The Teacher Mums

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Dear Teacher Mums,
My 4-year-old just started kinder and I have to pack a lunch box. Every day is hard and I never know what to put in there! I am so unimaginative when it comes to food. Any tips?
From First Time Kinder Mum

Dear First Time Kinder Mum,

First up, I want to comfort you with the knowledge that you are certainly not alone in this dilemma! I myself have been packing lunchboxes for 3 years now, and some days I am so uninspired. Like most parents, I want my child to eat fresh, wholesome foods and try to steer away from the packets as much as possible.

To make it easier on myself in the mornings (and when doing the food shopping) I try to stick to a simple equation each day: fruit + veg + sandwich + treat. I tend to stay away from dairy or dairy alternatives during the day as the lunch box is usually not kept refrigerated so I try to keep cheeses and yogurts for home.

• Fruit: fresh fruits are best as they contain less sugars than dried fruits, fruit snacks and tinned fruits in syrups. Where possible try to pack 1 piece of whole fruit such a banana, an apple, a kiwi, some berries, grapes (sliced for children under 5) a stone fruit or an orange.

• Vegetable: raw vegetables such as carrot, cucumber, celery, capsicum, snow peas and cherry tomatoes are all great options. Make it fun by serving them in sticks, coins or on a blunt skewer with a side of hummus or mashed avocado.

• Sandwich: try a variety of breads such as white, whole meal, grain, rye, sourdough, wrap breads and rice/corn cakes. Fillings can be as elaborate as salad (baby spinach, grated carrot, slices cucumber and avocado) or as simple as butter and vegemite. As often as possible try to include a protein source within the sandwich, such as hummus or whole beans, nut/seed butter or egg (again, I do tend to consider the lack of refrigeration when preparing sandwiches).

• Treat: treat doesn’t need to mean sugar or highly processed foods. A simple homemade muffin, a chia pod, or a muesli bar are great ways to incorporate variety into the lunch box while also packing a nutritional punch. Packaged foods such as nuts (if your kinder allows them), veggie chips and popcorn (for children over 5) are also quick and convenient options that are low in sugar (try to find salt reduced varieties where possible).

But my biggest lunch box packing tip is to try and get your child involved as much as possible. Whether that’s with writing the shopping list, doing the food shopping, cutting up fruits and vegetables, or making the sandwich, the more they can be involved the more likely they are to actually eat what’s been packed!

From The Teacher Mums

Disclaimer: we are not nutritionists or dieticians. The advice here is general and based on personal experience. For specific information about food choices for your child please consult a registered medical professional.

Happy Child, Happy Home.

https://www.happychildhappyhome.com/

My child doesn't want to go: What this means from a Teacher’s Perspective



We are now in March, deep in the thick of work/school/kindy/childcare/home/life 2021 realness! And for some, the novelty of our busy schedules has well and truly begun to wear off - including for our little ones. Children are unique, multi faceted little beings - a mixture of their environment, experiences, genetics and temperaments - and as much as we think we have them all figured out, they challenge and surprise us at almost every turn!

It’s 7am and my darling daughter has risen for what is to be her 3rd day at her beautiful new early learning centre. The birds are chirping, the sun is shining and she has thrown her breakfast at the window in defiant refusal of getting ready for kindy. She wails that she doesn’t want to go, she wants to stay with Mummy, and my heart simultaneously sinks and breaks. We’ve all been there right?

As a teacher of our youngest I have seen many a morning melt down - screams, kicks, threats, flops to the floor, clings to the legs and oh the tears! But it certainly feels different as a parent; the worry, guilt and love swirl around your head making it hard to remember that for many this is more than normal. I could write all about the theory of attachment, or perhaps the impacts of the cultural shift towards women returning to work earlier, or the desperate need for more quality, highly skilled specialist early childhood teachers - but that really doesn’t help mid melt down now does it? So here a few tips from a teachers perspective:

Quality teachers want your child to be happy and feel secure in our programs and will work hard to make this happen.
It is normal for young children who are unable to regulate or verbalise their emotions to communicate big feelings in big ways. As an adult who can regulate and verbalise emotions you can help by remaining calm, acknowledging your child's feelings, offering comfort and explaining what's happening honestly: ‘’I can see you’re feeling nervous about going to Kindy today, i understand that feeling is making you cry and you don’t want me to go to work. I’m going to give you a big cuddle now and i’ll be back a little later on. I can’t wait to hear about your day!’
Stick to your guns! When you say you’re going - go, when you’ve walked out don’t walk back in. Don’t lie about how long you’ll be, what you're doing or make empty threats or promises. I know this seems like the easier way in the moment; but you are creating distrust which will continue to impact drop offs.
Create a warm and friendly ‘vibe’ with your child's teacher: smile, laugh and have a bit of small talk. Your little one looks to you to see if this is a safe space… and if the educators do not reciprocate this then they are not your safe space, find a new place.
Being away from you is a huge deal, treat it as such. Talk positively about your child's teachers, friends, play spaces, activities and stories. Be genuine and positive and if your child is unwilling to share ask the teacher to share photos or stories about their day (note: a quality early childhood service will already do this for you!) Also, talk to other adults in front of your child about how proud you are and what they have achieved. Most of the work in creating a positive mindset towards going is done in between Kindy visits.
Most importantly, trust your gut, you need to trust in the service if you want your child to. If you trust the teachers and educators then a few tears and tantrums will seem as normal as the tears and tantrums at home! Thank you for reading on and I would love to hear your experiences or any other tips you have for stress free drop offs. Now, where’s my coffee… and the window cleaner…

Play to Learn

playtolearn.com.au

Dear Teacher Mums,
My 2-year-old is going to childcare for the first time in a couple of weeks. I’m so nervous! I know I have to pack a backpack, but I’m not sure what to pack.
From First Time Childcare Mum

Dear First Time Childcare Mum,
This is such a huge time for you and your family! Starting childcare is a huge step for both children and their loved ones. The last thing you need to worry about each day is the backpack! So here are our suggestions:
• A water bottle: the centre will provide a cup if you forget the bottle, but it’s a great habit for children to get into to have their own bottle that they can recognise and access throughout the day. Make sure it is clearly labelled (printed sticker labels last better than Sharpie) and get into the routine of taking it home frequently to pull apart and give it a thorough scrub.
• Comfort items: dummies, little blankets, special toys, an item of your clothing, whatever helps your child settle in new places with new people. If your child does not rely on anything like this, don’t feel the need to introduce one.
• 2-3 changes of clothing: this is probably the most important. Keep in the backpack 2-3 full changes of clothing that are suitable for the weather. This includes socks, underwear, tops, bottoms and jackets. In colder months, or depending on where you are from, a raincoat and gumboots are also recommended.
• A wide-brimmed hat: your centre may provide a Sun Smart hat, but if they don’t, go for a wide brim with a print that your child will recognise.
• Food items: some centers may ask you to bring specialty items, such as infant formula or allergy friendly foods. Be guided by your centers policies on this one as some may prefer original, unopened packaging while others may be more flexible.
• Bedding: some centers may also require you to provide a cot sized sheet and blanket and a small pillow. Make sure these are easy for children to handle and recognise themselves.
All the best for the start of this new journey! Oh, and p.s. don’t forget to label absolutely everything!
From The Teacher Mums

Stone & Sprocket Parent Ed Hub

https://www.stoneandsprocketec.com/parent-education

Quality ECEC vs clever marketing: Seeing through the smoke and mirrors



As a Mum of young children I have recently embarked on the daunting journey of looking at childcare options upon my return to work; and just like most suburban areas, mine has a fair few options - there’s the huge building down the road that belongs to that big company I see popping up everywhere, the boutique style cottage nestled in a a quiet leafy street that’s been there for years, and the old building connected to the community centre that’s begging for an upgrade. I desperately want to find the perfect fit for my passionately social 3 year old and my ‘Covid baby’; who will most certainly need a special educator to connect with. Simply put- I need quality!

Does every parent who enrolls their children in childcare feel this way? So overwhelmed and anxious? As I began to research different places and take tours I was bombarded with information, jargon and dare I say it ... full blown sales pitches! Am I looking for a place to care and educate young children or a place to buy a used car? I am completely shocked to discover that advertising and marketing is positioning families to believe that you need all the bells and whistles: you need the biggest and the best, the art studios and café style meal areas with weekly specialist yoga classes included and hey, if you refer a friend you might even get a discount off your fees!

Then the fog of Mum guilt and countless sleepless nights lifts long enough for me to remember that I am an early childhood teacher, I've experienced this all before... but boy does it look different from the other side! So I took a big breath, remembered what 20 years working in the early years sector has taught me and set back out push through the smoke and mirrors to find my unicorn childcare centre, and here is some of the guidelines that helped me along the way:

1) Remember business is business, profit will always be the end goal. If you're ok with that, big companies may be ok for you. If not, look for community based or co-op services instead of the branded services.

2) When you go on tours ask to speak to the educators that will be with your children. Ask them how long they’ve worked there for, what they like about their job. Their reaction will tell you a lot, a manager who won’t let you speak to the educators should be a huge red flag.

3) Research is great - but reading reviews and checking quality ratings won’t give you the full picture. Spend time in the centre, watch the educators; are they smiling, are the engaged with the children? How about the children? The place gets bonus point if the children are happy and confident enough to come and say hi to you and ask you who you are!

4) Services that a have a rich diversity of people working for them , especially in leadership roles, is a fabulous example of inclusion and equity. Men, women, young and old from all over the world and all walks of life provide so much learning and experience for young children.

5) This might be the biggest one for me. As adults who respond to beautiful spaces and expensive looking/Scandi inspired/neutral toned buildings that just scream ‘we know what we’re doing, look at our perfectly placed furniture’ it is easy for us to fall in love with these multi million dollar centres. Unfortunately this is not always an indication of quality, this is an indication of a healthy profit, a profit perhaps helped out by paying their educators the bare minimum and charging you a premium fee. Instead look for busy and engaged children, natural outdoor areas, clay, wooden block constructions everywhere, child made cubby houses adorned with sticks and scraps of fabric, edible gardens and mud patches. Is this classroom set up for you or your child? Try and look through your child's eyes.

There is many other subtle ways to dissect the ways in which we can find great care and education for our young children. Share your thoughts below, and if you disagree with me - fabulous - let’s start a respectful dialogue so we can learn from each other! Please feel free to DM us if you have any personal questions and thank you all for taking the time to read our first blog. We have some amazing content coming up so stay tuned!

Introducing Sarah!

Sarah is a mum of two, a bachelor qualified early childhood teacher and a master’s student. Working part time as an early year’s consultant, her life is fast paced as she moves from work to home to after school activities to study to yoga. She advocates strongly for the professionalization of the sector, while supporting educators to embed high quality leadership and social justice practices in their classrooms. Sarah’s passion lies in quality early childhood education and care provision for the youngest members of our community and works to make their voices heard in decision making.

Introducing Bec!

Bec is a bachelor qualified early childhood teacher who has spent the past 20 years working in childcare, school based and kindergarten services. Now a mum of two, and working part time as a kindergarten teacher, she is navigating the early childhood vs parenting dilemma firsthand. She is a strong advocate for both quality early childhood education and care provision for children and families, along with equal rights for professionals in the early years. Bec believes that it is time that ECEC is given the time and attention it needs given what we know about childhood development in the first 1000 days.

Welcome to The Teacher Mums!

As mums of young children who have worked within the early childhood education and care sector for almost 40 years collectively, we’ve started to notice a trend: with the prevalence of social media more and more parents are sharing their struggles of navigating education and care in the early years of their children’s lives. To help with this we wanted to create a space where we could share our experiences and our learning from working with and supporting hundreds of families in Victoria over the last two decades. We are here to break through the media spins, the jargon and the complexities that dominate childcare and kindergarten provision in Australia.

Each Monday we will provide you with insights, useful tools and thought-provoking content. We’ll answer your questions and offer you guidance and support. We will be provocative. We will say things that might go against the grain. But our goal is pure: we want to help make this easier for you. Being a parent is hard enough without the added stressors of trying to work out the difference between kinder and childcare, making sense of quality ratings, and working out what to pack in a backpack. We hope this page proves to be the helping hand you didn’t know you needed.

Bec & Sarah