Michelle
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About Me
My name is Michelle, and I have been a homebased educator for many years. I live with my husband Garry in Dannemora. I completed my Level 4 ECE certificate and love to be involved in any professional learning opportunities that come my way. I have 3 of my own grown-up children and am privileged to be a Nana to Paige and Olivia. I really enjoy socialising with my family, and watching the grandchildren play weekend sports.
I believe children are all unique individuals who deserve to be treated with respect for their own identities, cultures, interests, and beliefs. I believe in fostering this through developing positive, respectful and responsive relationships with children. I also believe in working in a partnership with their families through ensuring open lines of communication and involving them in their child’s learning as they know their child the best. I strive to provide children with equal opportunities for learning within a home away from home environment in order to support their sense of belonging and to bring comfort to children. I believe that children should be raised in the home so I nurture smaller group settings as the first 3 years are critical to a child’s development. I do however believe the community to be a rich learning source therefore I attends larger social and educational playgroups to support children to socialise and interact with groups of children. I believe children are capable and I aim to foster their growing independence whilst also being a positive role model for the children and showing kindness towards people, places and things. I am a strong believer that children learn through play, but I also believe that older children require structured activities to prepare them for the reality of school. Consequently, I provide children with a range of experiences across the curriculum, placing a strong emphasis on music, literacy and numeracy. I believe in promoting the bicultural heritage of New Zealand through my activities and interactions as I uphold my commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
Our Time Together
I have a wonderful sunny home with lots of different resources available to the children. We have a nice outside area where the children can ride their bikes and enjoy the garden. During the week I like to attend Mainly Music, visit the library, and attend the Stems FROM HOME weekly programme. We enjoy spending time at local parks and playgrounds too. I am also friends with other Stems Educators and like to spend time with them and their wee groups of children.
Stems FROM HOME Programme
Stems FROM HOME run a varied weekly programme that all of our Educators and whānau are welcome to attend. This includes;
Playgroup, Little Groovers Music, Korikori Tinana/Active Movement, Kaititiro Whenua (community explorers), and Art in The Park. We also frequently visit the local Rest Home and O Wairoa Marae, and do workshops for the children at Bunnings. All information is shared in our term flyer.
House Keeping
* First Aid/Civil Defence Kit * Cot/bed * Highchair * Car seats
* Personal linen and hand towels
* A quiet home environment, in which children are able to have really good naps (if needed). If your child has a dummy or security object for sleep time, please send these inside their bag.
* Programme planning and monthly learning stories about your child’s individual learning and development, by using Educa (online portfolios).
* A change of clothes as we like to fully experience everything we do!
* A hat and sunblock in summertime. Please apply sun block to your child in the morning and I will reapply during the day.
* Gumboots and a raincoat for the rainy months
* Sufficient nappies, wipes/cream, bibs, and feeding bottles
* A healthy packed lunchbox and a water bottle
Please remember to bring along your child’s Stems Journal. These
are a useful communication tool for sharing daily entries about your
child’s day, care routines, happenings and up-coming events).
