Pongo pānui/December Newsletter 2024

Term 4 2025 

Kia ora koutou,

Well just like that we are writing the last newsletter for 2025.

We have had a few new families start since the last newsletter was sent out. So, a big welcome to all our new families. Everyone is settling in really well to Moa.

The spring bugs have been out and about recently and I feel they are never ending.  We often find in spring where we get the odd warm day, and then back to cold, that we often see a spike in colds and other winter bugs. This has been the case recently. I just want to say a huge thank you to everyone for keeping their children off when they are not 100%. I am hoping with summer now upon us we start to see the decline in these bugs. Hopefully with summer upon us, we see less of them.

At the start of 2025, we experienced a few changes, and since then, we’ve had a fabulous year. Some of the highlights include receiving excellent ERO review results and successfully having solar panels installed on our roof. We have also continued our focus on sustainability by actively managing our waste and looking for ways to reduce our environmental impact.

Our waitlist continues to grow, reflecting the high demand to get into Moa. While this is wonderful, it can make it tricky to fit in additional sessions or getting in siblings. If you are interested in extra days or wanting to enrol siblings, we are not already aware of, please let us know as soon as possible so we can accommodate your requests and avoid disappointment.

With the Christmas break just around the corner, please can families email through any holiday dates so we can apply the holiday rate to your bookings. We close at 3pm on Friday 19th December and open on Monday 5th January at 8am.

With new families joining Moa, and some families inquiring about the committee, it’s a good time to explain about us being a community-based preschool and what that is all about. With Moa being a non-profit preschool, we are required to have an active Governance Committee which is made up of parents. We meet once a month, which is normally the third Monday of the month, here at the centre @7.30pm, or sometimes online.

It means every year at our AGM (May) we look for new families to come onto this. We will be looking for new families to join us this year as we have a lot of members coming off. We are in particular looking for a new treasurer. We would love to hear from anyone that may have an interest in this, or skill set, who could take on this role. Steve who is currently in this role and would do the hand over and show them the role. If anyone is interested or would love to pop along to a meeting to see what it is all about, please come and see me. We have a great brochure that explains the roles and I am happy to have a chat with people and explain a bit more😊.

As you probably all know the Moa Kids lost property has a trend to grow and grow. We really would like to get a better handle on this moving into the new year. Please can families try and name all their items and regularly check the lost property. What is left at the end of the year will be donated to charity.

Well, wasn’t Thursday another fabulous Christmas event! It feels like we take over the park a bit more and more each year. It’s one of my favourite events at Moa, seeing our wonderful community coming together to see out another year in a relaxed fashion in the park.

I just want to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their continued support this year. It certainly has been a busy one.

I want to wish everyone a wonderful Kirihimete (Christmas) and a well-deserved break. We look forward to seeing you all in the (Tau Hou) New Year!

Enjoy the last weeks of 2025.

Nga mihi maioha

Hayley

A few Reminders:

A few Reminders:

·       Lunch boxes:  You have most probably noticed the very full lunchbox shelf in the preschool.  We would really appreciate it if all children’s lunch boxes, drink bottles and food contain could be named, as well as food that needs to go in the fridge.  There is a permanent marker attached to the basket for the food that needs to be kept in the fridge. Thanks.

·       Nut Free Zone: Moa Kids is a “nut free” zone.  Lately we have been noticing a lot of nut products coming in - cashews, almonds, peanut butter sandwiches etc.  Please can you remember that we are a nut free zone when you are making your child’s lunch.

·       Lost Property: We have a large amount of lost property. Please come and have a look to see if the treasures and clothing belong to your family. The lost property is in the foyer.  Please name all clothing that comes to preschool as this really helps us to return clothing and hats back to the correct person. Thanks.

·       Preschool Door: Please can all families make sure you are shutting the preschool door behind you. 9am and 3pm are a busy time with children and families coming in and out. If all families can please make sure there is a parent with each child it would be much appreciated.

·       Bread bags: Please bring in any used bread bags for the preschool. These are used for toileting.

    Moved House? We know many of you have recently moved house.  Can you please ensure you have updated Hanna or myself in the office so we can make sure our system is up to date.

·       Nappies: Some parents choose to bring a bag of nappies in for their child and we let the families know when they are running low by writing on the daily role sheet. Please make sure when you see “please bring nappies” that you bring them in as soon as you can. We have emergency nappies if children run out, but these need to be replaced if used. We unfortunately are not in the position to be supplying nappies to children.

Governance Committee

We have finished our meetings for the year. The next Governance Committee meeting is Monday 16th February and will be held here at the centre at 7.30pm.

Preschool News

 Kia ora whānau,

What a wonderful and full term we have had together! Our preschool has been buzzing with learning, creativity, connection, and preparation for the exciting end of year celebrations. We have some upcoming trips into see the Ballantine's window and other special places, so watch this space.

Christmas Concert Preparation

Our preschool has been alive with music, dance, and storytelling as the tamariki have been practising for our Christmas Concert. They have shown such confidence and teamwork, and we are so proud of how much effort they are putting in. Thank you for your support at home as they rehearse and share their excitement!

Preschool Values: Kotahitanga & Whanaungatanga

This term we have placed a strong focus on kotahitanga (unity, working together) and whanaungatanga (relationships and belonging).

The tamariki have been exploring what it means to help one another, include their ehoa, work as a kapa, and build positive relationships within our learning environment. These values have shone through beautifully during group activities, play, and concert preparations. We will be wrapping this up with an evaluation at the start of next year before we spring into a new year with a new project.

Christmas Week; Final Week of Preschool

During the last week of preschool, we will be celebrating with a special Christmas Week. There will be festive activities, crafts, songs, stories, and lots of joyful moments as we come together to finish the year in a fun and meaningful way. We will put the programme up on the wall shortly for all to see, this will also be emailed out.

Calendar Art

Our tamariki have been working incredibly hard on their 2026 calendars, putting time, creativity, and pride into every artwork. These are looking fantastic, and we know they will make treasured keepsakes for you and your whānau. We have given these out to all, if you have not received this please come and communicate to the kaiako, so we can get this sorted.

Te Wā Tuakana and Messy Play Adventures

Te Wā Tuakana has been a wonderful experience for our four-year-olds, giving them leadership opportunities and time to strengthen their confidence and independence.

Our three-year-olds have really been thriving in messy play this term exploring textures, water, paint, sand, mud, and all the sensory magic that supports early learning and development.

The warm weather has meant the return of many fun water activities! The tamariki have loved splashing, pouring, experimenting, and cooling off outdoors.

Please continue to pack plenty of spare clothes, as water play has been very popular.

Show and Tell Review

We are currently completing our Show and Tell review, looking closely at how this learning opportunity supports our tamariki. We will update you on the outcomes and any changes for next year once the review is complete. Thank You for a Wonderful Year.

As we reach the end of another busy and joy filled year, we want to sincerely thank you, our whānau, for your ongoing support, kindness, and partnership. It has been a privilege to teach and grow alongside your tamariki. Their laughter, curiosity, and enthusiasm fill our days with purpose. We are already looking forward to the exciting learning, relationships, and adventures that next year will bring. Have a safe and happy holidays!

Shay and Preschool Team

 Nursery News

Kia ora to all the nursery whanaū,

The last newsletter of the year, how crazy it that! What an amazing year it’s been in the nursery room. As I reflect back over the year, it’s amazing how many positive changes have happened in that little space of ours. As a team, the three of us on the nursery team would like you thank each of the families for their feedback on topics and being so forthcoming with us. It’s great having such a collaborative partnership with everyone and hearing your perspectives on new ideas we may have is very important as in aligns with our philosophy here at Moa.

As we end the year, we will sadly be saying goodbye to our eldest tamaiti, Alora! It has been amazing watching her grow but it’s now time for her to spread her wings and head over to the preschool room in the new year. Sienna has also started her journey into the preschool room. She is in her second week and loving every minute spent in the bigger space with the older children.

We will continue to support her transition when we return in January for another few weeks before her second birthday at the end of the month. On the flip side, we would like to welcome our newest nursery children, Milo and Indie. Milo’s extended whanaū are already part of the nursery group as his cousin, Lily, attends three days a week. It’s been fantastic having you join us Milo and we can’t wait to see you blossom, just like Lily here at Moa. Indie, who has her older sibling, Mala, in the preschool room has also started her visits with us and has big smiles for us each day when she comes in. We look

forward to having you, Indie and your family back in the nursery room with us again.

 It’s amazing what a bit a sunshine can do for all the little faces and how happy it makes us all. We have had such fun over the past few months as we’ve got to enjoy more water play, messy play or just having mat time outside in the garden. Over the last month we have been getting into the Christmas spirit and enjoying a lot of dress-ups and crafts with the tamariki. Many of them love getting involved and mostly getting their hands messy so it’s been such an exciting time.

It was awesome to see all our nursery families coming together to celebrate our Christmas concert last week. It’s such a special time of year and seeing all the extended family coming in too was just amazing. It can be such a crazy time of year but we really appreciate you taking the time out to come in that little bit earlier so we could do something small in the nursery before heading out to the park to the extra madness. It’s also a brilliant opportunity to connect with other Moa families as well, so thank you again.

I would like to wrap this up by wishing you all a wonderful Christmas. We hope you have the best time whatever you decide to do over the holidays and looking forward to hearing all about the adventures when we return in January.

  Edel and the nursery team.

Te Wa Tuakana

Learning Term 4

 Na Wai Enei

Learning about the Moana and why it’s important to look after it and what happens to the sea life when lots of rubbish ends up in the sea. We made props to perform a puppet show to showcase our learning:

·        Stations

·        School visits

·        Christmas prep and activities

 We finished off the year with a special morning tea and had hot chocolate.