This week’s after school care play-based learning activities focused on Food Allergy Week.

A food allergy is an immune system re- sponse to a food protein that the body mis- takenly believes is harmful, which causes the body to release a lot of chemicals, triggering abnormal bodily reactions in a person’s breathing, gastrointestinal tract, skin or heart.

We painted one fingernail to show awareness that one in ten babies are born with a food allergy. We discussed and brain-stormed what food allergies are and what the nine food groups are that cause 90% of all food allergies. We also discussed what to look for when somebody has an allergic reaction, the different severities of allergic reactions, and why it is vital to know which of your classmates have food allergies.

The children showed genuine empathy and care for other children’s wellbeing. Many of them remembered the children with an allergy in the service and that one child requires an epi-pen and the ambulance to be called right away if he gets stung by a bee!

At the end of the week, they had two final challenges: to identify foods in our kitchen that contain one of the nine most common triggers of a food allergy, and they had to adopt an allergy and create their own lunch box menu.

Over the past eight months we have been working hard to transform our club into a more visually appealing and welcoming space by brightening the walls with a coat of paint and replacing wooden doors with glass doors. We did a massive expansion and refurbishment of the KidzCare area upstairs with new flooring, knocked out a wall and got brand new equipment and furniture.

If you are in need of school hour’s care for your child, contact the PCYC!

By Amanda Sutton M. 0497 393 124 | P. 6862 3825 E. parkescc@pcycnsw.org.au LIKE us on Facebook!

It was super hero heaven in the Parkes Library’s Coventry Room on Wednesday morning with tiny figures running all over the place dressed in superman, batman, wonder woman, super frozen girls and many more costumes.

Central West Family Day Care (CW- FDC) celebrated National Family Day Care Week with a dress up party. Up to 60 chil- dren attended cared for by 34 educators from Parkes, Forbes and Condobolin.

The colourful and happy event was “in celebration of the education done in the community and the star qualities of all chil- dren,” said Anne-Marie Winter, co-ordinator of CWFDC.

If you have ever been hit hard in the thigh with someone’s knee or shoulder, you most likely know how painful and debilitating a corked thigh can be. A cork, or a muscle contusion as was more formerly known, is a common occurrence in contact sports, as well as sports like cricket and hockey when a player is hit by the ball. Contusions result from blunt trauma to a muscle such as when two players collide and one is hit in the thigh by the knee of the other. The underlying muscle and connective tissue are crushed without breaking the skin. This causes bleeding within or between muscles resulting in a haematoma.

A cork may result in immediate pain, weakness, muscle spasm and stiffness. Most contusions are minor and heal quick- ly, however if you lose joint range or power in the leg, have trouble with explosive bursts or kicking, it is time to come off the ground and not return to play.

It is important that treatment of a muscle contusion starts immediately, with the first 48 hours post injury the most important. Immediate treatment for a corked muscle should include ceasing activity, icepacks applied every two hours for 15 minutes, bandage the corked muscle with an elasticized bandage, elevate the injured limb above heart height whenever possible and avoid exercise, heat, alcohol and massage in the first 48 hours.

Range of motion is a good indicator as to the severity of the injury. Difficulty flexing the knee past 90 degrees may suggest a more severe injury that requires physi- otherapy assessment.

For the fitness of you,

Linda Reilly

UK Artist at Elvis: International ElvisTM tribute artist Ben Thompson has been an- nounced as the 2018 feature artist for the 26th annual Parkes Elvis Festival from 10th to 14th January next year. In his first Australian performance ever, Ben is ready to celebrate 50 years since the ‘68 Come- back Special, the Festival’s 2018 theme. He will appear in four high-energy concerts at the Parkes Leagues Club.

Fire Station Open Day: Take the family tomorrow to the Open Day at the Parkes Fire Station at 1 Court Street from 10 am to 2pm to meet your local fire fighters. Chil- dren will be able to see the fire engines and fire fighting equipment up close and get into small fire uniforms for photos. Activities on offer include fire fighting demonstrations, station tours and fire safety pre- ventions. Advice on installing or replacing smoke alarms, and preparing a home fire escape plan will also be available, as well as a free sausage sizzle.

Code Club at Parkes Library: Kids around Australia are not only interacting with tech- nology, but also learning to code and how to create with technology. On Thursday, 25th May the very first Youth Code Club will begin at Parkes Library.

High school students are invited to register their interest in joining the Parkes Code Club. It will run for six weeks on Thursday afternoons from 4pm to 5pm from 25th May to 29th June. The Club is supported by Code Club Australia, with the projects designed to be flexible and encouraging high levels of thought and creativity. Places are limited. High School students are asked to bring a parent or guardian to Parkes Library to register. Call the Library on 6861 2309 for further information.

Crossing safely: Holy Family students welcomed safety upgrades at their school crossing last week. The improvements were made on the Albert Street entrance to the school, enhancing pedestrian and motorist safety around the busy student drop-off and pick-up point. Council worked with the Roads and Maritime Services on the project. The improved crossing now features two blisters in the centre of the road, two crossing bollards and handrails, and 60m of traffic separators. Councillor Bill Jayet officially opened the new crossing, which coincided with National Road Safety Week.