Written by Kirsty Fantini, Early Years Training & Consultancy
Welcome to my June Edition of “Monthly Musings”! I hope you enjoy these monthly blog posts! Feel free to share with your team and even request topics to be explored!
Educator Well-Being Challenge
I hope you took up the May challange and surrounded yourself with beauty such as fresh flowers every week! So what does June hold?
As we enter into the cooler months it is common to read Facebook posts or have conversations with educators about how to stay healthy in winter. We often focus on hygiene practices and flu shots…. which are highly recommended, however our nutrition and activity also plays a significant role.
My challenge to you is…. start incorporating the following into your daily routine… I’d love to hear about how you went, the outcomes, benefits, challenges etc!
The challenge:
- Start with a protein packed breakfast like eggs, mushies and avo on toast, porridge with greek yoghurt and berries or my home made muesli (found in May’s edition). This will reduce carb/ sugar cravings.
- Increase your Omega 3 fatty acids such as fish, seeds and nuts
- Cook with mushrooms as they have naturally occuring antibiotics and medicinal qualities
- Increase your intake of green and orange vegies & fruit as they are very high in Vitamin A
- Increase purple vegetables & fruit as these a very high in anti-oxidants (beetroot, blueberries, eggplant, figs, purple sweet potato, acai berry, red cabbage to name a few )
- Cook with onion, garlic and spices such as tumeric
- Get outside and exercise- exercise boosts your immune responses and being outside is important for Vitamin D
- Drink herbal teas like lemon, chamomile, peppermint, licorice
- Consider Vitamin supplements such as Vitamin C, Acai powder, Protein powder
- Get plenty of sleep… into bed before 11pm and a min of 8 -10 hours sleep / night
- Get social- meet up with friends over a coffee, a meal, a walk, sport, a wine… and laugh!!!!
Provocation…. Do we really get sick from playing outside when it’s cold?
We are getting close to that time of year when children are coming into our services with coughs, runny noses and medication!
According to the Children’s Youth and Women’s Health Service, children get around 6-10 colds per year, with the highest number usually being during the first two years in child care, kindergarten or school.
There are many myths about the common cold and families (and educators) may request that you stay inside or to layer their child to the point of immobility as it is too cold outside and this may result in illness.
Research shows you cannot get sick from being cold in general, whether you are outside or inside. Viruses tend to occur more in colder seasons, as we spend a lot of time indoors, which allows the virus to spread more readily. Research also shows that being outside in the cooler months also supports the body’s auto-immune responses as well as physical and emotional well-being.
We also need to acknowledge that the Australian winter climate is not really that cold and there are children living in many countries where they play outdoors in minus degree temperatures. I think at times educators may feel the cold and this may be due to inappropriate clothing and maybe a lack of movement… we need to critically reflect on our practices in the winter months and ask ourselves a simple question… is it really too cold for the children or is it me?
https://www.unitypoint.org/livewell/article.aspx
Upcoming Educator PD and Special Offers… just for you!
For the month of JUNE we have the following online PD webinars. These are live and you can join from work or home.. even in your PJs! All you need is internet connection and sound on your device. Sessions run for 1 hour and participants receive a Certificate of Participation. For “Monthly Musing” readers you can receive 15% off any of the below sessions. Just quote “MONTHLY MUSING DISCOUNT” in your email to kirsty@earlyyearstraining.com.au
The Magic of Loose Parts Play – Wednesday 5th June @ 6.30pm
Leadership- what does it look like in ECEC? – Wednesday 19th June @ 6.30pm
Something Yummy – Just for YOU!
As we head into the cooler months I love making vegetable soup… jam packed full of vitamins, minerals and fibre this is great for lunch or dinner… add home made damper, crusty bread or even some pasta! PLUS it’s so super easy and fast!!!
Super Easy Veggie Soup!
Ingredients:
- In a large heavy pot fry up garlic and brown onion (or leek) in olive oil until soft
- Add 2 Cups chopped zucchini and cook until slightly brown
- Add all your fave veggies chopped up (about 1-2 C / veg) … I love to use pumpkin, celery, spinach, carrot, sweet potato, eggplant
- Add 1TB fennel seeds and 1 TB oregano
- Add 1L veggie stock (store bought)
- Pinch salt & pepper
- Reduce to simmer and let simmer for 30min
- Using “hand whizzer” puree soup so its smooth (its Ok if there are some lumps)
- Add 1 TB tomato paste, stir and taste
- Add salt / herbs but only if needed
- Serve into bowls with crusty bread add a dollop of greek yoghurt or fetta on top!
- Serves 5-6 – ENJOY!!
Reflection Questions for your Team
What messages do we send to children about healthy living such as healthy eating and physical activity? How do I role model these healthy attitudes?
Thank you for reading Monthly Musings. I hope you have enjoyed the June edition! I wish you an amazing month and love to hear about your Educator well-being challenge, if you tried the recipe or provocation. For ideas and feedback please feel free to email me – kirsty@earlyyearstraining.com.au or comment on the Facebook post
Kind regards, Kirsty
Early Years Training & Consultancy – RTO 91839 – https://earlyyearstraining.com.au
