Playgroup

Welcome to Newport Anglican Church Playgroup.
Playgroup is currently at full capacity, please email helen@newportchurch.org.au to be placed on our waitlist.
We welcome you to visit us on Sundays for our 10am church service. See the Kid’s Church page for information on our creche.
If you have previously attended playgroup and wish to return with a younger sibling, please contact Helen.

When

 Thursdays during the
NSW public school term.

Register

 Please email  helen@newportchurch.org.au 
to be placed on our waitlist.

Cost

We don’t charge a fee for playgroup.
There is a box for optional gold coin donations to help cover our costs.  

Further Information

Are you a Christian group? 
Playgroup is run by Christians from Newport Anglican Church. We speak about God and His love. However, playgroup is for everyone! Atheists, agnostics, Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and others are all welcome. We don’t expect people to share our beliefs to come along. God loves the people of Newport and we want to demonstrate that love. We will gladly answer questions about Jesus and our faith if you want to ask them. If you are curious to know what we believe, but prefer not to ask, you can find a clear explanation at this website Two Ways To Live

What Christian content is there?
We thank God for the food before the children eat. 
We mention God during story time e.g., saying a rhyme such as “God made butterflies, God made bees, God made spiders and God made me”.https://twowaystolive.com/
Some songs might talk about God such as “God loves me”. 
During parachute time, we play instrumental music from Christian songs that we sing at our church services.
Our crafts have words on such as “God made …” and a short bible verse.

What is a typical morning?

1. Playtime – with tea/coffee and baked treats for parents.

During playtime, you are free to explore both halls and the outdoor space with your child.
We have a sandpit and veggie patch. Sensory play such as rice or water tables are set up outside, along with gross motor activities. Painting, playdough and craft are contained to the room next to the kitchen. We provide art smocks should you wish your child to wear one. The halls have a variety of toys for all ages – we ask you to keep these toys inside please.

2. Story time – Parachute, singing and story in the church building.

Story time is when we pause the conversations for 10-15 minutes – we tell the parents “it’s like being in the library”!
We start with gentle music and the parachute to help the children transition from play to story time. If you aren’t holding a baby, please help with the parachute.
Then parents sit with their child and join in as we sing some simple songs with actions.
After singing, we have a story, usually with props.
We finish with a short prayer where we thank God for the food. You are welcome to join in with this prayer.
If your child is wandering behind the storyteller or taking the props, we encourage you to come up and redirect them so the story can continue uninterrupted.

3. Morning tea for the children 

Morning tea is served outside following story time (weather permitting – we move inside during rain).
Children are seated at low tables and parents serve them from a fruit platter. Plain rice crackers are also provided.

  • We ask everyone to bring 1 piece of fruit per child. 
    This is given to the playgroup kitchen team who make fruit platters for the children to share. 
  • We don’t expect parents of babies not on solids yet to bring fruit.
  • Please bring your child’s water bottle.
  • We ask that no nuts or nut products be brought on site.
    If playgroup occurs when your child would usually be eating, you may wish to pack a lunchbox for them. Please be mindful of our nut free policy when doing this.

4. Playtime part 2

Playtime resumes again following morning tea.
Helpers will begin to pack up after 11am but you are welcome to stay until 11:30.
You are our guest and do not need to help pack up.

Photos
We ask that you are mindful if you need to take photos at playgroup. Please only capture your own child to share with family, and ensure no other child or adult is in the frame. This is to respect the privacy of other attendees. 

No Nuts
Whilst we are unable to guarantee the premises to be nut free, we ask that no nuts or nut products be brought on site for the safety of those with allergies.

Hat
Please be sun safe and bring a hat for yourself and your little one for during outside play.

Neurodivergent families
We celebrate the diversity of amazing brains that God made, neurodivergent ones included. We want children to feel welcome and safe at playgroup.
If your child needs to wear headphones or sunglasses to help with sound or light, we are all for it. If they need to stim, nobody will discourage that.
If there are activities your child prefers to avoid, such as story time or morning tea, that is absolutely fine. You are welcome to take them to play with the toys or do a different activity.
If there are activities that bring them joy, let us know so we can try to incorporate those.
If you would like to bring your child to visit the buildings before playgroup, we can arrange that.
Please speak to Helen about what we can do to make your child’s experience a positive one.
(Neurodivergent parents are also welcome!)

Playgroup Team
All members of the playgroup team are Christian, have completed a Safe Ministry training course, have a valid Working with Children Check and are approved by our Senior Minister.

Questions?
If you have any questions, you can contact Helen (Children’s Worker) at helen@newportchurch.org.au