Since 1975, ‘My Place’ Family Day Care has provided an outstanding Family Day Care service across Queensland. We have proudly served thousands of families with highly affordable and excellent quality child care, achieving an overall assessment rating of ‘Exceeding National Quality Standards’.
On Saturday, 28 April 2018, ‘My Place’ Family Day Care held the 2018 Educators’ Annual Mini Conference from 9am – 3:30pm at Springfield Tavern.
In pursuit of providing the best possible childcare service and complying with the National Quality Standards, ‘My Place’ Family Day Care welcomed all our Educators to attend this important Conference as a crucial part of professional development with topics relating to the multicultural and indigenous settings.
The Conference commenced with registration at 9am where everyone received information packs and mingled while enjoying a cup of tea & coffee. ‘My Place’ Family Day Care Team Leader and Senior Coordinator, Barbara Stonehouse and Kathy Angus, began with Acknowledgement to Country, followed by housekeeping related matters and an introduction to the Mini Conference, covering the activities and programme for the day.
The first workshop centred on the topic of “Working with Multicultural Families within Early Childhood Setting” spoken by our very own Jatinder Kaur, The Oasis Centre Manager and Director of JK Diversity Consultants. Jatinder is an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker specialist and has been active in the role for over 15 years with extensive experience in working with migrant and refugee communities. (Full Bio: http://about.ich.org.au/the-oasis-centre)
This 2 hour session was designed to enhance Educators’ ability to meet the needs of multicultural families and children. The seminar encompassed an eclectic mix of subjects: Building Relationship with Multicultural Parents and Children Along with Understanding Their Dynamics, Diverse Child Rearing Practices, and finally, Supporting Bilingual Children and Ethnic Culture. Jatinder’s presentation was engaging and easy to understand, as questions were asked through, keeping everyone engaged and interested until the end.
Following the first workshop, there were Door Prizes awarded to some lucky Educators. Afterwards, Jodie Roswell, one of ‘My Place’ Family Day Care Coordinator, announced that our brand-new ‘My Place’ Family Day Care Shirts are officially available for purchase. Made from ultra-high performance fabric, these shirts are perfect for outdoor activities, comfortable & durable, ideal for running around and finally, they look professional and can be worn anywhere.
During lunch break, an abundance of scrumptious food and drinks were served for everyone to enjoy. Educators were able to mingle, share their experiences and make new friends among other Educators who share similar interests and backgrounds. As we are a community-focused childcare service, we cultivate a fun and friendly environment, inclusive to everyone involved.
“We focus on making sure everyone here felt welcomed and involved. I was glad to see a lot of our current Educators outwardly, with open arms, welcoming others who are new to our Family Day Care, so no one was sitting or having lunch on their own,” said Barbara Stonehouse.
After lunch, we hosted a special ‘Service Awards’ ceremony to honour our long-serving Educators and staff who achieved their milestone of 5, 10, 15, 20 or 25 years of service. We congratulate all our dedicated Educators & staff members, particularly Maria Cabrera for her 25 years of excellent service as an Educator.
Our second workshop, titled “Embedding First Nations Perspectives”, was delivered by Sharron (Mirii) Lindh from Indigenous Insights. Sharon’s passion-driven focus and positive approach to life is the key to her business’ success which focuses on Cultural Education and well-being. The 2 hour session covered: Creating an “Aboriginal-friendly” Environment, Understanding Aboriginal Customs, Yarning and Sacred Circle, and much more. Lots of attendees found her workshop to be very informative and enjoyable, as she included some physical activities and had everyone standing and dancing to the music. After the workshop, Sharon took the time to speak with Educators, answer their questions while tending her stall, selling CDs, arts and crafts.
At the end of the event, all Educators left the Conference with lots of new knowledge and wonderful insights about the multicultural and indigenous perspectives, which is in line with National Quality Standards and Regulations.
“It was a highly educational day and I am happy to see lots of new faces around. So, thank you to everyone involved – the Coordinators, invited Guest Speakers and Educators, for making the 2018 Educators’ Annual Mini Conference another successful event or even better, the best one yet, based on the feedback we received. I look forward to organising next year’s Conference and I hope to see you all there!” said Kathy Angus.
To become an Educator and enrol your child at My Place Family Day Care, simply contact us today: 3372 1711 | FFDCadmin@ich.org.au | www.MyPlaceFDC.org.au
