What an incredible year we have had in Early Childhood, I feel a sense of privilege and pride to be so welcomed into the Orana community, while also humbled at the skill and care the women constantly demonstrate in our department with all of our children.
Together the team have worked really hard and achieved a great deal behind the scenes. All of this was above and beyond the typical early childhood year. A simple thank you never feels enough; however, I sincerely thank everyone in Orana Early Childhood for their dedication and commitment.
It’s a bitter sweet time as we prepare the 2019 children to head off into kindergarten and say goodbye after 2 or 3 years (in some cases 5 or 6 years with the same families) of watching a small child grow into a soon to be 6-year-old. At the same time our dedicated team is already preparing to begin the cycle again with a very large number of 3-year old’s beginning in 2025.
Along a similar theme we are saying some goodbyes from our department with Petra, heading off on a new adventure, Briony moving into the primary school along with Chloe who will be starting a new role in the new year. We wish these ladies the best of luck on their journeys, the “loving authority” they bring to their classrooms will definitely be missed.
With this “change of the guard” we welcome Valera whom you may have known as the class one assistant and Dijana whom brings a decade of experience from a number of schooling environments. There is a sense of excitement for 2025 and the maintenance shed (and my office) is quite full with items ready for the new class room. Leading me to thank the F&M team as they sand, paint and haul items from one side of campus to the other in preparation. Also, a thank you to all of those families whom passed on there no longer needed Early Childhood items. We have quite the collection of beautiful things.
Of course, before we can begin this next journey we must all have a rest…. Which leads me to this final wish, we wish you a safe holiday period, we wish it to be filled with joy and laughter and fun, hugs and great conversation, we hope you take time to enjoy each other’s company and create memories that last a lifetime.
So, from all of us here – Take care of each other and Merry Christmas.
See you next year,
Kira Du Plessis
