HOW TO STOP COMPLAINTS QUICKLY

Back then I was a Head of Department of Early Childhood, an Acting Early Childhood and Primary School Principal and a Primary School Principal in international and national schools in Indonesia, I used to handle complaints from parents. 

I succeeded in softening the complaints by listening their complaints attentively and then waiting until they (parents) finished talking.  After that I would say, "I am sorry about that". Then I promised them to find out what caused it to happen and then to get back to them as soon as possible to sort out all the problems. I also encouraged them to complaint to me if they were not happy with the results or conditions that occurred during that time.

To cut a long story short, I could reduce complaints that occured or might occur by delivering what I promised to them (parents),  making myself available to listen to their complaints respectfully and solving the problems that occurred as soon as possible.

©Tina Adi

BE AWARE OF SOME TYPES OF LEADERSHIP STYLES

When we are a newcomer in an organisation or company, we have no idea why our colleagues are doing this and that. Most of the time people are responding to the leadership style in the workplace.

Here are some tips to understand the workplace environment:

• Humiliate and crush leadership style

This style is absolutely against the psychological, professional, development and  wellbeing their subordinates.

• Lip service leadership style

It feels nice in the beginning, but it will be destructive at a  certain point.

• No communication leadership style

This leadership style will cause frustration to their subordinates because communication is important.

• Handball the problem leadership style

This leader has a tendency to handball the problem to their subordinates inappropriately. This leadership style is enjoying their position, reward (salary) and facilities, but not the responsibility as a leader.

©Tina Adi

BOREDOM CAN CAUSE ANXIETY, UNCONTROLLABLE BEHAVIOURS AND INJURIES

Based on my observation as an Outside School Hours Care (OSHC) Educator at a variety of services, I witnessed bored children were anxious and they did not know what to do. They came to me every 10 minutes and asked me about the time until they were picked up by their parents.

Sometimes some of them endangered themselves by going to the places that were not safe for them and out of bounds.
Most children could not do some risk assessments before playing.

Boredom can cause children to do unsafe activities. This might cause injuries to themselves. Example: children went to the bushes area that is out of bounds without asking permission from their educators. They (children) might forget that snakes can be in the bushes area and there are deadly snakes in Queensland, especially during mating season. There maybe other types of reptiles there, as well.

How to help children to overcome their boredom?
The best way is to redirect them (children) to do some fun and safe activities before their boredom escalated.
It is important for educators to know what caused the boredom. For example, if a child's best friend does not attend the service, often the child will be bored. Understanding this, the educator will provide those children who are missing their friends with activities to redirect them to focus on positive and safe activities.

I could see that most of the children who are attending the OSHC program need guidance and direction on how to enjoy their play in a safe environment.

It will be better if the service also provides a variety of decent toys and tools for children to play with.

Sometimes bored children might yank their peers or educators' chain to get rid of their boredom. Educators need to be aware of this. Educators need to be careful so that their emotions will not kick in as a result of a child's negative behaviours.

Educators need to guide the victims of the harassment to be calm, So that they can think clearly in order to act appropriately.

The key to create a boredom free and safe environment for children is educators supervise properly, observe actively, stay focus on the task and step in at the right time to minimise any children's behaviours that may trigger unwanted conflicts.

©Tina Adi

A Multicultural Food Idea, About Japan

Sushi Making

Ingredients:
Sushi rice:
• ½ kg of sushi rice
• 2 dessert spoons of raw sugar
• a pinch of salt
• 5 dessert spoons of sushi seasoning

Filling:
• 5 sausages

Note: filling can be changed according to your taste.
You can use a can of tuna or cucumbers or carrots or fried finger chicken nuggets or beef floss, etc.

Sushi wrappers:
5 sheets of seaweed for sushi (nori)

For serving:
• soy sauce for sushi
• Japanese mayonnaise

How to make sushi:

• Put a piece of seaweed (the shiny side down) on a chopping board or a flat plate.

• Cover it with an even layer of seasoned sushi rice. 

• Put the filing on top of the rice closest to you according to your taste. 

• Hold the seaweed, rice and filling and then roll it away from you. 

• Squeeze the sushi roll tight so that the filing and the rice will stick together. 

• Cut the sushi roll according to your taste.

• Ready to be served


Sushi rice can be changed with mashed potatoes if you cannot eat rice

How to make mashed potatoes:
• Slice the 5 potatoes into 4 to 6 pieces each making them easy to steam and mash.
• Steam the cut potatoes until they are soft (about 10 minutes).
• Mashed them down.
• Let them cool down. 

• Ready to be used

©Tina Adi

A Multicultural Food Idea: Xiao Mai Making

Ingredients:

500 gr of minced chicken

4 cloves of garlic

2 chicken eggs 

15 gr of shiitake mushrooms 

2 medium sized carrots

½ of a teaspoon of sesame oil

¼ of a teaspoon of ground white pepper

¼ of a teaspoon of salt

150 gr of tapioca flour 

5 leaves of spring onions

2 dessert spoons of chicken powder (brand: knorr)

Dumpling skin wrappers:

100 dumpling skins (the round ones)

How to cook:

• Cut the mushrooms and carrots into small pieces.

• Combine all the ingredients and stir it evenly. 

• Place a desert spoon of the stirred ingredients on each dumpling skin wrapper. 

• Pinched together all side of the wrapper to form a flower like shape at the top, sealing in the minced chicken ingredients at the top. 

• Put each xiao mai in the steamer using a high heat setting.

• Steam them for 20 minutes.

• Ready to be served.

©Tina Adi

EMPLOYEES ARE COMPANY ASSETS

We need to remember that every company needs to work hand in hand with their employees to be able to operate their daily activities properly in order to achieve their philosophy, goals, visions, missions accurately. 

Every company needs to have a stable happy employees, so that the employees will not resign and force  the company to hire new employees. 

Instead of using the organisation's cash flow and  assets to hire and train new employees due to staff churn. 

There are things to do to create a positive and happy working atmosphere:

• treat the employees with respect 

• treat the employees with empathy 

• treat the employees with fairness

• create an environment where there is reciprocal respect between all organisational members (this will help with staff retention)

• hire the right person in the right position, at the right time, with the right attitude

• continually train their employees with professional development programs to improve their ability to achieve and to fulfill the organisational philosophy, visions, missions and goals. 

©Tina Adi

It is Important to Create a Respectful Atmosphere with Young Children

Young children, who cannot even speak yet, he or she understands our conversations. 

For example: I was about to wipe off the food from a child's face, hands and feet after eating. 

I asked him,"Can I wipe off the food from your face?". 

Surprisingly, the child moved his face into a position, where I could wipe it. 

I then asked him again,"Can I wipe your hands? Which hand do you want me to wipe first?". After that the child lifted up his left hand towards me.

I believe that the child trusted me to wipe his face, hands and feet even though it was the first time for him meeting me. He was calm and relaxed during the cleaning process. 

I think that the child understood that I have respected him by asking his permission to wipe his face, hands and feet. The child then responded positively and gave me permission to wipe his face or hands or feet by moving his face, hands and feet into a certain position, so that I could wipe his face or hands or feet easily. 

©Tina Adi

An Idea of Teaching Japanese and Indonesian Languages Through Cooking Activities

Exposing children to other languages other than English is a positive way to teach children about accepting and understanding that there are people who have Japanese and Indonesian cultures around them. 

This experience can be taught through cooking activities. 

Japanese rice bowl - 'karaage (karaage means fried chicken)' and learning simple Japanese words:

'こんにちは (Kon'nichiwa) = hello'

'はい (Hai) = yes'

'いいえ (Īe) = no'

'ありがとうございました (Arigatōgozaimashita) = thank you'

Source: Google translation  

Ingredients:

2 kg medium rice

2 kg chicken breast

200 ml of vegetable oil 

6 dessert spoons of mince garlic

3 dessert spoons of mince ginger

6 dessert spoons of kikoman soy sauce 

4 dessert spoons of cooking sake

1 dessert spoon of sesame oil 

1 cup of raw sugar 

2 tea spoons of salt

A pinch of pepper powder

2 cups of corn flour

1 dessert spoon of garlic powder 

2 – 4 dessert spoons of vinegar

1 big red chili

How to cook the karaage and the rice:

• Chop all the chicken breasts into small pieces 

• Marinate the chopped chicken with 3 desert spoons of mince garlic, all mince ginger, a pinch of salt, 1 dessert spoon of raw sugar, all soy sauce, all sake, all sesame oil for about 30 minutes.

• Wash the rice with water 3 times and then add water around 2 cm above the rice. After that cook it using a rice cooker.

• Pour 1 cup of corn flour into a plate and then add the garlic powder, a pinch salt and pepper powder. After that dip the chicken breasts into corn flour and then shake it.

• Heat the oil in a frying pan. Use a wooden spatula to check

whether the oil is ready for frying by dipping it. If the oil is bubbling, it means that the chicken breasts can be put into the frying pan. Fry the chicken until the colour is golden brown.

How to cook the sauce:

• Blend 3 desert spoons of mince garlic, red chili and ¼ cup of water according to the taste. 

• Pour the blended garlic into a sauce pan and then add the vinegar, the rest of the sugar, chopped red chili and ½ cup of water to boil. 

• Dilute 1 dessert spoon of corn flour with 2 dessert spoons of water. Then mix it while you pour it little by little into the sauce until it boils. 

How to serve:

• Put the cooked rice into a serving bowl and then put the karaage on top of the rice. After that pour the sauce on top of the karaage.

Bubur Sumsum - Indonesian rice pudding and learning simple Indonesian words:

Halo = hello

Ya = yes

Tidak = no

Terima kasih = thank you

Ingredients:

500 gr rice flour 

1 litre of coconut milk 

1 tea spoon of salt

4 sheets of pandan leaves

½ cup of coconut sugar

How to cook the pudding:

• Pour the coconut milk into a big pot and then add the rice flour. 

• Stir the coconut milk and the rice flour until it is smooth. Then tied 2 sheets of pandan leaves into a knot and put it into the pot.

• Stir the coconut milk and the rice flour while cooking it using medium heat. 

• Add a pinch of salt and keep stirring it until it forms thick porridge. 

How to cook the sauce:

• Pour a cup of water into a sauce pan and then add the coconut sugar, a pinch of salt and a knot of 2 sheets of pandan leaves.

• Stir the sauce until it boils. 

How to serve:

• Put the pudding into a small cup and then pour the sauce on top of it

Note: 
It is very important to do risk assessment first, such as: food allergy, cross-contamination during cooking activity, hot stove, cooking area, etc.

©Tina Adi

How to Create a Welcoming Atmosphere

As a Teacher, it is very important to create a welcoming situation to all of your students, colleagues, other professionals and parents at all times.

There are ways to create a welcoming atmosphere:
• Take deep breaths and release them 3 times or more, so that you can feel calmness inside of you.
• Smile with your eyes and lips.
• Greet others: Good morning!, Hi!, Good day!
• Listen attentively during the conversations.
• Respond positively while listening: ...yes, ahh.., ok, I see
• Be friendly
• Be positive

©Tina Adi