HeadStart Early Learning NZ

4 weeks ago

Mid-Autumn Festival
Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as Moon Festival, is celebrated by many of our HeadStart whānau and community. This year we celebrated through traditional arts, baking moon cake biscuits and story telling.
Our dragon project spanned over a few weeks, first tamariki helped to construct the dragon body. Our tēina enjoyed painting the body a deep red colour and sticking on embellishments. Our tuākana traced around their hands to make scales and to construct the fin that runs along the top. At group learning time, the tuākana learnt about the different parts of a Chinese dragon, including the horns, scales, whiskers, belly, claws and paws. This helped to build a vision of what we were trying to create. They further explored these ideas through drawing.
The finishing touches were placed on our dragon, then we explored the traditional art of dragon dance! Tamariki worked together as a team to move as one, while listening to the beat of the drum.
Celebrating the festivals and diverse culture of our centre fills our calendar with exciting events and always inspired us to engage in fun projects like this! ... See MoreSee Less

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HeadStart Early Learning NZ

1 month ago

Obstacle courses are fantastic for children’s development because they bring together physical, social, and cognitive learning in one fun challenge. Our kaiako designed fun and challenging courses for our tamariki to enjoy, even setting up undercover options on rainy days so the adventures could continue.

Tamariki are learning and extending:
Physical Skills:
- Gross motor skills: running, crawling, jumping, climbing, balancing.
- Coordination: combining movements smoothly.
- Strength and endurance: building muscles through climbing, pushing, pulling.
- Agility and flexibility: moving quickly and adapting body movements.
- Spatial awareness: judging distance, space, and body positioning.

Cognitive Skills
- Problem-solving: figuring out how to get through each part of the course.
- Memory and sequencing: remembering the order of tasks.
- Risk assessment: deciding how to approach challenges safely.
- Focus and concentration: staying on task to complete the course.

Social & Emotional Skills
- Teamwork: working alongside peers, taking turns, and collaborating.
- Communication: sharing strategies, encouraging each other.
- Resilience: persisting even when tasks are tricky.
- Confidence: gaining pride in achievements.
- Self-regulation: managing excitement, waiting, and controlling movements.

Links to Te Whāriki
Exploration – Mana Aotūroa: developing confidence and control over their bodies.
Contribution – Mana Tangata: practicing cooperation, fairness, and teamwork.
Wellbeing – Mana Atua: learning to take risks safely and manage themselves physically. ... See MoreSee Less

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HeadStart Early Learning NZ is at Hilton Brown Hobsonville.

1 month ago

Swimming:
Our children are thoroughly enjoying our weekly private swimming lessons as Hilton Brown Swimming Hobsonville, developing both skills and confidence as they swim. They are learning to float on their front and back, as well as practising jumping into the deep end and paddling safely to the side. These are important physical skills that help build strength, coordination, and resilience.

Strand 5: Exploration – Mana Aotūroa:
Through these experiences, children are gaining confidence in and control of their bodies, exploring new challenges, and developing a sense of achievement in a supportive environment. ... See MoreSee Less

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HeadStart Early Learning NZ

1 month ago

Te wiki of te reo Māori

Last week was Māori language week, A week where we celebrated and strengthened our practice of using te reo Māori as a natural part of our everyday routines and daily practice.
Kaiako used te reo Māori consistently throughout the week, modelling correct pronunciation and encouraging tamariki to learn new kupu with confidence.

During creative experiences such as drawing, kaiako intentionally offered words in te reo Māori, repeating them as tamariki engaged in their work. This approach supported children to make meaningful connections with the language, while also reinforcing their understanding through repetition and context.

This links strongly to Strand 4: Communication – Mana Reo, as tamariki were immersed in both verbal and non-verbal communication through song, movement, drawing, and conversation. They experienced the stories, symbols, and language of te ao Māori, while also developing their own creativity and expression. Through these experiences, tamariki are building their communication skills across multiple modes and developing an appreciation for the richness of language and culture. ... See MoreSee Less

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HeadStart Early Learning NZ

4 months ago

Matariki 2025
We had such a magical celebration of Matariki with our tamariki and whānau! Throughout the week, our tamariki brought in vegetables which they prepared together to make a delicious soup. They also baked their own bread to enjoy alongside it.

Our tamariki had been practising their Matariki waiata and were so proud to perform them for their whānau — and what a fantastic job they did!

After the concert, we came together to share the soup and bread — absolutely delicious! To end the evening, we gathered at the sandpit to toast marshmallows over the fire.

It was a beautiful night of connection, celebration, and shared memories. ... See MoreSee Less

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