natural resources to make a bird feeder and develop his knowledge of

what birds eat. He hung his feeder in the tree and was very excited to wait and watch for birds! Pukekos – skills for life and about life

Welcome to the clan man...We are very excited to have so many new families

join us at Pukekos in Thames. We would like to extend a huge welcome to our new children Biren, Harrison, Sophia, Sophia and Nathaniel. And

also a warm welcome to Asha who has been visiting her big brother Blake

here for a while and has now enrolled. Nau Mai, Haere Mae. Welcome to

Pukekos!

Sadly we say goodbye to Mya who has turned five and is off to start

her school career Mya graduated from

Pukekos with a special ceremony and her mum and sister by her side.

We wish you all the very best, love from

the Pukekos Team.

NGATEA DISCOVERIES

Welcome to our new families and Farewell to our special friends Ngatea Pukekos is proud to welcome a wonderful group of new children to our Pukeko family. Our new friends are Khylan, Kaitlyn, Ryley, Caleb, Linkin, Rex, Jack, and Blake from Thames Pukekos. But sadly with new friends we have to say good bye for now to some old friends. We know you will love school Lachlan and Haven, and your new house Oliver.

Sense of Taste Taking care of our gardens, & weeding our vegetable garden, lead to wonderful investigations this week, with lots of questions around the vegetables and flowers that we had planted. Curiosity lead to a tasting of the nasturtium flowers. After some of our friends had eaten ALL of them excitement filled the air with big smiles and yelling of “YUM”. This lead to more experimental tasting of other vegetables out of our garden. A great sensory adventure of taste, smell and enjoyment of a range of different foods.

Einstein in the making...Science fosters children’s natural love of discovering the natural and technological world. As early

childhood practitioners we encourage curiosity in our children and a sense of joy in exploration and experimentation. “Isn’t science fun!” we ask our children and by the pictures shown, yes they are all having fun and learning in a positive

atmosphere. Some of the science activities we have

enjoyed: Volcanoes, snap lock bag bomb, windmills & musical balloons !

PAEROA DISCOVERIES Over the past month Paeroa Pukes have been investigating the life cycle of a frog. The tamariki have all been involved in various investigation activities to learn more. Making tadpoles out of recycled items, frogs out of paper plates and fun activities such as leap frog were among the many opportunities on offer. The tamariki were intrigued to observe the change and were incredibly excited when they arrived to Pukes on a Monday morning to find that a tadpole had changed into a frog!! Many discussions were had about the food and care we needed to provide for them until we discovered the best option would be to set them free.

Following on from the frog’s life cycle and the process of metamorphosis, the children have become interested in other life

cycles, Like the butterflies! And we got to create our own beautiful butterflies. The children hand sewed their jewels onto their chosen fabrics, further developing fine motor skills and eye

and hand co ordination in the process.

Welcome to the clan….Bella, Mirrac, Jayme & Courtney and Onto new adventures….Brianna, Ruby, Jorja, Mackenzie, Jayden, Lockyer, Logan, Madison, Ariana, Isla & Jaaydah, we wish you all the best on your new ventures.

VegUp Macaroni Cheese Things you will need: 2 cups dry macaroni 2 cups grated cheese ¼ small cauliflower (200g) 1 tomato, sliced ½ head broccoli (200g) ¼ cup crushed weetbix 2 Tbsp butter or margarine 2 carrots, cut into sticks 1 onion, finely chopped 2 celery stalks, cut into sticks 3 Tbsp flour 3 cups milk Fill a large saucepan with water, bring to the boil, add macaroni and simmer for 7 minutes. Chop the cauliflower and broccoli florets. Add to the pasta and simmer another 3-4 minutes. Drain; meanwhile melt the butter in a saucepan. Sauté the onion for 3-4 minutes. Add the flour, mix well and gradually add the milk. Heat gently until thickened, stirring to avoid lumps. Add cheese. Place the macaroni vegetable mix in a baking dish, pour over the Cheese sauce. Top with the tomatoes and sprinkle with weetbix. Grill for 5-10 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with celery and carrot sticks. Serves 4-5

Admin Additions

No Fee Days Terms & Conditions… • 15 days per year (1st Jan to Dec 31st), these do not accumulate & expire on December 31st each year. • Entitlement is only for children who have been attending Pukekos for at least 6 months. • Accounts must be paid up to date; accounts in arrears will not be offered “no fee days” • You must notify us at least 1 day before the planned absence. We cannot accept requests left on our answer phone after hours or made on the day of absence. • No fee days are an extra benefit of attending Pukekos and must be requested by you before admin can process, no fee days will

not be processed unless the request has been received.

Accounts…. Please ensure accounts are kept up to date. At

time of enrolments everyone is given our fees schedule policy outlining our terms and conditions, with this copy you also receive our bank details for internet banking. If for any reason you do not have a copy, simply e-mail me and I will provide you with a copy and invoices are available at any time upon request otherwise they will be sent out at the end of every month. Invoices incurring continuing debt will result in cancellation of enrolment.

The centres will be closed for Easter Friday 25th March, & Easter Monday 28th March

Tuesday 29th centre photos in Thames, Wednesday 30th centre photos in Ngatea Thursday 31st centre photos in Paeroa. Information will be available in Whanau pockets closer to the time.

Parents Post

Check out this months Little Treasures Mag The expert profile is with none other than our very own Miffy Welsh ,with tips for mums and dads about our little people and tips for settling into preschool !!

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