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Winter 2004 NEWSLETTER

The future is here...

Well, at least that’s how it seems! No, I’m not talking about virtual childcare… but virtually! As I thought about this article and what I wanted to share with you, I realised how, as the caption states, ‘the future is here’!
It’s interesting. I’ve been reading a book that we recently purchased from ECA Inc. It’s a workbook for children’s services and other small businesses for using online technologies successfully. I have more than a passing interest in anything that uses the words children’s services and online technologies in the same sentence, so it naturally caught my eye.
I am very welcoming of any book that would assist more services to ‘get online’ or perhaps prompt those in the industry who are already functioning comfortably in this brave new world to be a little more adventurous and maximise its potential.
I also thought it might provide some clue as to how accepting the industry is in general when it comes to operating in the online world, and how long before as an industry we embrace the wondrous benefits it has to offer.
And that’s when it struck me ….the future is here!
A year ago our cover article looked back on our five year history as a training organisation, and detailed our then, latest online developments. Even then, as we were introducing new and exciting resources to support you in your training, as a team we dared to imagine a future time when online would be the norm, and our industry would be using the net for everything from ordering supplies to networking, and, wait for it, … training and professional development!
As is our way, the One World team, armed with vision, started to plan and prepare for this moment – like it was going to happen any minute… which is probably just as well, as it seems like it did!!
That was twelve months ago, and needless to say, it’s been a very busy and exciting year.
Behind the scenes at One World our talented and multi-skilled team have worked together to develop online training and assessment options that will further support the learning and skill development of our participants, as well as meeting the specific needs of the industry.
Our journey began with the glimpse of perhaps developing our first virtual workshop. Brainstorming topic ideas was endless, as there were so many opportunities waiting to be explored. We
endeavoured to focus on topics of interest, need and above all topics which encouraged an interactive approach, to begin this virtual experience.
A suggested topic “outdoor environments” was a popular choice, which enabled trainers to use many photographs and form many focal points where participants were given the opportunity to discuss common issues and valuable planning ideas.
The success of this workshop sparked excitement throughout the One World training team, as it meant that virtual workshops were no longer concepts waiting to be developed, but now endless opportunities to enhance training to participants.
Our online journey proceeded with the development of the online Recognition of Current Competency (RCC) program. This model has been lingering around the One World office for about twelve months. In fact it was after winning the Victorian 2003 Community Services and Health Industry training board award for “innovation in training and assessment ~ innovative product”, that we were inspired to continue onward with this virtual journey.
The RCC process was certainly a mode of assessing that many people within the industry were seeking, and hence throughout our training past we were ensuring that we were in tune with the needs of our industry. Our already well established and popular RCC process, was taking its next step in virtual learning.
With help from IT professionals and careful planning, we were able to make initial plans to get our ideas, and this big project up and started.
It was back to the virtual drawing board where many ideas were coming and going, until we were initially satisfied with what we had planned. Well at least enough to satisfy further planning to ensure that this project was to be a success.
As far as we knew, this was a concept not currently available with any other registered training provider, so this in itself kept our team enthusiastic and motivated, to produce an assessment tool that would ultimately be a first of its kind.
Like establishing any other product, there were a number of teething problems which needed to be ironed out. This was done whilst trialling the product itself and like many other aspects of One World’s training, an emphasis on ongoing quality improvement was established.
The development team, together with participating trainers and assessors, would like to take this opportunity to thank present and past participants of this program, for their invaluable support and understanding. Individual participants have contacted us regularly to discuss concerns and questions, which had enabled us to polish up and further develop better and easier aspects of this program. All suggestions have been taken into co the program.
As we continue our onward voyage, we again listen to the needs of the children’s services industry. This time our focus was on the quality of diploma participants, as well as already qualified child care workers.
Our focal point was particularly on “leadership”. Leadership skills are established and demonstrated with ongoing training and professional development, and is often linked to team leaders having developed a sense of presence within their leadership roles.

Hence the online leadership program was developed to assist this much needed professional development need. The program bought together participants from a variety of child care services with a diverse range of experiences. It was facilitated by trainers who assisted participants to undertake an analysis of their current leadership styles, as well as identifying professional goals to work towards, in their individual and professional journeys.
The chance to network with other professionals, gave participants the opportunity to share common leadership issues, that regardless of where participants worked or lived, were common across the board of children’s services. Complimented with the well known author Jillian Rodd, a text book was used to give participants some guidelines as to gain an understanding of the fundamental aspects of an effective leader, as well as evidence to support individual leadership styles.
None more valuable, was the opportunity for participants to be able to associate and network with other professionals. Within no time itself, the leadership online community had built up professional relationships with its participants. Planned chat time sessions were established and the opportunity for participants to post forum items, for all to view and comment on, was just as quickly embraced.
The overall leadership opportunity was a successful one, as it gave participants the chance to network and be in touch with their own leadership styles, as well as enabling participants to work on strengthening personal and professional leadership goals.
Having taken you through our current online journey, I thought it fitting that I end with what the future holds for you our One World training participants.
Whilst the cog has turned only a short distance within this endless virtual journey, the One World team is continuing its onward journey to continue its development, establishment and achievement in learning and assessing excellence, through maintaining an exciting virtual community.
Currently we are developing online workshops within special interest groups. The concept of investigating and reviewing current program planning systems, is high on our agenda. Imagine exploring a number or program planning systems that are effective and efficient. Visualise making a difference for the way your centre program plans, and be a part of current program planning systems that not only work in theory, but more importantly, work in practise as well.
The myth that program planning is “easy” needs to be identified and studied. No longer is it adequate to look into a storeroom and write down a list of toys onto a large sheet of paper, and then neatly displayed in your playroom. This mentality has long been forgotten. Professional child care workers will ensure that they are aware of current practice to benefit the outcome of all program plans.
Stay tuned as we complete development of this exciting virtual experience together with other valuable suggestions including, behaviour and guidance, child development and any other thoughts that anyone is game to throw our way.
Our decision to move forward and investigate online learning, has resulted in our online community becoming more active.
Take this extraordinary voyage with us, as we embrace technology and make it not only accessible to all One World participants, but also a complete virtual opportunity, to all who are willing to come on this journey.

www.oneworldforchildren.com.au
Keep watching our site, as we busily work on a new look… new information and exciting new features…

Book Review

Use online technologies successfully: A workbook for children’s services and other small businesses provides a practical, step by step approach to implementing online technology solutions to a range of issues in the provision of children’s services. This approach is also applicable in any small business context.
Written by Derek Newman, Early Childhood Australia’s in-house IT expert, this book includes worksheets with many examples to give those who are contemplating using online technology or have already begun this approach, an excellent resource.
An extensive listing of website resources also make this book a valuable ongoing reference tool.
Available from Early Childhood Australia Inc
www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au

Do You Recognise This Parent?

Have you seen any of these parents lately... 

Permissive Paula

Paula becomes upset when you set boundaries and limits for her son Jeffrey. He’s four years old and sometimes his enthusiasm overflows into disruptive or aggressive behaviour. Paula is so permissive that even when Jeffrey gets out of control, she insists that “boys will be boys” and does nothing to guide his behaviour.

Busy Betty

As usual, Betty had too much to do and couldn’t attend the parent meeting last Thursday night. On Friday, she had to leave quickly and forgot to take home Michael’s favourite painting of a “dinosaur eating marshmallows in the desert.” Despite notes, newsletters, and personal conversations, Betty claims that she is unaware of the activities and events which take place at the centre, and too busy to become involved even if she knew what was going on. 

Detached Daniel

Daniel comes to major functions, but otherwise keeps his distance. No matter how friendly you are, he keeps you at arms’ length. You feel his son Jason would benefit enormously if his father took an active interest in his education. 

Over-Protective Ophelia

Ophelia dresses her daughter, Charlotte, in three layers of clothing on a pleasantly warm day. Charlotte is never allowed to eat sweets (even on special occasions). Lately, Ophelia won’t allow Charlotte to finger-paint for fear that she will get her clothes dirty. 

Negative Norm

Norm enjoys finding fault with other people. He smiled as he pointed out the typo in your newsletter. He was furious when his daughter Ashley’s shoe disappeared in the sandpit. He rarely says anything positive about his daughter’s experiences and often refers to how much Ashley enjoyed “Rainbows and Roses,” the centre she previously attended. 

Wonderful Juanita

Juanita volunteers so often that other parents think she is a carer. Juanita organises excursions, bakes special treats, shares resources, and spends time in the playrooms. She treats carers with respect, genuinely appreciates the care her son Carlos is receiving, and is actively involved in all aspects of her son’s education.

If child care professionals could design a perfect parent, that parent might be like “Wonderful Juanita.” In reality, however, parents have different personalities and parenting styles. We want parents to be involved. We want them to attend programs and read the newsletters we send home. We want parents to be attentive to the needs of their children. We want them to set aside the “baby-sitter mentality” and appreciate and value us as professionals. But no matter what tricks we pull out of our hats, we’ll never clone the perfect parent.
We can, however, recognise, accept, and appreciate the diversity of parents and families, and use that ability to our benefit. The ability to communicate with parents helps us to bring out the best in parents and encourages them to become involved in their children’s education. Here are a few tips on how to work well with parents-regardless of their personality. 
Walk in Their Shoes
Be sensitive and understanding. Remember that parents really care about their child even if they don’t label their child’s clothing as you asked them to and even when they don’t come right away when you tell them that their daughter has a temperature of 39 degrees. In today’s working environment, parents face many challenges and many limitations. It’s critical for child care professionals to empathise with the parent’s world, just as we would like them to understand the challenges of our profession. 
We must also be sensitive when informing parents about their child’s day. Instead of saying, “Johnny disrupted the whole group with his cursing, again!” say, “We interested Johnny in three new words today that were long and fun to pronounce. It seemed to help keep him from using bathroom talk. What kinds of things have worked for you at home?” This type of statement communicates your intervention strategy, but it also allows for input from the parent. 
Communicate Competitively
When it comes to communicating, join the competition! Getting and keeping parents involved takes effort. Parents are busy and we must compete for their time and attention. Bearing that in mind, we have to be skilled communicators and our communication tools (e.g., handbooks, newsletters, notes) must be written to be read. Short articles, lots of graphics, and a little humour are helpful in getting and holding the attention of parents. Speaking personally to parents, on a regular basis, is also important. Parents want to hear stories about their children. Imagine how comforting it is if someone actually saw Darlene head for the doll corner with the scissors and caught her before she did any damage! Let parents know that you are doing a great job of teaching their children and keeping them safe. 
Lose the Jargon
To communicate effectively, we must not use jargon. A parent can easily be put off when we toss around terms such as visual-motor integration, prosocial behaviour, or developmentally appropriate practice. When we use jargon we may sound like an expert but may not be helping parents to understand how their child is learning. Using terms that only professionals understand creates a barrier that is difficult to overcome and may be threatening to many parents. 
Offer Different Levels of Involvement
Not every parent wants to romp with five squirming three-year-olds in the pumpkin patch while they select lopsided, muddy pumpkins. Some parents feel more comfortable baking than working directly with the children. Other parents may have an interest in working on a parent committee. Try to match a parent’s talents to the tasks with which you need help. Make it a personal goal to ask every parent to become involved in some way. 
Be Aware of Personality and Learning Differences
Different parents require different communication approaches. For instance, go out of your way to keep the busy parent informed. Listen carefully to the negative or angry parent. Take his or her advice seriously, and use it when appropriate. Make sure parents have clear avenues for venting anger, such as suggestion boxes and surveys. 
Some people learn best visually, some when reading, and others when listening. Vary your communication style or, better yet, incorporate all three elements into as many of your communications as possible. 
Find out what concerns parents have and provide the information in which they are already interested. For instance, perhaps you have a role to play in helping the permissive parent understand the value of setting limits. If the child is having trouble sleeping through the night, however, this may be the best place to start. Talk to the parent about how setting limits can help the child to sleep through the night. Personalising information in this way is sure to pay dividends in the long run. 
Plan for Flexibility
Finally, when planning programs and meetings, take parents’ schedules into consideration. Instead of always planning an evening program, plan a morning tea, or plan an after-hours meeting so that parents can gather at the close of the day instead of having to return later on. Providing child care will improve attendance at almost any gathering. 
Whether you’re dealing with a Permissive Paula, Negative Norm, Over-protective Ophelia, or Detached Daniel, you can make a difference. Your attitude and communication style can help all parents be the best that they can be. 
Edna Wallace, M.S., is Publisher of Parent Pages newsletter. She has owned and operated child care centers for 12 years.

Competitions

We pride ourselves on our commitment to quality, and have in place measures to ensure we remain responsive to both our clients’ and our industry’s needs. Communication plays an important role in our ongoing quality improvement, and as an organisation we strive to maintain effective communication at all levels.
What this all means is, that we love having your feedback! In fact, we absolutely crave it!!
Whether you are an employer who has staff training with us, a manager looking for a training provider, or a participant in one of our programs, we want to know what you think of us!
Doesn’t matter what, if you have an opinion about One World, our training, our service, our website, we would love you to share it with us.
Share your thoughts, by signing our guestbook, and your name will be placed in the draw for your chance to WIN a surprise Resource Pack for you or your service valued at over $200, delivered to your door … and no, we can’t tell you what exactly because it is a surprise.
But don’t dawdle. This competition will be drawn on Friday 1 October, 2004.

Positive Guidance of Children’s Behaviour

Behaviour management refers to both the prevention of behavioural disturbances and to responses when upsets have occurred (Porter, p.5, 1999).  Obviously, both aspects are important in the care and education of children.
The Child Care Regulations, Accreditation Principles and National Standards for OSHC all indicate that caregivers should adopt a positive guidance approach to the management of children’s behaviour.
A positive approach to guidance focuses on a child’s strength and takes a developmental view of behaviour.  Rather than constantly seeking to control children’s behaviour or narrowly focusing on an inappropriate behaviour, positive guidance acknowledges that learning to behave is like any other developmental task a child has to learn.  Just as a child needs to learn to walk, a child needs to learn how to behave in a socially acceptable manner.  We wouldn’t punish a toddler for falling over, nor should we punish a child who makes a behavioural mistake.  Mistakes are an opportunity to teach a child a more skilful behaviour (Porter,p.33,1999).
The aim of behaviour management is to give children the confidence to take increasing responsibility for their own actions and for their effect on other people.  To do this caregivers need to guide rather than control children.  A positive approach to guidance involves:

• treating children with respect and dignity;
• ensuring that expectations of behaviour are individually, culturally and developmentally appropriate;
• helping children recognise their feelings and find appropriate/ acceptable ways of expressing them;
• teaching children what is appropriate behaviour and making expectations and limits understandable and clear to children, parents and staff;
• teaching children about the consequences of their behaviour— how it affects people around them;
• supporting and acknowledging children’s efforts to meet expectations;
• reminding children of the boundaries, when necessary;
• being honest– instead of delaying responding to children’s behaviour (because we are nice, caring people and don’t want to risk hurting our relationships), we need to be honest and acknowledge when we are asking ourselves to tolerate the intolerable;
• stopping children firmly, when necessary;
• making sure that children do not profit by it when they behave outside the boundaries set;
• listening to children and helping them explore alternatives to unacceptable behaviour;
• expecting children to learn gradually,  to take responsibility for their behaviour, which includes taking responsibility to try to make amends after poor behaviour;  and teaching new skills such as negotiation, conflict resolution and social skills.

Focus on the positive— the things that you can do something about!

Behaviour management involves more than focusing on a child’s misbehaviour— it involves focusing on the positive- looking at what can be done to generate appropriate behaviour.
Each time we set up a play room, make and enforce rules, choose an activity, pair up children or plan a snack, we have the power to generate misbehaviour or appropriate behaviour.  Just think for a moment what would happen if… we did not set up rules at all and had no planned activities;… we kept everything locked away so a child had to ask every time they wanted anything;… we only provided a limited number of activities, the same ones they’ve seen 100’s of times before;… we only provided games that were too difficult or too easy for the children to play with;… we expected children to wait for long periods with nothing to do while we set up the next activity.
Such factors might invite misbehaviour and generate problems.  Fortunately, our decisions and actions also have the power to encourage appropriate behaviour.  One way we can do this is through indirect guidance of children’s behaviour.  Indirect guidance occurs through the management of the environment – the space, equipment, materials and people within the setting.  It does not involve a child directly or specifically.
Though often overlooked, indirect guidance is one of the easiest methods of guidance to use and is often as successful as more direct approaches (Hildebrand, 1994).  It is particularly promising because it involves factors that caregivers really do have some control over the things inside their program or setting.
Indirect guidance is also favoured because it focuses on prevention.  With only so much physical, emotional and mental energy to invest in responding to behaviour problems, putting energy into reducing the chances of unnecessary behavioural problems makes good organisational sense.
Through planning, situations that can cause children to feel upset and subsequently lead to misbehaviour can be avoided (Arthur et al, 1996, Borman Fink, 1995).  For instance, by ensuring there is sufficient equipment, that individual’s needs are met as they arise, and by allowing sufficient space and room to move. 
But planning won’t eliminate all behavioural problems, nor should it.  Children need challenges to foster development.  They need to experience “having to share”, for example, if they are going to learn how to share.  However, through indirect guidance caregivers have some control over when and how they challenge children to extend their skills.

Ideas for indirect guidance

Use routines and rituals to influence behaviour.

Routines help children to feel secure and enable them to predict what will happen next.  Through the use of routines, children get to know what to expect and what is expected of them.  They gain security from knowing when things like snack time will occur and can begin to guide their own behaviour, reducing the need for as much adult supervision.  This helps the caregiver/s and gives the children a sense of control.
Routines, however, need to be flexible and responsive to individual needs.  Hungry, tired, restless or bored children, for example, will have difficulty behaving appropriately if their needs go unmet. 
Similarly, if aspects of the routine are not useful change them and discuss changes with children so that they are aware.
For all sorts of reasons routines get adjusted.  Some children do not happily accept changes to their routine, therefore plenty of warnings and reminders that changes are coming up may be necessary to offset distress and allow the child time to adjust and prepare themselves.
Children who have difficulty remembering routines- such as younger children or children with autism, A.D.D., developmental delays, learning difficulties, intellectual impairment, language difficulties, etc- may benefit from visual reminders of the routine.  For instance, a picture display board with photos of various activities planned for the day, in the order they are to occur.  Thus the child has something solid to refer to when they need to know what’s going on— something that also allows for their greater independence.
Picture displays of routines can be done as booklets, pocket photo albums, wall charts, poster boards or what- ever suits your setting and the child/ren in your care.  As routines change between days and even during a day, pictures should be able to be moved and replaced- velcro, blutac, hooks or clear pockets are therefore good ideas for attaching photos.
Having rituals, doing things the same way everyday, provides children with a sense of security.  This may be very important for some children, particularly those with developmental problems or even those who simply find their lives at home are unpredictable.  Preparing to go outside to play, for instance, can be made into a ritual.  “First we get our sunscreen on.  Then we get our hats.  Now we can go out to play”.  Simple, but the act of repeating the sequence enables children to feel secure and develop greater independence in their actions.

Have the physical environment provide clues and reminders of appropriate behaviour.

Children can regulate their own behaviour more effectively if they know what is expected and appropriate within various areas.  Clues as to what is appropriate within a certain area can be indicated by the materials/ equipment set out, or by the pictures on display, or by the customary uses made of certain areas. 
As habits can take time to develop, it may be necessary to keep the same space arrangements for a time in order for the children to learn what is expected where.
Other types of environmental clues to define specific areas can be rugs, hula hoops, fences or markings on the floor.  For instance, a masking tape line to indicate how far back to sit from the T.V.; a fence to outline a playing field; a hula hoop to indicate the area the Lego® must stay in; or a rug to indicate the area for story time or afternoon tea.  Following a discussion of what is expected, such physical clues allow children to be more self reliant as they won’t have to check with adults so often to see if their actions are appropriate or not.
For some children, especially those who are tense or very active, space issues can be a problem.  Children can feel worried about their space being imposed upon or they may stretch their play so that it invades another’s space.  Marking appropriate/ allotted space may help avoid unnecessary conflicts.  For instance, using masking tape on table tops to define a child’s workspace or giving individual trays for sand or water play so children can benefit from parallel play without having to share the materials directly.

Plan a program that is reflective of the interests and appropriate to the ages, abilities and needs of the children in your care.

Program planning and preparation of materials is an important part of indirect guidance.  If children are interested and engaged in the experiences/ activities offered then they will have little time to misbehave.
If children are unruly then one of the first places to look is the richness and appropriateness of the program offered.  It is much easier to change the program then it is to change children.
Boredom is a major cause of misbehaviour.  If activities are too easy or too hard or offered too often then children will lose interest-or worse, they find other unacceptable or harmful ways to use materials to produce interesting results.
Pacing activities and expectations to suit individual children will similarly help reduce behavioural problems.  If an individual child’s needs are not addressed then the child will often react through their behaviour.  For instance, two children in after school care.  One will want to eat and get outside and release the energies built up throughout the day.  The other may have struggled to concentrate and follow directions all day and simply wish to stop being directed about and veg out for a while.  Expecting that either do other then their needs dictate will result in problems.  Similarly, toddlers generally have relatively short attention spans so expecting a toddler to attend to any adult selected task for long periods of time is not reasonable.

Arrange activities so they attract interest and invite participation.

Having material out and ready to go can stimulate children to become involved with little direction from adults. How you arrange materials can also suggest their appropriate use.

Arrange materials and equipment so that children can use them with minimum help.

Children like to feel “big” and independent.  Keeping things within children’s reach can make self-help easier.
Store out of sight the materials you’d rather children did not use.
Only have out in view the materials that you are prepared to let children use.  Store the rest out of sight so that you don’t have to continually retrieve them or enter into discussions about why people can’t have them.

Arrange storage for toys and supplies near the area of expected use and near a surface appropriate for their use.

Children need less guidance when things are well organised for them.  If puzzles, for example, are stored near a table they can be used on, then the habit of playing with puzzles at that table will easily develop and the problem of lost pieces will be avoided more easily than if puzzles were carried to other rooms.
Similarly the need to caution children and supervise activities is reduced if they are carried out on suitable surfaces.  For instance, anything involving fluids, food, paints or glues should be done in areas with hard surfaces that can be fairly easily cleaned, instead of on carpet.  And toys that can scratch wooden floors may be better stored in carpeted areas.

Equip the room and yard with sufficient play spaces for the number of children in the group

It is a simple thing to count the number of possible play space to see how many children your room or yard can serve (Hildebrand, 1994).  For example, with two bikes, two swings, and a trampoline, you have five spaces.  Indoors you might have the set up for two at painting, four in homecorner and three at a puzzle table, making nine play spaces.  There should be about fifty percent more spaces than children in order to provide freedom of choice and suitable alternatives.  For fourteen children there should be twenty-one play spaces.  Having well operating equipment that provides adequate play spaces will help keep harmony.
Another aspect to consider is social space.  (Also referred to as “the territorial imperative” or territoriality).  This refers to the area of space around a child that the child feels belongs to him or her.  The amount of social space needed varies with each child.  And if a child has some sort of turmoil in their life, (birth of a sibling, parent separation, etc) they may feel even less generous about accepting incursions on their space or their possessions.  Perceived violation of this space can cause a child to feel discomfort and irritation.  Then if they can’t achieve physical distance, they may establish psychological distance from other children, retreating to solitary play with less social interaction (Hildebrand, 1994).
Caregivers can eliminate many guidance problems by avoiding crowding children in their various activities.  If there are frequent behaviour problems, then caregivers should look into the use of space and the number of children using the space.  Reducing the number of children who can be in an area or at an activity at the same time may reduce problems.

Provide opportunities for ongoing professional development.

Ongoing professional training is a worthwhile investment.  Attendance at various types of in-service training provides opportunities to continue to gain knowledge and skills.  They can also act to renew enthusiasm, build personal confidence and facilitate networking.  Training possibilities include:

• attendance at workshops, conferences, seminars;
• bringing in consultants to discuss problems or to provide training;
• reading articles, fact sheets, brochures or books;
• calling local professionals and asking questions;
• calling on local contacts or hotlines for advice;
• visiting other programs; and observing others in action

References
Arthur, L., Beecher, B., Dockett, S. Farmer, S., Death, E.  (1996)  Programming and Planning In Early Childhood Settings  2nd Ed.  Harcourt Brace and Co.:  Sydney
Borman Fink, Dale  (1995)   Discipline in School-Age Care:  Control the climate not the Children  School-Age NOTES:  Nashville
Hildebrand, Verna  (1994)  Guiding Young Children  5th Edition.  Macmillan:  New Jersey
Porter, Louise   (1999)  Young Children Behaviour:  Practical approaches for caregivers and teachers.  MacLennan + Petty:  Sydney

Look at the Bright Side of Life

Recently, Martin Seligman, president-elect of the American Psychological Association said “Children can and should be immunised against depression by teaching them to be optimistic instead of pessimistic.” This is good advice, given the fact that depression is a growing problem in our society. Some call depression a major epidemic. It is estimated that one in five, or 20 percent of the adult population will suffer from this illness. Immunisation against this widespread illness can begin with developing the right attitude early in life.
The early childhood years, the years from birth to age eight, are a good time–indeed, the best time to help children look on the bright side of life. The early years are critically formative years during which basic characteristics and attitudes are developed and reinforced. The following are some things we can do to help children think and act in a positive manner. We can:
n Instill in children a desire to try, try and try again. As we all know, life is full of failures. However, we can teach children that they do not have to be satisfied with failures, and that one path to success is following the old saying, “if at first you don’t succeed, try and try again.” Too often, parents and other adults provide children with neither the encouragement, the support, or self-confidence they need to try again. Sadly, some children are allowed to think that one attempt or a series of halfhearted attempts are sufficient. Such thinking can lead to failure, feelings of pessimism, and a diminished sense of self-worth.
n Help children succeed and be successful. As the saying goes, nothing succeeds like success. Positivism is built on success and achievement. This means that parents and carers have to help children develop skills that lead to success. For example, children need to learn and master the basic skills of reading, writing and arithmetic which enable them to confidently and competently complete school work. Being successful in school leads to success in life and a positive attitude.
n Help children think positively about life and life events. We can help children learn that the glass is half full rather than half empty, that there is always another time and another tomorrow, and generally another chance. In this regard, rather than encouraging children to give up, we can
help children learn from
their mistakes and make plans for trying again.
n Help children learn from their mistakes rather than blame themselves
for their mistakes. Self-blame can lead to feelings of worthlessness and pessimism. Learning from things that do not go well and making plans for doing better the next time is healthier than self-blame and quitting. Furthermore, children who know that mistakes are acceptable and are a part of learning are much more willing to attempt a task again. Children can learn from their mistakes and grow from these experiences.
nMake sure children have responsibilities and are responsible for what they do. Having responsibilities for helping at home with chores, completing homework and school assignments, caring for a pet, taking care of themselves and their possessions, and caring for and about others are good ways to instill characteristics of success and achievement. At the same time, making children responsible for their actions helps promote a life-view of success, accomplishment, and positive behaviour.
n Be positive yourself. Children learn to be positive when they have parents, family members, carers, and others who also look on the bright side of life rather than the dark side. Children constantly look to adults to see how to act. They model their behaviour and attitudes after parents and other adults they spend time with and value. Children also turn to significant adults to receive affirmation and confirmation of their actions. For many children, what they see is literally what they are, and what they become.
We can all help children improve their lives day by day by helping them look at life from the positive side rather than the negative. As we help children embrace life and view it through the eyes of an optimist, we will develop our own bright side of life as well.

George S. Morrison is professor of Early Childhood Education and the Velma E. Schmidt Endowed Chair in Early Childhood Education at the University of North Texas

Breaking Bad News to Parents

Fee increases. Biting. Head lice. You know you have to tell the parents, but you want to do it in the best possible manner – sensitively, effectively, and without causing panic. Here’s how.
All child care professionals, whether brand-new at the job or seasoned veterans, dread that moment when they must break some type of bad news to parents. Sometimes the situation is quite obvious. Whilst carefully supervising a tottering block tower, you hear a child excitedly called you to see two girls who were “really playing beauty parlor” in the dramatic play area. You turn just in time to see the scissors they had “borrowed” from the art cabinet snip Aileen’s hair to the scalp.
Knowing she was to be in a wedding the next day, you wondered what you could possibly say to Aileen’s parents. Fortunately, her mum had a sense of humour and knew her daughter delighted in exploring new activities. As soon as she saw Aileen’s hair, she exclaimed, “I guess she’ll wear the flowers on her head instead of carrying them!” Usually, however, telling parents bad news is much more difficult and unpleasant than this experience.
Dealing With Difficulties
There are many stressful events that need to be shared with parents. Some situations may affect all of the families: The lease for the centre will not be renewed and the program must move. Certain problems may be very specific: Three children have come down with chicken pox and have infected the group. Other issues may relate to an individual child and be very private: A preschooler will not use the toilet whilst at care and has wet pants each afternoon. Some problems with rather visible results may involve several children: Kirsten bit a number of youngsters in the playground.
Whatever the problem, bad news is usually serious and very important to the recipient. However, no matter what the situation, certain guidelines are helpful to follow when breaking bad news to parents:

• Always be sensitive to the parents’ feelings and treat the issue with great delicacy. Put yourself in their shoes before you affix the blame or become defensive.
• Gather your facts in advance and be honest about what happened. Describe the situation clearly and calmly. Remember, the parents may be very angry, distressed, sad, or confused.
• Try to find a quiet, private place to sit and discuss the issue professionally. No one wants to be told in a lobby filled with other parents that his or her child has head lice.
• Timing is very important in order to ease into a discussion of a delicate problem. You may wish to telephone the parents to set up an appointment at a mutually convenient time so no one will feel rushed. Sometimes it is important to talk to a specific parent right away, before gossip begins--for example, if one child bites another. At times it may be necessary to send a letter immediately to all of the parents if instant notification is urgent, as in the case of an outbreak of a highly contagious infectious disease.
• Have reference materials, such as books, pamphlets, or articles, available in order to share information or to ease shock or sadness. A tragedy may affect the parents and children, such as the death of a beloved staff member. Names of competent resource people to contact, such as psychologists or pediatricians, are a comfort to parents who learn their child has a special problem.

Susan A. Miller is holder of an Ed.D. in Elementary Education and a professor in the Department of Education at Kutztown University of PA.

Valuing Employers

One World for Children, recognise and value employer participation and suggestions. We endeavour to ensure, that open employer communication is maintained to meet individual employer and participant’s training needs. Throughout the last six years of being a successful registered training organisation, we have proudly increased the number of training participants and introduced ourselves to many new child care providers, both in the ACT and Victoria.
Throughout our training history, we have attempted and implemented many initiatives in maintaining quality standards for both participants and employers.
In identifying the ongoing needs of our clients, we are introducing an Employer Liaison Officer.
Sue Bagg has been appointed into this role and will over the next few weeks be in contact with all our current employers. Her role will be specifically to meet individual employer needs. Sue will introduce a number of initiatives to increase employer participation, such as establishing an online forum accessible exclusively to One World employers.
Employers’ training needs are one of the priorities for our organisation, and thus Sue’s new role will support our endeavour to ensure that Employer satisfaction is met.

Specific Objectives

Writing specific objectives is an important part of program design. In order for objectives to have meaning, they must be relevant to the overall program goals. If this relationship is lost, it becomes very easy to lose sight of why you are doing what you are doing with the children on a day to day basis. You should ask the following questions on a regular basis:

• Why is this particular specific objective important?
• Why choose to work on this aspect of a child’s behaviour rather than another?
• How does this objective relate to my broad goals and what I consider important for young children?
• How does this relate to what the children’s interests are?
• How does this relate to the children’s own priorities at present?

If these questions are ignored, specific objectives can turn a program into a technical and meaningless process.
So often we hear that there is never enough time for sufficient program planning. This is where the term sufficient needs to be understood as “efficient”.
Program planning like all aspects of working with children, requires a logical, pre-planned, and above all purposeful system.
Remember that in order for a room to run smoothly, we need to ensure that the program plan is stimulating and meets the needs of the individual child.
This requires the team leader to write “purposeful” observations, “measurable” objectives and a developmentally appropriate program plan that meets the needs of the children.

Tips for Practical Applications

• Maintain the self-esteem of the child.  Reflect your respect in your manner, your voice and what you say.
• Use positive verbal guidance.  Say “Turn the pages carefully” rather than “Don’t tear the book.”
• Accept the feeling of strong emotions such as anger, frustration, sadness, fear, guilt or jealousy.
• Deter the expression of it in unacceptable ways, and help the child discover acceptable ways to express it.  “I know you’re mad with me.  I won’t let you kick me but I’ll listen while you growl at me.  Or you might like to go and punch that old punching bag as hard as you can.”
• Clarify and uphold the equal rights of all .  “James is using it now.  You will have to wait.  It will be your turn next.  If another person wants it then, they will have to wait their turn after you.”
• Catch children doing the right thing.  “I bet you feel good about the way you handled that.”
• Show that you accept your responsibility as an educator.  “I am not going to let you do this but I’ll help you find some other things you might choose to do.”
• Teach conflict resolution and negotiation skills.  “Punching people is not allowed here.  Remember how we go about settling an argument?  First, we listen while everyone has their say…”
• Teach children that everyone makes mistakes; it’s how we handle them that matters.  “I make mistakes, too.  Let’s think how you could put this right.  What might make him feel better?”
• Use humour to smooth rough passages.  Give a confident grin and a friendly hug to a negative toddler.
• Build up the understanding of sharing gradually rather than always insisting that children must share.  For children three years or under, sharing can be having enough spades in the sandpit so that everyone there can have a spade.
• Forestall boredom.  Young children need to be active most of the time.  Making children wait unnecessarily, or sit still for long periods, may lead to unacceptable behaviour just to stir up the necessary stimulation.
• Give time to grow, remembering that significant things often take years to learn.  “Until children are a year and a half or almost two-years-old, adults are completely responsible for their safety and comfort, and for creating conditions that encourage “good behaviour”.  After this age, while we are still responsible for their safety, adults increasingly, though extremely gradually, begin to transfer responsibility for behaving acceptably to the children.  They start expecting children to become aware of other people’s feelings.  They begin to expect children to think simple cause/effect (consequences) thoughts, if guided quietly through the thinking process.  This is teaching the rudiments of “self-discipline” (NAEYC, 1988).

References
Sebastian– Nickell, Patricia & Milne, Rosemary  (1992)  Care and Education of Young Children  Addison Wesley Longman:  Melbourne

What Do We Know About “Real Work”?

We all know that play is the real work of young children. And we know that school-age children also need play for the healthy development of body, mind, and spirit. School-age children, however, also need the sense of accomplishment and self-esteem that comes from being trusted with a job to do.
In every culture, families decide when children are “old enough” (developmentally ready) to begin to learn how to do work. This point signals a transition from watching the parent or caregiver at a task, to being taught how to help the adult with the task, to being given the responsibility of doing the job on their own.
Children who are not given responsibility in their family, home, after-school program, and peer group will have trouble relating to the needs of others. They will also have trouble recognising or feeling confident about their own abilities.
Showing respect for the child’s developing skills takes patience and skill. It is often easier for busy caregivers and parents to do a task themselves than to spend the time needed to teach the child how to do it. Adults who want things done perfectly may also feel the need to straighten towels, refold socks, or reset the table. This gives children the message that their efforts aren’t good enough, and many children stop trying at all.
Everyone suffers when adults fail to teach responsibility. Adults suffer because children without these skills leave any space they visit in a shambles. Both parents and caregivers often complain that these children won’t help - around the house, in the child care program, anywhere, ever. But children suffer also. They never have the chance to feel pride in their work. Some children feel defeated before they even begin a new activity.
As school-age caregivers, we base our expectations on what we know about child development and the abilities and temperament of the children in our programs. Learning manual skills - for example, using tools to help fix a loose banister or put up new coat hooks - gives the school-age child a sense of growth and competence. These same skills will come in handy, of course, for building boats, constructing forts, and making birdhouses. The options now open to that child are boundless. The opportunities for play and work are both enhanced. The child is able to say, “I can help!”
Housekeeping, although much maligned, is an excellent way for children to do “real work,” especially when everyone works together to get the job done. When children help take care of the rooms they use and share - the animals and plants that are in the room, the furniture, the toys and equipment, the play yard, and the neighbourhood - they develop feelings of ownership, belonging, and pride.
No doubt about it, some jobs are more fun than others. Some people are better suited for some jobs than others, too. The bottom line is that all the jobs need to be done to make life better for everyone. Everyone has a part to play in making this happen. When children do their best and make a significant contribution, it honours the group and the individual. With these beliefs in mind, the following program, a number of years ago instituted the pizza-pie work chart and the “cleaning party.”
A parent asked why her nine-year-old son was cleaning the rabbit hutch when she arrived early one Friday afternoon. She felt her son and the other children were doing the carers’ work. Besides, she said, “he was really too young to be much help.”
It was explained that all children took responsibility for caring for the room and play yard. The parent was told that her son did a careful and conscientious job of caring for the rabbits and other animals. The parent was also told that her child was also good at using the dustbuster and that he would often choose - on his own - to rake wood chips. The parent was invited to ask her son to explain the finer points of rabbit maintenance while he completed his job cleaning the rabbit hutch. The boy - who was too young to be much help - gave a beautiful demonstration and explanation of the how-to and the importance of his job. When he was done, the two left the program and headed to the grocery store to shop together. But first, they stopped at the play yard to see the wood chips he had raked.
It is sad when we underestimate what a child can do. Children look to the adults in their lives to tell them who they are and who they can become. Our low expectations can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. If a child feels she is able to contribute to her family’s well-being and her friends’ comfort, she is not apt to suffer from low self-esteem and poor self-worth.
And what about the pizza-pie work chart? Using a large flip chart, the group pf children listed all the jobs that needed doing to keep our environment (inside and out) the way we wanted it to be. All answers were recorded. Some of the jobs could be listed together, and this made a piece of the pie. When we had covered all the jobs, each child was given a wooden clothes peg. The children then printed their names on the clothes peg with a black texta.
We made Friday afternoons from 2:30 to 3:45 our “cleaning party.” If a child was absent, another child would do the job if it involved a plant or an animal or something that would smell by Monday if the jobs were left undone (like taking the lunch garbage to the garbage bin). Some jobs had to be done daily, like feeding the fish and changing the water for the animals. After this was done, the child was free to help a friend with her job. Or he could start a new job that he thought was overlooked, sorting out the scrap-paper boxes, or cleaning paint pots. After our cleaning party, we would meet briefly in the circle to discuss any problems. Then we moved the clothes pegs in a clockwise direction on the pie chart. That told everyone what job they would have next week. We also noted big jobs that we should put on a list for the Family Working Bee, held twice a year.
So what do we know about “real work”? We know that children need adults to trust them. We know that children can learn and want to learn. If we are patient, model responsibility, and give developmentally appropriate instruction, children will learn. Children are proud when they are given the responsibility of “real work,” the unspoken signal that you know they are growing up.

PIZZA PIE WORK CHART

Use a round piece of cardboard. Cover with clear contact paper:
1. Group Meeting - brainstorm list of jobs that need doing.
2. Have each child put his or her name on a clip-on wooden clothes peg.
3. Job responsibilities last for one week or one day.
4. Rotate on Friday afternoon after cleaning party for the next week’s job assignments.

National Network for Child Care’s Connections Newsletter
Deborah Nelson Completing postgraduate work in art therapy Edgewood College, Madison Wisconsin

Tips for reducing the spread of respiratory infections in child care centres

Ref NPS/CCNCS June 2004

Personal practices for staff

• Keep your hands away from your eyes, nose and mouth.1
• Use paper tissues to blow your nose, and dispose of them after use.
• Don’t use handkerchiefs.
• Establish a hand washing routine.2,3 Wash your hands thoroughly with soap as often as possible, or with ‘wet wipes’ if hand washing is not possible, in particular:
  • before and after preparing or eating food
  • after visiting the toilet
  • after touching the garbage
  • after changing nappies

For children and staff

• Do not share cups, glasses or cutlery.1
• Show children how and when to wash hands 2,3 i.e. after coughing, blowing their nose, going to the toilet, and playing outside.
• Use single-use disposable towels or an air-dryer to dry hands.2
• Wash toys that have been ‘mouthed’ by infants/children with soapy water or disinfectant (if needed)3 after the child’s use and before another child uses the toy.
• Provide disposable, single-use gloves for staff to wear when handling a sick child’s body fluids.3
• Make disposable paper tissues freely available for staff and children to use at the centre.

For more information

On staying healthy in child care:
www.health.gov.au/nhmrc/publications/synopses/ch4osyn.htm

On quality improvement of child health and safety:
www.ncac.gov.au/qais_publications/qais_sourcebook_partC.pdf

On managing common colds: www.gottacold.com

1 NPS. Antibiotics won’t help a common cold. Common sense will. NPS, 2003.
2 NCAC. Quality improvement and accreditation system: source book. 1st ed, 2001.
3 NH&MRC. Staying healthy in childcare: Preventing infectious diseases in child care. 3rd rd, 2001.

Bubble, Bubble, Pop! Exploring the Magic of Bubbles

Close your eyes and put yourself in a young child’s shoes. You watch the carer carefully twist open a brightly coloured container. You peek inside and see a liquid sloshing around with a stick in it. The carer pulls the stick out. There’s a circle on the end of the stick, but it looks empty. As your attention begins to wander, she puts it to her mouth and blows. Like magic, three-dimensional circles appear in the air. The bubbles float in different directions. You can see through them, yet you can also see bright colors. When you finally touch one of the bubbles, it disappears! 

Learning With Bubbles

The most effective sources of early learning are immediate, meaningful, and involve children’s discovery and choice. Bubbles not only involve children in learning, but they are fun, easy to use, and ever-changing. In addition, many science processes such as, investigation, discovery, experimentation, observ-ation, definition, comparison, and classification can be learned simply by playing with bubbles. Bubbles help children develop self-concept as they learn about themselves and the world around them, and language development is enhanced when children learn new words to describe bubbles, explain tasks, and label and record bubble experiments.

Bubble Properties and Recipes

Bubbles are made of air trapped inside a hollow liquid ball. The colours visible in bubbles come from light reflecting on the bubbles’ surface. Bubbles float up because warm air is lighter than cold air. If the air blown into the bubble is warmer than the air around it, the bubble will float up.
There are many great bubble recipes to choose from. You will need to experiment to find a bubble recipe that works for you. The type of dishwashing liquid you use, the weather outside, and the type of water you use can all affect bubble quality. Some mixtures produce longer-lasting bubbles if placed in the refrigerator for a few minutes or if allowed to stand for a day or two before using. More detergent than water creates giant bubbles and adding glycerin or sugar slows down water evaporation that causes bubbles to pop.

Bubble Activities

Other great ideas for bubbles include:

• Making bubble sculptures. As a child blows into a half cup of bubble solution, a mountain of bubbles will appear.
• Using pipe cleaners to make bubble wands of different shapes. 
• Having a bubble race. The first child across the finish line without popping his or her bubble wins! 
• Drawing with bubbles. Adding food coloring to the bubble mixture makes a great art project. Encourage the children to blow bubbles with a straw on a tabletop. Then place a piece of white paper on the top until the bubbles pop. The bursting bubble will create interesting designs and patterns. (remember the hygiene factor: individual straws, and the safety factor: that the experience is age/stage appropriate so that the mixture is not swallowed.)
• Make a bubble tube with two feet of one-inch plastic tubing from the hardware store and two corks that fit snugly in the tubing. Fill the plastic tubing with water, leaving an inch from the end of the tube. Add a few drops of food coloring. Children love to watch the bubble travel down the tube.

Conclusion

Recently, I watched my daughters (20-months and 5-years-old) play with bubbles. They ran after each bubble trying to catch or stomp them. Sometimes they flopped on the grass and watched the bubbles float up on their journey in the sky. Other times, they squatted beside a bubble in the grass and delighted in the spray that resulted when it finally popped. What a wondrous thing, that different-aged children enjoyed, giggled, and explored!
Share this experience with the children in your care and watch what happens.
Angie Dorrell, M.A. is director of curriculum for La Petite Academy, one of the nation’s largest providers of early childhood education programs.  She also serves as a NAEYC accreditation validator and commissioner.  She is the proud mother of two young daughters.

Qualification Titles

At times training participants complete their training and are unclear of what their qualification title really is.
An “untrained” child care worker is someone that works in a child care setting and does not have any formal training.
A “trained” child care worker is one that has completed training at a Certificate IV or Certificate III level in Children’s Services.
and
A “qualified” child care worker has completed a Diploma or Advanced Diploma in Children’s Services.
The term “Mother craft nurse” is still readily used out of context. It is no longer the title given for a Diploma qualification, and has not been for at least 15 years. Yet many people still refer to a qualified person as a mothercraft. The title of a qualification changes with the review of training content, and with thought about the industry itself.
Many of us seek recognition for professionalism. The name given to a qualification reflects on the job itself, therefore when we refer to child care professionals as Team leaders, carers or educators as oppose to mother craft nurses, we begin to portray our industry as more of an educational profession rather than relying on the nursing sector.
Qualification titles are often confused with classification levels. (Classification levels are also varied from state to territory)
In Victoria and the ACT the level classifications are as follows:

VICTORIA

Level 1 untrained (no formal qualifications)
Level 2 trained (Certificate III or IV in Children’s Services)
Level 3 qualified (Diploma of Children’s Services)
Level 4 2IC (Diploma or Advanced Diploma of Children’s Services)

ACT

Level 1 unqualified (no formal qualifications)
Level 2 trained (Certificate III or IV in Children’s Services)
Level 3 qualified (holds a relevant qualification issued prior to 1990)
Level 4 qualified (Diploma of Children’s Services)
Level 5 21C (Diploma of Children’s Services plus 200 hours of professional inservice training - or Advanced Diploma of Children’s Services)

For more accurate information about your states or territories wages or classifications log onto Wagenet: www.wagenet.gov.au

Planning for Successful Group Time Experiences

It is just as important to plan group time experiences as any other experience on your plan. There needs to be sufficient information for all experiences, including group times.
An outlined plan gives the carer a guide to the structure of the group time. What the purpose is of the particular group time experience. The group time itself should be divided into the following 3 stages:
1. Settle the group – create the interest (use a finger rhyme)
2. Main content of the group time – focus or theme of the group time
3. Dispersal – as per the theme of the session.
*Remember that children learn and develop individually, therefore it should not be a requirement for ALL children to sit for the entire group time session. Ensure that the session is age/stage appropriate, stimulating, interesting and above all FUN.

Outdoor Workshop

Participants of One World for Children were able to participate in One World’s first online workshop, focusing on the outdoor environment. The four week program was facilitated by three One World trainers and attended by fifteen eager participants.
It gave workshop participants the opportunity to discuss common issues associated with outdoor play.
We thought that there would be no better way to promote this valuable program then by publishing some of the comments made by the workshop participants:
Jessica: “The outdoor workshop was great, full of new and interesting ideas. I really liked the idea of using natural resources like bark and leaves. I feel that our outdoor experiences sometime lack creativity and interest. Staff need to remember that outdoor play is as important as indoor play and reset experiences as they would indoors”.
Samantha: “I absolutely love the chance to be included in the children’s world and hopefully I can enrich and guide them to enjoy all the wonders of the great outdoors”.
Sue: “Overall I would say we have all gained a lot of useful information over the last few weeks, and have had the opportunity to share our feelings on outdoor play.”
Tania: “One favourite outdoor experience the children love is a quiet retreat (secret hideaway). I wrap see-through curtain around the trunks of trees and in the middle of these I add a blanket, cushions, soft toys to cuddle, books etc. Above this I hang coloured streamers or balloons which blow in the wind, this has a wonderful calming and relaxing affect on children that just need to have a little privacy or a rest”.
These are just few of many comments made about the outdoor workshop. We are currently taking expressions of interests from any participants wishing to be involved in this valuable workshop in the comfort of your own homes. Remember it is FREE to all current One World training participants. Email chelle@oneworldforchildren.com.au to lodge your expression of interest.

Take advantage and save yourself time

Why not send your assessments to us via e-mail?

It will save you time and your assessments will get to us promptly and safely. All trainers have direct email addresses, so you can send all assessments to individual trainers.

Individual addresses are:

carol@oneworldforchildren.com.au
michelle@oneworldforchildren.com.au
tammy@oneworldforchildren.com.au
val@oneworldforchildren.com.au
sue@oneworldforchildren.com.au
susan@oneworldforchildren.com.au
karyn@oneworldforchildren.com.au
chelsea@oneworldforchildren.com.au
ange@oneworldforchildren.com.au
sarsha@oneworldforchildren.com.au
jo@oneworldforchildren.com.au
kim@oneworldforchildren.com.au
karla@oneworldforchildren.com.au
lisa@oneworldforchildren.com.au

Any administration queries may be made directly to:

snez@oneworldforchildren.com.au
chelle@oneworldforchildren.com.au

Meet our Training Team

Trainer - Lisa Dekker	Trainer - Val Dunipace	Adminstration Officer - Snez Kotevski

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Childcare Services

One World For Children Pty Ltd

• Finalist in the Victorian Training Awards 2006 for Training Initiative of the Year: Online Advanced Diploma of Children's Services

• Highly Commended in the 2006 Victorian Community Services Health Industry Training Board's Innovation in Training and Assessment Award:Innovative Product

• Finalist in the 2006 Victorian Community Services Health Industry Training Board's Innovation in Training and Assessment Award: Recognising Competency RCC

• Winners of the 2003 Victorian Community Services Health Industry Training Board's Innovation in Training and Assessment Award: Innovative Training Product"

One World For Children Pty Ltd
P.O. Box 701 North Geelong Delivery Centre 3215
<% if session("version") = "ACT" then %> Telephone 1800 006 533, Fax (03) 5272 3039 <% else %> 407-411 Thompson Road, North Geelong, Victoria
Telephone (03) 5272 2714, Fax (03) 5272 3039 <% end if %>

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