2023 Term 2 - Weeks 5-6

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👋 LIVE FROM THE HIVE … 👋

HIVE AGM: As per our recent email to everyone, the HIVE AGM will be held in the Hive room on Fri 16 June at 9am. All Hive members are welcome, so please come along - remember to RSVP to the email so we have a steer on numbers. We are particularly keen to hear from parents who would like to join our wonderful Hive Exec Committee - please email Ellie to find out more and put your hat in the ring.

THANK YOU: A massive THANK YOU to Selena Van Loon, who’s spent the last 2.5 years supporting the Hive as Secretary for the Executive Committee. Selena will step down at the coming AGM and we’re delighted announce that we already have a volunteer ready to throw in their name.

Selena - you’ve been a wonderful, warm, positive and supportive influence on the committee over the last few years and we’re all very grateful for the time and energy you’ve given. 🙏💖🙏💖

❄️ HOLIDAY PROGRAM ❄️

WINTER HP bookings are now OPEN!! We’re slightly down on staff in July, so we’ve had to cap numbers, reduce excursions and combine Little & Big Bees for all but one of the days (Thu 13 Jul). Book quickly to make sure you get what you need. Back to normal for Spring hols… 👌👌

* * NEW * * To facilitate more efficient and cost-effective planning and operations, we’ve introduced some changes:

  • favourable pricing for bookings made before the end of Week 8 (ending midnight Sun 18 June)

    • After this cut-off, the price per day increases by $10

  • Your CCSS eligibility applies equally to both price tiers

  • Bookings transferred from waitlist will be charged according to whether request was made before/after deadline.

🐝 BEE OF THE WEEK 🐝


Is the lovely BAE in Y5!

He truly is the King of the Positive Attitude
and has been awesomely helpful this term

Thanks Bae, for showing us all how easy it is to be AWESOME!

👏👏👏👏

💡 PARENT REMINDERS 🤔

  • Another reminder that it’s getting much cooler 🥶🥶. Some kids are still telling us they have no warm layers so please remember to pack a school jumper or jacket every day!

  • There are lots of bugs going round, so if your child is sick, please do the right thing and keep them at home. Don’t forget to let us know that they’ll be missing their Hive session, so we know they’re not ‘missing’ 🙏 . Remember to encourage good cough/sneeze etiquette - using elbows rather than hands.

 

WORLD OCEANS. DAY – JUNE 8
On World Ocean Day, people everywhere can unite to celebrate and take action for our shared blue planet, with one ocean and one climate, which connect us all. Get together with your family, community, and join with millions of others around our blue planet to create a better future. The theme for World Ocean Day is Planet Ocean: Tides are Changing. We need to conserve our wonderful marine resources for future generations. Find out more here

 

2023 Term 2 - Weeks 3-4

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👋 LIVE FROM THE HIVE … 👋

We hope all the wonderful Mothers & Others enjoyed a very special day last Sunday, as well as the fabulous basketball shoot-out at school last Friday. It’s always so lovely to see the community come together - especially when we’re celebrating the amazing people who make such a positive difference to our kids’ lives…

Over the coming newsletters, we’ll be introducing some new features, which we hope you’ll enjoy. We’ll rotate through the term (recipes, parenting, sustainability, activities, fitness etc) - and we’d love to know what you think! This week, we’re introducing Sustainability Corner; sharing tips for a bee-friendly garden or balcony to align with World Bee Day on 20th May.

🏖️ HOLIDAY PROGRAM 🏖️

We’re busy planning our winter Holiday Program - bookings will open in Week 7. Unfortunately, a number of Hive staff will be away in July, so we will need to cap booking numbers slightly lower than usual. Please bear this in mind and book promptly to avoid missing out. We are very unlikely to have last-minute spaces available…

🙏 CAN YOU HELP? FUNDRAISING CHALLENGE 🙏

Next month, our very own GG is taking part in The Push-Up Challenge, to support the Push for Better Foundation. As well as honing his guns 💪💪 he’s also supporting an awesome cause:

“As part of the challenge, I'm fundraising for and raising awareness about mental health, and I'd love your support. It's all about doing 3,144 push ups over 23 days in June. Each push up represents a life lost to suicide in Australia in 2021.

If you’re able, please help me donate by clicking here - it would mean a lot to me and helps to support a really special cause.

Thank you”

Aaron aka GG

🐝 BEE OF THE WEEK 🐝

This kid is a true star! 🌟🌟

CHLOE L in Y4 always turns up with a positive attitude, and usually a beautiful big smile too. She manages to bring kindness to everything that she does, and always does her best to ensure that people feel safe, welcome and included.

Thanks for being one of life’s good‘uns, Chloe! We love ya 💖💖

💡 PARENT REMINDERS 🤔

❄️❄️ Brrrrrr - it’s getting cold!! 🥶🥶 PLEASE remember to pack warm clothes for the kids. The temperature drops in the afternoons, and we want everyone to stay warm and happy!

If we do need to lend clothes to your child, please wash and return them promptly so we can lend them out to others too… 🙏

PLANT A BEE-FRIENDLY GARDEN

A garden or blacony can be a haven for native bees, providing a long-lasting and varied source of the nectar, pollen and building materials that bees need.

Five Tips for a Bee-Friendly Garden…

  1. Select plants that flower right through the year. Many native bees need nectar and pollen throughout the year, so choose plants with a long flowering period, or choose a selection of plants that will flower in sequence in each season of the year.

  1. Select flowers with a variety of colours and shapes. Different kinds of native bees like different kinds of flowers.

  2. Plant a group of each flower species. If you can plant a bed or row of a particular flower, this will attract native bees more easily than scattered plants. However, even a small Bee-Friendly Garden will help the bees, as they will visit your garden along with those of your neighbours.

  3. Select plants that provide nesting materials for the bees too. In addition to nectar and pollen, some bees need collect materials to build their nests.

  4. Avoid insecticides in your Bee-Friendly Garden. Insecticides will kill native bees as well as garden pests. Try to avoid using any insecticides in your garden. However, if you really have to use one, choose an insecticide that has low toxicity for bees, try to apply it when bees are not active (such as at night or on a cold day) and avoid spraying the flowers of the plant.

    Find out more on the AussieBee website.

2023 Term 2 - Weeks 1-2

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🎉🎉 HAPPY BIRTHDAY EDIE!! 🎂🎁

A HUUUUUGE Happy 30th Birthday to EDIE!!
Thanks to everyone who signed the Hive cards. She felt very special, with loads of treats on her big day, including the world’s biggest passionfruit cheesecake!!

 

👋 LIVE FROM THE HIVE … 👋

We’re stoked to announce the introduction of SENIORS CLUB, every afternoon. Dedicated spaces and program activities for our Y3+ group - mini golf, cardboard guitars (and jam session!), clay modelling, hockey, fitness challenge and more.... Shout out to LAUREN for all the programming and for being the go-to for our older kids.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) wants to hear from parents and guardians to understand what influences their choice on whether or not to use ECEC services, including price and availability. All families with children aged 0-14 years, or with children with a disability aged 0-18 years, are invited to complete the ONLINE SURVEY. It’s open until 31 May 2023 and can be completed anonymously. For more info from the ACCC, click here.

On Tue 2nd May, an email titled * IMPORTANT * info about CCS: deadlines and changes was sent to all enrolled families - please make sure you read it, it’s important! If you didn’t receive it, let us know.

 

🐝 BEE OF THE WEEK 🐝

Is MATTEO in Y4. He’s an awesome soccer player, yet we saw that he adjusted how he played according to who was playing with him, making sure that the younger kids all got a chance to test themselves and learn.

So inclusive and considerate - nice one Matteo!!

 

💡 PARENT REMINDERS 🤔

It’s getting cooler now, although there’s still some strong sunshine. So, every day the kids still need a HAT plus a WARM LAYER for those cooling afternoons…

 

2023 Autumn Holiday Program

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🍁 🍂 Autumn Holiday Program - it’s a wrap! 🍂 🍁

Well done to the team for delivering an amazing Autumn Holiday Program! We had a super exciting time: laser tag, Ninja Parc, sports carnival, baking & chefing, beach BBQ, puppet workshop, water park, inflatables, baby chicks, gymnastics, treasure hunt, face paint, Nerf wars, Kapla constructions, den building and soooooo much more

Check out the pics below!

2023 Term 1 - Weeks 9-11 End of term

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👋 LIVE FROM THE HIVE … 👋

Where did Term 1 go??!! We wish you all a HAPPY & SAFE HOLIDAY BREAK and we’ll see many of you for Holiday Program (more detail below).

A huge thank you for the 50+ responses to our HIVE PHILOSOPHY REFRESH survey, which was sent to parents, Hive staff and the Exec committees of both Hive and school. We’ve also been gathering input from the kids for the last few weeks…
Now we’ve gathered the raw data, the next move is to draft the philosophy statement, to encompass the emergent themes and encapsulate the needs of everyone involved in our wonderful Hive community. Watch this space…

WELCOME to GEE GEE, the latest member of our growing team. A free spirit with awesome energy, he brings a Cert III in Outdoor Education and bundles of positivity to the team, already proving a huge hit with the senior stage group!

🏖️ HOLIDAY PROGRAM 🏖️

Our holiday chicks 🐣🐣 arrived today! Baby ducklings and chicks will be hatching throughout Holiday Program, the kids always love being part of this wondrous, fluffy experience 💖💖

Places are booking up fast! Check out the calendars for LITTLE BEES and BIG BEES, and please remind yourselves of our Ts&Cs. If you can’t book a place, please email us to request a spot on the waitlist.
⚠️ Remember ⚠️ to book into the correct program: YK-1 or Y2-6. The one exception is Wed 19 April, when it’s split YK-2 and Y3-6. If you book into the wrong program, you could end up missing out…

As always, send kids with HAT, CLOSED SHOES, WATER BOTTLE, RECESS & LUNCH

and, please always remember…

🚫 🌰 🚫 🥜 🚫 NO NUTS 🚫 🥜 🚫 🌰 🚫

…we care for several children with anaphylactic reactions


🐝 BEE OF THE WEEK 🐝

Is SYLVIE in Y3, who showed heart-warming consideration towards the Kindys last week, taking special care to make sure they all felt included in our Just Dance session.

Fantastic role-modelling Sylvie and such lovely empathy towards all our Little Bees. We’re proud of you! 💕💕

💡 PARENT REMINDERS 🤔

  • ALWAYS sign your child in/out at the iPad. Any issues: just ask staff for help 👌

  • Please leave school grounds promptly, once you’ve signed out your child

  • Check for all LOST PROPERTY in the Hive room. We’ll be clearing it out at the end of this week

 

📣 SHOUT OUT TO… 📣

Our wonderful friends at KOH, who supply the only cleaning product we trust to create a safe, clean and non-toxic environment.

Koh is safe, planet-friendly, no nasties, allergy-friendly, eco-certified and not tested on animals. It’s the only product we need to offer the safest solution for our centre and your kids. And… the lovely humans who make it, are local dads Adam & Justin!

2023 Term 1 - Weeks 7-8

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🛎️ 🛎️ HIVE PHILOSOPHY REFRESH 🛎️ 🛎️

DING DING!!! You recently received an email about our Hive philosophy review,
and a huge thank you to those who’ve already taken part!

We’d love a few more parent responses before the next stage of the review process, so please click here.

Your input is important, valuable and hugely relevant - so please commit 5 minutes to have your say.
Thanks in advance… 🙏 🙏

 

👋 LIVE FROM THE HIVE … 👋

CONGRATULATIONS… to JEN, ANA and LAUREN who have all just taken on the roles of Senior Educator & Group Leader. JEN will be allocated to YK, ANA to Y1-2 and LAUREN to Y3-6. This exciting restructure reflects the growth of our centre and our team, and allows us to further target our focus towards smaller groups of kids, their wellbeing and the activities we offer them.

Edie remains our Child & Family Lead, and is still the parents’ go-to for anything you’d like to discuss.

🏖️ HOLIDAY PROGRAM 🏖️

Bookings are now open! Please book early to avoid missing out. Check out the calendars for LITTLE BEES and BIG BEES, and please remind yourselves of our Ts&Cs.


🐝 BEES OF THE WEEK 🐝

…are the whole HIVE TEAM, who spent last
Tuesday evening making sure they are trained and ready to deal with any health emergency or injury.

💓 We’ve also invested in our own Hive defibrillator 💓

💡 PARENT REMINDERS 🤔

AFTERNOONS: Once you’ve signed out at the iPad, please be sure to leave the school grounds promptly. If children remain at school after sign-out, it could compromise the effective supervision of those children still in Hive care.

 

2023 Term 1 - Weeks 5-6

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👋 LIVE FROM THE HIVE … 👋

Morning sessions: We focus on helping the kids to prep and pack away their own breakfasts. This includes, toast & spreads, cheese toasties, cereals (4⭐ min. rating) and smoothies. Life skills & nutrition, all in one!

Our increased numbers of older kids this year means we’ll be moving to a split afternoon program from Term 2, with one or two activities each afternoon tailored especially to children in Y3 and above… 👊👊

New Child Safe Standards from the Office of the Children’s Guardian are being reviewed for full integration into our existing policies and processes. The safety of the kids is always our No.1 priority, and guides everything we do. We’ll share with you any policy updates that might eventuate…

The whole team is undergoing First Aid & CPR training next week. Although the law requires only one staff member on duty to be trained, we aim to have as much of the team as possible ready to deal with cuts, bumps, breaks, allergies, asthma, anaphylaxis, CPR and more...
…which leads smoothly to a reminder that we always strive to be a ❌🥜🌰❌ NUT-FREE ZONE ❌🥜🌰❌

🏖️ HOLIDAY PROGRAM 🏖️

We’re busy working on an AWESOME April Holiday Program for you. The portal calendar will open at the start of Week 8, giving you four full weeks to making bookings before the program starts on Tuesday 11th April.

🐝 BEE OF THE WEEK 🐝

Is the lovely Max F in Y3,
for spending time in the quiet corner
reading some stories to our new Kindys…

A beautiful connection between the different age groups.

Love your work, Max!


💡 PARENT REMINDERS 🤔

Just the usual reminders for hats, and a warm layer - and everything with NAMES INSIDE please!!

🏄 OCEAN LOVERS’ FESTIVAL 🐬

Spearheaded by local mum Anita, the annual Volvo Ocean Lovers Festival returns to Bondi on 15-19 March, with a jam-packed program of activities and events designed to celebrate and inspire action for our beautiful ocean 🌊🌊🌊

The Festival of Ideas, Art + Music & Actions will take over the new Bondi Pavilion and surrounds, highlighting the latest science and innovations for protecting and nurturing the ocean and its wildlife.

Music, art, films, food, talks and market stalls will fill the Pavilion with vibrant entertainment for all ages over the weekend of 18-19 March.

For the full program, visit www.oceanloversfestival.com

 

2023 Term 1 - Weeks 1-4

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Activity break during staff training week!

👋 LIVE FROM THE HIVE … 👋

HELLO AGAIN, to all returning bees and a warm WELCOME to all our NEW KINDYS! We’re buzzier than ever this year, and looking forward to a fun-filled Term 1 with you all 😊

Following an AWESOME Holiday Program (check out the pics!), the final week in January saw our first ever full week of STAFF TRAINING. A huge success, with 100% staff attendance, we covered TEN separate topics across three full days: including Play Theory, Food Hygiene, Active Supervision, Emotion Coaching & Self-Regulation, Behaviour Management, Understanding Diagnoses, Activity Programming and more... Your children really are in safe (and well-trained) hands at The Hive! 🫶

Since December’s newsletter, we’ve welcomed several new team members: shout out to ANA, ASHA, ELLA, JENA & WILSON. We now have a waitlist only on Thursday afternoons, which is great progress. If you’re still waiting on a spot, bear with us: we continue to juggle and are doing our very best to get rid of those lists altogether.

Following on from waitlist progress: CASUAL SPOTS can now be booked via the portal for both Monday and Friday afternoons. For any other afternoon (or if you’ve missed the online deadline), email us to check availability.

This term, we’re trying out the idea of externally-provided, paid extra-curricular activities during the Hive afternoon. For Term 1 we’re running with SKATEBOARDING and DRAMA, with both classes fully booked! So far so good, and we plan to continue so keep an eye on your inboxes for opportunities in coming terms. Through the year, we’ll vary the days, activities and age groups offered, so everyone should have a chance to get involved.

 

🐝 BEE/S OF THE WEEK 🐝


LENNIX and LOLA in YK for working so hard
on their listening skills over the last couple of weeks.

Also, for making great choices to be
team players and helpful bees!!

Such an awesome start at The Hive!! 👊 👊

🤔 PARENT REMINDERS 💡

  • ALWAYS sign your child in/out at the iPad. Any issues? Just ask staff for help!

  • Please leave school grounds promptly, once you’ve signed out your child

  • Please COLLECT all LOST PROPERTY from the tubs in the Hive room. At the end of week 5 we’ll wash and pass on to our spares box or to Vinnies…

  • Term 1 is NO HAT NO PLAY. We don’t lend out hats due to the risk of head lice, so children without a hat are restricted to shaded areas and activities…

  • Every day please pack HAT, WATER BOTTLE and remember a WARM LAYER for those cooler afternoons…

2022 Term 4 - Weeks 7-8

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🏖️ HOLIDAY PROGRAM 🏖️

  • Bookings are OPEN!! Book ASAP to avoid missing out

  • Remember - if you’re going into Y2 next year, you should book into BIG BEES!!

  • New 2023 Kindys are welcome to book into our January LITTLE BEES program - it’s been specially designed with them in mind

  • Mon 30th Jan is still Holiday Program (school starts on Tue 31st). You’ll need a 2023 Hive enrolment to book Mon 30th as it falls within Term 1

  • Another reminder that we are NUT FREE - please be super careful about which foods you pack for the kids

 

🐝 BEE OF THE WEEK 🐝

We couldn’t move beyond this super-sweet moment, that happened last week with Theo in Y1.

We brought our Big Bear out of hibernation (in the office) and five minutes later he was providing a safe space for cuddles and sleepy time…

Just gorgeous!

 

PARENT REMINDERS

Remember when you arrive to pick up, to please sign out and leave the school grounds quickly. This helps avoid confusion around supervision and responsibility.

We know it can be fun, but please keep younger siblings away from the play equipment when you’re picking up from The Hive. This helps avoid accidents and allows our staff to safely and effectively supervise the Hive kids who are playing there. 🙏

 

LOCAL BUSINESS SHOUT OUT 📣

Swell Swimming is an awesome local swim school, run by our very own staff member Katie!

They offer pool and ocean swimming lessons for both kids and adults, and this summer will be running lots of children’s group sessions at Bondi, to help kids get more confident and comfortable in the ocean. 

Find out more about them here, and you can drop Katie an email at info@swellswimming.com.au or contact her directly on 0481 315 828.
Instagram- @swellswimming

 

👞 SPARE KIDS’ SHOES or TRAINERS? 👟

Local mum Tammy is driving a collection to help provide shoes to kids in Burundi.

If you have any pre-loved school shoes or trainers that you’re ready to part with, please make sure they’re clean and drop them off to staff at the Hive room.

At the end of term Tammy will pass them on to the organising charity, Angel Network Australia, who’ll make sure they get to children in Africa who can make good use of them.

Thanks in advance for helping us to help other children around the world…

2022 Term 4 - Weeks 5-6

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👋 LIVE FROM THE HIVE … 👋

You’ve all received your invitation to the AGM, to be held on Fri 2nd Dec at 9am in the Hive room. Please send RSVPs directly to Ellie, along with any nominations to join our wonderful Hive Management Committee, whether as a general member or as an office bearer. We’d love your input and energy and promise to take up only a little of your time; usually just a 1h meeting each term.

Have the kids told you there’s lots of exciting new stuff on the menu? DIY sushi, fruit smoothies, brown rice layered salad bowls, pasta, pita & dips and more… Let us know if you have any feedback or requests for other lovely fresh food we can add to the menu. Great work chef Edie!

🏖️ HOLIDAY PROGRAM 🏖️

After some recent chopping and changing, the dates are fixed, and bookings will open late next week.

- - - Last day of T4: Fri 16 Dec - - -

HP OPEN: Mon 19 - Wed 21 Dec
HIVE CLOSED: Thu 22 Dec - Sun 8 Jan
HP OPEN: 9-13 & 16-20 Jan
HIVE CLOSED: 23-27 Jan (staff training & Public Holiday)
HP OPEN: Mon 30 Jan

- - - First day of T2: Tue 31 Jan - - -

🐝 BEE OF THE WEEK 🐝

…is our very own Jen!

Jen brings the biggest, bestest smile with her to
every single shift, and the kids just love her warmth,
positive energy and gentle approach.

See below for how your pre-schoolers could
also spend some time with Jen!

💡 PARENT REMINDERS 🤔

As always in Terms 4 & 1 - please remember to send the kids to school with a HAT!
We’re a SUN SAFE CENTRE and No Hat No Play can mean the kids have to stay indoors. Boo!

📣 LOCAL BUSINESS SHOUT OUT 📣

Our lovely Bee of the Week - Jen - is many things. As well as being a fabulous Hive Educator, she’s also a qualified primary teacher and the founder of Little Leaners, offering a Playroom & Hangout Space for bubs (6m-2.5y) and their carers, just around the corner from school.

Check them out here or contact Jen directly on 0412 086 050, to book a spot!