Clendon KIDS Early Learning Centre

🌧️💛 Happy Hump Day from Clendon Kids! 💛🌧️

It's Wednesday already, halfway through the week and only two more days to go! While the rainy weather has kept us indoors today, nothing can stop our amazing tamariki from having fun, learning, and exploring together. ☔✨

Our centre was buzzing with excitement as tamariki engaged in a variety of hands-on experiences throughout the day. Kaiako Mele prepared some wonderful sensory activities, including playdough and shaving foam experiences, where little hands were busy squishing, moulding, mixing, and creating. 🌈

Construction play continued to inspire problem-solving and creativity as tamariki worked together to build and design their own creations. Nearby, dramatic and pretend play areas were filled with imagination, storytelling, and lots of laughter as children took on different roles and explored their ideas. 🏗️🎭

Our cosy book areas were also well-loved today, with tamariki enjoying stories, turning pages, looking at pictures, and developing a love for literacy through shared reading experiences. 📚❤️

The sounds of music echoed throughout our centre as tamariki explored a variety of musical instruments, creating rhythms, singing songs, and expressing themselves through music and movement. 🎵🥁🎶

Of course, no rainy day is complete without a little dancing! Our tamariki showed off their cool dance moves, filling our learning spaces with energy, joy, and smiles. 💃🕺

We also spent time exploring and caring for our animal friends, encouraging curiosity, gentle interactions, and a growing appreciation for the living world around us. 🐢🐟🐇

Rain or shine, our tamariki continue to show us that learning happens everywhere through play, exploration, creativity, and connection.

"Ahakoa te ua, ka haere tonu te ako me te tākaro" – Even when it rains, learning and play continue.

Ka mau te wehi, tamariki mā! What a wonderful Wednesday it has been, filled with creativity, music, movement, stories, laughter, and learning. ❤️

Our preschool children had a wonderful time exploring the seashells with letters on them. Through this hands-on experience, they strengthened their letter recognition skills while also using the shells as counters during their play. This open-ended activity encouraged early literacy and numeracy learning, as well as problem-solving, communication, and imaginative thinking in a fun and engaging way.

Tēnā koutou,
The preschool children enjoyed exploring playdough alongside colourful circle shapes. This hands-on experience encouraged them to be creative while exploring different textures, shapes, and colours. As they rolled, flattened, moulded, and decorated the playdough, they developed their colour recognition, fine motor skills, and imagination, creating their own unique designs through play.

Mānawatia a Monday! ☀️

A new week, a fresh start, and a beautiful sunny day here at Clendon KIDS! 🌞

Our tamariki arrived with bright smiles, boundless energy, and eager hearts ready for a day of learning and adventure. Throughout the day, our little explorers immersed themselves in creative experiences, meaningful interactions, and exciting discoveries.

From imaginative play and construction challenges to outdoor exploration and social connections, there were many opportunities for our tamariki to learn alongside one another, share ideas, and strengthen friendships. 💛

It was wonderful to see so much curiosity, confidence, and collaboration as our tamariki explored their environment and expressed their creativity in their own unique ways.

At Clendon KIDS, we cherish these moments as tamariki develop a sense of belonging, build relationships, and grow as capable and competent learners.

"He rā hou, he tīmatanga hou" – A new day, a new beginning.
Ka mau te wehi, tamariki mā! We look forward to another fantastic week of learning, laughter, and fun together.

Today, our Koru Pēpe enjoyed exploring playdough during free play. The tamariki used their hands to squeeze, roll, press, and mould the playdough, helping to strengthen the small muscles in their hands and fingers. These movements support fine motor development and build the skills needed for future writing and self-help tasks.

During free play, the children explored at their own pace, using their creativity and curiosity to make different shapes and creations. This encouraged independence, imagination, and confidence.

The tamariki also had lots of fun singing and moving to "Ring a Ring o' Roses" with Kaiako Anna. Through music and movement, they developed listening skills, coordination, balance, and social connections while enjoying a shared group experience.

What a wonderful day of learning through play, movement, and music!

Today, the tamariki explored building blocks, using their creativity and problem-solving skills to construct towers, houses, roads, and other imaginative creations.

As they built and balanced the blocks, the children developed their hand-eye coordination, fine motor skills, and spatial awareness. They learned about size, shape, balance, and cause and effect as they experimented with different ways to build their structures.

Building with blocks also encouraged communication, cooperation, and teamwork as tamariki shared ideas, took turns, and worked together. Through this play, they developed confidence, persistence, and resilience, learning that they could try again when their structures fell down.

Block play provides valuable opportunities for children to learn through exploration, creativity, and hands-on discovery.

Today, our Big Kids enjoyed a creative arts and crafts experience as they designed and made their own unique monsters. Using a variety of materials such as feathers, glitter balls, googly eyes, and toothpicks, the tamariki carefully created their monster masterpieces.

Look at our creative Big Kids with their big imaginations! Each monster was different, showing the children's individuality, creativity, and unique ideas. The tamariki explored colours, textures, and shapes while making choices about how they wanted their monsters to look.

This activity supported the development of fine motor skills as tamariki used their hands and fingers to place and attach the different materials. It also encouraged creativity, problem-solving, and self-expression as they brought their imaginative ideas to life. The children were proud to share their creations and talk about the special features of their monsters.

Today, our tamariki enjoyed a fun messy play experience using shaving foam and glitter stars. They explored the soft, foamy texture with their hands, spreading, swirling, and creating patterns as they played.
As well a feather painting

The tamariki practised writing their names in the shaving foam and used their fingers to draw pictures, letting their imaginations run wild. Some created shapes and symbols, while others designed their own unique artworks using the glitter stars as inspiration.

This sensory experience supported the development of fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, and early literacy skills. It also encouraged creativity, self-expression, and confidence as tamariki freely explored and shared their ideas with others. Most importantly, they had lots of fun learning through play.

"Messy play provides opportunities for tamariki to explore different textures, develop sensory awareness, and strengthen the muscles needed for future writing tasks."

Look at our tamariki making little monsters with playdough! They used their hands to touch, squeeze, roll, and mould their creations into unique little monsters.

Working with playdough helps tamariki develop their hand-eye coordination as they carefully shape and add details to their monsters. It also strengthens the small muscles in their hands and fingers, which supports important skills needed for writing, drawing, and self-care tasks. Through this hands-on experience, tamariki are building creativity, fine motor skills, concentration, and confidence while having fun.

Mālō e lelei 'Etuini!
With warmth we welcome you to our whanāu. We promise to embrace your holistic development by providing you with a fun, caring and interactive learning environment.
Have a wonderful learning journey!