Hello Educators,

With lots of families keeping their children at home during these uncertain times we thought we would give you some inspirational ideas to continue connecting with your families through your private Kinderloop.

Families need us more than ever at the moment, staying indoors can be challenging for both adults and children. As educators we have built strong lasting relationships with many of these children and they would absolutely love to see our smiling faces, bringing some sense of norm back into their day. Whilst also providing some respite for parents caring for them at home. A wonderful opportunity to continue being part of a strong community in testing times. 

Check out some ideas below, if you have any amazing ideas yourself why not send them to us at Kinderloop HQ so we can share them with all educators.

Videos:

Making Videos to upload to Vimeo or YouTube and posting a link on Kinderloop for children at home to watch (see instructions below)

Storytelling time, song time, calm down yoga before rest time, wake up and dance time.

Do you have anything else you could share? A science experiment, baking experience, fish feeding time

What you’ll need to do:

Step One

Make a FREE basic Vimeo or YouTube account (both have free apps you can download onto your devices which makes the process very simple)

Step Two

Make your video. Keep it relatively short (so children are engaged), be animated and project your voice loud and clear. 

Step Three

Upload your video to Vimeo YouTube

Vimeo Tip* make sure you select the privacy to ‘people with password’, otherwise you’ll be sharing your video with the world and if you select private you cannot share a link to it. You can provide the password in your Kinderloop post along with the link

Step Four

Wait patiently for your video to upload (this can take a few minutes depending on size)

Step Five

TA DA! You are ready to copy the link by selecting share, paste the link into a Kinderloop post (with password for Vimeo) and send to your families for fun time viewing 

Note: It is important to remember not to include children in these videos (just your smiling selves), Vimeo and YouTube are third party websites and unlike Kinderloop you most probably will not have consent to share videos of children. 

Other great ideas…

Treasure Hunts:

Set a challenge, ask children to find select everyday items like

• A black piece of clothing
• Something that sparkles
• Something with eyes
• An object bigger than their hand

Get them to collect them all together then post what they found to Kinderloop (with someone’s help of course), you can then share this on your Kinderloop feed. You can also get the children you still have at your service to do the same, so no one misses out!

Saying Hello and having family input:

How about posting videos/silly photos with a short caption of their peers on Kinderloop, sending messages to one another. It’s a great way to incorporate digital literacy into your program while connecting with friends they miss. Children at home can post back and you can watch them during a group time. Remember to have your family post and family comment options switched on during this time so that families can share back with you.

Download our parent post helpsheet for families here.

Sharing Recipes:

Cooking children’s snacks and food at home can be tiresome 

Why not get your amazing cooks to share some of the favorite recipes from Kindy

Sensory Ideas:

Why not post some of your favourite sensory games/ideas and step by step instructions onto Kinderloop. I can promise parents will THANK YOU

It could not be a more important time to promote a sense of belonging for our children, families, and ourselves. The Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) states that:

“Experiencing belonging – knowing where and with whom you belong – is integral to human existence. Children belong first to a family, a cultural group, a neighbourhood and a wider community… In early childhood, and throughout life, relationships are crucial to a sense of belonging” (EYLF, p. 7)

We play a key role in a child’s sense of belonging, keeping them connected to their world. Let’s adapt our teaching styles to support what is going on now and let our families know we are here to support them through Kinderloop, something they know and trust.  

Stay Strong Educators! You’ve Got This

BELONGING

Experiencing belonging – knowing where and with whom you belong – is integral to human existence. Children belong first to a family, a cultural group, a neighbourhood and a wider community. Belonging acknowledges children’s interdependence with others and the basis of relationships in defining identities. In early childhood, and throughout life, relationships are crucial to a sense of belonging. Belonging is central to being and becoming in that it shapes who children are and who they can become. 

Keep the communication open between you and your families. We need one another in times like these, especially our children who may struggle with the big changes. Keep their sense of belonging strong and let them know you are still there for them.