What is National Employee Appreciation Day?

National Employee Appreciation Day is observed annually on the first Friday in March. This day was created as a way of focusing the attention of all the employers in all industries on employee recognition. Businesses and companies plan celebrations across the country to thank and recognised the achievements and hard work of their employees.

Employees are one of a company’s greatest assets. Recognition and appreciation are known as one of the key motivational factors in the workplace.

An employer may show their gratitude for an employee’s efforts and contributions to the goals of the company in a variety of ways from rewards to verbal interactions. Expressing employee appreciation increases employee job satisfaction.

When is National Employee Appreciation Day?

Friday, 3 March

Great Ways To Show Your Employees Some Appreciation

• Be Flexible – Flexibility goes a long way in this virtual reality world. If possible with your industry, allowing a little flexibility can reap huge benefits when you need last minute work done.
• A Thank You Note – When a job has been done well, a heartfelt, hand-written thank you means more than a slap on the back or a thank you gift.
• Team Effort Celebration – If the team pulled together and made it happen, reward them with an office pizza party, casual dress day or staff outing.
• Get Caught – Make sure the employee hears you telling someone else you thought they did a great job.
• Create a Culture of Encouragement – Employees who expand their horizons bring new skills to your workforce and will encourage others to do so too. Praise their achievements and encourage others to pursue their goals.

If you have employees, be sure to show them some appreciation and use #EmployeeAppreciationDay to post on social media.

What is World Hearing Day?

World Hearing Day is held on each year to raise awareness on how to prevent deafness and hearing loss and promote ear and hearing care across the world.

The theme of the World Hearing Day is

Ear and hearing,
care for all!

The selection of the theme by the World Health Organization expresses the key message that that timely and effective interventions can ensure that people with hearing loss are able to achieve their full potential. It recognizes that, at all life stages, communication and good hearing health connect us to each other, our communities, and the world. It highlights that appropriate and timely interventions can facilitate access to education, employment and communication. Unfortunately, across the globe, ear and hearing care are insufficient, and the WHO argues that all public health systems should include ear and hearing care.

When is World Hearing Day?

Friday, 3 March

World Hearing Day Activities!

• Learning different types communication methods: Using sign language, or some gestures, or a picture board. It is equally important that other children learn to understand and communicate with the special needs child in their classroom. Learning sign language can be made a fun activity for the whole classroom.
• Learning about inclusion and disability; through group times, discussions, stories and creating little people figures from inclusion categories.
• Learning about our 5 senses
• Roleplay and Pretend Play - Play is an important tool in preschool learning. Children at this stage start developing pretend play. Direct pretend play by including a wheelchair, crutches etc into their pretend play area. You can also make dolls and toys with injuries or disabilities.

For more information and make some noise for #HearingForLife!: https://www.who.int/news-room/events/detail/2021/03/03/default-calendar/world-hearing-day-2021-hearing-care-for-all

What is World Wildlife Day?

World Wildlife Day is a United Nations designated affair to celebrate and raise awareness of the world’s wild animals and plants. It's a day we reflect and learn about species of our planet which deserve attention. We ask centre's to suggest saving the date to plan activities with your children to teach and discuss the importance about how the planet’s animals depend upon our support, and vice versa. 

The theme of World Wildlife Day,
“Partnerships for Wildlife Conservation”
aims to encourage groups to work together in a concerted effort to create and sustain healthy ecosystems, wildlife populations and biodiversity.

When is World Wildlife Day?

Friday, 3 March

World Wildlife Day Activities!

• Group Lesson: How To Educate Your Child About World Wildlife Day?
  • Go on nature walks
  • Watch the birds
  • Create your wildlife garden
  • Support conservation projects: Raise awareness about the species coming close to extinction and help conserve them.
  • Learning about endangered animals. Click the following link to watch video: https://youtu.be/7k8CcAU2Lt0
• Wildlife Dress Up Day
• Making Wildlife face mask
• Exploring Endangered Animals - Investigate and explore a variety of animals using our collection of endangered animals

Asking families to donate towards fundraising for the future of our planet (WWF)- https://donate.wwf.org.au/make-a-donation/one-off-donation#gs.wx5g1a 

What is Clean Up Australia Day?

Clean Up Australia Day inspires thousands of Australians to take to their local park, beach, bushland, streets and schools to clean up their local environments. Clean Up Australia Day which helps to implement high quality educational teaching lessons, which engages students in sustainability education and is a great way to inspire children to learn about the impact of rubbish on their local environment while playing an active role in their community.

When is Clean Up Australia Day?

Sunday, 5 March

Clean Up Australia Day Activities!

• Group lesson - planting a Class Veggie Garden for your service
• Building a compose into your service and intentional teaching regarding compose and the benefits of having a compose
• Making a classroom recycling bin where children can recycle items and use them for arts and craft or drama play
• Rubbish Bin Sorting Activity – Children learning how to dispose rubbish correct which will encourage conversations and debats on what goes where!
• Encouraging children to turn lights off when leaving a room – this could be done during indoor to outdoor transition. Each child has a turn to turn the lights off
• Reading books regarding “How We Can Help Out Planet”
• Excursion to local park – encourage the children to pick up rubbish to help in the community using tongs and heavy duty gloves helping with a Class Clean Up Effort!

For further information, click of the following link to access further ideas and posters to display around your service: http://bit.ly/2T0iWBs

History of Ash Wednesday

The day of Ash Wednesday is not mentioned in the Bible, but it is in honor of events that occurred in the Bible. The 40 days of Lent are meant to signify the 40 days that Jesus spent in the desert getting tempted by the devil. The dusting of Ashes is mentioned in the Bible as a sign of mourning and repentance. The cross drawn on the forehead symbolizes the cross that Jesus died on to cleanse the world of its sins.
It is believed that Ash Wednesday was first observed in the Middle Ages around the 8th century. It was first called the Day of Ashes. Since then the practice has become an annual ritual in many Christian churches including Catholics, Lutherans, and Methodists.

When is Ash Wednesday celebrated?

Wednesday, 22 February

Facts About Ash Wednesday

• In the Middle Ages ashes were sprinkled on the head rather than drawn in a cross on the forehead.
• Many people keep the ashes on their forehead for the entire day. It is a sign that they are sinners and need God's forgiveness.
• Since observing Ash Wednesday is not commanded in the Bible, it is an optional in some Christian churches to observe it. This includes Lent as well.
• The period of 40 days is often used in the Bible.

Activities – How to celebrate

• Group discussion about Ash Wednesday
• Discuss different religions and special events that they celebrate
• Writing a kind gesture they can do for others at school or at home
• Children sharing stories of special family occasions they celebrate.