MAY 2013

Welcome to the April 2013 Camden Macarthur Local Child Care & Services Directory. 

This month we welcome Hire For Baby to our Resources for Parents Directory read all about this great service below.

This month our parent resource is about Toddlers & Eating. As a mum of 3 I know how hard it can be make sure you little ones are getting enough of the right foods and to stop meal times become a battle. We hope this information helps.

WIN...WIN.... This month you have the chance to win a family pass (4 tickets) and fab promo pack for Miffy The Movie valued at $65.00.

For your chance to win simply email us to go into the draw and tell us if you have used our newsletter or site to find or look for care or other child related information.

Hire For Baby the complete baby equipment hire service.

Let Hire for Baby help you with all your baby equipment hire needs for a day, a week or a few months with our friendly, professional service.   At Hire for Baby, we offer a high quality baby equipment rental service at great prices. 

We stock a wide range of products from car capsules and car seats to breast pumps and portacots.

Special offer: Child Restraint Audit - Usually Valued at $30 per child restraint for only $20 per restraint or $50 for 3 restraints
Safety Check of existing child restraints already fitted into cars, this offer includes

• Checking existing child restraints within the car - that they are correctly fitted
• Refitting of any child restraint not fitted correctly
• Untwisting of belts and adjustment of belts if not correctly fitted
• Providing parents with some safety tips for the ongoing care of these restraints valid until 1st June 2013.

Busy Kids Preschool Long Day Care Centre is a privately owned and family operated organisation established to provide high quality care and education for children birth to years. Busy Kidz has been operating since 2002.

Kim and John Geraghty are the proprietors and Kim is Early Childhood Trained with 22years teaching experience.

Busy Kidz prides it's self in being a warm, caring and friendly centre, where children can develop and learn to their full potential. Your child will be supported to grow physically, emotionally, intellectually, socially and creatively.

We have three bright and colourful playrooms that are large and well appointed with a range of quality toys and resources. All rooms are air conditioned and provide a variety of areas for your child to participate in a range of group and individual experiences throughout their day.

Our large outdoor play area is well shaded with trees and large shade sails. We have a variety of fixed climbing equipment and forts as well as moveable equipment that allow for children to have fun climbing, running, jumping and exploring their environment.

We provide Nutritious meals cooked on the premises by our cook - Breakfast, Morning tea, Lunch, afternoon tea and a late afternoon tea. Meals meet nutritional guidelines and cater for children with special dietary requirements. Our meals are culturally diverse and prepared with fresh ingredients daily.

We are open 50 weeks of the year from 7.00am to 6.00pm.

Miffy The Movie See Dick Bruna's iconic little bunny in her first ever movie! Miffy and her friends are going on a treasure hunt in the zoo! They solve clues from Mother and Father bunny and along the way they meet all kinds of animals. What an exciting adventure!

Begin Bright School Readiness & Primary Tutoring Centres
For Term 2, Begin Bright Harrington Park are offering a free school readiness trial class for new customers. 

Come in and let your child try one class for free. "Learning is fun for everyone, when you Begin Bright"

Sensory Tools Australia presentstwo internationally-acclaimed workshops by
Handwriting Without Tears.

1. Pre-K / 2nd Grade Workshop 6 Cpd Hours! Penrith: 2 June
2. Print Tools For Professionals 7 Cpd Hours! Penrith: 3 June **Note: completion of - the Pre-K / 2nd Grade Workshop - is a pre-requisite for this course

The internationally acclaimed Handwriting Without Tears Workshops use a fun, multi-sensory, hands-on approach to child development in handwriting. These workshops use dynamic instruction in teaching methodology from preschool and writing readiness level up to writing and printing both uppercase and lowercase letters.

The HWT workshops provide powerful and practical ideas and materials for immediate use in the classroom or clinic setting. Participants describe these two leading-edge workshops as the most affordable, dynamic and informative professional development available. This easy-to-teach, easy-to-learn curriculum makes handwriting mastery joyful for students and their instructors, teachers, therapists, caregivers, and parents.

Current research demonstrates that writing by hand improves creative writing skills and fine motor abilities. Come along and learn just how easy it is to help children get great results in school. In fact elementary students have been found to write faster by hand than when keyboarding.

All participants will leave with simple, ready to use strategies for the children they support.

Presented By International Speaker Christina Bretz
Cost:

1. PRE-K WORKSHOP $490 Early Bird rate; reg. $590 **Registration Includes full workshop kit valued at $250
2. PRINT TOOLS WORKSHOP $490 Early Bird rate; reg. $590 **Registration includes full workshop kit valued at $200
3. BOTH WORKSHOPS $980 Early Bird rate; reg. $1180

Workshop Venue: Penrith: 2 & 3 June 2013.

Eating & Toddlers

After the age of 12 to 18 months, there is a definite change in children's eating patterns as their growth slows down and they require less food. It is common for parents to be concerned that their toddlers are not eating enough or seem to be becoming fussy with the type of food they will eat.

Toddler eating behaviour:

• eat less 
• like to each frequently
• may become fussy with their food
• like to handle and explore their food
• may develop strong likes and dislikes...and frequently change their minds about what they like and what they don't like!
• frequently mimic the eating behavours of their parents

Meal times

Parents need to provide a safe, comfortable environment, and food that is nutritious and appropriate to the age and stage of your toddler.

Remember toddlers enjoy:

• eating with the family and they will often try to eat from other people's plates
• eating without interference from others as they will use a spoon as well as their fingers - but be prepared for a bit of a mess and meal times to be time consuming
• eating small meals or snacks at regular intervals
• helping with simple food preparation - toddlers will often snack on the food as they help you
• having things ready straight away - they don't like to wait for anything so BEFORE sitting your toddlers in their high chair have their food ready to eat
• having food preferences that seem boring to us as adults e.g. will only eat carrots for a week or beans
• helping to serve their own meal 
• drinking milk and juice - this can decrease their appetite - so limit these types of drinks or add water to dilute the concentration

Things to remember:

• Aim to make mealtimes enjoyable for the whole family ... not a battleground
• If your family normally eats their evening meal late, your toddler may be tired and will need to eat earlier
• Provide a variety of foods 
• Encourage safe eating habits - always get your child to sit down to eat
• Praise your child for eating a range of foods rather than the quantity of food they eat
• Try to model a health approach to nutrition by trying to avoid offering foods low in nutrition such as chips, biscuits or lollies
• Be realistic about what you expect your toddler to eat
• Keep food simple for example finger foods such as pieces of fruit
• Reduce distractions during mealtime - turn off the television

Toddlers like attention:

• if behaviour is positive - praise
• if behaviour is disruptive ue distractions, or remove them from the table and re-offer once again a short time later
• always wash your hands and your toddler's hands prior to handling food

Reassure yourself with the following thoughts, young children:

• eat when hungry
• never starve to death from refusing food

If Still Concerned

Keeping a record of what your toddler eats for a week can be helpful. You might find:

• They eat more food than you thought they did
• There is a pattern of too much milk or juice that is decreasing their appetite
• Too many snack foods are being allowed between meals