June 24 2016

June 24 2016

This week we have a bit of sad news.  Unfortunately this Friday is Brandon’s last day. He is heading off to work at a crèche up in Falls Creek. Although this seasonal job will end in a couple of months we are unsure if we will be so lucky to have Brandon back at the end of it. Who knows what other great adventures will follow.

We had a repeat of the weeks before, more sewing, more D&D and more board games. But when it works, it works. We have also had some novelty activities this week. A group did some cooking with Dianne and made chocolate crackles, which were delicious! It is a pity they are not sugar free and guilt free though! Some girls also set up a relax zone, where everyone was met at the door, led to a seat and offered books and other activities for their leisure. 

This week we can really see how the sewing skills are developing. A few more pillows have been made. With improved skill, come more creative ideas. People have been adding bows, lace and trim and trying different shapes and sizes.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

We are hosting a cockatiel for the next few weeks. His name is Elvis. The kids have already had lots of fun whistling and imitating his noises. We have found he is quite happy talking back! His presence has been a bit of an inspiration, see the pictures below.

At the end of the week we celebrated Brandon’s new job and his time with us by having a party!!! There was special food, music and lots of good byes. All through the week a card was passed around and messages of good luck were written. Brandon has been at OSHC for close to five years. He has seen a few graduate to high school and many young faces join us when they started kindy or reception.

Vacation Care starts July 11^th and goes until the 22^nd. See the program below. Remember that booking sheets need to be completed and handed in at OSHC.

As some days are in high demand we give priority to those families that are working. Also if you are no longer in need of a day please cancel your booking, as stated some days are busy and this means that other families may miss out. If you fail to cancel a booking, you will be charged, unless there are reasonable circumstances. This also applies for after school care. 

  WEEK ONE

Monday 11/7/16– Friday 15/7/16

Monday 11th July Excursion Day – Marion Gym (10-3) We will leave oshc at 10am and travel by bus to the Marion Leisure Centre and take part in a day of fun and fitness. 10.30-12.30 will be the session ‘gym jam’, 12.30-1 lunch and from 1-2.30 it will be ‘disco party’. We will be back at oshc at 3pm. Please wear appropriate clothes and shoes for physical activity Please provide snacks, lunch and a drink bottle.

Tuesday 12th July Home Day – Japanese food and culture workshop Kerri (the school’s Japanese teacher) will bring her Japanese food truck to oshc for a program that introduces Japanese food and culture. The children will go into the food truck, learn how to eat with chopsticks, talk about Japanese ingredients and Japanese culture. Lunch will be provided in the truck. Please provide snacks.

Wednesday 13th July Home Day – Painting Butterfly, spin, finger, brush. dot, sponge, crayon and wash – these are some of the different types of painting we will try today. Please wear old clothes J Please provide snacks and lunch.

Thursday 14th July Home Day – Mobile Science hands on workshop ‘flying machines’ (pm) A hands on workshop that explores the basic principles of flight. Children will makes paper airplanes, learn how rubber bands can turn plastic cups into vortex gliders, make a paper parachute and experiment with a paper whirlycopter. Please provide snacks and lunch.

Friday 15th July Home Day – Jewellery making Using leather thong, bead string, wooden and plastic beads, buttons etc we will make bracelets, necklaces and ankle bracelets. Please provide snacks and lunch

 wEEK TWO

Monday 18/7/16– Friday 22/7/16

Monday 18th July Home Day – the games are back!! It’s winter so that means … the games are back J Arriving today and staying for the week we will have – Daytona racing, pinball and three arcade games. Please provide snacks and lunch.

Tuesday 19th July Home day – winter cooking We will make pumpkin soup and vegetable and pasta soup for lunch. For afternoon tea we will make scones to have with jam and cream. Please provide snacks lunch will be provided.

Wednesday 20th July Home Day – Comic strip workshop with Paul (10-1) Paul has a degree in visual arts, specialising in drawing and painting. He is currently working as a tattoo artist at Lampin Ink at Bellevue Heights. Paul has also run workshop for children at Mitcham and Athelstone Libraries. His workshops involve involving children in designing characters, speech bubbles, story writing and illustrating. The children will develop their own comic strip to take home. Please provide snacks and lunch

Thursday 21st July Excursion Day – ‘the 52 storey treehouse’ at the Dunston Playhouse, Festival Theatre (am) We will leave oshc 9am and travel by train to the city. We will walk to the Dunstan Playhouse at the Festival Theatre to watch the performance ’52-storey treehouse’. Andy and Terry’s treehouse is now 52 storeys high and has a chainsaw-juggling level, a rocket powered carrot launcher and even a ninja snail training academy!!. We will travel back by train and be back at oshc by 12.30pm for lunch. Please provide snacks, lunch and a drink bottle.

Friday 22nd July Home Day – winter chill out It’s the last day of vac and it’s time to chill out – bring a mug for hot chocolate, wear your pj’s or trackies and ugg boots, bring your pillow. We will be playing board games, making art, watching a movie, playing in the sac and being chilled out J Please provide snacks and lunch.

Some late night making!

June 10 and 17

Week 6 and 7

Because we had a short week we are coming the blog for the fortnight.

Last week we had a week of variety. Indoors we had activities like board games, drawing and constructive play, while outside we played badminton, tennis and cricket. Unfortunately there's been a lack of footy as the wet weather has left the ovals boggy and horrible. Not great for when we need to send children home clean!

Later in the week when we were stuck indoors the kids got creative by playing miniature sports indoors! Rules were designed by the kids in a way that developed fair and responsible play. Rules such as pushing the ball out of bounds meant that it was turned over to the opposition, this stopped people from hitting it as hard as they could. The material used to make goals changed a few times to find the best possible option. The games developed were miniature soccer, hockey and basketball. 

Friday’s pupil-free day was focused on crafts. Children mostly spent time designing and decorating pillows that were sewn together by machine to ensure they stayed intact. Many children sat and asked lots of questions about the machine and how it worked. Some could recognise design features like the presser foot which had a similar shape to a snow ski, after watching it slide across and over bumps they could see why both the foot and a ski had a lip at the front. 
Unfortunately we were all so busy designing and sewing that we didn't get the opportunity to take any photos of the kid's brilliant pieces!

This week we have started a new survey that asks children what new skill they would like to learn at OSHC. The options are skipping, hula-hoop, somersaults and juggling. So far hula-hoop is in the lead. We've asked this because while the weather continues to stop our play and sport outside we are looking to find new ways of keeping everyone active and having fun.

This week we are so glad to have Maya and Damian back after their final year placements.

On the 3rd of July at 1pm-4pm, the school is celebrating their Centenary. It is a great time for us to look at our history! Some of you may know that the OSHC building was actually the first headmaster's house, equipped with cellar and fireplaces. Apart from the school house it is the second oldest building in this area. The OSHC will be open during the open-day for people to look at. 

Watch this space!

The vacation care program will be available on this blog as of next week. But if you urgently need to lock in dates please speak with Dianne.

Stay warm, safe and happy this weekend!

Here's some work the children wanted to share this week:

June 3 2016

What a fabulous time at OSHC we have had this week. We kicked off Monday with a BBC documentary called Before Dinosaurs: Walking With Monsters a look at the life evolving before the time of the dinosaurs. Also we had a whole lot of toe-tapping, hip wiggling and body groovin’ dancing later on in the evening to stay warm.

Some of you may have noticed that lately, Damian and Maya have not been at OSHC often or at all. This is because they are both completing their final year practicum for their Uni degrees. Maya is teaching a year two class at a local school and saying that it is full on. She is super excited to see everyone in week seven when she returns. Damian is teaching drama at a high school down south. He spent last Friday being stage manager for their showcase. Currently his students are working on movie reviews and preparing for a performance in the coming weeks.

Tuesday we continued watching Before Dinosaurs in the long room. As it was such a hit the night before.

This week we have been granted some kind weather and so have spent as much time out-doors as possible. From ball games to gymnastics, group chasey and dodge-ball. In the SAC we have played cricket, basketball and soccer.

At the end of the week great behaviour was rewarded with some skating and bikes on the basketball court. This is something the kids regularly request and so is kept for Friday night when it is quieter in the playground.

Pupil-Free Day

Please be reminded that it is pupil-free day on Friday 10^th of June. Please find a program on Dianne's desk like the one below. But remember that booking slips need to be handed in person to Dianne or staff.

Friday night we watched some Pokemon episodes as requested by Sol. This was in anticipation of the new Pokemon game called Pokemon Go. This game will be available on android and apple devices and is similar to geo-caching, wherein you use GPS to locate and capture Pokemon. 

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone - Review by Joel K.

I think it was good because there was lots of adventure. Harry Potter goes to Hogwarts, it’s a magic school, where Harry learns magic and makes friends. The book’s good because I like the characters, Hermione is my favourite. The best bit was when Harry met Professor Quirrell  at the mirror of Erised.

9/10

Survey This week's survey is in! Last week we asked what activities we could organise when the weather is cold and wet. Suggestions included origami, cooking, more movies, video games and more D&D. We will endeavor to include more of these activities through the weeks to come. 

Joke of the Week
Q. What's the most dangerous vegetable to have on a boat?
A. A leek.