Written by Shari Stewart Like everyone we jumped online and got busy this year. Meeting, talking and supporting kindergarten teachers throughout Victoria. It has been a pleasure to meet groups of exceptional educators who despite their own stress and worry continued to turn up for the children and families they work with. Stories were … Read more
Written by Shari Stewart Someone asked me recently, “when do you experience joy?” I was stumped. I understood the question but I didn’t know how to respond. I realised quickly that I couldn’t answer the question because I couldn’t define joy. The words I had were insufficient, that is until I put them all together. … Read more
Written by Shari Stewart Love it or hate it, we’ve all had to do it. Zoom, Teams, WebEx you name it. We have tried it in an effort to keep our jobs, stay connected and deal with the isolation that the pandemic thrust upon us. But will we keep doing it? It’s unclear whether the … Read more
Written by Karen Szydlik Last week I was listening to Tim Flannery on the Science Show presented by Robyn Williams on ABC Radio National (Australia). It was the recording of Tim Flannery’s appearance at the Planet Talks, part of Womadelaide, April 2018. He was speaking about climate change and transitioning to renewable energy. Tim Flannery … Read more
Written Karen Szydlik If I asked you to think of ‘a leader’ what comes to mind? What was your first image when you heard that word ‘leader’…the very first one? Male, female? Solo or group? Known or unknown figure? Body posture? Black or white? My first image was a non-descript, probably male figure standing legs … Read more
As the community debates, if when and how to return to work As conversations turn to continuing community safety As 4 square metres and 1.5 metre distancing is calculated, Our youngest children have continued to be educated. The families line up to drop off their children The educators’ temperature check and sanitise And then … Read more
Written by Karen Szydlik Australia burned this summer and I don’t know anyone who hasn’t been affected by this burning in some way, directly or indirectly through fighting fires, fleeing fires, breathing the smoke of fires, fearing fires or planning for a future with fires. In the shadow of such fear and trauma it is … Read more
Written by Karen Szydlik 2020 As the reality of the ramifications of the Covid19 virus slowly dawned on me I started to think about what I needed to do to protect my family. I began to envisage long periods in isolation and increasingly all the things I can’t do became apparent. My niece is an … Read more
By Karen Szydlik I accidentally became a kindergarten teacher. I had always liked kids; spent time baby sitting in my teenage years and always enjoyed the company of young children, but I never really had a sense of what I wanted to do for a job. The job I was most exposed to as a … Read more
Written by Karen Szydlik In the course of any one day, in the confines of my mind, I could have quit my job, recommitted to it full time, cut back on hours, added hours, taken on a new hobby, sold my house, moved interstate, or any combination of the above. This kind of thinking happens … Read more
