Peninsula Kids Summer 2019/20

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PENINSULA KIDS SUMMER 2019/20

ENINSULA KID P S LOVING FAMILY LIFE ON THE PENINSULA

SUMMER 2019/20

FREE

CELEBRITY CHEF

Miguel Maestre

FAMILY &CHATS FOOD

How to Give a Nest Egg Gift

www.peninsulakids.com.au

COLOURING COMPETITION

Healthy takeaway made


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SANTA

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Welcome Santa to Rosebud Plaza along with a few of his friends! Meet Peppa Pig, plus Ballerina and Nutcracker entertainment! 30 November, 10.30am – 1pm.

He’s in centre from November 30 to December 24. Plus plenty of festive filled entertainment for the family all December.

rosebudplaza.com.au @rosebudplaza

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/rosebudplaza

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20


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the little things

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...like extra nappies and spare goggles, so rushed parents don’t have to worry about anything they may have forgotten. Little things like caring teachers who know when a child needs a little extra attention and welcoming staff that are happy to help when a parent has their hands full of bags, toddlers and towels. At Kingswim, we know it’s the little things that make all the difference.

2 St Catherines Court, Mornington Off Mornington Tyabb Road

* T&Cs apply


Editor

Cover Photo Model: Sienna Location: Santa's Place Mooroduc Photo: Danielle B Photography daniellebphotography.com.au

Melissa McCullough

Speaking of artists, and friends, and kindness…a lovely think happened after the last edition of Peninsula Kids magazine hit the streets. A gentleman thought that Danielle B photography captured such a lovely photo of Indigo in blue on the front cover, that he decided to paint a portrait of the image. He contacted our offices and dropped off the artwork for Indigo and her mum, Mel, who were elated to receive such a special gift from someone they didn’t know. We, at the office, were also touched by this random act of kindness and thank artist Jeff Gilmour for getting in touch with us. It was an honour to facilitate this gift.

Advertising Miriam Doe 0421 085 974 miriam@mpnews.com.au General Enquiries info@peninsulakids.com.au

The kids and I received a very cool gift in the post from the lovelies at www.kindiscool.com.au Over there they are spreading kindness and inspiring others to do the same! Kind is Cool was founded with the intent to lead by example and show our younger generations that KIND IS COOL. Proudly supporting www.bullyzero.org.au, they donate $2 per item sold to help empower and educate (not just young people) about bullying.

All material is copyright, and may not be reproduced without the express permission of Mornington Peninsula News Group, or the original copyright holder in the case of contributions. Copyright of contributed material rests with the contributor. Disclaimer: The authors and publisher do not assume any liability to any party for any loss, damage, or disruption caused by errors or omissions, whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other cause.

To finish off I’d like to leave you with a few words from Karen Phillip, a published international author on parenting and relationships. (www.communicationharmonybook.com.au)

This publication is not intended as a substitute for the medical advice of physicians. The reader should regularly consult a physician in matters relating to health and particularly with respect to any symptoms that may require diagnosis or medical attention.

Karen is also a World Kindness Ambassador. She reminds us to be kind always and every day.

Peninsula Kids is produced quarterly. 15,000 copies distributed between Mordialloc and Portsea.

Advertising

Miriam Doe

Proudly published by

I am dubbing this edition the ‘it’s cool to be kind’ issue.

Look out for the colouring competition in this edition, sponsored by King Swim, on page 137. I can’t wait to see the handiwork from our local artists! Textas at the ready.

Design Sam Loverso sam@mpnews.com.au

www.facebook.com/MorningtonPeninsulaKids

Welcome to Peninsula Kids magazine summer 2019/20. First, allow me to congratulate our latest colouring in competition winner, Taleah, age 8. Thanks to our friends at The Big Goose, Taleah’s awesome artwork has won her and her family a free entry to the amazing farm in Moorooduc. Check out what The Big Goose has on offer for summer at www. thebiggoose.com.au

Editor and Publisher Melissa McCullough melissa@mpnews.com.au

Registered address: 2/1 Tyabb Road, Mornington 3931

ed’s letter...

“Whenever you may feel another person’s despair, may I suggest you stop, ask them how they are and if there is anything you can do for them. Even a caring enquiry can be enough for someone to feel visible, to feel like they have been worthy and valued enough to be asked if they are OK. Kindness is acceptance, respect and consideration. It doesn’t matter who the person is, their age, colour, status, religion or the relationship they have with you; they are a person, they matter. Kindness is contagious Spread kindness and become infected. It is a beautiful feeling.”

Be good this summer! Slip, slop, slap and all of that.

Design

Sam Loverso


Peninsula Grammar

‌ where endless opportunities await Excellence in coeducation from Kinder – Year 12

www.peninsulagrammar.vic.edu.au

To experience a tailored tour for your family, call our Registrar on 9788 7702 or email us at enrolments@pgs.vic.edu.au


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Contents 28

32

10 Spotlight 10 Solving the Unsolvable...and in Record Time! Feliks Zemdegs & the world of speed cubing.

28 The 12 Skills Yours Kids Need to Succeed at Work Your child will benefit from the categories explored in this article.

14 Celebrity Chef Miguel Maestro Chats Family and Food Miguel answers questions about being a parent and cooking with and for his children.

32 How to Give a Nest Egg Gift Tips on how to set up your children for a more secure financial future.

16 How to Be an Intuitive Parent Follow the 5 step process to help you become more intuitive in your everyday thinking.

34 7 Things Every Girl Should Have in Their Toolkit Feeling confident in your own skin is so important, lets us help you to be braver.

20 Don't Be Tourists, Be Explorers It's all about an adventure rather than just a holiday.

38 Leveraging Your Childs Learning Style Dr. Brooklyn Storme gives us tools to find your child's style.

22 Tis The Season to Be Jolly The time of the year for families to get together and all the pros and cons that eventuate.

42 An Unexpected Journey with Disability Deciding to provide a life of love, experiences and positivity, read about a family’s journey raising their down syndrome child.

26 Coding with Your Kids David Hawkins walks us through the wonderful world of Ozbots.

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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118 REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS Special thanks go to the gorgeous and talented group of contributors who breathe life into every issue by sharing their best with us.

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Pg50

ERICA LOUISE

melbourne.kidtown.com.au

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Pg126

YVETTE O’DOWD

www.facebook.com/groups/ SouthernNaturalParentingNetwork

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Contents

JO & CARL VIOLETA

Local (and not so)

Health

48 A Bright Star in The Big Sky

100 If Your Baby Has a Rash

50 Humanimals Return to Rosebud

106 Looking After Your Childs Asthma This Summer

52 Fairy Nice to Meet You Faery Emma

108 Healthy Takeaway Made Easy

Celebrate

112 Diagnosis ADHD: A Positive Perspective

46 FREE Family Friendly Activities for Summer

www.violetafinance.com.au

98 Ten Wellness Practices That Will Change Your Life Pg20

OLIVIA WILSON

56 Nippers Tree-Surfing Party at Enchanted Adventure Garden

Pregnancy & Baby

Education

122 The Chemistry of Dad and Baby Bonding

72 Wellbeing Is Just as Important as Academics

126 Granny''s Guide to Breastfeeding in Summer

77 Special Feature - Focus on Education

Creative

86 Starting Primary School 87 Starting High School 88 The Importance of Asking Children Better Questions

Recipes

92 Recipes from Luke Hines and Heidi Sze

www.the wilsonsofoz.com

118 Pregnant Over 40

134 Sensory Play Activities 138 Wool Wall Hanging

DEANNE ATKINSON

www.parentwithpassion.com

In Every

Issue

60 Party Planning 62 Things We Love 70 Little Bites 104 Ask the Experts 132 Book Reviews

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DAVID HAWKINS


Experience first-hand why we are the school of choice for girls in Bayside. Meet our expert teachers, view our state-ofthe-art facilities and see our school in action.

Book a Tour with our Admissions Manager or join us on 8 March, 2020 for our next OPEN DAY. Register now: www.mentonegirls.vic.edu.au

Empowering Girls www.peninsulakids.com.au

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SOLVING the unsolvable ...and in record time!

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Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20


By Cameron McCullough

T

he Rubik’s Cube is the biggest selling toy of all time. It has sold over 350 million units and it is believed as many as one in every seven humans have tried to solve it. But it is no easy task, with 519 quintillion possible combinations. That’s 519,000,000,000,000,000,000.

When I came into speedcubing, l found it to be a competitive, but very friendly, sport

WELCOME TO THE

WORLD OF SPEEDCUBING In speedcubing, it is not just about solving the cube, but solving it in the fastest time possible. Events are held all over the world, and fame (at least in the cubing fraternity) comes for those that achieve the heights of competitive cubing.

But to some people out there, the Rubik’s Cube is not a toy, but an item of competitive sport. A sport where times are measured in hundredths of a second, and where being One of the greatest cubers of all time is competitive requires thousands Melbourne’s own Feliks Zemdegs. of hours of practice. The 23-year-old held, until recently, the world record for the 3 x 3 cube with a time of 4.22 seconds. That is under five seconds to solve a cube that has 519 quintillion possible combinations!

“I’ve been cubing for over ten years,” said Feliks. “I randomly came across a YouTube video one day of people solving the cube and it intrigued me. I went and bought a cube, and the rest is history!”. But Feliks' success was not an overnight thing. “During high school and the early days at uni, I probably practiced about two hours a day. I am fortunate enough to have been able to keep practising while working and studying part time up until now”.

Feliks is now considered an ambassador of the sport of speedcubing and is always keen to promote its virtues. “When I came into speedcubing I found it to be a competitive, but very friendly sport,” said Feliks. “Everybody is there to compete, but it is a supportive community. There is no animosity among competitors”. At 23-years-old, he is one of the older competitors on the circuit. continued next page...

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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SECS

“It is definitely a young person’s sport,” said Feliks. “And the kids coming into competitions seem to be getting younger and younger.”

“Invariably, when someone decides they want to learn to solve the Rubik’s Cube, the first cube they go and buy is a Rubik’s brand”.

The current world record holder is Chinese national Yusheng Du. He Feliks encourages kid to get involved in cubing. managed to beat Felik’s world record in 2018 with an astounding solve “I would always encourage kids to do physical sports but believe that it of just 3.47 seconds. is really good for kids development to get into cubing,” said Feliks. “The single 3.47 was unexpected. Not too many people had heard of “And parents have often told me that the skills, camaraderie and him, but now they have!” said Feliks. supportive nature of the cubing community have been great for their “In a single solve, you can get lucky, and skip steps, but it was still a great solve”. Solve times have come down significantly over the years, with the world record about half of what it was ten years ago.

kids too.” Best of all, cubing is an easy sport to get in to. It is just a matter of buying a cube and getting started. It is as simple as that.

“It is getting very tight at the top,” said Feliks. “But there is still room for getting faster.” Over the last ten years, cubes have become much better than they were, with current speedcubes specifically made for fast solving. “Probably the biggest technological leap in the last five years would be introduction of magnets into cubes that help speed up the solves,” said Feliks. “And while the top cubers don’t tend to use Rubik’s Cube brand cubes, Rubik’s Cube still often sponsor events as they are still very good for promoting their brand.” 12

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Methods to solve the Rubik’s Cube can be found online with multiple tutorials on YouTube. You can also go to Feliks’ website: Cubeskills.com

We have three Rubik's Cubes to give away. Go to peninsulakids.com.au/giveaways


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CELEBRITY CHEF

Miguel Maestre CHATS FAMILY &FOOD

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Peninsula Peninsula Kids Kids – – Summer Summer 2019/20 2019/20


1. With all your TV commitments and work pressures, how do you balance life and family?

7. Do your children both speak Spanish? Is that something that is important to you?

For me, it’s very easy and it comes down to prioritising and organisation. These are my two keys to success. The most successful thing to happen to me is having my kids. I look at life from that lens – if they’re the most successful things I’ve done, how do I fit everything around them? I’m lucky that I can do what I want to, not what I have to. My wife and manager help me balance everything, but family always comes first. If my daughter has a concert that’s on the same night as The Logies, I’m going to my daughter’s concert. You must put a limit on what is important to you. When I’m driving down my driveway, that is my real success. I also chose not to have a restaurant so I can spend more time with my family.

Both of my kids are quite advanced. They’re not quite fluent as it’s a hard language, but I speak to them and they understand a lot. It’s very important to me that they have this connection with Spain.

2. You have always been very committed to quality time with your children, is that still the same? Do you still get to cook their meals and drop them at school? Absolutely! It’s my favourite thing in the world! Now they’re fighting about who’s dropping who! We have two cars, so there’s arguments about who’s in the front, who’s going with papa. I love the contact with their teachers to find out how they’re doing. I make their lunches and special things for them to eat. It’s such a highlight for me to be so involved. 3. Do you and your children cook together? Do either of them have an interest in cooking like dad? It changes every day! Sometimes they’re excited, sometimes not. Claudia is quite curious and loves doing the little jobs - buttering her toast, cracking the eggs. My son Morgan is very interested in the eating! For Morgan, his favourite ingredient is broccoli. We all just enjoy really delicious food. 4. What do you like about being a parent? What has surprised you? What have you found most difficult? Every day is a challenge, but I love it. No one can prepare you. You’re dealing with two little human beings who are the best of you (times a million) and your partner. They are your kids and that’s so special. 5. How was your childhood growing up and has that influenced your parenting style? My childhood influenced everything in my life and growing up made me who I am today. I was so lucky to grow up in a house that was all about love and respect. You had to respect yourself to respect others. My parents also valued hard work, which I teach in my home. My parents are so very much in love, so in my home we live and breathe love. Growing up I just remember seeing my parents holding hands, kissing each other each morning, making breakfast together. You just need to focus on making sure your kids are good people, and everything else will come after that.

8. How important is family history to you? Does the family go back to Spain often? Very important. Both children have been to Spain a few times now, and we try to go back when we can. I also try to bring my family here once a year. If you can’t move the mountain, bring the mountain to you! There are many Spanish traditions, especially around Christmas that I incorporate. They’re important to me and I want my kids to know them. 9. W hat sort of food do you cook for your children? What advice do you have for parents on getting children to eat certain things like vegetables? Kids need to get involved. At home, we cook one meal, but so often people get caught up in making a meal for the adults and then another for the kids. You need to make them part of the process and cook together. Start at the beginning, so they’re part of the shopping, helping tick things off the list. Once home, find age appropriate tasks, like cracking eggs, or peeling broccoli leaves, and make it fun. If you have the ingredients at home they’ll start to appreciate and understand where food comes from, like a whole ham that they can slice. Once the meal is ready, eat together, with devices away and the TV turned off so you can engage together. 10. Any advice on how we help our children to eat healthy? With a lot of takeaway fast food, there is a larger amount of overweight or unhealthy young kids; how do we avoid this? A quarter of our kids will be obese before they’re 5 years old. The main thing is to stay away from pre-packaged lunchbox foods. Keep it fresh where possible. Sweets, chocolate and ice cream are a treat; not something they ‘deserve’ because they’ve done a good job. Cook more at home, and avoid fast food. You can cook an equally delicious burger at home that’s fun, tasty and healthy. There’s 24 hours in a day so there’s always time for cooking. You can get a handful of mushrooms, spiralised veggies, some soy sauce and you’ve got a tasty and healthy stir-fry in just minutes. We need to be better at prioritising food. It’s also so much cheaper.

6. What is the key to being a good dad? You need to spend time, and listen to your kids. So often we confuse being a good dad with providing material items, but it’s about the quality of time spent with your kids. www.peninsulakids.com.au

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e b o INT t U T w I N T E I V R E A P o h

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By Craigh Wilson

W

ith the popularity of meditation, never before has being an intuitive parent been so possible. Today’s fast-pace technology-base world provides you endless insights, tools and benefits for better parenting, yet your mobile phone, email and especially social media, equally over whelms and distracts you constantly, disconnecting you from yourself and your children you love the most.

Taking some time out for you to de-stress (even a few moments) clears your energy, mind and emotions allowing you to make better intuitive parenting decisions. Now is the time to start trusting your intuition like never before, to create a greater connection with your children that other parents can only dream about. Intuition is about really connecting to yourself; a deep feeling in your heart and your gut that something feels right or wrong. Intuition shares with you what you are experiencing deep within. As your intuition grows you will hear, feel, and experience your intuition guiding you. A gentle whisper at first and as you use it more it becomes ever stronger. Imagine the clarity and self confidence you will experience as your intuition becomes your greatest friend. continued next page...

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Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20


ADVENTUROUS

MINDS see things differently. They forge new paths, find new perspectives and unearth new possibilities. Adventurous Minds take risks and find solid footing. They test their boundaries, mastering challenges as they grow.

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O EN T S PAR S E OC TI VE R P P NTUI E T I S E 5 R S THI A MO W E O FOLL BECOM YOU P 1. L E H

T

2.

Clarity of what you really want for your children

Cl

Accept where you and your children are at right now

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cc

Love. It’s time to start loving yourself like you love your children

v Lo

ep t

5.

Accept

3.

arity

- where you are right now and where your childrenare at right now

Harvard Medical school tells us that ‘stress puts the body and the mind on edge. It floods the body with stress hormones. The heart pounds. Muscles tense. Breathing quickens. The stomach churns.’ Anxiety or stress, is the major road block to living a fulfilling life, relationships, family, career or business. The more frequently you can listen to your intuition the better Children are masters at reading your energy. If you are being honest with yourself and most importantly with them, they will feel it instantly. Your children will not only sense your honesty and congruency, they will begin to revere and respect it.

Clarity - of what you really want for your children Clarity is paramount to making better parenting decisions. Now is the time to take some time out just for you to become still, to become clear. Connect now to yourself, heart, mind body and soul. Take a few moments, minutes or even more. Sit quietly or lay down. Begin by letting all your thoughts surface. Positive, negative and neutral. Now use your mind's eye to scan your body from head to toe. Gently give permission for all of your emotions to present themselves. Again, positive, negative and neutral. Follow these steps and then take a few deep breaths to really let go. Take a moment and visualize your thoughts and let go of all your emotions, good or bad, gently into the earth.

Trust you have made the right decision

Trust

e

4.

Choose. Make your parenting choice and be proud of it

Ch

oose

Choose - Make your parenting choice and be proud of it Now you have cleared your mind, emotions are in your heart. It is time to make your parenting decision. Start by feeling your heart. Does it feel best to speak to your daughter about not finishing her homework tonight or tomorrow morning before school? Or should you reconnect with your son before you make sure he tidies his room before he goes skate boarding with his friends? After feeling your heart, feel your gut. Does your gut feel light or does it feel heavy? Trust that feeling in your heart and your gut always. I promise you it will serve you well.

Trust – you have made the right decision Congratulations. You stopped over-thinking and made your decision. It takes courage to trust your intuition. Stick by your intuitive decision and enjoy the rewards. Remember, your intuition is telling you how to be the best parent you can be today. If you stay open and trust, your intuition will guide you to even better intuitive parenting decisions tomorrow.

Love - I t’s really time to start loving yourself like you love your children. You can’t love your children if you don’t love yourself. It’s time for self love. Who do you love the most in your life? In most cases your children. Imagine your children who you love unconditionally. Remember them at birth or other joyful times. Now breath love into your heart for yourself. The more self love, the more love you can have your children. Making more choices based from self love, instead of fear, will create better intuitive parenting outcomes. 18

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Craigh Wilson is an experienced intuitive with over 30 years experience. A soughtafter author, intuitive, mentor and international key note speaker and media contributor, he offers smart, realistic and powerful transformational solutions for people to business owners, entrepreneurs and leaders of Fortune 500 companies in over 110 countries around the world. Find out more about Craigh and his international best selling book, Intuitive, at www.craighwilson.com and download the Craigh Wilson Intuitive App on iTunes or Google play


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By Olivia Wilson

T

here’s never been a better time to see the world. Travel is affordable even on the smallest of budget, and places that we once only saw on the discovery channel are now easily accessible for the whole family. Seeing the world, or at least a little of it, and stepping out of your comfort zone, is not only super exciting, it also creates unforgettable moments, regardless of the age of your children.

For us, it’s all about adventures rather than holidays. We love to find foods we’ve never tasted before, roads that very few people have travelled, and see creatures we have only really seen in books. I love introducing my children to people of all different nationalities, and to watch them converse and play regardless of a language barrier or cultural differences. There’s nothing more inspiring. To put a finer point on it, a holiday for us, isn’t really a holiday unless we have gone out of our way to explore somewhere! It would probably be far easier for everyone if we booked a package holiday, popped the children into the kid’s club and sat at the pool bar for a week, downing Margaritas (Boy, that seriously sounds appealing now that I’ve written it down), but, what on earth would we write on our postcards? If you haven’t already turned the page, thinking ‘This woman is nuts” then I get the feeling you’re also an adventurer at heart, and you will totally understand where I am coming from. Maybe you’ve always had the desire to throw the kids in the car and head off into the distance, with no plans, no cash and no diapers! (Uh oh) Well, you should!! It’s not holidays that make life so darn wonderful, it adventures, and that niggling feeling that what you’re doing is a little dangerous and, without doubt, irresponsible. It’s adventures and exploring that broaden our minds, show our kids the big wide world, and fill the whole family with a zest for life. Exploring takes us out of our comfort zone, and pushes us way beyond the ‘helicopter mum’ we were last week and more like a mild ‘Bear Grylls’ sort of mama who hunts for tarantula dens, and climbs with her babes, high up into the jungle canopy! Whether it’s scaling sleepy volcanos in Iceland, swimming with sharks in the Similan Islands, trekking hot deserts in Africa, scrambling through thick jungles, or floating down rivers in Borneo, what counts is that you’re all exploring together. You’re showing your children that it’s ok to live life on the edge, it’s ok to trust people, and it’s absolutely ok to go home and tell your friends you “didn’t really do anything” on your holiday. It’s all ok, because every exciting, dangerous, invigorating thing you’ve just experienced as a family, is captured in time, in photos, and in memories; all of which will live with them forever. 20

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

So next time you book a holiday, push it aside for an adventure.


Do your research, find a local guide, ask to be taken to places tourists don’t go, and truly explore your destination. It may be unnerving, you may find your stress levels raise a little, but imagine hearing your children telling tales about the time they swam down crocodile infested water with tribespeople in Borneo! There’s nothing quite like the feeling of being a real explorer!

Olivia is a thirty-something British mum of two living in Melbourne. Having grown up with a father in the army and being moved all over the world, she is a lifelong 'expat', and thoroughly enjoys the adventures that come with a fairly nomadic life overseas. Follow her adventures as a 'modern day parent far from home', and share her family's exploration of Australia at www.thewilsonsofoz.com On Instagram @the_wilsons_of_oz and on Facebook @thewilsonsofoz

A R T H U R S S E AT MORNINGTON PENINSULA

A R T H U R S S E AT MORNINGTON PENINSULA

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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By Deanne Atkinson

he crazy season is upon us and, apart from shopping for presents, a booked out social calendar and over eating, the Christmas period is usually a time for families to get together. This can make some people cringe and want to be as far away from the flashing lights and eggnog as possible. What feelings surface for you with the thought of getting together with the extended family? continued next page...

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There is no normal family, and often families are dysfunctional. With the hierarchy between siblings, often there is a lack of equality within the family unit, causing fighting and falling out between family members over the years. Getting together during the festive period can cause the unresolved friction to surface and dampen your spirits. Do you have the weird uncle who sits in the corner and doesn’t speak to anyone? Or the strict aunt who makes you wish you had listened more at etiquette class in school? The relative who tends to drink a little too much and shares all the home truths everyone would prefer be kept in the closet? Or the relative who makes it known how much money he or she pent on everyone?

Often our children end up being on the receiving end of our intolerance when they really aren’t the cause. Deep hurts remain within us, causing our buttons to be pushed until we explode. Not what we want on Christmas Day! If the extended family causes your stomach to churn then maybe it’s time to address the negativity and start to heal from past hurts. What a great way to start the New Year: free of emotional turmoil and old ways. Is it time to start a new tradition which is full of upliftment? Be honest with yourself on how you want to spend the day and what you want your kids to remember. Kids love traditions and remember them fondly, often continuing them into their adult lives.

The challenge of sitting next to a sibling who you haven’t seen all year can be an opportunity to let bygones be bygones or can ignite a fury in you on a day which is supposed to be about love. What causes such break downs in families and why don’t we do our best to repair broken ties? What example are we giving to our kids if we can’t move on and we stay stuck in resentment, pity or revenge? How can we be angry with our kids when they fight with each other when we are no better?

If you are seeking some extra peace, make the effort to get out of bed before the kids and, sitting quietly, feel the stillness in the air. It is a short time when the world is at peace before all the weird and wonderful families of the world gather together and the fun begins.

Yes it is normal to have a family with its differences but holding onto emotional baggage will only weigh you down and reduce your joy not only on the big day but in your daily life. Our emotions affect the way we behave and often cause us to react in a way we otherwise wouldn’t.

Deanne Atkinson is Founder of Parent with Passion. A service on the Mornington Peninsula supporting the spirit of Mums and Dads who are passionate about their personal growth and role as a parent. Services include; Spiritual Counselling, Hahnemann Healing, Mediumship Readings and Spiritual Parenting. More details can be found at www.parentwithpassion.com

Enjoy! Merry Christmas and may your New Year be one of growth and happiness.

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Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

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25


By David Hawkins

W

e live in a crazy modern world where technology is everywhere we look. Knowing that computers are taking over the world (hopefully not Terminator-style), it is no surprise that our children are supported to use computers and tablets for learning both at home and at school. But this got me thinking. Do I want my boys to be mindless consumers who only know how to interface with computers, or do I want to give them the chance to control this technology in the future?

Coding sounds complex and confusing, which it probably is if you’re talking high-end app creation, but at its simplest, coding is just learning that humans can communicate with technology, give it instructions and put it to different uses. And this is something that you can teach your kids yourself! I’ll admit that I was a little intimidated when I decided that it was time to get my boys coding. I’ve been a mad gamer since the late '80’s but I have no idea about how to program or code. Did I need to grab an encyclopedicsized volume on C++? What the heck is C++? Is anyone using C++ in 2019 or am I stuck in a '90’s loop of Angelina Jolie roller-blading through the movie ‘Hackers’? I’m already overwhelmed! And then a mate of mine steered me in a great direction for starters – coding with colours. No computers. No tablets. No programming language. Just a few coloured markers, some paper and an uber cool robot the size of a walnut called an Ozobot. 26

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Ozobots have been designed specifically for teaching young children and for use in schools. They will follow a black line, shuttling along on their two little wheels, zipping all over the page. All you need to do is break up the black line with very simple three or four-colour codes and your kids will be able to make the robot turn a corner, speed up, spin in circles and even do the moonwalk (sort of). To make life easier for the educating-parent, the Ozobot website has a whole bundle of helpful information including pre-made introductory lessons. Just click print and you can look like an expert instantly. This is exactly what I did! The initial 4-lesson plan introduces children (and adults) to the basic skills needed to control an Ozobot; how to draw the line, how to draw colour codes and how to put these to use. Every Monday after school, my son and his Year 1 friends have been learning what coding is and how to take control of these little ‘bots to achieve their own outcomes. My 4-year-old is just as enthused and becoming quite adept at using the textas in just the right way. It doesn’t even feel like we are learning about technology, it’s more like an art class that happens to have robots! We learned about aerial maps and then created a map of their school for the robots to navigate. Grabbing recyclable materials, we challenged the children to create an obstacle course that their robots had to drag marbles through. And we even taught them about our solar system, with the robots imitating orbiting planets.


Once we tire of the limitations of using pen-based colour codes, the Ozobots can also be programmed by using a free block-coding application. With this, the kids are able to drag ‘blocks’ of existing code (essentially actions for the robot to perform) into a program list and then upload this to the robot by holding the machine against the tablet screen. Block coding will allow for more complex actions to be organised and played out in order and give the children more control. If the Ozobots are too expensive for your endeavour, there are robot-free coding alternatives like Code.org (5+), Scratch Jr (5-7 years), Scratch (8+) or Tynker (7+). All you need is a tablet or computer. Your local library will have books that walk parents through projects that kids can create with these apps. From here, it’s just a quick jump to programming and then on to conquer the app-business world [insert evil and rather-maniacal laugh here]! What I love most about teaching my kids how to code is the special time that the boys and I get to spend together, learning and being creative as a family. And I feel confident that I’m setting them up with a mindset that will be important in any career of the future.

David Hawkins is a Peninsula based stay-at-home-dad who realised that he needed to improve his Dadding. So he set himself the simple task of being an Awesome Dad. He now challenges all dads to be awesome dads, by doing something out-of-the ordinary with their kids. www.peninsulakids.com.au

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By Kieran Flanagan and Dan Gregory

K

ieran’s daughter Darcy is lucky enough to attend a progressively minded high school that has its eyes keenly focused on the future and isn’t hamstrung by conventions that were designed for a 20th Century world. One night, the faculty invited the parents in to hear a speech from a futurist about the future of work and what kinds of skills their children might need to develop. continued next page...

28 Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20


THE 12 SKILLS YOUR KIDS NEED TO SUCCEED AT WORK

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By shifting our focus from trying to predict an unpredictable future, we believe we would do well to teach our children what will always matter It was the usual fare and the futurist gained thoughtful nods as they uttered words like coding and acronyms like STEM. Now, this is a private school with parents who work successfully across a range of industries, but it’s worth remembering that these are not digital natives, so much of this world is foreign to them. Just to give you some perspective, in a struggle to find his words one day, Kieran’s husband Gary once called his iPhone, “The App Machine,” much to the delight of his daughter. And as interesting as the futurist’s talk was, it was rather narrowly focused on skills that, to be honest, are quite easily outsourced, offshore and automated by A.I.

3

KEY CATEGORIES OF SKILLS EMERGED

Over the past twelve months we have scoured history books, read copious trend reports and interviewed futurists, economists, educators and leaders from pretty much every professional field and, indeed, every continent, and some clear patterns began to emerge. The first category was,

1: CREATIVE SKILLS.

These included an ability to generate insights, to convert raw materials One of the issues we face when it comes to navigate a rapidly changing and information into new formats, to solve problems producing solutions world is that we tend to become distracted by just one facet of change when not seen before, and personal agility - being able to transition from there are, in our estimation, three Spheres of Change. one context to another with ease and resilience. What is changing - This sphere gets all of our attention as it combines Of course, some creative skills can be performed by machines, especially excitement and terror in equal measure and was the basis of the futurist’s when they involve pattern recognition and extrapolation. speech. Perhaps the most important of these createtive problem solving skills lies What needs changing - This is where innovation is usually hiding. in the human ability to connect the seemingly unrelated, and generate What is unchanging - This sphere of change gets almost no attention. seemingly spontaneous inspiration. Edward de Bono famously talked It’s like the Jan Brady of change, living in the shadows of the first two about linear and lateral thinkers. We prefer the terms Linkers and Leapers. spheres (let’s call them Marsha and Cindy). Linkers create through connections, often linking future projects to past reference points making the new seem familiar. Machines can do this too. However, it is this third sphere of change in which we can find a sense of However, Leapers have an ability to generate random ideas and then confidence and control about the future and it was this insight that lead us make sense of them. The spontaneity and lack of logic makes this hard to to years of research into what, if anything, is unchanging and evergreen. replicate.

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Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20


Join Saver Plus and we’ll match your savings, dollar for dollar, up to $500 for school costs.

Contact your local Saver Plus Coordinator Phone 1300 610 355

Email FrankstonSP@bsl.org.au Online saverplus.org.au

Find us on Facebook

To join Saver Plus, you must be at least 18 years or over, have a child at school or starting next year, or attend vocational education yourself, have regular income from paid employment (you or your partner), have a current Health Care or Pensioner Concession Card and be in receipt of an eligible Commonwealth social security benefit, allowance or payment*

The second category of skills are often thought of as soft skills although they are anything but. We call these,

2: COMMUNICATION SKILLS. They include our capacity to generate influence around our ideas, to team build, to establish trust and to translate information, not just in terms of national or ethnic languages but between worlds and contexts. The final category of forever skills we decided to call,

3: CONTROL SKILLS. These are made up of self-control; many schools are now teaching mindfulness and resilience skills. It also consists of resource management which is about more than what we dig out of the ground or ongoing sustainability as it includes things such as judgement and allocation of time and wealth. The final two include an ability to establish social order and build consensus around values and right and wrong, and lastly the ability to implement and execute to move teams, communities and projects into action. Of course there is much more depth beneath each of these three skills, however by shifting our focus from trying to predict an unpredictable future, we believe we would do well to teach our children what will always matter.

* many Centrelink payments are eligible, please contact your local Coordinator for more information.

Saver Plus is an initiative of the Brotherhood of St Laurence and ANZ, delivered in partnership with Berry Street, The Benevolent Society and The Smith Family and other local community agencies. The program is funded by ANZ and the Australian Government Department of Social Services. Go to www.dss.gov.au for more information.

Are you our next Family Day Care educator? Are you qualified in childcare? Do you love caring for children? Looking for flexible work hours? Contact us to get started:

Kieran Flanagan and Dan Gregory are experts in leadership communication and strategic insights. They are the strategic and creative team behind the most successful new product launch in Australian history, have helped entrepreneurs build internationally successful businesses and worked with some of the world's most influential organisations. They work as speakers, trainers and are the coauthors of Forever Skills: The 12 skills to future proof yourself, your team and your kids. Find out more at www.theimpossibleinstitute.com

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www.peninsulakids.com.au

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how to give a By Jo and Carl Violeta

could give your kids Whata giftif you that grows with them? For both of our children's first birthdays, we decided to give them a Nest Egg Gift that would grow over time and help them in the future. So we deposited their birthday money into bank accounts that we’d opened for them soon after they were born. When we first opened the accounts, we didn't have much spare cash, so we made a small initial deposit, and then regular weekly deposits over the years. A Nest Egg Gift could be used to help your kids to pay for their university fees, go towards a deposit for their first home, buy their first car, help them travel or to do with what they wish.

The benefits of building a Nest Egg Gift are far-reaching, including: • Teaching kids about saving money through role-modelling • Potentially helping your children enter the property market in the future • Giving us as parents an opportunity to get in a good savings rhythm and develop a healthy money mindset 32

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Where to grow the Nest Egg The easiest way to start a Nest Egg Gift is to open a high-interest savings account. Look for an account with low fees, that offers a higher interest rate if you don't make withdrawals. We've chosen to invest our children's Nest Eggs in high-interest savings accounts. Compounding interest has helped their account balances grow quite quickly. They earn interest on the money we deposit AND on the interest already earned. Term Deposits are another option. A minimum deposit of around $1000 is usually required and must remain in the account for a fixed term. Read the terms and conditions very carefully to make sure a term deposit is the right option for you. Also, make a note of when the term ends, as it may automatically roll over at the end of the term into a new Term Deposit with a lower interest rate! If you'd like to grow your child's Nest Egg Gift using shares and investments such as managed funds, we recommend meeting with a stockbroker or financial advisor to make sure that you choose the right portfolio.

Tax Implications

Wherever you choose to grow your Nest Egg Gift, it's important to understand whether tax will need to be paid on the income earned from interest and/or shares and by who.


Our Top Nest Egg Gift Tips

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has clear and current information around this on their website, and it's also worthwhile having a chat with your • Organise a direct debit into your child's account every pay-day accountant. • T hrow a birthday party every second year. On the alternate year, put www.ato.gov.au/Individuals/Investing/In-detail/Children-and-underthe money that would be spent on the party towards your child's 18s/Children-s-savings-accounts/ Nest Egg Gift • Collect loose change in a money box and deposit it every month

How much & how often

•D eposit money received as gifts for birthdays etc. (either whole or a Every family is different. How much you deposit into your child's Nest Egg portion) into your child's account Gift needs to work with your family budget, remember you can always •C onsider telling grandparents about what you’re doing; they may offer adjust the amount if required. to make contributions as well The key to success is to keep making those deposits whenever you can. Toys, gifts and parties are fun; we love them! We are not suggesting you Here's an example of how consistent saving can add up over time: forgo these all together, rather that you consider If you opened an account at birth with an initial deposit of $100 and paid adding a Nest Egg Gift into the birthday, $10 a week into the account until your child turns 21, with a compounding gift giving and celebratory mix. interest rate of 5% that account balance could reach approximately $19,000 (over $8,000 of that being interest). We used the Compounding Interest Calculator from the Australian Securities and Investments Commissions (ASIC) MoneySmart website to calculate this scenario. The calculator is easy to use and a great tool to project potential savings which can help keep you motivated! https://www.moneysmart.gov.au/tools-and-resources/calculators-andapps/compound-interest-calculator

Jo and Carl Violeta are self-confessed numbers nerds, parents of an energetic toddler and a super switched-on teenager, and co-founders of the award-winning business, Violeta Finance. They are a husband and wife team who are passionate about empowering their community with financial education, love the odd glass of wine, and get a kick out of helping families achieve their homeownership and financial dreams. www.peninsulakids.com.au

33


Things Every Girl Should Have in Their Toolkit

m e h T p l e to H Be Brave By Sema Musson and Hester Leung

E

veryone wants to feel safe. Feeling confident in your own skin is so important and we can all understand that lacking courage in a difficult time can create uncertainty in one-self. Working mothers and co-authors of Being Brave Sema Musson and Hester Leung are here to share tools that you can give your child to help them be brave during challenging circumstances.

“Of course, parents strive to keep their children ‘safe and certain’ as it is idealistically how you would want to raise your kids – but unfortunately life has so many circumstances and challenges that we can’t predict. So, we need to give kids the tools to help themselves when they let go of the handrail,” said Sema. “An individual's childhood experience will no doubt contribute to who they become as an adult so they need every possible tool to help enrich themselves and to pick up life skills that will guide them to find courage,” adds Hester. Here, Sema and Hester share with us seven helpful tools that children can put in their toolkit to call on in times when they need strength: continued next page... 34

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20


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35


#1 Journal

#5 Mirror

#2 Pencil

#6 Compass

“Just like Princess Mia Thermopolis from The Princess Diaries, a book of thoughts can really help your child find perspective and clarity,” mentions Sema. “Writing things down can be a huge relief for your child’s headspace and can connect their thoughts together and help them see things in a different way,” she adds.

Along with a notebook a pencil is key! “It illuminates imagination and creativity in your child. It is always handy to have a pencil on hand to capture any burst of creative power your little one might have,” says Hester.

#3 Shell

Sema says “A common symbolism for life protector - a shell is also a symbol for our kids to learn to breathe. Just like adults, kids too can feel overwhelmed. I urge parents to teach your kid to take a deep breath and relax when they are feeling cross or stressed. Take time out, unplug and look to nature for a much-needed break!” she added.

#4 Photo of friends

At every stage of life, friends are the gems to hold on to forever. “Making friends in school or at after-school activities are a key for children to branch out from their immediate comfort-zone. Friends are there to be a source of support and are especially needed when things are challenging without parents around,” says Hester. “A photo of friends is also a beautiful reminder of a time and place a child can look at to feel happy and reminisce,” Hester adds.

36

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Instilling self-image confidence to your children is key to growing up with self- assurance. “A mirror can be an incredible tool for self-confidence in a child, a reminder to them to simply be themselves!” says Sema. “It is good for a parent to say to their child to ‘take a look at yourself, you are awesome’, there is so much you can be when you trust in yourself,” she adds.

What is your true north? “No one really carries a compass around with them but the symbolism of having a moral compass can stop you from getting lost in other things that are not important to you. A compass is a reminder to help your child make the right decisions when they are faced with the question of what’s the right thing to do in this situation?” says Hester.

#7 Feather

A feather is a great representative tool to help your child be brave. “We use a feather as a symbol to remind us to be brave and face our fears,” says Sema. “I would recommend for every parent to share with their child that we are all braver than we think, and adults too face tough times that scare us. Always remember that being brave is not about being a hero but simply standing, speaking up and being confident in ourselves,” ends Sema.

Being Brave (RRP $19.95) is available from Amazon, other online outlets and for orders from bookshops.


The 92nd

RED HILL SHOW

Saturday, 7th March, 2020

Labour Day Weekend | 8.30am to 5pm

Red Hill Show Grounds - Arthurs Seat Rd, Red Hill For info visit: www.redhillshow.com.au Mornington Peninsula Paddock - Celeb Chef Michael Cole on stage - Local exhibitors & producers - Cider Show Australian Mountainboarders - Animals Galore - Fly Dogs - Sheep Shearing - Working Dogs - Woodchop - Music Wildlife Encounters - Roaming performers - Tractors - Art & Craft Stalls - Carnival Rides and much more... Admission: Family ticket (2 adults, 3 children 6-17 years) $60; Adults $20; Children 6-17 years $10 5 years & under free; Students/Pensioners $10. Free parking. All most all RIDES FREE with entry! Major sponsors: Mornington Peninsula Shire, HIllview Quarries, MP News Group, Grand Hotel Mornington, Hastings Mowers Our Vans RV Rosebud, Mornington Toyota, Mornington Mazda, Balnarring Bendigo Bank, Swan St Sales & Peninsula Grammar

Create your show experience! www.peninsulakids.com.au

37


Leveraging Your Child’s Learning Style By Dr Brooklyn Storme

I

t doesn’t matter what you are trying to teach your child; it may be reading, spelling or perhaps you’re teaching them how to behave nicely at home. What does matter, though, is that we understand that children have a range of learning styles and when we know which style is preferred by your child, we can help them to acquire new information and integrate it more quickly than if we don’t. This article gives a general overview of some of the different learning styles so that you can begin to keep an eye out for your child’s preference. This will help you to help them, both at school and at home, and should help them experience a few more wins in their learning!

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Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20


SUMMER

The visual learner. Does your child like to watch you when you are cooking? Does your child like to observe their teacher in class as she or he is providing instruction about a particular task or activity? If so, your child may be more inclined to learn new information by watching. So, what does this mean for classroom learning? Helping your class teacher understand that your child has a preference for a visual learning style will enable that teacher to direct their content in a way that is more readily consumed by your child. Examples of visual learning tools in the classroom can include modelling and demonstrations, use of television or video (such as an explainer lesson or a documentary), activities that involve story telling through the use of the pictures and the use of symbols to represent information or concepts.

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MORNINGTON

PENINSULA

The auditory learner. Do you find that you show your child what to do or how to do something and find yourself having to explain it again at a later time? Does your child tend to look away from television or books in favour of talking with you about the content or material you are presenting them with? If so, it may be that your child has a preference for auditory learning. An auditory learning style is characterised by discussion of key topics or material being taught, active listening, and paraphrasing. Your child may watch you as you talk, listen to what you are saying and then either share with you what they thought you have said, or they may ask you questions about the topic in order to further their understanding of the topic you are discussing. Sometimes, children that have a preference for an auditory learning style might distract their classmates during a lesson by talking with them about what’s being taught (“Does the teacher mean…..?”, “Did she say……?” “What do you think……?”). The child is not being naughty, they are just trying to learn. In a classroom, a teacher might include strategies in their teaching style to accommodate auditory learners. These strategies could include asking students questions as a way to clarify that the information has been correctly understood. Also, group discussions provide an opportunity for students to verbalise and listen to each other’s ideas about the material being taught in order to help them correctly understand the information that they are being taught. continued next page...

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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The kinaesthetic learner. When you are showing your child how to do something, do they reach over you or past you and try and grab onto objects to get involved? For example, do they try and pick up the wooden spoon when you are mixing ingredients, and start stirring? Do they pick up the screwdriver from the toolbox beside you while you are trying to fix something else? If so, it may be that your child has a preference for a more hands-on approach to learning. This learning style is less about watching and listening and more about actually getting involved in the process of what it is you are talking about or teaching. In a classroom, kinaesthetic learners might stand up and start picking things up while the teacher is talking, when the expected behaviour is that they sit down and pay attention. If your child really has a natural inclination to get involved with things, you can leverage that to help them with their learning by giving them plenty of opportunities to use their hands in the learning process. For example, apart from more obvious examples of getting children to use their hands in more practical activities you can also have them use this style for things like maths. For example, instead of asking your child to calculate a problem out loud, or write it down, you could ask your child to calculate a problem using blocks or tokens. Lego also works really well for children with this learning style. Regardless of the object used, the idea is to ask yourself, “How can I turn this into a practical activity?”.

In the classroom, kinaesthetic learning approaches can include activities such as using modelling clay to create objects, using blocks or cards, sensory objects such as sandpits / kinaesthetic sands, using their body (i.e. clapping out numbers for counting or stamping feet for learning about rhythm), use of puppets, acting out material that’s being taught such as a scene from a book and singing. There is no right or wrong way to learn and each child will use a combination of these approaches throughout the course of their learning. It’s helpful to know what your child’s overall preference is however, as this can help yourself and the teachers impart wisdom in ways that are more readily absorbed, plus it makes learning a lot more fun when we can zig to your child’s zag!

Dr. Brooklyn Storme, PhD is the Director and head psychologist at All Psyched Up, a mindfulness-based allied health practice on the Mornington Peninsula. When she’s not at work, she’s usually teaching Gabe new tricks or spiking up his purple Mohawk. Facebook: allpsychedup Ph: 8765 2434

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Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

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Why Choose Gymbaroo? As GymbaROO has been a part of many families’ lives for over 30 years, there are now thousands of success stories of GymbaROO graduates who have developed into extremely well rounded, happy, confident and flourishing individuals. These children, some of whom are now adults, began GymbaROO as tiny babies and continued with the program until school age. Their parents also reinforced our program at home. So many have achieved academic excellence, have enjoyed an exciting variety of leadership roles and have gone on to reach elite levels in their chosen sports. GymbaROO stands out as being the ONLY parent-child program in the world that specialises in research-based, neuro-developmental, fun learning environments for babies to school aged children and their parents. It is also the only program in the world that has integrated key developmental activities, essential for complete development in each age and stage of development, into a comprehensive and all-encompassing program. There are presently hundreds of thousands of parents involved in the GymbaROO program, all of whom are very excited for their children’s future as more and more evidence is being documented confirming the long-term benefits of our program!

Call Sharon on 0444 581 446 or email mteliza@gymbaroo.com.au Like us on Facebook: Gymbaroo Mount Eliza Community Centre 90-100 Canadian Bay Rd, Mt Eliza www.peninsulakids.com.au

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An Unexpected Journey By Julie Fisher

O

ur unexpected journey began just before the birth of our third son Darcy when we discovered through amniocentesis that he had Down Syndrome. After deciding to provide a life of love, experiences and positivity, I share our family’s journey from diagnosis until now.

With the support of a friend and her support group, and meeting other families with children with disabilities, by the time Darcy was born we were in a very good place and he was welcomed into the world with the same happiness and joy as his siblings’ arrivals. Most of the negative thoughts and emotions were dealt with while I was pregnant. Although uncertainty still confronted us then, and thirteen years later still does from time to time, we deal with it a lot differently. I think that is because we know what he is capable of and what he can bring to the world. We spent time thinking about and learning about what we would like for him as he grew and decided we would like to offer him as many opportunities as possible. Darcy would be given the chance to shine and try many things to help make him be as independent as possible. The opportunity to include him in the mainstream system of schooling came about and he responded so well! We continued to grab opportunities and fought hard to make sure he could participate in as many things as possible including camps, etc. The assistant he had through school, Trudi Paydon, who has now become like a family member, always fought just as hard as us, if not more. Her dedication and drive for our son made sure he was able to participate in and try many different things he otherwise would not have. I think inclusion and acceptance is so important for people with disabilities, because they can offer just as much to the community as anyone else, given the opportunity. It is important to treat everyone with kindness because we all have the same emotions and feelings. Darcy doesn’t like it when people react differently to him.

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with Disability Darcy may have Down Syndrome, but it doesn’t mean that he doesn’t understand what is going on, nor does it mean his feelings are any different to everyone else. There is nothing ‘wrong’ with him. Down Syndrome is a part of him, but it does not define him. To me, everyone is different, and everyone has different capabilities. There are things that I am good at, that other people are not. So why treat anyone any differently?

Please include and accept Show people that you are interested and that you are happy to guide the way and show them it is possible for them to do things. When we do this with Darcy, the sense of accomplishment is amazing; just like anyone else when they achieve something. Especially if they are expected not to achieve it! -Don’t think you’re alone in your journey with disability. There are many people and organisations that can help with support and guidance. Join groups on social media. Sometimes the best advice can be found there, from other parents on the same journey as you. -Include your other family members with the support you are getting, because a lot of the time they need it too. They are also wondering where this is all going to lead, how they are going to help you, how they are going to cope. Let them know it’s OK for them to ask questions too. Let them know you won’t be offended with anything they say. continued next page...

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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encourage your friends and their children to ask questions At Auskick a couple of years ago many of the children didn’t really interact with Darcy because his skills weren’t at the same level as theirs and they didn’t really understand why. One Mum told me her son had a question about Darcy and I told her to have him ask me. He asked why Darcy didn’t handball and kick the way the other kids did. I explained that he has Down Syndrome and that means that sometimes he takes a little longer to learn things. I told him that with help from everyone, he would learn and be able to kick like them in no time. The following week and thereafter, those children were amazing with Darcy. They took the time to show him what he was doing wrong and praised him when he did something well. The turnaround in Darcy’s football skills from this moment on was amazing. Keep it simple when explaining to kids. If they want to know more, they will ask more questions. The world of disability is an amazing place full of people that have very open minds and no judgement. They welcome new people and their families with open arms ready to provide support and guidance without any hesitation. The joys are the simple things. When Darcy accomplishes even the smallest thing, he is so overjoyed it makes your heart swell. I also love the way that he, and many of his friends, sing like nobody is listening and dance like nobody is watching. I have always had a dream to write a book, but never knew what I was going to write about. The subject for my book came thirteen years after our youngest son, Darcy, was born. My book, 'The Unexpected Journey, Embracing the Beauty of Disability' is our story of the little boy that changed our lives so much. I am not saying that raising and caring for someone with a disability is easy, because it is not. But rather embrace it and enjoy the wonderful moments that come with it. Celebrate every victory, even if it started as something quite scary.

Contact Julie at juliedixie@hotmail.com to enquire about her speaking at your event.

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Sanctuary of Early Learning

With over 20 years experience, we are committed to continuous quality care and to ensure a full balanced development for each child in our expansive natural learning environment.

Curiosity and wonder lead to a natural desire to learn

Frankston House Sanctuary of Early Learning 1-3 Vera Street Frankston Email: info@frankstonhouse.com.au Phone: 9783 1117

www.frankstonhouse.com.au

Your most precious people are our priority

Mt Eliza House Sanctuary of Early Learning 41 Baden Powell Place Mt Eliza Email: info@mtelizahouse.com.au Phone: 9787 0788

www.mtelizahouse.com.au www.peninsulakids.com.au

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 A bright star in the

BIG SKY By Melissa McCullough

I

t’s no secret. I don’t reeeeeeaaaalllllyyyy like camping. My husband always says if he had a dollar for every time I said, “I bleeping hate camping.”, we’d be rich. He also says that if in an entire campground one tent peg is raised ever-so-slightly from the ground I WILL find it and trip over it. ($%*&#@!!!) I can’t deny either of those claims. Look, it’s nothing against nature and exercise. I like both of those things. It’s more the roughing it part. I need things to be just so. I like being able to lay my hands on the dental floss at a moment’s notice; knowing that’s it’s right over there in the ensuite under the sink in a little wicker basket. NOT, it’s over there next to the aluminium foil under that pile of questionably clean clothes.

Making all my hopes and dreams come true, enter Big Sky Ridgeview Lodge in the heart of Victoria’s Alpine High Country. Only threeand-a-half hours’ drive northeast of Melbourne, Bright is the perfect regional getaway for families seeking both adventure and relaxation. Encouraging longer stays and a retreat to nature without sacrificing life’s little luxuries, (helllooooo running water!), Ridgeview is the newest group getaway spot for families and friends to enjoy year-round. The large, contemporary lodge takes its inspiration from the American-style lodges within the small town of Big Sky, Montana. The home is set on just over an acre of private property, providing a secluded, restful environment that exudes familial peace and relaxation. Another jewel in the Bright region and unique in its ability to provide a truly lavish family escape, Ridgeview is a beautifully styled slice of sophistication. 48

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Offering four separate lounge areas, the kids in our group were able to split up if a couple of them felt like catching a movie on Netflix while the others chose to play a game of elastics or put together a jigsaw puzzle. I wish we’d had a few more days together at Ridgeview as we’d just finished the border of the puzzle! While the kids were off doing their own thing, the parents enjoyed a sip of local Riesling from Feathertop Winery and a selection of nibbles from the welcome hamper. Ridgeview is the perfect destination for two families or big groups and comes complete with an outdoor pool made from an upcycled shipping container, a steam room, BBQ, laundry, quality linen, and luxury Grown Alchemist amenities. The two main bedrooms with ensuites were perfect rooms to retire to after a long day of exploring one of Bright’s many family-friendly walks and cycling paths in the morning and the grounds on the property in the afternoon and evening. Boasting spectacular views of


Ridgeview is the newest group getaway spot for families and friends to enjoy year-round

the mountains, bunnies and kangaroo neighbours, there was plenty to keep the kids happy and husband feeling outdoorsy. He was even able to create fire in the outdoor fire pit in the evening and we all had a feast of roasted marshmallows. Guests can go one step further during their stay with Ridgeview’s range of tailored local experiences, including personal workouts and yoga sessions, in-house chefs and retreat massages. Now this is the kind of ‘camping’ I can get into. With plans to significantly expand its network of premium and unique accommodation options, Big Sky Retreats will introduce river-fronted properties River Run and Bridgewater to the market in early 2020. For more information about Big Sky Retreats go to: www.bigskyretreats.com.au To book your stay, please visit: www.3741boutique.com.au/big-sky-retreat-ridgeview. www.peninsulakids.com.au

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By Erica Louise

J

ason Coleman’s “HUMANIMALS RETURN!” is an epic all-human animal experience for the whole family to enjoy. “HUMANIMALS RETURN!” engages its captive audience with fun facts about animals through clever dance choreography, giggles galore, witty play-on-words, upbeat mix of tunes, fabulous costumes and colourific extras. If your children love animals and they want to experience a live musical show, then you simply must take a trip down to the everpopular Rosebud Foreshore this January. This is the third season (2016, 2017 and now 2020) “HUMANIMALS RETURN!” have embraced the audiences with this energetic, funny, and colourful entertainment. “HUMANIMALS RETURN!” explores different species of animals in the quest to find out which is the most important animal. Together, the cast of five put the question to the audience and in the hour that follows, extra cast members come on stage in an array of feathery, furry, shiny and beautifully coloured costumes, dressed as (animal) characters.

Which critter will be crowned the overall most important animal in the world? Will it be (Boy) George the singing chameleon? Charlotte the acrobatic spider, sparkling her way through the world-wide-web? Three happy footed tap-dancing penguins? The hip-hop-potamus? Or the rapping rhinoceros? Who will Jennifer HAWKins pick as her flock favourite? HUMANIMALS is as funny as it is educational, not to mention it being packed full of talent. Jason Coleman, the show's producer and choreographer, really knows how to pick the perfect all-singing, alldancing cast. From falling snow to giant glow-in-the-dark underwater critter puppets, a human-sized flying bee to a tree snake slithering around on aerial silks, there's plenty of 'wow' throughout the hour, and more than enough adult humour to please the grown-ups, too!

Erica hails from the United Kingdom, and has been living in Australia for 15 years. She has two sons 5 & 10 years. She writes, edits and runs the social media pages for KidTown Melbourne, a website showcasing all the fun things to do with kids in Melbourne. www.melbourne.kidtown.com.au

ONLY 3 SHOWS!!

16 January 2020 - 19 January 2020 $35 Big Kids (11 years and older, adults included in this mix) $25 Little Kids - (10 years and younger) Buy tickets to see Jason Coleman’s “HUMANIMALS RETURN!”, and paw your way through the animal kingdom, in a way you've never done before.

Tickets are $25pp- $35pp, booked via www.ministryofentertainment.com.au/shows 50

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20


PE RF EC GI FT T ID EA

SUMMER SPECIAL $30 FAMILY PASS

FAMILY FUN FOR EVERYONE! Includes ENTRY for 4 people (SAVING up to $26 per family!)

ing t a Sk ames G izes ! Pr ore &M

*Valid 1 Dec 2019 to 29 Feb 2020 Sk8hire Additional T&C's apply

3/2 Amayla Cres Carrum Downs VIC 3201 ph. 9773 6799

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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By Melissa McCullough

I

t’s not every day you cross paths with a true-life faery. Lucky for the people of the Mornington Peninsula and surrounds, it is home to the beloved and bejewelled Faery Emma. Faeries as special as Faery Emma are not born every day. But it is clear to those that meet Faery Emma that she bears the fae spirit. It has been a part of her life since she was little, and Faery Emma assures us that, “Once you believe in fae magic it’s a beautiful space and place that cuddles your heart with a warm fuzzy glow and stays with you even as you grow into a fae adult.”

1.

MPK had the enchanting pleasure of catching up with Faery Emma for a chat where she answered some of our most-asked questions.

It must have been difficult juggling weekend parties and having family time – as a budding faery superstar, did you bring your kids along to your events? My only regret, and I do fairy struggle at times, is all the family time I miss out on at the weekends. I have missed truckloads of footy, hockey and basketball games and just getting up and flying away for the weekend happens once in a fairy blue moon. So, my one fairy rule for me is to be home when they walk in from fairy school everyday as that afternoon magic means everything to me and my tree tribe. Time flies really fast when they are little and if I could just give all those magical mums some sparkly advice it is just: BREATHE smell the MAGIC in the air, slow down, and take each day as a blessing even in your hardest moments and, oh boy, have I had my fairy share. Okay let’s step out of the dream for a fairy second. When you own your own business, it consumes you every day of the week. When I’m not entertaining, I’m prepping parties as everything is handmade with love by fairy me, taking bookings, social media drives me fairy insane, planning school holiday programs, sourcing new ideas, dreaded admin, costume designing, and the list grows. I am fortunate to have fantastic fairy staff. It takes a special type of person to be a fairy. They need to have a love for kids and still think like a kid. They also need to specialise in acting, storytelling, art, dance, and be able to captivate. 52

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...... Holy fairy guacamole there is a lot of mentoring and team leading that takes place in nurturing and moulding a successful fairy for Stardust Fairies. an you please tell us a bit about your new book and the 2. Croad it has taken to get to completion?

I’m so fairy excited about my book. I was magically approached 17 years ago at a party. I was fairy 26 and a lovely man from Penguin Books told me I should be writing books. I had a WOW moment and really didn’t think too fairy deeply about it, as I was all caught up in the fairy fluttery fizz of getting married, buying a new tree house and starting a new adventure.

After getting married I finally started to write again, but the brakes were put on once again after having the children. When they were 8 and 9-year-olds I started to write fairy seriously and entered small writing competitions. Finally, by fairy chance, two years ago an amazing editor flittered into to my life and ‘Kapow’ it was my AHAA moment. She understood me and that was the start of something magic. My book is called Somedays are Mashed Potato and I’m so super excited that I can’t keep my fairy feet on the ground. It invites all my new and old fans into the world of Faery Emma. The most amazing thing about the book is that it is completely interactive. The reader can colour in the book, fairy cook, create their own drawings, make up their own fairy words and escape into Faery Emma’s realm.

3. Why do you think children are drawn into the fairy world? I think they are drawn into my world because it is fun and upside down, super silly.

Even though I’m a faery mum, I don’t really talk to them as a mum. My free-spirited mind enables me to get down to the children’s level and think about silly random thoughts filled with pure nonsense.

Give the gift of fun! Funtopia Gift Cards are the fastest and easiest way to buy a funbelievable day out at one of Australia’s biggest and best indoor playcentre and climbing arenas. Ideal for last minute birthday and Christmas gifts, or when you’re shopping for that hard-to-buy-for person that doesn’t need more ‘things’.

Kids just love listening to me go on about my unicorn Stardust and all his shenanigans, which are a bit like them, and the bumbly, wimbly, wombly wizard antics which are a bit like their grandparents. My magical stories are original and ongoing like a verbal fairy series. They are relatable and colourful but in a imaginative realm that they can keep in their own creative mind without interference from anyone else.

4. What’s the difference between fairy and faery?

I like to use faery as opposed to the typical way of spelling fairy as it gives the word a mystical folk lore feel to it and a realistic and original point of fairy difference compared to Disney. continued next page...

Funtopia Carrum Downs 586 Frankston - Dandenong Rd, Carrum Downs

www.funtopiaworld.com.au www.peninsulakids.com.au

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5. If you couldn’t be a faery, what else would you do?

I will always be a faery, but if I could cast a fairy spell for a day, I would love to be a Unicorn Wrangler riding the wild marshmallow mountain of Starzumble land, wrangling wild unicorn brumbies. My second choice would be working in a chocolate factory like Willy Wonka’s and hanging out with the Oompa Loompas. In all fairy seriousness I would love to be a Kindergarten teacher; that would fairy rock my glitter socks.

hat are your plans for the summer and when can we see 6. W you in and around the Mornington Peninsula?

Summer is a very fairy busy time of the year for faeries as they flitter all over human land captivating and entertaining all the human-land kids. Every year on the first day of December I fly up to the North Pole and start Reindeer Boot camp with the reindeers who are completely out of shape. I whip them into fairy shape for the big day. I always need extra help, so I magically ask all the kids in human land to assist me with the cheeky reindeers. I call it dream boot camp and all they need to do is be asleep by 7pm so they can catch the dream snow dragon up to the North Pole for a 9 hour reindeer obstacle course and then they wake up the next morning in their beds.

FREE FAMILY ACTIVITIES SCHOOL HOLIDAY WORKSHOPS FOR 5-17 YEAR OLDS VCE ART & STUDIO ART FOLIO DEVELOPMENT WORKSHOPS MONTHLY YOUNG AT ART PROGRAM FOR PRE-SCHOOLERS CURRENT EXHIBITIONS

Visit mprg.mornpen.vic.gov.au/events Exhibition entry: adults $4 concession $2 children under 5 free Civic Reserve, Dunns Rd, Mornington ph 5950 1580

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After Christmas I fly back to magical fairyland for some well-earned family time for two weeks to let my wings relax and catch up on some rainbow leaf boogie boarding and sandcastle making for the mermaids. We all need people like Faery Emma in our world, to put a little sparkle in our life and remind us that the world is truly magical.

Faery Emma has enchanted and captivated little squiggle pops with her magical storytelling and whimsical face painting for 25 years in human land. Some days are Mashed Potato can be pre-purchased from www.startdustfairies.com.au RRP: $19.95

Summer Adventure Awaits! Hedge Mazes, Formal Gardens, Tube Slides, Brain Teasers, Canopy Walk, 3D Maze, Mirror House and more! Looking for even more? Try our Tree Surfing or Big Zip experiences! Bookings are essential. COMING SOON in December! New ‘Sky Scramble’ attraction! www.enchantedmaze.com.au 03 5981 8449 55 Purves Road, Arthurs Seat

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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Nippers

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Party

www.peninsulakids.com.au www.peninsulakids.com.au

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Nippers

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Party


Enchanted Adventure Garden MAZE & ADVENTURE ACTIVITIES 55 Purves Road Arthurs Seat, VIC 3936 Tree surfing & zip lines P: 5981 8449 BUSHLAND OBSTACLES E: info@enchantedmaze.com.au www.enchantedmaze.com.au TUBE SLIDES

FREE of charge BIRTHDAY CHILD!!! To redeem your free birthday child admission RING or EMAIL the Enchanted Adventure Garden and mention MP Kids *Offer valid from 1st December until June 2020 when booking Nippers Tree Surfing Party **Party package comes with 10 entries, 11th is FREE!

PLANNING YOUR NIPPERS TREE SURFING PARTY

1. Get in early and book your party date! The Enchanted Adventure Garden only hosts parties on a Saturday or Sunday.

2. Get cracking on your guest list – Ten children are included in the price of the Nippers Tree Surfing party – take advantage of their great offer of free admission for the birthday child by mentioning Mornington Peninsula Kids when you make your booking by phone or email.

3. Be sure your guests fall into the Nippers height range: they must be under 135cm, though there are other options for bigger kiddos.

4. Food and Favours: All of their party packages include a party table within the pavilion, hot and cold party platter, plus an Enchanted Adventure souvenir drink bottle and lolly cup per person. 5. Order a celebration cake as an added extra and leave your worries behind. There’s an awesome range to choose from and it’s one less thing to deal with.

6. Print out the parental waiver forms for your guests and give them out with the invites. It’s much easier to rock up with all the paperwork completed to streamline the party action.

7. Take advantage of your all-day access to the tube slides, gardens, mazes, giant puzzles, 3D maze, canopy walk and more! 8. Take home happy, sleepy, exercised children!!!

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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party

PLANNING 01

02

03

Pa R Ty

Experiments

Explosions

Explore

04

05

Slime

Surprise

Fu N! & EVENTS

Peninsula Cinemas The ultimate Birthday Party! Peninsula Cinemas offers a Birthday Party Package including 1x Child Admission*1x Small Popcorn, 1x Small Drink & 1x Complimentary Adult all for only $17.00*ea. www.peninsulacinemas.com.au (*Conditions Apply)

Mornington Hotel

Let us take care of your child’s next birthday party at the Mornington Hotel 917 Nepean Hwy Mornington Ph: 5975 2015 www.morningtonhotel.com.au

Fairy and Elsa parties!

The Science Shed

Acro Kids

Enchanted Adventure Garden

More characters also available such as Emma Wiggle & Mermaid! 1.5 hours of singing, dancing, games, face painting, balloon twisting & photo time. Even a gift for the birthday girl or boy. All this for $250 ! Facebook page: Snowflakes Parties & Events E: snowflakesparties@gmail.com

Acro Kids acrobatics and parkour/ninja parties are heaps of fun for ages 1yrs and up! To find out more, contact M: 0477 079 970 www.acrokids.com.au

The Science Shed comes to your home for your next birthday party! Children can dress up in real lab coats and safety glasses and experience their own hands on experiments. Science, slime and much more. 0419 882 765 or info@thescienceshed.com.au www.thescienceshed.com.au

Let us help you celebrate your next birthday! We have party options available for children of all ages. E: groups@enchantedadventure.com.au Ph: 5981 8449 www.enchantedmaze.com.au

Simpl� Gorgeou� Blooms

Sunny's Face Painting

Call Sunny’s face painting for hours of fun and excitement as children are transformed into fairies & superheros leaving them smiling from ear to ear. E: sunnysfacepainting@hotmail.com www.facebook.com/sunnysfp M: 0422 021 301 60 Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Fairy Freckles and Friends

We are professional fun makers that come to you! Specialising in face painting, balloon twisting, magic shows, games and roving characters, fully equipped to add some sparkle to your next kid's party or special event. M: 0407 326 726 www.fairyfrecklesandfriends.com.au

Simply Gorgeous Blooms

Every Girl Deserves Flowers On Her Birthday. Fun Flower Parties creating posy jars and flower crowns with some fun games and treats. We come to you, set up, have fun and even clean up at the end. M: 0447 513 000 www.simplygorgeousblooms.com


party

PLANNING

#Dava KIDS PARTIES indoor & outdoor play-area

EAT

I

GIGGLE

I

PLAY

614 The Esplanade, Mount Martha I 5975 1555 @thedavahotel

Dava Kids Parties

Confetti Party + Design

Charlie SillyPants Parties Melbourne Madness

Play At The Messy Shed

Twilight Teepees

Faerie Crystall-the Faerie Crystall-the Magical Magical at Garden at Garden Babies Babies

Great value at $14.95 per child with an indoor and outdoor play area. Includes individual hot food box, plus two food platters, juice and soft drink, lolly bag, balloons, napkins and party hats. Mon-Sat. E: davafunctions@taverns.com.au Ph: 5975 1555 www.thedavahotel.com.au

Need to invite the whole kinder group? Play At The Messy Shed have you covered in the most cost effective way! For bookings: E: themessyshed@hotmail.com Ph: 5975 2080

Curators of one-of-a-kind birthdays and events for kids, hens, baby showers and weddings. Styled to your space and needs. FB & Insta: confettipartydesignau M: 0452 454 334 www.confettipartydesign.com.au

Twilight Teepees will create the most memorable sleepover for boys & girls of all ages indoors or outdoors. Get in touch with Amber today! E: info@twilightevents.com.au M: 0404 230 470

The ultimatekids kids’ show! Come on an adventure The Ultimate show! full of on magic and laughter Charlie SillyPants Come an adventure full of with Magic and laughter and friends.SillyPants Parties, and preschool with Charlie friends!and childcare. M: 0411pre-school 957 185and childcare. Parties, www.melbournemadness.net p: 0411 957 185 www.melbournemadness.net

A magical magicalparty party in an enchanted garden A setset in an enchanted garden NEW SEAFORD LOCATION NEW SEAFORD LOCATION M: 0420 646 244 Contact 0420646244 www.gardenbabiesfairyart.com www.gardenbabiesfairyart.com

KIDZTOWN PARTY VENUES

Mornington & Seaford

Stardust Fairies

Captivating & igniting the magical seed of imagination & sparkalicousness. Specialising in themed birthday parties, corporate, craft parties,workshops, face painting, markets & events. Call now or visit our magical website. M: 0414 470 522 www.stardustfairies.com.au

Funtopia

We are party experts! Book your next birthday party at Funtopia Carrum Downs and let us take care of the nitty gritty, so you can focus on the FUN! Bookings are essential. 586 Frankston - Dandenong Rd, Carrum Downs Ph: 8726 9053. www.funtopiaworld.com.au/carrum-downs

Kidztown

The biggest and most exciting themed kids party venue to hit the Mornington Peninsula. www.facebook.com/kidztownmornington Ph: 8759 1431 or M: 0403 795 562

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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Biostime SN-2 BIO

PLUS Ultra Goat Toddler Milk Drink is formulated for little tummies and contains goat’s milk which has a specialised blend of fat, carbohydrate and protein structures which are naturally easier to digest when compared to cow’s milk. *To be consumed when energy and nutrient intakes may be inadequate. Containing no added artificial flavours, colours or sweeteners, it is available from www.biostime.com.au. RRP: $43.95.

Minnow Shoes & Sandals At Minnow, they’re about small salty faces, sandy toddler bottoms, spontaneous fun, unhurried friendship, big belly laughs and rare moments of parental peace interrupted by frequent moments of breathless joy. Protect your baby’s feet against hot sand, shells and rocks while they explore sand and sea. Soft, pliable neoprene acts like a sock so your baby’s foot can move freely. Beautifully boxed, these fun swim shoes are perfect as a practical, beautifully made gift for hip little explorers. With the Australian heat easily burning out feet Minnow Designs launch Water Play Sandals for toddlers and kids. Protect your children's feet against hot sand, shells and rocks while they explore sand and sea. Soft, pliable neoprene acts like a sock so your baby’s foot can move freely, with of course non slip soles, and easy adjustable Velcro. The shoes come in a large array of different colours and sizes starting from as small as a childrens AU 4 to a childrens AU 13. www.minnowdesigns.com.au Sandals RRP: $39.95. Shoes range from $30 to $45

VTech Learn & Dance Dino Roar, dance and laugh with the innovative Learn & Dance Dino. This clever dino introduces the STEM basics of coding, movements, cause and effect as well as emotions and fine motor skills. He comes with three emotion tiles (happy, angry, sleepy), three music tiles (hip hop, marching, ballet) plus threecharacter tiles (dinosaur, robot, and monster). Mix and match them to create 27 different combinations of emotions, music styles and characters such as happy hip-hop dino or angry marching monster. Place the colourful tiles on Dino’s back to customise how you want to play with him. Every time a tile is inserted, Dino moves, sings, dances, talks and encourages children to follow along for gross-motor play. Experimenting with the emotion tiles helps children build social and emotional skills. Angry Dino may stomp around or say, "Let's practice calming down," helping children learn that there are many ways to express feelings. When playtime is done, store the tiles in the dinosaur egg. The Learn & Dance Dino is suitable for children 2-5 Years, and available from September at Target and Kmart, good toy stores and online retailers. RRP: $49.95

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LeapFrog Smart Sizzling BBQ Little chefs can pretend to barbecue by securely placing eight different play food items on the interactive skewer. This smart barbie recognises the food’s name and colour, all in an Aussie accent! Learn, Play and Music modes multiply the fun. Press the star button for grilling suggestions, melodies, phrases and sound effects. The pieces store inside this entertaining BBQ for easy clean-up. For pre-schoolers aged 2-5 years. Available at good toy stores, online retailers and Big W. RRP: $89.95

Under the Stars Astrophysics for Bedtime

By Lisa Harvey-Smith Delightfully illustrated by Mel Matthews, Under the Stars: Astrophysics for Bedtime, transports curious kids and inquisitive adults on an incredible journey through the night sky. Kids will be able to explore the solar system from the comfort of their bedrooms, find out why the sky is blue, fly around a black hole and learn why Jupiter has stripes. It’s a book that will bring the night sky to life, giving amazing new perspectives to young explorers who are always asking—'Why?' Available from www.mup.com.au and from available from all good booksellers. RRP: $39.99

MARVEL Universe Live Australians, assemble! Super Hero action, thrills and drama will soar, smash and burst into arenas across the country starting March 2020, with the highly anticipated launch of Marvel Universe LIVE! nationwide. Fans will be brought to the edge of their seats as the iconic Marvel Super Heroes including; Spider-Man, The Avengers and the Guardians of the Galaxy, join forces in a legendary battle to defend the universe from evil. Melbourne Rod Laver Arena 2 – 6 April www.marveluniverselive.com/en-au

Competition closes 15th December 2019

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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The Human Body

The Collective Oz’s

Brand-New Kefir Spoonables These delicious 150g yogurts have been paired with nothing but the best delicious superfood flavours; Raspberry Acai, Blueberry Hemp, Date Cacao and Fig Ginger to provide your gut with the optimum level of vitamins, minerals and nutrients in a heap of interesting and delicious flavours. These bad boys will be your perfect go to snack, post workout fix, 3pm pick me up or just an easy breakfast addition that will leave your belly full, happy and healthy.

By Karen Seinor Can you eat while you are upside-down? How much does my brain weigh? The human body is one of the most complex and intricate systems in nature. Find the answer to these questions and more while exploring each of the systems and organs that make up who you are. If you’ve ever wondered what you are made of and how it all works, The Human Body is the book for you! The Human Body, New Holland Publishers available from all good book retailers or online www.newhollandpublishers.com RRP: $19.99

Available in 150g at Woolworths and selected IGA stores nationwide.

Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM 2 Whether you’re partying on New Year’s festival, road tripping or chilling out with friends, you need the tunes vibing all Summer with Ultimate Ears’ latest addition, WONDERBOOM 2. Packed with 13 hours of play time and an ‘Outdoor Boost’ mode for more powerful audio, this pocket rocket will deliver loud nonstop beats. www.ultimateears.com RRP: $129.95

Victorinox Bambino Swiss Army Toy Who says a Swiss Army Knife is for grown-ups only? This adorable piece is perfect for the bub to play with and take on camping trips as it comes with a set of child’s cutlery. Other functions include a plastic toy blade with rounded tip, a bottle opener, a woodsaw, a snap hook as well as a small magnifying glass for the little one to explore the world. Baby’s first camping trip, anyone? www.victorinox.com RRP: $34.95

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Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20


The DropMeNots Muslin Comforter*

(a.k.a The Dummy Finder) was inspired by Lisa’s daughters love of snuggling her muslin wraps as a baby. The 100% cotton muslin is soft, lightweight and breathable and has a handy loop for dummy attachment making the dummy easier to find at night. The comforters come with a natural beech teething ring making them a gorgeous baby gift. Handmade in Mornington by a local mum.

HAPPY HAIR BRUSH The Happy Hair Brush company is an Australian owned and run business of mothers on a mission to change the world one head, one heart at a time. Hair brushing should not hurt, upset or cause distress for anyone! Happy Hair Brush Family Pack includes: gold detangler paddle brush, black mini for toddlers with fine hair or pets with short hair and a baby brush for a bubba with a bit of hair with a black satin pouch to keep them in. For more visit www.happyhairbrush.com.au RRP $90.00

Facebook: Dropmenots Australia and on Instagram @dropmenots Muslin Comforter in woodland printRRP: $12, Beech Deer Teethers RRP $5, Natural Dummy Clip in Zebra RRP: $8 *dummy not included

The Cyclo Cross Body Bag design

An innovative new take on the classic bum bag and is ideal for the jet-setter or urban commuter that’s looking for a minimalist carrying solution where everything can be accessed quickly. Traveling with it is awesome! One aspect of the Cyclo Cross Body Bag that makes it so unique is its size. The Sling is scaled to fit passports, plane tickets and travel itineraries in the back zipper compartment and a long-sleeve shirt, books, tablet and headphones in the roll-top main compartment. www.ethotek.com RRP: $129.98

Wahu Sink N Score The game of darts has taken to a new level… below sea-level! It's a game of darts you can play in the pool! Drop the darts and then dive down to see how you scored. With funky bright colours, everyone will want to play. Includes the dark mat, six dive darts and a handy carry bag for storage. For Ages 6+ RRP: $29.99

Competition closes 15th December 2019

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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Wahu Skim 'n' Hoop A large inflatable which can be used both in and out of the pool! Featuring 2 basketball hoops, 3 circular skim scoring targets, a detachable net on the rear plus an 11cm ball, you'll be all set for summer! Ideal for unlimited rounds of pool basketball challenges, water polo, pool football/soccer or skim ball challenges! For Ages 6+ RRP: $99.99

Being Brave Co-authors Hester Leung & Sema Musson wrote the book as a result of taking apart the struggles they had when they were growing up and turning it into something positive. “We felt like we wanted to shared the tools that helped us through moments of self doubt and inner criticism when we were young. We also felt in today’s society given the increased challenges young girls are facing with social media, more than ever this book should be a crucial part of their toolkit!” Available from Amazon, other online outlets and from all good bookshops. RRP: $19.95

Logitech MK470 Slim Wireless Keyboard and Mouse Combo If a chic desk space is on your New Year's resolution list, look no further than the slim and sophisticated MK470 keyboard and mouse combo. With its minimalist profile and click noise significantly reduced, this stylish duo will give you one reason to go back to work or school after in the holiday season. RRP: $79.95

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Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Competition closes 15th December 2019


Chillafish BUNZI The Bunzi gradual balance bike from Chillafish is a unique 2-in-1 balance bike that can be switched between 3-wheel mode and 2-wheel mode in just a few seconds. Teach your child balance in a fun and step-by-step way: start in 3-wheel mode and switch to 2-wheel mode only when YOUR child is ready. Switch back and forth as many times as you want. The seat position in 3-wheel mode is low to the ground for comfort, the seat position in 2-wheel mode is higher for making more speed. The Bunzi is light and easy to carry by the handgrip, it has silent indoor and outdoor TPE wheels and a nice little storage trunk in the seat. It is made of high-quality ABS material and wrapped in a unique bunnystyle design. This nice little bunny is sure to become the preferred bike buddy of your kids. www.chillafish.com RRP: $120

Wahu Surfer Dudes Yoga Lab Design - Mat Towel The mat-sized, lightweight, insanely absorbent, non-slip, microfiber yoga towel that dries in minutes.Eco-Friendly! Made from microfiber and printed with water based inks. Great for both regular and hot yoga. www.yogadesignlab.com RRP: $60.00

The world’s first self-righting, self-surfing toy! Toss your dudes into the surf.. They''ll catch and shred the waves, throwing down rippin' tricks all the way back to you! Surfer Dudes feature an internal ballast system, hydroboomerang technology and unsinkable foam board with gnarly graphics! There are 12 Surfer Dudes to collect including 6 NEW characters: Sunny Coast Sammy, Margaret River Maddy, Bells Beach Bethany, Manly Matt, Burleigh Heads Brad and Byron Bay Blake! Ages: 6+ RRP $24.99

Wahu Memory Dive! Put your memory and swimming skills to the test, with the It's a fun and creative way to your brain and improve your skimming skills at the same time! Take turns placing the balls (each numbered with a score) inside the memory sticks and throwing them into the pool. Watch them sink to the bottom. Once they have sunk, dive down and retrieve each stick. Try to remember which ball went into each stick! The player who scores the most points wins! Set includes 4 sticks and 4 balls. For Ages 6+ RRP: $19.99

PJ Masks Night Mission Track Set Launch your PJ Masks vehicles into the night to save the day! The Night Mission Track Set has a variety of different play functions including a launcher, light, jumping bridge and catapult, all perfect for launching the included free-wheeling 7.5cm die-cast Cat-Car. Action guaranteed! Available now at selected Toyworld and Kidstuff stores, as well as Toys R Us online. RRP: $39.95

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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My Day! By My Moozik This is a brand shiny new musical venture (written by Newton Faulkner) for kids designed to bridge the gap between nursery rhymes and inappropriate pop music. The ‘My Day’ CD album comes packaged with a beautifully illustrated, hardback and lyric book. All songs can be streamed and downloaded via all the usual platforms and all songs will be available for the whole family to enjoy on the My Moozik YouTube channel. ‘My Day’ is the first album that parents will truly love as much as kids. My Moozik will also be donating a percentage of the profits to primary schools around the country to help fund music lessons for kids unable to access them. www.mymoozik.com Instagram: @mymoozik Twitter: @mymoozik facebook.com/mymoozik

Jelly Belly There’s no better way to get into the Christmas spirit than with an advent calendar! Packed with Jelly Belly jelly beans for every day in the lead up to Christmas, this gift gets anyone from kids to colleagues excited for the countdown! Each day promises a new Jelly Belly jelly bean flavour from Jelly Belly’s famous flavour collection to keep you guessing – there’s even a special pyramid bag of jelly beans to look out for! Jelly Belly Advent Calendar RRP: $20 Available from Myer, Jelly Belly Ornaments Gift Box RRP: 10 Flavour pack $10; 20 Flavour pack $12 Available from Big W, Jelly Belly Bean Tin RRP: $5 Available from Target.

Kind Is Cool founded with the intent to lead by example and show our younger generations that being kind is cool. Proudly supporting Bully Zero, $2 is donated from every item sold, to help educate, empower and support people around bullying.The change starts with you. Sign up to join the KIND tribe at www.kindiscool.com.au BB Womens T-shirt in size Medium (10-12) RRP: $49.95

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Competition closes 15th December 2019


Costume Box CostumeBox is the largest one-stop destination for costumes online, with the biggest range of dress up outfits, costume accessories, party supplies, gifts, novelties, collector’s items and craft materials. The online store stocks dress up outfits for men, women, kids and pets in all styles and sizes. CostumeBox also offers next day delivery for Australian orders over $99.00, perfect for any last minute party needs. All costumes available at: www.costumebox.com.au RRP’s: $49.99 - $79.99

William Ready

PETstock prize pack Aussie pets are counting down the days to Christmas to get their paws on PETstock’s new festive toy range – The Holly Jolly Toy Collection. Exclusive to PETstock, the range has something for all cats and dogs – that’s only if they’ve been good of course! From cuddly reindeers and tug-o-war ropes, to mice teasers and sparkly balls, the collection will keep them entertained for hours. Available instore and online NOW at hwww.petstock.com.au Enter for your chance to spoil your fur-baby and WIN 3 toys from PETstock’s festive range. Holly Jolly Canine Tough Sitting Elf – RRP: $17.99, Holly Jolly Canine Rope Skeleton Small Reindeer – RRP: $14.99, Holly Jolly Canine Rope Skeleton Elf – RRP $14.99

A place created out of the love for one boy, William. A mother, father and an Aunty/Teacher who are striving to ensure that children have the opportunity to feel valued, supported and succeed while being their authentic selves. William Ready started when William was diagnosed with Autism (ASD) at 22months. We designed and built a specific early learning program to ensure he was ready to transition into primary school. He achieved so much out of this environment, that we have now started selling our purpose built educational products along with building sensory spaces for both home & school environments. Our driving desire is to see all students succeed, with aspiration, passion and confidence. All created out of the need of one very special boy, William. www.williamready.com.au Stencil Kit RRP: $79.95, Whiteboard Dice RRP: $21.90, Bouncy Chair Bands RRP: $9.95, Grippies (pencil grips) RRP: $19.95

Explore Your World Acclaimed international explorer and environmentalist Tim Flannery takes us on an astonishing adventure through the wonders of our natural world in Explore Your World: Weird, Wild, Amazing!, introducing readers to the most bizarre and amazing creatures living on our planet – from the zombie jellyfish to the star-nosed mole. The 256-page book, strikingly illustrated by Sam Caldwell, is jam-packed with fascinating facts to thrill readers aged 6 and above and will ignite the environmental passion in every young eco-warrior. RRP: $34.99

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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little

BITES

1

FAMILY FRIENDLY CAFES & VENUES

MR BANKS BREWERY 2

Across the Mornington Peninsula.. and Beyond!

MONDAY MONDAY & FRI DAY & FRI DAY

KIDS KIDS

EAT EAT FREE FREE Plus

Plus

FREE FREE DRINK DRINK

Conditions apply Not available public holidays

Portsea

WITH ANY ADULT MAIN MEAL PURCHASED

W ITH AN Y ADWUITH LT MAIN AN Y AD MEAL U LTPU MAIN R C HMEAL ASE PU R C H ASE

C ondi t i ons appl y. CN ondi ot avai t i ons l ablappl e on y. publ N oti cavai holl iabl days e .on publ i c hol i days .

Sorrento

MORNINGTON HOTEL 917 Nepean Highway, Mornington P:5975 2015 www.morningtonhotel.com.au

3

1

4

11

10 12

Blairgowrie

Dromana

Rye

Rosebud

Boneo

FREE A family friendly brewery with kids meals, play area and kids only basketball ring makes this a great place to enjoy with the family.

5

6

7 Babychinos all day, everyday.

WINERY CAFÈ CELLAR DOOR

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Arthurs Seat

Main Ridge

Flinders

• • • • •

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Mt M


Peninsula Kids is showcasing the wonderful places available on the peninsula and Bayside region to take the family out for a stress-free bite to eat!

3 8

Let our map guide you and your hungry tribe.

Seaford

9

Here you'll find some of the best affordable cafes, venues and family-friendly places to stop and have a break.

Frankston

6

4

Mt Eliza

Enjoy!

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Bangholme

Breakfast Lunc h & Dinner Open 7 days from 7am

Carrum Downs

2 7

Pearcedale

Mornington Somerville

Martha

Moorooduc

9 13 Tyabb Hastings

5

Bittern

Crib Point

Red Hill

Balnarring Merricks Somers

227 Cranbourne Road Frankston Open 7 Days 11am - 10pm

Stony Point

10

Indoor & . Outdoor Play-Area

Family friendly,with a relaxed atmosphere, WHERE THE kids CAN explore the surroundings.

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- PLUS Teens Menu Available

KIDS EAT FREE*

5 days a week

monday to friday

*Buy 1 main meal & receive a kids’ meal free. Exc. Festive days, Weekends & School hols. 614 The Esplanade, Mount Martha I 5975 1555 @thedavahotel www.thedavahotel.com.au

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13 dog friendly

INDOOR PLAY CENTRE and

CAFE

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SPECIALISING IN CHILDREN’S BIRTHDAY PARTIES

OPEN FOR DINNER FRIDAY NIGHTS TILL 7pm

222 Marine Parade, Hastings P: 5906 5900 www.kidzshed.com.au

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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Wellbeing is just

as important

By Melissa Schoorman

A

What are dful some min at we activities th ment can imple and in school at home?

s the Head of an Early Learning Centre and Junior School, it is of utmost importance to me that my students feel motivated, positive and supported at school. For this is the setting where they encounter the majority of their interactions, pose most of their questions and, above all, form beliefs about who they are as a person, friend and citizen of the community. If your child is not satisfied in their educational environment, it can have detrimental effects on their wellbeing as they continue into adolescence and beyond.

Interestingly, in the last five years there has been a dramatic shift in the questions that families are asking of prospective schools. It seems the questioning around elite academic programs and the desire to achieve exceptional results has been superseded by an increased emphasis on how teachers deal with social issues, convey digital footprints and understand the strategies embedded in teaching resilience to ensure that our children leave as capable young people. It is evident that parents are more aware of choosing a school setting where teaching and learning programs are underpinned by overall contentment. The confidence children can derive from experiences in an array of activities both inside and outside of the classroom has been the catalyst for many conversations between prospective families and myself. We must undoubtedly acknowledge that the very nature of educational settings are to deliver exceptional teaching and learning programs. However, there should be an equal emphasis on delivering a wellbeing curriculum that supports the holistic development of a child. Wellbeing is the quality of a person’s life; having a strong sense of wellbeing is fundamental to the mental, emotional, physical and spiritual health of an individual. Peer interactions have the ability to change our perspective and mindset; therefore, our reliance on resilience, empathy and adaptability to flip our mindset becomes crucial in how we cope and respond to situations. Research shows that positive mental health increases learning, creativity and productivity, pro-social behaviour as well as improving physical health and life expectancy.

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Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

10 minutes of mindfulness

As part of our school curriculum, we begin each day with 10 minutes of mindfulness to ensure our positive wellbeing is being honed, strengthened and supported. Mindfulness can take many forms that allow the mind to relax, be in the present moment and restore equilibrium. Many students identify turning the lights off and lying on the floor while doing a morning meditation or box breathing; a strategy that works best for them. Others enjoy yoga or find lying on a beanbag whilst listening to their teacher read a story aloud the most effective way to clear and reset their mind. In essence, 10 minutes may seem like a short period of time, however, when utilised effectively,it is ample in beginning the school day in the right way. I love visiting our classrooms after the daily wellbeing session, as you can certainly feel the positive vibe which complements our climate for learning.


Education

as Academics Physical activity and creative stimulation How students feel about themselves changes over time, in varying situations and circumstances, and in response to community and environmental factors. Wellbeing, or the lack of it, can affect a student’s engagement and success in learning. It is important that at school and home, children feel sufficiently comfortable to attempt new experiences and feel nurtured to grow and learn from failures and mistakes. Recently, our students celebrated Sharing Day where we participated in rotations which were led by parents and members of our school community.

These ranged from cooking, sewing, drawing, playing sports and even Zumba. By allowing students to venture out of their comfort zones, dabble in new experiences and practise interpersonal relationships with less familiar adults, students can feel more confident, free to take risks and explore and identify feelings of success, frustration and achievement. continued next page...

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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It is activities such as this that we as adults should do more often in order to improve our own vitality and wellbeing.

Factors nce that influe . wellbeing..

• Living in a fair and democratic society • The ability to adapt to change • Realistic and achievable goals • Outlets, interests and hobbies

Whether we recognise it or not, every aspect of our life influences the state of our wellbeing. It is vital to note and to discuss with our children that the state of our wellbeing is fluid. Our students need to appreciate that all emotions are valuable. They can be labelled, can be fleeting and, the best news is, they can be overcome when action is taken to seek support and talk to others.

• A sense of belonging • Healthy self-esteem • Optimistic outlook • Sufficient sleep • Nutritious diet

Researchers investigating happiness have found the following factors enhance a person's wellbeing:

Understanding that a student’s wellbeing is paramount to overall success at school should be a consideration when selecting a school for your child. Without doubt, academic success and an innate sense of motivation and drive will develop once a child has a strong sense of belonging and connection to their school community.

• Fulfilling relationships with family, friends and a partner • Identifying a network of trusted friends • Satisfaction at work or in your career, which supersedes the need for the highest salary • Adequate money to cover household bills, mortgage, groceries, etc. • Regular exercise to release endorphins • Spiritual connection, values or religious beliefs

Miss Melissa Schoorman is the Head of Wardle House, Deputy Principal of Toorak College

t.) Mount Martha -- School of Dance

ENROL NOW

FOR 2020

KINDER DANCE R.A.D. CLASSICAL JAZZ / HIP HOP

ACROBATICS CONTEMPORARY VCE DANCE

www.mountmarthaschoolofdance.com.au Q) OFFICE, 5974 1498

With over 30 years experience 74

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

@ instagram.com/mtmarthaschoolofdance <D facebook.com/mtmarthaschoolofdance


Rosebud Year 7-9 Campus

Wednesday 11 March 2020 from 4-7pm Inglewood Crescent T: 5982 9500

Tyabb Year 7-9 Campus Wednesday 11 March 2020 from 4-7pm

Padua College Twilight Open Days

1585 Frankston-Flinders Road T: 5978 2700

Mornington Year 7-9 Campus Thursday 12 March 2020 from 4-7pm Oakbank Road T: 5976 0100

You’re invited to come and discover more about our Catholic secondary co-educational offerings and explore our state-of-the-art Senior Learning Centre at Mornington.

Mornington Year 10-12 Campus Thursday 12 March 2020 from 4-7pm Oakbank Road T: 5976 0100

Bookings via www.padua.vic.edu.au www.peninsulakids.com.au

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Toorak College turns dreams into reality.

ENROL NOW

VISIT US AND TAKE A TOUR 76

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Register at toorakcollege.vic.edu.au


S P E C I A L F E AT U R E

A Peninsula Kids' special feature to guide you through some of the peninsula and surrounding areas' best educational facilities for your child's schooling from early learning through to high school.

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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PENINSULA GRAMMAR

Hayley Dawn’s heart beats true The inspirational Peninsula Grammar Year 2 student’s model of a heart caught the eye of the judges in the Science Talent Search competition. Hayley won a Major Bursary for her model, which features parts to show the oxygenated/ deoxygenated blood with blue/ red water. “I felt proud and happy to win the award,” Hayley said. She is determined to be a doctor and wants to specialise as a paediatrician. “It’s a great job helping other people,” she said. She spent more than 30 hours working on her model.

The competition is run by the Science Teachers’ Association of Victoria and aims to promote a passion for science. Peninsula Grammar performed strongly in the competition with six students winning Minor Bursaries, seven Certificates of Distinction, 13 Certificates of Merit and one Certificate of Acknowledgement.

Peninsula Grammar is the Mornington Peninsula’s premier co-educational school. For more information, visit www. peninsulagrammar.vic.edu.au or phone the Registrar on 9788 7702. Picture courtesy Gary Sissons

The Peninsula Grammar students who participated did an outstanding job, independently choosing to complete projects in their own time.

The heart – placed in a mannequin - is made of plastic/ rubber. By squeezing the heart, “blood” can be pumped around the model.

20 Wooralla Drive, Mount Eliza, VIC 3930

9788 7777

peninsulagrammar.vic.edu.au


PADUA COLLEGE

Planning for the Future Established in 1898, Padua College is an innovative learning community. It seeks to acknowledge its students for their efforts and achievements, while inspiring them with a lifelong love of learning. Padua College is comprised of three junior campuses (Year 7-9) at Mornington, Rosebud and Tyabb, and a senior campus (Year 10-12) at Mornington. At each location there are specialist rooms for STEAM, Performing and Visual Arts, Information Technology, Food Studies, Science, Agriculture and Horticultural Studies, and Design Technologies. There are also generous grounds, a chapel, library, ovals, tennis courts, and an indoor stadium at all campuses. Underpinning the diverse curriculum offerings is an

extensive social justice program in which all students are actively engaged, and a pastoral care program where Catholic values and spirit are shared and nurtured. “Excellent staff, facilities, grounds and resources at each of our campuses provide ample opportunity for students to excel in areas of curriculum, leadership and the sporting, cultural and religious life of the College,” explains Principal Anthony Banks, “At Padua College we offer an education for life, one that values mind, body and spirit.” Student engagement is a key priority for the College. The recent College restructure has increased its curriculum offerings, allowing Year 10 students the opportunity to complete a threeyear VCE or three-year VCAL Program, and with far more

options to accelerate learning in their area of interest. Following the opening in 2019 of a state-of-the-art Learning Centre at its Senior Campus, Padua College is now in the planning phase of building a Performing Arts Centre. This exciting, new development forms part of the strategic masterplan, which is designed to better meet the future educational challenges of students. Padua College seeks to develop entrepreneurial thinkers who foster a range of 21st century skills including innovation, collaboration, communication, critical thinking and creativity. All enquires welcomed. Visit the College website for more information or to register your interest in an upcoming Twilight Open Day or school tour.

62 Oakbank Road, Mornington VIC 3931

5976 0100

2 Inglewood Crescent, Rosebud VIC 3939

5982 9500

1585 Frankston - Flinders Road, Tyabb VIC 3913

5978 2700

www.padua.vic.edu.au


MENTONE GIRLS' GRAMMAR

Quality teaching, a focus on student wellbeing and an inspired curriculum We believe children are never too young to be challenged as we help them achieve their goals driven by a genuine love of learning. As an open-entry school, we accept students of all talents and abilities, faiths and cultures. We are consistently ranked among the top schools in Melbourne and our students regularly win prizes for sporting, artistic and academic endeavour. We also have an impressive track record of VCE success and university entry. This is why since 1899, generations of students, staff and parents have been proud to be part of our vibrant learning community. Our beautiful beachfront location has inspired our WAVES priorities. These key principles guide the way we meet the particular learn- ing needs of girls by contributing to their Wellbeing, Achievement, positive Values, Enterprising nature and Success. These priorities contribute to the unique culture and success of our school,

11 Mentone Parade, Mentone VIC. 3194

as well as our personalised approach to learning. In our Early Learning Centre (ELC), specialist early childhood teachers recognise the different ages and stages within each class and provide tailored activities so every girl has power over her own learning. We provide a highly developed program of intentional teaching based on the principles of the International Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Program (PYP) which supports a unique blend of inquiry and play-based learning. We can see the benefits of our education, not only in how ready our girls are to enter Prep, but how advanced their reading and writing skills are, as well as their social and emotional confidence. This is why we are currently rated as “Exceeding National Quality Standards� in the national ELC Frameworks Accreditation. The PYP framework is extended in our Junior School as students develop more complex

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intellectual, emotional and social skills. They are exposed to a diverse program of inquiry and challenged in many areas from music and STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), to financial and digital literacy, cultural understanding, leadership and social enterprise. They are encouraged to try new things, take-risks and be bold, tapping into their interests and passions. Teachers develop a rich picture of every student’s learning successes, strengths and challenges, and each girl is supported to grow and develop to her full potential. As a result, our Junior School is recognised as one of the best in the state and consistently ranked well above state and national averages in the NAPLAN literacy and numeracy testing. Most importantly, our students develop confidence, capability and self-worth that are great assets to them in their senior years and beyond.

www.mentonegirls.vic.edu.au


TOOTGAROOK PRIMARY

Achieving personal excellence, empowering students in a supportive community Tootgarook Primary School is a small community based school focused on achievement within our RICH (Respect, Integrity, Celebration, Honesty) school values.

Program which is held in Term 1. We have also introduced a new Bike Ed program to the school in addition to our current Human Powered Vehicle program which allows our students to participate in the RACV Energy Breakthrough Challenge in Maryborough and other events.

Our school's current enrolment is 266 spread across 13 classrooms from Foundation to Year 6. We have Specialist Programs of Music, PE, Art and our new Science Technology Engineering Mathematics (STEM) Program.

We also provide enhanced coaching in sporting codes such as football, basketball, netball, cricket and athletics. Our Arts students have the opportunity to participate in the Southern Peninsula Music Camp and the State School Spectacular.

We are pleased to be able to provide our students with extended programs and extra curricular activities such as our swimming program which is available to every student along with an additional Beach

Our Parent community organize Running Club and Breakfast Club each Tuesday and Thursday mornings before school, and free Lunch For Everyone each Wednesday providing all

7 Carmichael Street, Tootgarook, VIC 3941

5985 2864

students the opportunity to have a healthy lunch from a menu varied weekly. Camp Australia run the After School Program at Tootgarook Primary School. School Tours will be conducted on Tuesdays at 10am and Thursdays at 2.30pm by appointment. Parents who attend the 2.30 pm tour are then invited to attend Assembly where the band perform and children receive special awards. If you are interested in a tour of the school or would like more information please contact the ofďŹ ce on 5986 2864, email tootgarook.ps@edumail. vic.gov.au or visit our website at www.tootps.vic.edu.au

www.tootps.vic.edu.au


MT ELIZA HOUSE AND FRANKSTON HOUSE SANCTUARY OF EARLY LEARNING

Register now for 2020 Kindergarten Program Mt Eliza House Sanctuary of Early Learning and Frankston House Sanctuary of Early Learning are both privatelyowned. We provide a Long day Care facility and government registered Kindergarten.

Our educators acknowledge the diverse ways in which individuals learn in our ever-changing world, and support and nurture each child’s learning journey.

Learning environments are provided to assist young ones to become curious, confident and caring decision makers. We invite you to visit and take a tour of our facilities today.

Our commitment at Mt Eliza House is to provide a homelike environment where each individual child can thrive. All children have the right to grow and learn in their own way, at their own pace, allowing them to gently unfold to reach their full potential. With large natural outdoor play spaces, the children spend their days exploring their world, creating positive friendships and developing empathy and respect. Our curriculum reinforces connections with nature and encourages self-reliance, problem solving and creativity.

Mt Eliza, 41 Baden Powell Place Mt Eliza VIC 3199

9787 0788

www.mtelizahouse.com.au

Frankston, 1-3 Vera Street Frankston VIC 3930

9783 1117

www.frankstonhouse.com.au


ST FRANCIS XAVIER PRIMARY SCHOOL

Community in Faith St Francis Xavier Catholic Primary School is an inclusive and innovative learning community located in the heart of Frankston. We offer a high level of individual care and attention to children and their families that only a small school can provide. Our school vision is ‘An Inclusive Community, Connected through Faith, Aspiring to Challenge and Empower’. We are committed to this vision and ensure that every child is supported to feel safe, valued and connected. As a small school of around 160 students, we are able to provide a rich, engaging and individualised learning experience for every child who enrols at our school. All students experience success and personal achievement. Our learning environment is

8 Park Street, Frankston, VIC 3199

vibrant, fun, engaging and focused on enhancing the children’s love of learning. A wide range of learning experiences are always offered as the school continues to embrace innovation and progressive thinking. In 2019, our senior Robotics team placed 2nd in the RoboCup Junior Australian Open. We were also extremely proud to acknowledge the efforts of a team of Grade 5/6 Performing Arts students, who were selected as the ‘Best Young Filmmakers’ at the 2019 International Youth Silent Film Festival. These are just two examples of how a school small in numbers can still achieve great things. At St Francis Xavier, we genuinely put the child’s wellbeing at the forefront of everything that we do.

9783 3424

We embrace our diverse community and recognise the dignity of each individual. Our staff understand that children need to feel a sense of belonging, purpose and connectedness in their lives to flourish and this is the type of school environment that we strive to provide. We believe that ‘every day is an open day’ here at St Francis Xavier. We welcome school tours any day of the week and look forward to welcoming new families into our thriving school community. St Francis Xavier Primary School 8 Park St, Frankston, Vic 3199 Ph: 9783 3424 Fax: 9781 3591 Email: principal@sfxfrankston. catholic.edu.au

www.sfxfrankston.catholic.edu.au


FIRST EARLY LEARNING

A new 'FiRST' in Hastings!

•Bush Kinder •Freshly cooked meals •3 & 4 year old Kinder

FiRST Early Learning - Childcare & Kindergarten At FIRST, we believe that all children are unique and valuable members of our society. Every child is a capable learner, active in their own discovery and journey to foster and enhance their education and development. FIRST educators are nurturing, experienced and dedicated. We create natural environments for every child and provide regular

incursions and excursions, such as bush kinder and swimming lessons.

5 years including 3 and 4 year old kindergarten programs.

Our family owned and operated centres across Melbourne are carefully designed and created embedding and inspired by our philosophy “About Children, Being Children”.

We provide a learning environment that is a home away from home that is fulfilling to every child's safety, security and well being

We deliver an all-inclusive sanctuary for children 6 weeks to

239 High Street, Hastings VIC 3915

DYSLEXIA SUPPORT ESSENTIAL LEARNING & TUTORING SPECIALISED TUITION  DYSLEXIA  READING  SPELLING  COMPREHENSION

 MATHEMATICS  AUDITORY/VISUAL/ PROCESSING  WORKING MEMORY

5979 2831

Book your tour today, we can’t wait to meet you! E: emma@firstearlylearning.vic.edu.au

firstearlylearning.com.au

MPT is a professional tutoring service with qualified teachers for Primary & Secondary School aged children. We provide individualised learning plans for All our students and the tutor comes to you. Our tutors specialise in English and Maths, work with children in Prep through to VCE, and we tailor our lessons to suit how each student learns best. MPT is owned and run by Mornington Peninsula local Lauren; who is a qualified primary school teacher and experienced tutor. Lauren is available to chat at all stages of your child’s learning and she works closely with all the tutors to ensure success for each student. Visit our website for more information

www.morningtonpeninsulatutoring.com.au

A highly structured MSL program that offers explicit, systematic phonic instruction that has been designed for dyslexics and children with varied learning difficulties.

SPALDING© Mornington and Somerville Phone. 0437717751 http://essentiallearning.wixsite.com/mysite 84

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Lauren Masciulli

0401 468 075


TOORAK COLLEGE

Passion for lifelong learning Toorak College is in an exciting chapter of its journey as it nears 150 years of enriching students’ lives through education. Toorak is an independent school located on the coastline of Mornington Peninsula, providing an outstanding educational experience for students from Early Learning to Year 12. Our holistic academic approach that transcends throughout all age levels, Project Shine, is inspired by explicit teaching of core skills and an inquiry foundation of self-discovery, which ignites a passion for lifelong learning. At Toorak Early Learning Centre, we understand that children are inquisitive and curious in nature; constantly seeking ways to make meaning of their world. We appreciate that the early years of schooling are the most crucial for laying foundations, on which children develop habits, participate without reservation and prosper in a breadth of experiences that serve them well for the rest of their lives.

Our Early Learning program fosters an individualised learning experience tailored to each child’s cognitive, emotional and social development. With combined approaches of explicit teaching and playbased learning, our children can develop the life skills of resilience and confidence in tandem with academic skills of literacy, numeracy, language, STEM-X and the arts. As our children progress into Junior School, we provide a nurturing and safe environment where each student is encouraged to excel through structured, student-centred programs that enable them to be their personal best. We strongly believe that our difference is adopting small class sizes to help maximise each student’s intellectual, emotional and social development in a supporting and enriching environment. Students are free to explore passions through boundless opportunities of co-curricular activities and

73-93 Old Mornington Road, Mount Eliza, VIC 3930

9788 7200

an array of curriculum subjects such as STEM-X, Language, Health & Wellbeing, Performing & Visual Arts and Sport. Students engage in experiences where they are able to ask questions, be curious and interact with their environment. The beginning of our Senior School journey is about shining a light on real-world applications of learning by integrating students’ knowledge of different concepts and fields and designing solutions to challenges. This helps to illuminate their understanding of the impact they will make on the world around them. We believe that a holistic approach to education is the best preparation for later in life, giving our girls the skills of independence to manage their lives and studies at university, the communication tools necessary to play an active role in society and the resilience to make their way in our increasingly competitive world.

toorakcollege.vic.edu.au


tips for ...

Starting Primary School By Susan Cahill

A

s the year creeps to an end, the start of a new school year approaches. For parents of pre-school students, it is a time of orientation days and school preparation.

Everyone wants their child to be well prepared and have a confident start to school. Fortunately, there are a number of things you can do to ensure your child’s transition is a smooth and exciting time. 1. Help your child become familiar with the school environment. Visit the school over a weekend. Have a walk around, climb on the playground, kick a ball on the oval and have a drink at the drinking fountains. Many schools have a playground for the younger children and another for the older kids. Point out which one you think your child might be using and talk to them about which one the older kids might use. 2. If you haven’t already, start a routine of bed time stories. Next year your child will be bringing home their own books to read and reading to your child every night will remain one of the most helpful things you can do to ensure your child’s success with literacy. You can never read too many books. 3. Teach your child the alphabet song, nursery rhymes and read rhyming stories. Children who can make rhyming words are off to a great start. 4. Count things around the house, collect 6 shells on the beach, 9 gum nuts on your walk, countdown to ten as your child packs away their toys. Cooking and mini building jobs are great ways to help your child to count, weigh and measure; all great foundations for early numeracy and life. 5. In the first weeks put up a picture calendar so that your child knows which days to bring their library book, which days are rest days or short days and which days they do any specialist classes like Art or Science. Talk about what is coming up. As adults we like to know what is coming up and kids are no different. Can you image not knowing what was going to happen every day until it was about to happen? 6. If you know any children who will be starting at your child’s school organise a play date over the holidays so that your child has a familiar face in the playground. Perhaps your school has a canteen, try giving your child some money at the local shop and let them buy an icy pole so they are confident to try it alone at school.

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7. Help your child learn to tie their shoe laces. Starting school is a great motivation and, let’s face it, being able to tie your own shoe laces is another step on the path to independence which is what we want for all our children. Your child will get a real confidence boost when they can tie their laces. In the early days expect your child to be tired. Remember how tired you were the last time you started a new job and everything was new? It is the same for your child. The majority of government schools will start the year with an English Interview. This is a one-on-one interview which will help your child’s teacher to determine what your child already knows and what to teach them next. Your child will be asked to do things like: predict what a book will be about based on the cover, retell a story that has been read to them, write their name, identify rhyming words, identify words which start with the same sound or end with the same sound and recognise letters of the alphabet. As you can see, most of these are things that you can do at home as well. When the first big day arrives it is more often the parents that cry than the kids so be prepared! If you are going to find it tough, don’t let your child see you and make a quick exit. Teachers are very used to settling in small people and even if you are ok and your child is a little tearful a quick exit still works better than a long drawn out farewell. After many years in schools I have never known a school that had to call a parent because they were unable to console a child. So relax; your child will be in safe hands. Starting primary school is a great adventure and before you know it you will be preparing your child for secondary school so enjoy every moment and don’t forget to take those memorable first-day-of-school-pictures!

Susan is Assistant Principal at Moorooduc Primary School.


andalso...

Starting High School By Kim Norton

H

igh school is full of everything new. New teachers, classrooms, peers, subjects, lockers, procedures, timetables and expectations, all of which can equate to high anxiety and the inevitable “What if’s”? What if I get lost? What if I don’t make new friends? What if I forget one of my teacher’s names? What if? What if? What if?

The good news is that there are strategies we can put in place to help our kids manage their stress and anxiety during this transition and into the weeks that follow. Share these tips with them and together you can develop an individualised plan to battle those “new school” nerves. 1. Apart from the standard orientation days that will be organised by your primary school, organise extra sessions if you feel they are needed. Some school grounds are also accessible over the weekend/school holidays for that game of basketball or impromptu Sunday morning walk. 2. Discuss travel arrangements with your child and if they are going to take public transport, practise that with them over the holidays. Show them where the school bus stop is and/or show them how to use a Myki card etc. Practise this with them or even better have them practise with a friend that may be travelling with them. 3. Purchase uniforms and books a few weeks in advance so as they can be altered and labelled. 4. Colour code all books, timetable and school map. When purchasing stationery items, colour code them to match your child’s timetable. eg: purchase green exercise books for Math and blue for English and then colour their timetable to match. When they need to grab books from their overflowing locker in between classes, this will make it a lot easier for them to identify which books are needed. 5. Print off and laminate two of your colour coded timetables. One for the inside of their locker and one for home. 6. Print off a copy of the school map and colour code accordingly. Also highlight other areas of interest including the canteen, toilet area and student office or any other area that they can go to when they need assistance. 7. Label everything. In a school of 1000+ kids all wearing the same uniform and carrying the same school bag, items can be easily misplaced or lost. Purchase a key tag or other identifying item to attach to their school bag so it can be easily identified.

8. Familiarise yourself, and your child, with the school’s online communication app. Here you will find items such as newsletters, a calendar of events and their timetable with any changes that may occur including staff absences and room changes. This app is also used as a communication portal where you can report your child’s absences and communicate with their teachers. 9. Bring back their bedtime routine and slowly bring the bedtime hour back. If you have been letting your kids stay up later over the holidays bring their bedtime back slowly. Start about 5 days before the return of school and just bring their bedtime back by 15-20 minutes each night and their waking time by the same amount of time each morning until they are back to their normal school time sleep schedule. 10. Don’t leave everything to the last minute! Encourage them to pack their school bag and have their uniforms washed and ready to go a couple of days in advance. If your child has a study area or desk, make sure this is clean and tidy and ready to go also. (Bonus if you can get them to clean their rooms!) Have the school lunch and snack ingredients on hand and ready to go. Watching you rush around and listening to you stress the day before will not ensure a calm transition to school for anyone. 11. Last of all: listen. Listen to their concerns and worries. Don’t dismiss their concerns as trivial and don’t push them aside so that YOU do not have to worry about them. Listen and, together, come up with a list of strategies to help them cope. Eg: Breathing exercises, meditation, counselling. Starting High School can be nerve racking for some whilst others will seem to breeze through the transition, embracing the challenges and changes that come with it. Regardless of your child’s temperament, the abovementioned strategies will help to ensure a smooth start to the new school year for all involved.

Kim is the founder of Rainbow Light Therapies and is a Holistic Counsellor specialising in stress and anxiety management for kids, teens and adults. Kim provides a unique, intuitive and individualised therapy approach and is running a series of “Managing Anxiety: Starting High School” workshops in January 2020. Kim is also an NDIS registered provider and runs workshops for people of all abilities on various topics throughout the year. Please see www.rainbowlighttherapies.com.au for more information.

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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By Vanessa Parsons

The average person has 60, 000 thoughts a day and it has been scientifically proven that 95% of these thoughts are the same thoughts every day. That is 95% of what I think today, I will think again tomorrow and the next day!! Asking better questions is the key to thinking outside the same habitual thought patterns. Teaching your children this skill from a young age allows them to access more of their potential and allows them to control and shape their own destiny. It is often tempting to tell our children what to do rather than to ask questions. Telling is quick, easy and often quite effective. Children who are continually told what to do can grow up to be disempowered, stuck in the same repetitive thought patterns each day and dependent on other people. The problem with being dependent on other people for answers is that they tend to give answers that come from their own filter of life….that is from their own 95% of habitual thoughts and beliefs. These aren’t usually the best answers for other people. Teaching your child to tap into their own innate wisdom by asking better questions takes a bit more time and effort. The benefits far outweigh the effort required, as children who know how to ask better questions are more able to: • Find answers that empower them • Access ideas outside of their habitual thinking patterns • Be more resourceful • Control and shape their own destiny • Access more of their potential What makes a question a better question? Better questions help children to clarify what they would like to achieve. For example: What would you like to have happen? If you had a magic wand, what would you do? Better questions are solution focused, they know what the end goal is and are focused on generating ideas that will assist in achieving the goal. 88

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??????????????????????????????????????????????????

For example: How can you…..? What can you do to…..? What is the first step to….? What strengths do you have that you can use to….?

Vanessa’s first picture story book, Mighty Marvin Mouse was written to assist young children to understand how wonderful and important questions are. This beautifully written and illustrated book is a great way to introduce your child to the power of asking better questions.

What is a possible solution for…..? When will you take the first step to…..? If you knew how to…..…, what would you be doing?

Vanessa Parsons is a qualified primary school teacher, certified life coach and engaging speaker who lives on the beautiful Mornington Peninsula with her husband, their three children and one very exuberant dog. She is passionate about finding ways to put the things she has learnt about success during her life journey in to formats that are easy for young children to understand. www.vanessaparsons.com.au

????????????????????????????????????????????????? Better questions allow children to access ideas they haven’t thought of yet. For example: What ideas haven’t you thought of yet? What would the wise owl within you suggest you could do? Better questions generally don’t start with why. Why questions tend to reinforce the question. For example if you ask a child ‘Why can’t you get to sleep?’ they will give you all the reasons why they can’t get to sleep, reinforcing why they can’t get to sleep. If you ask ‘What is one thing you can do that will help you get to sleep?’ you open up the space for solutions. Tips for asking better questions • Teach your child to be okay with discomfort. • Allow lots of time for the question to be answered. • Reassure your child that there are no right or wrong answers. • Believe that your child is capable of coming up with their own answers. • Start small. • Make sure you have the time needed to ask better questions.

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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Mornington Peninsula Summer Sailing Victorian teens now have the opportunity to give some new water sports a go and get active at the same time as part of the new Australian Sailing program OutThere Sailing – the VicHealth funded program for 12 to 17-year-olds aimed at increasing participation in noncompetitive sport. This summer, twenty clubs around Victoria – including eight on the Mornington Peninsula, are offering the program through their Discover Sailing Centres. In addition to dinghy and keelboat sailing, OutThere Sailing offers teens the opportunity to try a variety of water sports including windsurfing, stand up paddle boarding and power boat rides, with no previous experience needed.

Now in its second year, Frankston Yacht Club were one of the first clubs to offer the program and their Discover Sailing Principal, Tom Jackson, said that OutThere Sailing has been a complete success. “The participants demanded we add more sessions after the first OutThere Sailing course,” Jackson said. “A lot of teenagers simply want to have fun and enjoy time with their friends and that’s what this program provides”. OutThere Sailing offers multi-day programs and one day experiences, all delivered by qualified Australian Sailing instructors. The focus is on fun and social engagement and the program is structured to allow friends to learn together, even if their skill levels are different. Participants can bring friends and meet new

To find out more about www.discoversailing.org.au 90

instagram.com/outthere_sailing

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

facebook.com/OutThereSailing


ones, whilst also learning some valuable life skills such as problem solving, resilience and team working skills. If you have teenagers, or have friends or family who have teenagers, and want to get them active or out on the water trying something new, OutThere Sailing could be for them. It is also a great way for previous participants to return to the sport in a social and relaxed setting. Programs will be running throughout the summer so make sure you keep an eye on the Australian Sailing

website at discoversailing.org.au/course/outthere/ and make sure you follow our socials! instagram.com/outthere_sailing and facebook.com/ OutThereSailing Program dates at Peninsula clubs for the remainder of the year are listed but check the website of the club closest to you for additional programs, as Rye Yacht Club and Safety Beach Sailing Club will also be offering OutThere Sailing throughout the summer school holidays.

Dates & Locations: • Frankston Yacht Club – Thursdays after school at 4.30pm-7.30pm on 31/10, 07/11, 14/11, 21/11, 28/11, 05/12, 19/12. www.fyc.com.au • Mornington Yacht Club – Fridays after school at 5pm-7pm on 08/11, 15/11, 22/11, 29/11. One-off windsurfing experience Tuesday 10/12 at 1pm-4pm. www.morningtonyc.net.au/outthere-sailing--fun-in-the-sun.html • Somers Yacht Club – Sundays 24/11 and 08/12 at 12.30pm-3.30pm www.somersyachtclub.com.au/discover-sailing-centre/ • Mount Martha Yacht Club – 12/12-14/12 at 8.30am-12.30pm daily www.mmyc.org.au/learn-to-sail/ • Blairgowrie Yacht Squadron – One-day summer experiences at 1.30pm-4pm on 16/12, 17/12, 18/12, 19/12, 20/12, 27/12, 28/12, 29/12, 30/12, 31/12. Five-day summer courses on 16/12-20-12 and 27/1231/12 at 1.30pm-4pm daily. www.bys.asn.au/training/youth-sail-training/outthere-sailing/ • Sorrento Sailing Couta Boat Club – Three-day summer courses on 26/12-28/12 at 11.30am-2pm daily, 26/12-28/12 at 2.30pm-5pm daily, 29/12-31/12 at 11.30am-2pm daily, 29/12-31/12 at 2.30pm-5pm daily. www.sscbc.com.au/training/learn-to-sail-at-sscbc/pacer-sailing/ • Mobile Boatshed at Flinders Yacht Club – Five-day summer course on 27/12-31/12 at 2pm-6pm daily. www.theboatshed.net.au • Rye Yacht Club – Details on website www.ryeyachtclub.org.au • Safety Beach Sailing Club – Details on website www.sbsc.net.au www.peninsulakids.com.au

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Recipes

Let'sCook! Proudly introducing Luke Hines & Heidi Sze to Peninsula Kids Magazine bringing you some fantastic healthy recipe ideas from their new cook books for your whole family to make & enjoy!

...it's time to eat !

www.hawkesfarm.com.au | 661 Boneo Rd, Boneo | Ph 03 5988 6785 92

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Farm Gate Open 7 Days


Organic One-Pan Cookie

Organic One-Pan Cookie

Ingredients

200g organic butter, chopped 125 ml honey 2 cups almond meal 1 tsp vanilla powder ½ tsp ground cinnamon 1 egg, beaten 3 tbs crunchy peanut butter 100g dark chocolate, roughly chopped coconut yoghurt to serve

Method

Preheat the oven to 180˚C. Melt the butter and honey in an ovenproof frying pan. Remove the heat and leave to cool slightly. Stir in the almond meal, baking powder, vanilla, and cinnamon. Whisk in the egg to form a batter. Dollop the peanut butter over the batter and scatter over the chocolate pieces, then transfer the pan to the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy on the outside. Serve warm in the middle of the table for everyone to share, topped with a generous dollop of coconut yoghurt.

“How would you feel if I told you that you could make a giant cookie in a pan? Well, hold onto your socks boys and girls… things are about to get real. Introducing the ultimate one-pan cookie. You can thank me later.”

Recipe from "Smart Carbs" by Luke Hines published by Plum

Luke Hines Australian Organic Ambassador

Summer Open Day! January 18th 2020, 11am - 3pm

Vegetable picking, tractor rides and family entertainment!

www.hawkesfarm.com.au | 661 Boneo Rd, Boneo | Ph 03 5988 6785

Farm Gate Open 7 Days www.peninsulakids.com.au

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Organic Souvlaki Skewers Ingredients

SKEWERS 3 tbs extra-virgin olive oil 2 garlic cloves, very finely chopped 2 lemons, zest and juice 2 tsp dried oregano Sea salt and ground black pepper 800g organic chicken thigh fillets, roughly chopped PITAS 1 cup organic almond meal 1 cup arrowroot flour 125ml coconut milk 125 ml filtered water 1 tsp dried oregano Pinch of sea salt 3-4 tbs coconut oil

Method

Recipe from "Smart Carbs" by Luke Hines published by Plum

Mix the olive oil, garlic, lemon zest and juice and oregano in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper, add the chicken and toss to coat, then cover with plastic wrap and set aside in the fridge to marinate for at least 20 minutes (up to 3 hours if you have time). For the pitas, combine the almond meal, arrowroot or tapioca flour, coconut milk, water, oregano and salt in a bowl and mix well to form a smooth batter. Melt about 1 tablespoon of the coconut oil in a small non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Ladle onequarter of the batter into the pan, tilting and swirling it to coat the base in an even layer, and cook for 2-3 minutes, then carefully turn the pit over, with a spatula and cook for a further 2 minutes, or until golden. Repeat with the remaining mixture. Heat a barbecue grill to medium-high. Thread the marinated chicken onto the prepared skewers and grill for 6-8 minutes on each side or until cooked through. To assemble the souvlaki, spoon a few generous dollops of avocado on each pita and top with a chicken skewer and vegetables or salad. Luke Hines, Australian Organic Ambassador *Recipe from Smart Carbs by Luke Hines published by Plum

“This is Greek fast food at its finest!” Luke Hines Australian Organic Ambassador

www.hawkesfarm.com.au | 661 Boneo Rd, Boneo | Ph 03 5988 6785 94

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Farm Gate Open 7 Days


Organic Stuffed Mushroom Ingredients

4 large organic Portobello mushrooms, stems removed and reserved 2 garlic cloves, very finely chopped 3 tbs pecans, crushed 1 lemon, zest and juice Sea salt and black pepper 100 ml extra virgin olive oil 1 bunch parsley, chopped 2 tbs pecans, toasted and chopped

Method

Preheat the oven to 200 and line a backing tray with baking paper. Add the mushroom stems, garlic, pecans, lemon juice and zest, salt and 3 tablespoons of the olive oil to a food processor, along with the parsley. Pulse until it forms a rough, wet paste. Arrange the mushrooms, gill-side up, on the prepared baking tray and spoon over the prepared mixture. Drizzle over the remaining oil and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until mushrooms are cooked through and the herb crust is golden brown. Dividing among plates, season with salt and pepper and serve topped with toasted pecans, extra lemon zest and parsley.

Recipe from "Smart Carbs" by Luke Hines published by Plum

“Stuffed mushrooms are one of the easiest yet most delicious meals you can put together. This recipe is a celebration of simple flavours that go really well together on the plate.� Luke Hines Australian Organic Ambassador

Summer Open Day! January 18th 2020, 11am - 3pm

Vegetable picking, tractor rides and family entertainment!

www.hawkesfarm.com.au | 661 Boneo Rd, Boneo | Ph 03 5988 6785

Farm Gate Open 7 Days www.peninsulakids.com.au

95


Salmon Smash Ingredients

Makes about 3 cups 1 x 415 g tin pink salmon in spring water (with bones), drained (about 300 g final weight) ¾ cup (185 g) crème fraîche 1 large celery stalk, finely diced juice of 1 lemon, plus extra if necessary sea salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 small handful of fresh parsley leaves rye crispbreads, to serve (optional)

Method

Place the drained salmon in a bowl. Mash the fish and bones with a fork, then add the crème fraîche, celery and lemon juice, and stir to combine. Season to taste, adding more lemon or salt if desired. Scatter the parsley over the top of your desired portion (storing the remainder in the fridge) and serve with rye crispbreads, or however you prefer.

Recipe from "Nuturing your new life" by Heidi Sze published by Harper Collins

“This wonderfully easy recipe offers an enjoyable way to consume more omega-3 fatty acids, which are so valuable in this season of life. The bones in tinned salmon are soft and edible, and a great source of calcium. This spread will last in the fridge for a few days and can be served on rye crackers, used as a sandwich filling or added to a snack plate as a dip for vegetables. It’s also lovely stirred through cooked pasta shells or rigatoni, with extra parsley, lemon juice and some extravirgin olive oil.” Heidi Sze

www.hawkesfarm.com.au | 661 Boneo Rd, Boneo | Ph 03 5988 6785 96

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Farm Gate Open 7 Days


Rainbow Quinoa Salad Ingredients

1 tablespoon pepitas (pumpkin seeds) 1 handful of shredded radicchio or other salad leaves 1 handful of baby spinach leaves 1 carrot, grated (I use yellow and orange) ½ avocado 1 x 130 g tin salmon in oil extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling juice of ½ lemon sea salt CHICKEN STOCK QUINOA 1 cup (200 g) quinoa, rinsed 2¼ cups (560 ml) Chicken stock

Method

To make the quinoa, place in a saucepan with the stock and bring to the boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 7 minutes, until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Remove from the heat, cover with a lid and leave for 10 minutes. This will make more quinoa than you need for the salad. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge and use within a few days. If you’re pregnant, you might not wish to keep the quinoa for more than one day, and will need to heat it well before eating. Meanwhile, toast the pepitas in a dry frying pan over medium heat until golden and fragrant. To make the salad, place ½–1 cup of cooked quinoa (depending on your appetite) in a bowl along with the radicchio, spinach, carrot, avocado and salmon. Scatter the toasted pepitas over the top, and drizzle everything with extra-virgin olive oil and lemon juice. Add sea salt to taste.

“I’ll have one of these salads at lunch and, ideally, find myself soaring through the afternoon, caring for my dependent newborn and responding to my toddler’s needs with ease. Your bowl needn’t always be as colourful as this – mine certainly isn’t. As long as it contains veggies plus some sort of fat and protein, it’ll do the trick.”

Recipe from "Nuturing your new life" by Heidi Sze published by Harper Collins

Heidi Sze

Summer Open Day! January 18th 2020, 11am - 3pm

Vegetable picking, tractor rides and family entertainment!

www.hawkesfarm.com.au | 661 Boneo Rd, Boneo | Ph 03 5988 6785

Farm Gate Open 7 Days www.peninsulakids.com.au

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Ten wellness practices that will By Megan Dalla Camina

T

he reality of keeping our wellbeing in check amongst the business of daily life can be really challenging. Among the hundreds of things you could attempt to bring into your daily life, there are some consistently tried, tested and researched practices that we know work and will support your very best, most vibrant, wellbeing. From my decades of experience working with thousands of women, plus my research through a Masters of Wellness degree, here are ten simple yet effective wellness practices that have the potential to create massive positive change in your life. They may seem simple, and you may have heard some of them before. But the magic is in the doing, not the thinking. What are you practising daily? Try these and watch your levels of wellbeing skyrocket.

Meditate

The research on meditation is profound. From reducing negative impacts of stress, increasing physical and psychological wellbeing, better focus and deeper sleep, these are reasons why people meditate. Start with five minutes daily, sitting with your eyes closed and train your attention on your breath. You can use an app like Headspace for support. It has the power to change your life.

Hydrate

Hydrate: Our bodies are roughly 60% water. Challenges from tiredness to overeating can be due to dehydration. We get dehydrated when we’re sick, but also when we’ve sweated profusely, or simply not drunk enough water. Feeling thirsty, a dry mouth, headache or dizziness, can be signs of impaired physical and mental performance. Stay hydrated by drinking more water. Track your intake for a week and see how you go.

Sleep

Adults need between 7.5 to 9.5 hours each night, but most people don’t get it. Lack of sleep is no laughing matter. It impairs everything from brain function to productivity, immunity to emotional wellbeing. Turn off your devices, create a bedtime routine, and commit to getting the sleep you need. 98

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Yoga

Yoga has been practiced in the East for 5,000 years. You don’t have to be flexible, and it’s not about how bendy you can be. It’s a practice of union between all aspects of yourself. You can start with some gentle postures and stretches and work up to a more formal practice. Try online classes at glo.com or a local studio class.

Breathe

Notice your breath for a few minutes. Is your inhale high in your chest, or down in your belly? Deep breathing supports a calm nervous system and helps us to slow down. Breathing in through your nose for a count of four, holding for four, exhaling through your nose for four, and holding it out for a count of four is breathing that can change everything.

Walk

Taking time out in nature each day for a walk is a beautiful way to restore your spirit, clear your mind and energise your body. Whether you’re walking the kids to school, taking a stroll at lunch or going for a bush walk on the weekend, walking daily is a ritual that will enhance your wellbeing.

Gratitude

Science shows that a daily practice of writing down three good things has a significant impact on our wellbeing. Keep a dedicated notebook and at the end of each day, write down three specific things you’re grateful for. It could be your morning coffee, the kiss on your cheek from your child, or the flowers from your garden. Give thanks for the positive in your life, and watch the positive grow.


changeYour life

Health

Nourish

There is so much conflicting advice on food that it can leave us frustrated and confused. But there is a question that will guide you in the right direction: does this nourish me? It’s easy to see that sugar, white carbohydrates, too much alcohol and processed foods do not energise us. Choose real food for nourishment and energy, and you can’t go wrong.

Sweat

A sweat session at least a few times a week is a game changer. The best exercise is the one you will actually do. Is it running, kick boxing, a spin class, swimming, salsa dancing, martial arts? It doesn’t matter what it is, just that you do it. Find something you enjoy and build it in to your regular routine. Improved mood, better sleep, less stress and so many more benefits are waiting for you.

Restore

Taking regular breaks to restore yourself is a life changing wellness habit. It could be your meditation break, making some herbal tea and sipping it slowly, doing some painting, or simply lying on your bed for ten minutes before cooking dinner. Building in ten to fifteen minute breaks a few times a day will support your energy for the long term.

Megan Dalla-Camina is the author of Simple Soulful Sacred: A Woman’s Guide to Clarity, Comfort and Coming Home to Herself (Hay House). For more visit megandallacamina.com

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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By Nataly Tormey

S

ummertime means more sweating and more sweating means discomfort in those places sweat collects –so what do you do if your child ends up with a prickly, itchy heat rash.

Heat rash is a harmless, but very itchy skin rash with small red spots, or blisters and is common in babies, (especially in the nappy area), but can also happen in older children (and adults!). Babies are especially susceptible to skin rashes because their skin is often more sensitive. You can usually treat heat rash or prickly heat by making sure your child stays cool and avoids getting sweaty. Drying your baby’s skin folds after each bath helps too. Though a heat rash is harmless, other rashes can vary greatly, and can be associated with a serious illness. Understanding what to look for when your baby has a rash enables parents to recognise an emergency. There are medical red flags or warning signs to look for when you child has a rash that indicate your child is unwell and needs you. continued next page...

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Supporting children 0-12 years with learning delays and disabilities and their families to thrive

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-If your child has a fever associated with a rash this is a red flag and the child should receive medical attention. -If you suspect your baby’s rash is measles this is a red flag that should not be dismissed. The measles rash usually starts behind the ears and along the hairline. It consists of small, red, irregularly shaped patches that spread over your child’s face and neck during the first 24 hours, before later spreading to the body, arms and legs. -A non-blanching rash is also a red flag that should not be dismissed. This is a rash that does not change in colour when direct pressure is applied to the skin. Often a non-blanching rash is described as a rash that does not fade when pressed with, and viewed through, a glass. If your child has a non-blanching rash this is a medical red flag and you should seek medical attention. -A rash is a common sign that you baby or child may be experiencing an allergic reaction. Baby rashes associated with a mild allergic reaction are usually harmless, but sometimes a baby’s rash is a sign of serious illness. If your child has allergies, it’s important to watch your child closely whenever he/she has an allergic reaction. Anaphylaxis is a severe, life-threatening allergic reaction and requires urgent medical attention. -If your child has a rash and difficulty breathing, seek medical help immediately. This may be a sign of a serious allergic reaction.

1 Elizabeth Street ▪ Mornington ▪ 3931 102

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

If you suspect your child is having a severe allergic reaction call triple zero (000) IMMEDIATELY.


Dr Peter A. Scott is a specialist orthodontist offering orthodontic care for children, teens and adults alike in both the Mornington Peninsula and inner Melbourne areas. He is also a consultant orthodontist at the Royal Childrens Hospital.

Specialist Orthodontist -If your baby has a rash try to prevent your child from scratching the rash. Rubbing and scratching your baby’s rash will make it worse. If your baby is scratching at the rash, try putting cotton mittens on his/hers hands at night. Cut the baby's nails short and keep them clean. -To relieve your baby’s itchy rash, you can apply lots of calamine lotion to the rash and let it dry. -Putting cold packs on the rash or giving your child a cool shower or bath can also help. -If your baby has an eczema rash, this type of rash gets worse when skin is dry. Applying moisturising and barrier creams directly to your child’s skin helps to stop the skin from drying out. -A quality barrier cream like Sudocrem is great to help manage your baby’s heat rash, eczema rash or nappy rash because it provides barrier protection against irritants that come into contact with your little ones' skin. Your child can use Sudocrem and fragrance-free moisturising creams every day, even when there’s no eczema.

Creating Beautiful Smiles On The Peninsula For 30 Years Expertise In Child And Adult Orthodontics Early Assessment Of Dental Development And Facial Growth Ideal Age Of Initial Assessment 7-9 Years Early Intervention Where Appropriate For Best Outcome No Referral Necessary

*If you are concerned about your baby’s itchy rash, we advise you to seek medical attention. Your doctor might suggest using antihistamine medication until the rash get better.

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Parentmedic’s founder Nataly Tormey believes that knowing what to do if your child has a rash and knowing baby and child first aid is a fundamental right and empowers parents to recognise an emergency. Go to www.parentmedic.co to find out more. If you haven’t already, join the Parentmedic Movement!. Book a baby and child first aid session with a Parentmedic licensed educator and feel confident in knowing exactly what to do if your child has a rash.

Ph: 9783 4511

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Ask The

Experts!

Can I stop my child’s shortsightedness getting worse? Whilst there is no outright cure for short-sightedness (Myopia), a number of studies have shown we can control and slow its progression. We are seeing an explosion in Myopia rates throughout the world. Sydney’s Brien Holden Vision Institute predicts 50% of the world’s population will have Myopia by 2050. Unfortunately, Myopia is associated with serious eye health problems including macular disease, glaucoma, cataracts and a detached retina. So controlling progression has critical benefits for a child other than reducing the strength of their glasses. I recommend four possible types of treatment for controlling myopia • Orthokeratology ("ortho-k"): This involves overnight wear of rigid contact lenses which reshape the front surface of the eye. The technique is simple, safe, reversible, and effective, with children loving that upon awakening and removing the lenses they can see clearly all day without wearing any correction. • Multifocal daytime wear soft contact lenses and Multifocal spectacles; Worn during the day, these specialised Myopia Control lens designs have different lens powers across different zones. • Low dose Atropine eye drops; Instilled daily, these relax the focussing system of the eye. The goal of treatment is to reduce the dangerous elongation of the eye seen in Myopia. As for trying to prevent Myopia in the first instance, children should spend more time outdoors, less time on screens and choose their genetic parents wisely.

George Sahely 20/20 Sight’n’Style Behavioural Optometrists Mornington 104

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

My child has lost a baby tooth which the dentist said is not meant to fall out for another couple of years. It was recommended that she has a space maintainer. Why is this important? A space maintainer is an appliance made to keep space for an adult tooth after the early loss of a baby tooth. Without the use of a space maintainer, the teeth that surround the open space can shift, impeding the permanent tooth’s eruption. Space maintainers can avoid more complex and costly orthodontic treatment in the future. There are many types of space maintainers that can be custom designed by your dentist or orthodontist– they can be either removable or fixed or designed to hold space for one tooth or multiple teeth. Space maintainers aim to guide the unerupted tooth into the correct position in the arch. If space loss occurs, it usually takes place within the first 6 months after an extraction- therefore it is best to insert the space maintainer as soon as possible after the baby tooth has come out. Not every child who loses a baby tooth early requires a space maintainer; however, a professional consultation with your dentist or orthodontist should be conducted to determine if a space maintainer is needed. The need for a space maintainer will be determined by the amount of space available, the child’s age and how long it will be before the adult tooth erupts.

Melizza Ferdinands Oral Health Therapist (BOH UniMelb) Peninsula Orthodontics 134 Tanti Ave Mornington


How do I choose an obstetrician? If you are having your baby at a private hospital then you have the opportunity to choose who you would like to care for you in your pregnancy. Your GP can recommend someone for you or you could talk to other friends who have had positive experiences with their obstetricians. It is important that you trust your obstetrician and feel comfortable at your booking in session and subsequent appointments. It is worth checking when your private OB is taking holiday and they usually know that in advance. Bear in mind that most obstetricians have arrangements with their colleagues so they share cover for the weekends and some evenings between them. Women can also choose a private midwife to care for them during their pregnancy and the post-natal period. Private midwives can assist with a home birth or have an arrangement with a local, private or public hospital. In some cases they cannot directly conduct your birth in a hospital but can be present to provide you support during your labour and the post-natal period.

Jo & Jolyon Ford @pregnancywellbeing @bodybumpbaby

Peninsula Orthodontics loves working with families. Our experienced team will provide you with an individual treatment plan to deliver only exceptional results Capture that perfect smile you will always treasure. No referral required.

Specialist Orthodontists Dr Andrew Pepicelli Dr Andrea Phatouros Dr Daniel Sable

5975 5166 134 Tanti Ave Mornington smile@peninsulaortho.com.au www.peninsulaortho.com.au www.peninsulakids.com.au

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LOOKING AFTER YOUR CHILD'S ASTHMAthis Summer

By Marg Gordon

S

ummer brings all the fun and frivolity of holidays, but did you know it comes with added risks of asthma attacks for your child?

Taking simple precautions and being well prepared will help you and your family make the most of the holidays together. By keeping kids’ symptom-free it will also help lower their risk of an asthma attack when they return to school at the end of January. During the summer months there can be many hidden asthma and allergy triggers to contend with, from Christmas trees to dusty holiday homes, sudden changes in weather and increased pollen in the air. If you are travelling away from home, it can be very easy to get out of your usual routine and forget that you need to take your preventer medicine. It’s a good idea to visit your child’s doctor before the holidays kick-off to ensure their asthma is under good control and their asthma plan is current. For those going interstate or overseas it’s particularly important to take all your medications with you and check that your medical insurance specifically covers your child’s asthma.

Share your child’s written asthma action plan: a written plan provides all the information your friends and family need to spot the signs that your child’s asthma is getting worse, as well as information on what to do if it is. Take a photo of the plan with your phone so you can share it with anyone looking after your child during the holidays.

Stock up on asthma medicines: take all the medication your child requires with you, plus some extra. If you’re travelling, keep the medicines in their original packaging with the prescribing label attached and leave spare inhalers at home just in case you come back without them.

Give holiday homes a thorough clean and check for dust and mould. Stored toys, bed linen and blankets can become musty or dusty, which can trigger asthma – so give them an airing. Take care at outdoor parties: a summer BBQ in the park can trigger asthma and hay fever for some children, especially with high levels of pollen in the air. Take special care on windy, hot and thunderstorm days and stay inside with the windows closed. Look at the weather forecast: keep an eye on the weather. Hot weather and even sudden changes in the weather (such as a thunderstorm) can bring on asthma symptoms. Wind can spread pollen and stir up mould, affecting those who suffer from grass or tree pollen and mould allergies. Also look out for bushfire smoke warnings. Given our changing weather patterns, it’s important to monitor AusPollen’s pollen forecast by visiting www.pollenforecast.com.au. With the right preparation, parents can establish a highly effective routine for preventing a summer asthma flare-up. For more information on asthma and allergies, visit the National Asthma Council Australia website: www.nationalasthma.org.au

Keep to a good preventer routine: help your child stay symptom free every day by getting them to take their preventer, as prescribed, even when they’re feeling well. They’ll be less likely to react to asthma triggers and it will cut down symptoms like coughing, wheezing or breathlessness. Carry your child’s reliever with you: keep your child’s reliever inhaler handy so you can get to it quickly in an emergency or if asthma symptoms flare-up. If you are flying, remember to pack it in your hand luggage, not in a checked suitcase. 106

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Marg Gordon is an asthma and respiratory educator at National Asthma Council Australia.


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Healthy takeaway made Healthy takeaway made easy By Jessica Bauer

takeaway In this fast-paced world, it is sometimes easier toHealthy drive by and pickmade up aeasy takeaway meal for the family. If we are being honest who doesn’t do that on occasion. Even asBya Jessica dietitian I do this sometimes. But if you find that it is Bauer By Jessica Bauer happening more regularly or you are depended on it, this might be something you and your family could change.

I

n this fast-paced it is sometimes to drive by and pick by and pick up a takeaway meal for the family. If we are In thisworld, fast-paced world, it iseasier sometimes easier to drive beingmeal honest doesn’t do that on occasion. up a takeaway for who the family. If we are being honest, Even who as a dietitian I do this sometimes. But if you find that it is happening more regularly you areI depended on it, this might be something you and your family could doesn’t that on as aordietitian doand this healthier sometimes. In this do article, weoccasion? are goingEven to discuss cheaper, takeaway option, that still is delicious, and easy change. But you findThe that other it is happening regularly, or youoptions are are the cost. to ifprepare. benefits more of looking at other dependant on it, this might be something you and your family could First, let’s compare the pair. change. In this article, we are going to discuss cheaper, and healthier takeaway option, that still is delicious, and easy

In this article, we are going to discuss a cheaper, and healthier 1x mediumtocheese burger mealbenefits with aof drink at McDonalds = 3112kJ 28g total fat prepare. The other looking at other options are theand cost. takeaway option, that still is delicious, and easy to prepare. First, of let’s compare the pair. The other benefits looking at other options are the cost.

First, let’s compare the pair. 1x medium cheese burger meal with a drink at McDonalds = 3112kJ and 28g total fat

Total price = $7.50 per serve Total price = $7.50 per serve

1x medium cheese burger meal with a drink at McDonalds = 3112kJ and 28g total fat 1x Homemade with Coke no sugar and oven baked chips = 2200kJ and 20g fat Total price = $7.50burger per serve 1x Homemade burger with Coke no sugar and oven baked chips = 2200kJ and 20g fat

Total price - $4.50 per serve

Total price - $4.50 per serve

1x Homemade burger with Coke no sugar and oven baked chips = 2200kJ and 20g fat Total price =two $4.50 per serve So these comparisons show that a homemade burgerburger is lower in fat,inlower in kilojoules andand cheaper. So these two comparisons show that a homemade is lower fat, lower in kilojoules cheaper.

The other ofbenefit making versions of istakeaway with children is isand price. So these twobenefit comparisons showofhomemade that a homemade burger lower in fat, lower in kilojoules The other making homemade versions of takeaway with children The other benefits of making homemade versions takeaway with children are: Getting children involved in foodof preparation 1. Getting1.children involved in food preparation 1. Gets children involved in food preparation 2. Teaches children about healthy habits Teaches children about healthy 2.2.Teaches children about healthy habitshabits 3. Teaches children about foods available 3.3.Teaches children about different foodsdifferent available Teaches children about different foods available 4. Teaches children that children healthy eating doesn’teating have todoesn’t be burdensome a “chore” or a “chore” 4. Teaches that healthy have to beorburdensome 4. Teaches children that healthy eating doesn’t have to be burdensome or a “chore” 108

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

continued next page...

If you find making homemade takeaway is not going to be available to your family, here a few more options to


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If you find making homemade takeaway is not going to be available to your family, here a few more options for when you are out buying takeaways.

Pizzas Swap the following 1. All meat pizzaVegetarian pizza with added pieces of chicken or ham 2. Meat and cheese pizzaAsk to have half meat + cheese and other half vegetarian 3. Thick cheesy crustThin crust 4. Eating entire pizzaPut 4 slices on a plate and add ½ plate of salad

Fish and Chips

Remember that eating takeaways can still be enjoyed as a treat, as long as it is not relied upon. Next time you think about having a takeaway, first ask yourself these questions. • Have we had takeaway already this week? • Am I wanting to buy this because it’s easier? If you have answered 'yes' to these questions, then instead of having takeaway, get the children involved and ask what homemade version would they like instead. You may find this a lot more fun, engaging, and cheaper for the family!

Swap the following

1. Deep fried fishGrilled fish 2. Potato chipsBuy a small (minimum) and share with the family!

KFC / McDonalds / Hungry Jacks Swap the following

1. Large mealSmall meal 2. Regular soft drinkDiet soft drink OR water 3. Battered / crumbed burger pattyGrilled chicken 4. Regular burger and chip mealMake your own 110

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Jessica Bauer is an Accredited Practising Dietitian. She has a passion for children’s health and well – being. She loves teaching children about the wonders of food and in her practice she uses food to do good. She spent her childhood in the snowy mountains of Switzerland and then spent her adolescent years running around the sandy beaches of Frankston – The best of both worlds. In her spare time, she loves finding that perfectly brewed coffee and jumping out of aeroplanes.


Born at The Bays Hospital Trusted by generations for over 80 years The Bays has one of the finest maternity units in the region. Each year we bring around 500 new babies into the world. It's a great start in life for the next generation. When you choose to have your baby with us you'll be taken care of by the finest professionals in the latest facilities. The first days of your baby's life are unforgettable. Spend them at The Bays.

Our Obstetricians Dr Kelly Griffin - (03) 5970 5353 Dr Andrew Griffiths - (03) 5976 5257 Dr Keith How - (03) 5976 6630

Dr Petra Porter - (03) 5976 5266 Dr Sarah Roberts - (03) 5970 5353 Dr Amy Swanson - (03) 5970 5353

Book your maternity tour on 5976 5262 or online at thebays.com.au The Bays Hospital Vale Street, Mornington VIC 3931 Phone 03 5975 2009

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Diagnosis ADHD A Positive Perspective By Elsie Bourke

Y

our fears have been confirmed. You’ve been given the diagnosis. Your child has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). For many parents, this is an unwelcome outcome, but it can also be seen as good news; you’re not a bad parent, and your child isn’t ‘just a naughty child’. A diagnosis of ADHD is a starting point for a new phase in your life in which you learn to understand your child’s challenging, and often frustrating, behaviours and can revise your parenting style to suit. continued next page...

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www.peninsulakids.com.au

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ADHD is said to affect approximately 7% of children. The main symptoms are inattention, impulsivity and hyperactivity. ADHD is now classified into three sub-types: predominately inattentive, predominately hyperactive-impulsive, and combined (demonstrating all three main symptoms). Other symptoms include learning difficulties, poor short term memory, immature social skills and low self-esteem. Though not visibly seen, ADHD is very real, and children’s difficulties need to be accepted and accommodated. We wouldn’t tell a sightimpaired child to look harder, or a hearing-impaired child to listen better; we would assist them with various ‘tools’, such as a hearing aid or glasses. As ADHD manifests mainly as a behavioural problem, we can’t just say, “Be good”. What we can do is to provide our children with the tools they need. This begins with setting a good example for

them to follow, with our actions and our attitude. Often, compliance just comes down to how we say things. Simply reversing the order of our words can be enough. Instead of: “You’ll lose your pocket money if you don’t behave.”

CHANGE TO: “ You’ll earn your pocket money if you keep up this good behaviour.”

Instead of: “If you don't do your homework, you won’t be able to watch TV.”

CHANGE TO: “ Let’s get this homework done then you can watch TV with Dad and me.”

The first conveys a threat and an expectation of misbehaviour. Alternatively, the second holds the promise of good things to come for doing what is expected. continued next page...

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When we understand the traits of ADHD we realise that children have little control over much of their behaviours. It helps to try and ‘step into their shoes’ to understand how they feel. Imagine trying to concentrate on something important like your tax return with the TV blaring loudly in the room, doors banging, and your phone ringing all at the same time. This is how it can feel to our children when trying to work in the classroom. There may be a bird at the window, another child asking a question, another going to the toilet, but for our little ADHD’s everything is magnified, creating a loss of concentration and distraction, usually followed by being ‘in trouble’.

When we accept that a child’s apparently naughty behaviour is mainly due to their ADHD, we become calmer, more focused and ready for whatever lies ahead. It becomes easier to offer positive and effective correction. Harsh punishments only bring resentment, and often a child has no idea what they’ve done wrong. Blurting out an answer, touching, grabbing, becoming over-excited are all normal ADHD traits and should be seen as such. Caring correction, explanation and alternatives can be used to guide a child to more acceptable behaviors.

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DANCE CLASSES FOR PRESCHOOLERS

Instead of : "The teacher wants to see me; now what has Jack done now?"

TRY: " I’m grateful to speak to the teacher today so we can work together to solve issues."

Instead of : " Ben’s so hyper today; the other mums must think I’m a bad parent."

TRY: Ben’s so hyper today, the other mums must be grateful he’s not their child!" (said with a smile!)

It may not seem obvious, but ADHD children have definite advantages. They have boundless energy that can be directed into worthwhile pursuits (not just having their parents chase after them!). They have incredible concentration on an activity that interests them (room cleaning, teeth cleaning and getting dressed do not interest them!). They are creative and spontaneous. They are loving, intelligent, unique individuals that think outside the box—when they’re not climbing on top of it! They have much potential, and the diagnosis of ADHD can be a new beginning to a better relationship.

To win a copy of Elsie's book go to peninsulakids.com.au/giveaways

© 2019 © 2019 BoomBoom Gate Enterprises Gate Enterprises Pty Ltd. AllPty Rights Ltd. Reserved. All Rights Reserved.

Instead of : "Nothing I do seems to work lately. I give up!" TRY: "I’m not having much luck lately so I’ll try some new tactics."

© 2019 Boom Gate Enterprises Pty Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

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Early Childhood and Gifted Education Conultant

Elsie wrote ADHD- Not Just Naughty after raising her own ADHD son (now an adult) to help other parents and to tell them what she wishes she had been told as a young mother dealing with this for the first time. It is available from www.plungepublishing.com, Petersen's bookshop in Hastings, and most online booksellers.

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Pregnancy & Baby

By Jo & Jolyon Ford

A

ccording to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australian women are now having children when they are much older. The fertility rate of Australian women aged 35 years and over continues to rise; however the rate is falling in most other age groups according to the latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). In the past 30 years, the fertility rate of women aged 35-39 has more than doubled in 2017, and for women aged 40-44 it has tripled. In contrast, teenage fertility nearly halved during this period. There are lots of reasons that women are choosing to have babies later in life. Many women find their partners later, have an established career or want to be in a better financial position when a baby arrives. Some women may change relationship and want to have a baby with a new partner. Most women over 40 have healthy pregnancies and healthy babies. But there are some thing you need to think about, and you’ll want to be sure to get good antenatal care.

Due to advances in technology surrounding fertility, pregnancy and birth, it is possible for many women to have a baby at age 40 or over. There are, however, some complications that are more common.

continued next page...

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If you have been trying to have a baby naturally for six to twelve months with no success, it may be time to see a fertility specialist and your GP can point you in the right direction

Connecting your family to the community, with a living tribute to your child

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Falling Pregnant A woman’s fertility rate does decrease significantly after the age of 35. The number of eggs in the ovaries declines making natural conception more difficult. At the age of 40, the chance of falling pregnant naturally in a year is around 40-50%; by 43 it is around 1-2%. Advances in technology have been able to offer women infertility treatments involving IVF, donor eggs, sperm donors and surrogacy. While the above options may work for many, couples over 35 may still experience difficulties conceiving. If you have been trying to have a baby naturally for six to twelve months with no success, it may be time to see a fertility specialist and your GP can point you in the right direction. A fertility specialist will run a series of tests that may include an ultrasound to look at your uterus, tubes and ovaries, a sperm count for your partner or donor, blood tests for your hormone levels and a check of your ovarian reserve. They will then advise you on what assistance may be appropriate. Some couples will conceive if they just keep trying for a little longer.

Pregnancy A pregnancy after age 40 is considered higher risk and your doctor will recommend that you are monitored more closely for the following: •ectopic pregnancy, which sometimes happens with in vitro fertilisation (IVF) •pregnancy loss including miscarriage or stillbirth •high blood pressure — this may increase your risk of a pregnancy complication called preeclampsia •gestational diabetes - an early glucose test may be recommended •birth defects, such as Down syndrome - some early testing may be advised, including the non-invasive pre-natal test (NIPT) •premature birth or a low birth weight •caesarean section may be more likely to be needed •vaginal trauma at the birth Having said all of that, most women will still go on to have an uncomplicated pregnancy. You can reduce the risk of having complications by optimising your health before pregnancy and it would be worth speaking to your GP or obstetrician before starting. Issues to consider would include: checking you are in a healthy weight range, stopping smoking, improving any health conditions you have, reviewing your medications, optimising your mental health and starting folic acid supplements (usually 400mcg tablet daily but a higher dose if you have certain conditions).

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YOUR EVENT GUIDE

Stellar Short Film Festival Saturday 29 February 5–11.30pm McClelland Sculpture Park + Gallery, Langwarrin Check website for prices

December to April Cinema Pop Up

Ventana Fiesta

Thursday 12– Sunday 15 December

Saturday 29 February 1–9pm

Gates open at 7pm

Frankston Arts Centre and Library Forecourt, Frankston

DEC

George Pentland Botanic Gardens, Frankston Check website for prices

2019

Little Beauty Market Saturday 14 December (monthly until April) 9am–2pm

MAR

Beauty Park High Street, Frankston

2020

JAN

Street Art Walking Tour

The Big Picture Fest Monday 16–Sunday 22 March Block Party: Friday 20 March, 4–10pm

2020

Sunday 12 January (monthly) 11am or 1.30pm, 1.5 hours Frankston City Centre, Frankston Check website for prices

FEB

Frankston City Centre

Waves and Wheels Film Festival Cinema on the Beach Friday 27–Sunday 29 March 5.30–10.30pm

2020

Frankston Waterfront, Frankston Check website for prices

Party in the Park The Waterfront Festival Saturday 15–Sunday 16 February Saturday 11am–10pm & Sunday 11am–6pm Frankston Waterfront, Frankston

1300 322 842 visitfrankston.com visitfrankston

APR

Tuesday 7 April 9.30am–1.30pm Cruden Farm, Langwarrin

2020

* Check website for upcoming dates, entry fees and times. Subject to change without notice.


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The Chemistry of Dad and

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onding with your baby isn’t just a ‘mum’ thing. It’s true that mums have a bit of a head start because they are the ones growing the baby and they have all sorts of amazing hormonal changes that prepare them to birth, breastfeed, and nurture babies. However, new research suggests that expectant and new fathers actually experience biological and hormonal changes that prepare them for parenting too.

Anthropologists Lee Gettler, Christopher Kuzawa, and colleagues at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, and the University of San Carlos in Cebu City, Philippines worked with a group of about 600 men participating in the survey. They measured morning and evening salivary testosterone levels in 2005, when the men were about age 21, then again in 2009. This research, which tested men’s saliva for testosterone levels reported that new fathers showed a 30 percent decrease in testosterone. The study authors speculate that the drop in testosterone seems to be a biological adjustment that helps men shift their priorities when children come along. While high testosterone levels have been linked to aggression, extroversion, and risk-taking, drops in testosterone have been linked to fathers’ responsiveness to their children, Other research shows that the hormones prolactin and cortisol (both connected with pregnant women) rise significantly in the three weeks before birth is due. It seems that being near your pregnant partner and the effects of her pheromones, triggers hormonal changes in expectant dads. Then, when your baby is born, cuddling and playing with your little one will elicit the release of hormones like prolactin, the hormone of tender nurturing, oxytocin, the love hormone, and beta endorphins, feel good hormones that are also known as the hormones of pleasure and reward. continued next page...

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This means that the more you interact with your baby right from the start, the happier you will feel so the more you will want to play – and the better your relationship with your baby will develop The good news (in case you are worried that playing with your baby will make you less ‘manly’) is that these lower testosterone levels won’t affect your libido – they are still within normal levels. You could see it as though every nappy you change, every cuddle you share and every game of peekaboo that has you and your baby chuckling with delight is an emotional investment in your baby’s wellbeing and his trust in you. Here are some fun ways to bond with your baby – right from the start! Talk to the bump! Research has shown that babies can distinguish between their parents’ and strangers’ voices from 30 weeks in the womb—and the same study found that if dads speak to a baby before birth, the newborn will recognize his father’s voice. So talk—or sing—to that bump and your baby will know you as soon as he hears you on the ‘outside’.

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Pop him in a pouch: Carrying your baby close in a baby carrier is a great way to keep him happy as he hears your heartbeat and your deep voice. You can take him out for a walk while mum rests (warning: dads carrying babies get a lot of positive attention from strange women). Or, just go about your business – walk the dog, rake the leaves or vacuum – your baby will love the movement and you will get brownie points for being a master baby calmer! Bath together: Bathing a tiny slippery baby can be a bit daunting at first. An easier way to manage bathing is to get in the bath or shower with your baby. When you have had a good play, pass him out to mummy to wrap him in a warm towel and cuddle him dry before a feed. Learn baby massage: Massage is not only good for your baby’s health and development as well as his sleep patterns, it’s also a great way to get to know your baby’s non-verbal language and boost your confidence. An Australian study of infant massage and father-baby bonding, found that at 12 weeks old, babies who were massaged by their fathers greeted their Dads with more eye contact, smiling, vocalising and touch than those in the control group. To learn how, check out Pinky McKay’s baby massage DVD Try the colic waltz: Although it’s much more fun to play with a happy baby, when it all goes ‘pear shaped’, Dads are often the best baby settlers. You don’t smell like breast milk so if baby has a bellyache, he can relax without snuffling round for more mummy milk. Besides, you have big strong arms to lie him along (with his legs straddled across your arm and a bit of pressure against his belly). Or snuggle him against your chest with his head tucked under your chin, and hum as you walk – the vibration and deep noise you make will help him calm in no time. Just do it!: Even though you may feel a bit anxious about your baby care skills, especially your ability to calm your tiny, crying baby, just give it a go! And don’t be intimidated by your partner (Ladies, lock up that mother lioness and step back!). Although your lady may seem more confident than you about baby care, she will take time to find her groove too. The more you participate in the care of your baby, the better you will get to know your child and the more your own confidence will grow.

Pinky McKay is an internationally certified lactation consultant (IBCLC) and best-selling author of Sleeping Like a Baby, Parenting By Heart and 100 Ways to Calm the Crying (Penguin Random House). She is also the creator of Boobie bikkies all natural and organic health food cookies for breastfeeding mums. www.pinkymckay.com


Baby poo guide All babies poo - but how often and what it looks like is usually a mystery until the nappy comes off. There is a variety of colours and textures when it comes to baby poo and most of them are normal. Some babies will poo every time they feed and others may go a few days without one. This will depend on their age, whether they are breastfed or formula fed, and if they have started on solids. If you have any concerns about your baby’s health, speak to your doctor or child health nurse.

Green / black (sticky tar-like) This is normal for your baby’s first poo. It’s called ‘meconium’ and will change in the first couple of days.

!

If you see any of the following types of poo in your baby’s nappy, see your doctor and take a sample or the nappy with you. Red Blood in your baby’s poo could be from constipation, if mum has cracked/bleeding nipples, or due to something more serious.

Mustard yellow For a breastfed baby, this is normal. It will be loose and a bit runny.

Chalk white White or grey poo is not normal and could be a sign of a liver problem.

Darker yellow Formula fed babies tend to have darker and slightly firmer poo.

Black Baby poo should only be green or black during the first few days; after that it could be a sign of something more serious.

Frothy green Can happen with babies breastfed from both breasts frequently. Try feeding until one breast is drained before switching.

Constipation Dark green Sometimes found with babies on formula. Usually because of the iron found in the formula and nothing to worry about.

Green / brown As you start to introduce solid food, this will be one of the many shades you can expect to see in your baby’s nappy.

Babies often strain, make noises and go red in the face when they are doing a normal poo, but signs of constipation can include: • a hard and dry poo • a firm and pebble-like poo • your baby being upset • poo with a streak of blood Fully breastfed babies shouldn't get constipation. If you are feeding with formula, make sure the mix is correct.

Diarrhoea Orange Another example of the variety of colours solid foods can produce in your baby’s poo.

Brown As they get older, your baby’s poo will be more like grown-up poo.

Baby poo tends to be quite runny, particularly before they start on solids, but if they become more runny and more frequent than usual, it could be diarrhoea. Signs include: • a watery poo • more poo than usual • baby is also unwell, particularly vomiting • baby doesn't want to feed If your baby is either constipated or has diarrhoea, visit your doctor or child health nurse.

Call us on 1800 882 436 or visit pregnancybirthbaby.org.au www.peninsulakids.com.au

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Granny’s Guide to Breastfeeding in Summer

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By Yvette O’Dowd

L

ike everyone, babies need additional hydration when temperatures start to rise. But there’s no need to reach for a bottle of boiled water. Breastmilk is wonderfully adaptive to the changing needs of babies and toddlers and is all that they need to quench thirst, as well as satisfy hunger. Here are some tips to keep both mother and child comfortable as they breastfeed when the weather warms up. Be flexible with feeds

Some babies feed very frequently on hot days, often coming to the breast for short feeds every hour or so. Breastmilk gradually becomes creamy and rich as a feed progresses, with the first part of a feed quickly quenching thirst. So, don’t be surprised by these quick top-ups: you are your baby's drink bottle, and frequent sips are in orde.! However, some babies are the complete opposite and like to take siestas in the heat of the day, using the cooler hours to catch up on their milk intake. continued next page...

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Stay hydrated Young babies might need to be woken to feed if they have slept 3-4 hours, but older babies and toddlers can take longer naps – as long as you allow free access to the breast when needed. It is important not to limit breastfeeds, as babies can and do become dehydrated easily. Eight to twelve breastfeeds in 24 hours is typical but this could double when it’s hot!

Stay cool Snuggling up close with your breastfed baby or toddler can be wonderful – until you both feel hot and sweaty! Then it can feel like the last thing you want to do. Luckily there are things you can do to stay comfortable. If your home isn’t air conditioned, a fan can make things cooler, but avoid directing it right on young babies, as they can chill quickly and become cold. Instead, choose settings which keep the air moving. Find the coolest room in your house and set up your feeding space there – this might could be a tiled area like your bathroom. Many mothers find breastfeeding in a tepid bath with their baby keeps them comfortable and cool. Aim for body temperature water for older babies, slightly warmer for newborns and young babies. If you don’t have someone at home to help you get in and out of the tub, you can safely lay your baby on towels on the floor before you enter or exit the tub, to avoid slips or falls.

While breastfed babies should not be given water, their mother needs to meet her own increased thirst on hot days. Keep your water bottle close and sip often. Oxytocin release (the hormonal process which lets-down your milk) can trigger thirst, so don’t be surprised if you feel thirsty as soon as baby starts to feed. If you like to snack while feeding, choose cooling foods like chilled or frozen fruits, smoothies or iced treats! You can even pack a small cooler to keep by your feeding spot and freeze water in your bottles for refreshment during cluster feeding sessions.

Skin to skin – or not! If you haven’t worked out how great breastfeeding lying down can be, hot weather is a great time to practice! Lying on your side on the bed, with your baby alongside you, can be more comfortable than sitting on a hot, stuffy armchair or couch. A lightly dampened towel or face washer between your bodies or in the crook of your arm can reduce skin contact if you do need to sit up to feed. Dressing yourself and baby in lightweight, natural fabrics can help wick away skin moisture and minimise that sweaty feeling. If you are accustomed to using a feeding pillow, see if you can manage without it now, or lay a cooling towel between you. You might notice your baby’s head becomes hot and sweaty while they feed or sleep – this is quite common, even in the colder months. continued next page...

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Watch those nappies! If your baby is fully breastfed, the number of wet nappies in 24 hours can be a good indicator of their milk intake and hydration. Generally, five heavy disposable nappies or at least six cloth nappies is a good sign. If you give your baby some nappy-free time, you might observe their fresh urine. This should be clear and not very yellow or concentrated, which can indicate more frequent breastfeeds are needed. Watch the baby and not the clock – if you think they need a feed, then offer the breast. If you have any concerns about your baby or young child’s hydration, do seek medical advice.

Summer Nature Play Cranbourne Gardens

You can breastfeed anywhere and everywhere! Summer means the pool, the beach, BBQs and public events. In Australia, you can breastfeed your baby in public places: it is a breach of anti-discrimination law to ask you to stop, cover up, move or “be discreet”. Keep in mind that covering your baby with a nursing cover may lead to overheating for both of you. It is against the law to prevent you accessing goods and services because you are breastfeeding – including using swimming pools or other spaces your baby is permitted to be. You can breastfeed in the pool, the sea, on the beach, in parks and pubs … preventing you is not acceptable and could impact on your baby’s hydration. If your breastfed baby or toddler needs to feed, go for it! Be aware that breastfeeding outdoors in summer can mean skin not usually exposed to the sun might need protection! But keep the sunscreen away from your nipples, as babies don’t seem to like the taste! You might also need to rinse off after a swim, if your baby objects to salty water or chlorine. A broad-brimmed hat is handy to shade you both during a feed or seek shelter under an umbrella or other shade source. Be aware that reflection of the sun off sand or concrete can lead to sunburn, even if you are in the shade. Protect your baby’s skin with long sleeves/pants in light fabrics, as well as sunscreen when age appropriate. Breastfeeding and summer can be a wonderful combination, allowing you to get out and about with your baby. Enjoy!

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Yvette O’Dowd is not your typical grandmother! This mother of three and Granny of two has been a breastfeeding counsellor for more than 25 years. In 2014, Yvette established the Southern Natural Parenting Network, incorporating South Eastern Babywearing Group. With 8000 members world-wide, the group supports parents interested in breastfeeding, babywearing, co-sleeping, babyled weaning and modern cloth nappies – and other aspects of gentle, natural parenting. Yvette has lived in Frankston for 45 years. www.facebook.com/ SouthernNaturalParentingNetwork


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The frequency of your cleaning visits, ● Our 48 point cleaning system ● Fully insured immaculate. you require. myhome spring clean takes just whether that’s weekly, Why choose ? come into your home. Are they qualified? How muc full time staff ● Unique tri-colour systemThere chaotic world. But how do choose? are many questions and when hiring people to and then trying to fit inyou aconcerns social life… it’s nearly impossible tofortnig find There are many questions and concerns when hiring people www.myhomeclean.com.au There are many questions and concerns when hiring people to For trained a ●FREE estimate call Spring Cleaning Regular Cleaning Consistant results ● Guaranteed results There are so many cleaners on qualified? the market, independen 13●● Fully 22 31 to come to your home. Are whether they How much Our 48 point cleaning system31 ● Fully insured 13 22 myhome spring clean takes just that’s weekly, fortnightly, one day to get your home looking monthly or even more often the time to clean. There are many questions and concerns when hiring people to Why choose ? Why choose ? Spring Cleaning Regular Cleaning Why choose ? come into your home. Are they qualified? How much experienced do they have? Are they covered by insurance and mi come into your home. Are they qualified? How much experienc come into your home. Are they qualified? How much experienced www.myhomeclean.com.au ● 13 Consistant results ● Guaranteed results www.myhomeclean.com.au www.myhomeclean.com.au There are so many cleaners on the market, 22Martha 31 | Frankston do| they and professional companies. ● your Over 10 years experience ● Great oneagencies day toyour get looking monthly ormuch even more oftenand ifcustom experience dohome they have? Are they covered by independents, insurance, immaculate. you require. Why choose ? Mount Eliza | Mornington | www.myhomeclean.com.au Mount Somerville come into home. Are they qualified? How experienced The simple answer to gaining control of your life is outsourcing have? Are they covered by insurance and most importantly do they have? Are they byby insurance and most importantly doyears they have? Are theycovered covered insurance and most importan For a FREE estimate call can we trust them? agencies and professional companies. ● Over 10 experience ● Great service ●●help Over 10 years experience ●require. Great customer service immaculate. youcustomer Over 10 years experience ●Our Great customer most importantly, are they trustworthy? Weto offer a they one-day blitz of your regular cleaning service is Mount Eliza | Eliza Mornington | Mount | estimate Frankston | Somerville Mount Eliza Mornington Mount Martha | Frankston || Somerville Mount | | Mornington || Martha Mount Martha Frankston Somerville everything balanced and have time forservice the more they have? Are covered by insurance and most importantly There are many questions and concerns when hiring people ●keep Fully trained full time staff ● Unique tri-co For a FREE call cando we trust them? can we trust them? can we trust them? ● Over 10 years experience ● Great customer service home. Ideal for ‘spring cleaning’ as perfect for your needs, whatever Mount Eliza | Mornington | Mount Martha | Frankston | Somerville ● Fully trained full time staff ● Unique tri-colour system important things. 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They are a professional cleaning company that has been use our unique process to ensurecleaning excellent results eachwill andeach every time. each and every time. are a professional cleaning company that has been servicing doMornington they have? Are they covered by insurance and most importantly At we specialise only in residential which meansthe youThey the quality, safety and security in your home is met. Mornington Peninsula for over seven years and MyHome itself each and every time. and every time. the Peninsula for over seven years and MyHome ● Over 10 years experience ● Great customer service the Mornington Peninsula for over seven yearsitself and Mornington Peninsula for over seven years and MyHome its Mount Eliza | Mornington | Mount Martha Frankston | Somerville the At and we specialise only in residential cleaning |which means you each every time. servicing the Mornington Peninsula for over nine years. can we trust them? 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13 22 31 13 22 31 13 22 31 13 22 31 13 22 31 13 22 • Mount Eliza •31 Martha Mount Martha | 22 Frankston | • Mount Somerville • 13 Mount Eliza • Mornington Martha 13 31 | Mount Martha |Mornington Frankston | • Mount Somerville 22 31 • Mount Eliza • Mornington Martha Mount Martha | Frankston | •| Mount Somerville www.myhomeclean.com.au • Mount Eliza • Mornington • Mount Martha • Frankston • Somerville | Mount Martha | Frankston Somerville For a FREE estimate call www.myhomeclean.com.au www.myhomeclean.com.au For a FREE estimate call call For a FREE estimate www.myhomeclean.com.au www.myhomeclean.com.au For a FREE estimate call

www.myhomeclean.com.au • Frankston www.myhomeclean.com.au www.myhomeclean.com.au

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Mount ElizaEliza • Mornington • Mount Martha • Frankston • Somerville Mount • Mornington • Mount Martha • Frankston • Somerville Mount Eliza • Mornington • Mount Martha • Frankston • Somerville Mount • Mornington • Mount Martha • Frankston • Somerville Mount Eliza • Mornington • Mount Martha •• Mount Eliza • Mornington • Mount Martha Mount Martha Frankston | Somerville Mount Martha | |Eliza Frankston | Somerville • Frankston • Somerville

• Mount • Mornington • Mount Martha | Mount Martha |Frankston Frankston |Somerville Somerville • Mount Eliza • Mornington Martha Mount Martha | Eliza | • Mount

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• Frankston •October Somerville • Frankston • Somerville 32 | PENINSULA October 2017 • Frankston • Somerville 32 | PENINSULA 2017 Mount Eliza • Mornington 32 |32 PENINSULA October 2017 | PENINSULA October 2017

• Mount Martha • Frankston • Somerville E Mount Eliza • Mornington • Mount Martha • Frankston • Somerville E Mount Eliza • Mornington • Martha • Frankston • Somerville Mount Eliza • MorningtonMount • Mount Martha • Frankston www.peninsulakids.com.au 131• Som 32 PENINSULA

October 2017


Pre School

Win!

NOW THAT’S A HAT

BY HEATH MCKENZIE

3+yrs, Scholastic, h/b $17.99 That hat is too BIG! That hat is too SMALL! That hat is too SHORT! That hat is too TALL! That one’s too CRAZY! And that one might BITE! How hard can it be to find a hat that’s JUST RIGHT?!

JACK AND THE BEANSTALK

Prize pack of the reviewed books, go to; www.peninsulakids.com.au/giveaways

THEODORE THE UNSURE BY PIP SMITH

3+yrs, Scholastic, h/b, $17.99 King Theodore, Ruler of the Whole Animal Kingdom, doesn't like making decisions. What if he made a mistake? But one day he must make the biggest decision of his life–should he cut his mane? What will Theodore the Unsure do?

BAD CRAB

BY MATT OTTLEY

BY AMELIA MCINERNE

GOLDILOCKS AND THE THREE BEARS

BY LAURA BUNTING

3+yrs, Scholastic, h/b, $17.99 Jack sells their dear old cow for some magic beans. When they grow and grow and grow right up to the sky, what will Jack find at the top?

BY SUE deGENNARO

3+yrs, Scholastic, h/b, $17.99 A little girl named Goldilocks goes for a walk in the forest. What happens when she comes upon a house owned by three bears?

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3+yrs, Scholastic, h/b, $24.99 A tale so tall you will pinch yourself. Get set for one shell of a story, as this crabby crustacean grabs life by the claws!

LIARBIRD

4+yrs, Scholastic, h/b, $17.99 Liarbirds learn to lie from the day they hatch. They are the best in the bush at fibbing, faking, fabricating and fake-news creating. Until one lyrebird decides to go straight, and discovers that sometimes even the truth hurts.

Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

GOAT ON A BOAT

BY NICK DENT

BAA BAA BLUE SHEEP

BY TONY WILSON

4+yrs, Scholastic, h/b, $24.99 When a goat arrives on a rocky island, the resident sheep are afraid he'll eat all their grass. But this goat has hidden talents... This humorous story for children has an important message to convey.

4+yrs, Scholastic, h/b, $17.99 ‘Baa baa blue sheep, have you any wool?’ ‘Yes, sir, yes sir, nine bags full!’ The master and dame want ALL the wool! Blue! Orange! Green! Red! But can the little boy who lives down the lane convince them to share?

WANDERING STAR

DUMAZI AND THE BIG YELLOW LION

BY STEPHEN MICHAEL KING

3+yrs, Scholastic, h/b, $24.99 I have a horse, a beautiful horse, and her name is Wandering Star. We roam wild and free, from the hills to the sea, and it's magic wherever we are. Follow this truly enchanting story of discovery, adventure and wonderful friends.

MACCA’S MAKEOVER

BY MATT COSGROVE

3+yrs, Scholastic, h/b, $17.99 Macca the Alpaca desperately wants to be cool, just like his friends. Will a new hair-do cut it? Maybe a trip to the gym will work out? Or perhaps he needs the latest accessories? Macca's makeover shows him what it is that makes him truly special.

BY VALANGA KHOZA

3+yrs, Scholastic, h/b, $24.99 On her way to the waterhole, Dumazi finds a big yellow lion caught in a trap. ‘Please save my life and set me free,’ he begs. But Dumazi knows that lions roaming free eat little Zulu girls like her...

DISGUSTING McGROSSFACE

BY ROVE MCMANUS

4+yrs, Scholastic, h/b, $17.99 Who brings in mud then licks his feet dry? Disgusting McGrossface, he's your guy. When Mum and Dad come home to find muddy footprints all over the floor, there's only one creature to blame...


School Aged

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Book Reviews

ELLA DIARIES: GYM SQUAD TUMBLE

GEORGE AND THE GREAT BRAIN SWAPPERY

5+yrs, Scholastic, p/b, $12.99 Hotdog, Lizzie and Kev want to be MOVIE STARS! But first they’ll have to try out with all the other actors to find the perfect roles. Do Hotdog and his friends have what it takes to get the parts?

7+yrs, Scholastic, p/b, $14.99 Everyone’s favourite Wolf has a LOT of explaining to do. Big? Yep. Bad? You betcha. Unmissable? YESSSSSSSSSSS. But seriously, will someone tell those whiny Three Little Pig dudes to stop saying 'We told you so'?

7+yrs, Scholastic, p/b, $12.99 Ella and her friends all LOVE GYMNASTICS and they convince their whole class to do a special showcase for International Sports Day. Then Ammy chooses Ella’s arch-rival, Peach, to be the PICOOTS (Person in Charge of Organising the Showcase).

7+yrs, Scholastic, p/b, $12.99 REASONS PEOPLE THINK MY FAMILY IS ODD: 1. Mum is an inventor extraordinaire. 2. I have a brother the size of a lemon. 3. Our Brains got swapped with WILD ANIMALS on a school excursion to the zoo!!!

PUPPY DIARY: THE GREAT TOY RESCUE

BY CHRISSIE PERRY

BLABBER MOUTH

OLIVIA’S SECRET SCRIBBLES: MUSIC MAKERS

BY ANH DO

HOTDOG! #6 MOVIE TIME!

BY ANH DO

THE BAD GUYS EPISODE 9: THE BIG BAD WOLF BY AARON BLABEY

BY MEREDITH COSTAIN

BY CAL WILSON

NINJA KID #4: AMAZING NINJA

BY YVETTE POSHOGLIAN

6+yrs, Scholastic, p/b $9.99 Hi! I’m Archie! I’m a Schnoodle puppy and I love writing all about my PAWESOME adventures in my diary! Read all about my puppy pals at doggie daycare and all the adventures we go on together!

7+yrs, Scholastic, p/b, $12.99 Amelie has two VERY BIG SECRETS: 1. She is the mysterious author of the school newsletter's advice column. 2. She plans to bring in one of her uncles adorable puppies for show and tell. But keeping these secrets is hard when you're a blabbermouth!

BY MEREDITH COSTAIN

6+yrs, Scholastic, p/b $9.99 We want to make our own musical instruments and put on a show. But somebody keeps breaking our instruments! We need to find out who is doing it. This show needs to be super amazing!

7+yrs Scholastic, p/b $14.99 The CIRCUS is coming to town, and NELSON and his friends have a chance to be part of the show! Nelson’s AMAZING NINJA SKILLS will be PERFECT! But what will NINJA Nelson do when BIG TROUBLE arrives at the BIG TOP!

DARING DELLY

WEIRDO 13 WEIRDOMANIA!

ELLA AND OLIVIA: FUN FRIENDSHIP TALES

COWBOY & BIRDBRAIN P.O.O.P. OF DOOM

BY MATTHEW DELLAVEDOVA

7+yrs, Scholastic, p/b $14.99 When tryouts are called for a NEW local basketball team, Delly and his mates are determined to make the cut. But with footy training, tennis and school, will Delly have time to practise basketball? ABSOLUTELY. Delly is as daring as he is determined and he’ll do whatever it takes!

BY ANH DO

6+yrs, Scholastic, p/b $15.99 What's a sheep's best wrestling move? The LAMB CHOP? Everyone is going nuts for WRESTLECRAZIA—the coolest wrestling show around! Can Weir come up with an awesome idea to WIN tickets for his whole family to see the show? It won’t be easy...but it will be FUNNY!

BY YVETTE POSHOGLIAN

6+yrs, Scholastic, h/b $17.99 Meet Ella and Olivia.Big sister. Little sister.Best friends! Join Ella and Olivia in six brand-new tales as they play in a netball final, go to a pizza party and perform in a trampoline show! Everything is more fun with a friend by your side!

BY ADAM WALLACE

7+yrs, Scholastic, p/b $12.99 Cowboy and Birdbrain are best friends who deliver P.O.O.P. (Parcels Or Other Packages) for IFFY Deliveries. They’re known for their F.A.R.T.S. (Fast and Reliable Tracking Services). Their next mission is to deliver a mystery package to a hermit with an elaborate security system.

www.peninsulakids.com.au

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Creative

By Annabelle Carter-Short Sensory activities are crucial for some children. The exercises help the child in improving coordination and stimulating the brain and enhancing the sensory processing system. The activities also improve the child’s social skills and calm them down when they get agitated. If you worry about finding the right sensory play activity for your child, you can work with your child’s teacher or occupational therapist.

Here are some activities you can try out:

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Fragrant Dough You will need all-purpose flour and oil to prepare large dough for playing. You want the dough non-sticky. You can include food coloring although this is optional. Proceed to divide the dough into different bowls. Add and mix different ingredients into each bowl. Use scented ingredients that your child can easily distinguish from the others. Examples include cinnamon, lemon juice, ginger, and vanilla essence. Let your child squish and mold the dough as they play. This way, they will enjoy the different scents and try to identify them as they play. The mixture is safe just in case your child swallows it.

Making Shapes

Making shapes is an excellent learning activity for autistic children, and it introduces to them the concept of puzzles. A craft stick has half of its entire shape, and your child’s needs to find the pairing shape and place the two side by side to have a complete shape. The good thing about making shapes is that it engages your child in the entire process. You will need about 20 craft sticks and different colored markers. Place a pair of craft stick side by side. Let your child sketch a shape in a manner that when you split paired sticks, the two have a similar shape. Allow your kid to make as many stick pairs and mix them. Encourage the young one to find the sticks and pair them to their correct shapes. You will need to help your child learn about symmetry so that he or she can sketch symmetric objects and make shapes such as squares, triangle, and circle.

Annabelle Carter Short is a writer and seamstress of more than seven years. When not working, she’s spending time with her family or putting pen to paper for her own personal pursuits. Annabelle enjoys crafting and DIY projects with her two kids. She is passionate about autism and she homeschools her autistic son. She also works with few organizations to provide the best resources for raising and educating a special needs child. 134

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Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20

Finding Toys

The activity will help your child improve his or her sensory skills via touching and feeling different objects. For this activity, you will need a large-size plastic bucket and fill it with beads (or beans). Proceed to hide as many toys as you have inside the bead-filled bucket. Let the little one put his or her hand into the beads and pull out a toy by feeling it.


Food Tasting

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This activity entails having your child taste various types of food while blindfolded and then tell you what the food is. To make the game more interesting, you will have to consider the types of foods your child likes and what he or she dislikes. However, this food tasting allows you to introduce new foods tastes and textures to your child. Include a variety of foods such as bananas, guacamole, tomato sauce, bread, yogurt, jelly, cereal, and rice cakes.

Extracting Frozen Toys From Ice

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For this activity, you will require early preparations like a day or two before. You will need a large plastic box but not too big to fit in your freezer. Fill the plastic box with water to quarter level, immerse some toys and freeze the water. Repeat the procedure so that you have three or more layers of ice block with toys inside. During play, the child’s activity will be to extract the toys from the block of ice using the tools you provide them. Let the children use child-friendly tools like toy hammers, or you can give a spray bottle with warm water.

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Scented Rice

Scented rice is another way to engage your child’s sense of smell. For this activity, you will need a few cups of uncooked rice, socks or a small pouched bag (you can improvise a fabric pouch) and essential oils such as lavender. Prepare by dividing the rice into separate containers. Mix the rice with food color and add a few drops of the essential oils into each cup of rice before mixing. Let your child play with the rice in a tub, or you can put the rice in a sock or pouched clothes so your child can squeeze. You can use different scents for the different cup separations of rice.

Improvised Musical Instruments You can work with your children to make different musical instruments at home. The good thing about the instruments is that making them is as fun as playing them. Making the instruments is also engaging for the children. Think simple instruments such as;

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• For drums, you can use simple sticks or wooden spoons as drumsticks and a tub for the drum. • Make chimes by hanging shells or bottle tops • Make shakers by filling plastic bottles with dried beans, rice or pebbles • You can also thread beads or buttons onto a string and use these as rattles. It all depends on your creativity and the items at your disposal. Remember the aim is to make the instruments together, not buy actual instruments from the supermarket. www.peninsulakids.com.au

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Wool Wall Hangings

You’ll Need:

piece of dowel or stick• 60 strands of yarn each measuring 120cm long • 30cm • Optional embellishments – beads, lace, ribbon, pompoms

How to do it: 1. Start by cutting 60 lengths of string. I put a ruler on the ground and sloppily drag the yarn back and forth, back and forth then snipped. Don’t worry about perfection, you can shape it perfectly, if you want to, at the end of the project. 2. We’ll use three strings for each knot, so fold your lengths of string over once and arrange in whatever pattern you choose. (I think this helped the kids see what they were doing.)

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3. Leave 3cm of stick at the end and start knotting by putting the loop under your stick and passing the tail of the yarn over the stick and through the loop. Pull to tighten. 4. Keep making knots all the way across the stick. If you mess up the pattern or decide you want to add more between, the knots can slide easily across to make room. Just be careful not to slide them all the way off the stick!

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5. Stop knotting when there is 3cm of exposed stick on the other end.

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6. We added some extra personality to our wall hangings by braiding a few of our strands together, tying on a pompom here and there, a knot of coloured lace and a couple of beads.

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7. The kids like the ends shaggy, (ehh..I wanted to cut them into a neat ‘V’ shape, but I digress…), so I knotted a long piece of yarn to each end of the pattern and wrapped around a few times to use for hanging.


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Peninsula Kids – Summer 2019/20


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