Little Citizens

Our tamariki in the Kōtuku room have been practicing their waiata for the upcoming Polyfest. We would love you to come along and support them, witnessing the amazing job they are doing in this special cultural celebration. We will send out more details closer to the event 😊

At Little Citizen, we embrace diverse learning opportunities. We have had the pleasure of welcoming Sarah from the Open Polytechnic to the Kiwi Room, and Allie, a student from Te Rito Maioha Early Childhood New Zealand - Dunedin Education Centre, who will be working across the center as they complete their studies.

Both have become an integral part of the centre over the past five weeks, forming strong reciprocal relationships with the children. We appreciate the innovative ideas and fresh perspectives these students bring from their educational programs, enriching the learning experiences for both children and teachers.

In the photos below, you can see Sarah conducting an ice experiment, discussing with the children how the ice feels and the difficulty of breaking it with hammers. This activity allows the children to observe Kaiako practicing Manaakitanga, sharing experiences, and engaging in Ako with other adults.

As part of Sign Language Week last week, we have been practicing signing the alphabet and our names. In addition to building our literacy skills through letter recognition, we have been strengthening our fine motor skills, learning how to communicate in sign language to say "my name is ...", and understanding the importance of using sign language. We have created a book about our names in sign language, allowing the tamariki to revisit and continue growing their sign language skills. It has been wonderful to see tamariki from both the Tui and Kōtuku rooms gaining māia (confidence) in using a variety of signs and being proud of their efforts.

The tamariki in the Kōtuku room are learning about sustainability as they nurture and care for the environment. They are taking on an active role as kaitiaki within our learning environment, taking responsibility for the care of our space by helping to catch flies from our worm farm to feed our class frogs. They are gaining an understanding that in order to have flies to feed the frogs, we need to continue feeding the worms with banana skins, which the chickens cannot eat.

Recently in the Kiwi room , the Tamariki have been enjoying sorting and categorizing different materials in sorting boxes and trays, using tongs to transfer these materials. The children love being able to practice and refine their developing fine motor skills and pincer grip with the tongs, as well as sorting and organizing the different loose part materials of shells, wooden pegs, pine needles, lids and pom poms.

The Tamariki have enjoyed exploring our new colour and number recognition tray as they put their skills to the test by using the small tongs to transfer coloured wooden beads onto matching circles. This provides numerous opportunities for the tamriki to practice their counting and grouping as they work out how many beads of each colour that they need to complete each number card. To make this more complex, the Tamariki could also use a small wooden spoon or have a go at using chop sticks to pick up and transfer the balls.

In the Kiwi room, sensory play is not just encouraged, it's a must! The Kaiako and the children love to make troughs of gloop, which is a mixture of cornflour and water. The texture is amazing! Children love exploring lots of different textures with all their senses and their whole body and this increases opportunities to learn about many different materials. Messy play helps children to relax as it’s a soothing activity, to also develop hand eye co-ordination and participate in small and large group activities. The children also have a ball getting very mucky and messy with their friends!

Last week, some of the Kiwi room Tamariki were fortunate to go on a spontaneous walk to the Book Bus. This provided a wonderful opportunity for the children to connect with the local community, while also enjoying the independence of selecting their own books and assisting the Librarian with issuing them.

Reading stories is an integral part of the daily program in the Kiwi room. Here, teachers engage with the children by discussing the imagery, rhythms, and rhymes within the text, and teach them the importance of caring for the books by returning them to the shelf once they're finished reading.

The Tamariki in the Kōtuku room have discovered a new favorite game: Rippa tag. In this energetic game, they put their physical speed and strategic thinking to the test as they attempt to catch each other's tags. It's a thrilling challenge that requires a great deal of self-control, as they must resist the urge to grab tags while racing around, ensuring they don't bump into one another.

Playing Rippa tag also puts our ability to regulate our responses to the test. When other tamariki manage to grab our tags, we may feel a mix of disappointment and determination to keep going and gather more tags to replace those lost.

To support the children during the game, we've designated a chill-out spot where they can take a break if they're feeling overwhelmed. This allows them to relax their bodies, slow down their breathing, and reset, so they can rejoin the fun feeling refreshed and ready to play again.

The Tamariki have been enthusiastically exploring a range of physical activities and challenges. From swinging on the bars to jumping off boxes, the tamariki are thoroughly enjoying the opportunity to push their boundaries and test their abilities. As they play together, they cheer each other on, celebrating successes and supporting one another through the process of mastering new skills. It's inspiring to witness their determination and resilience as they tackle each challenge with enthusiasm and a sense of adventure.

Over the past month, we've been nurturing sunflower seeds, teaching our tamariki about caring for plants and watching them grow. It all started when one child brought in a sunflower they'd grown at home, inspiring others to try their hand at gardening. Alongside learning about sunflower life cycles and plant care, our tamariki have taken on the role of "plant parents," regularly checking on their seedlings and providing care. We've supported the sunflowers' growth with stakes and relocated some to larger pots for more space. You're welcome to check out our progress next time you visit the Tui room.

In our shared outdoor play space, Tamiriki learn the importance of safety by actively navigating their bikes and scooters along the path, while also being mindful of other children who may be walking, crawling, or maneuvering vehicles nearby. Upon leaping onto the big blue mat, they're prompted to check their surroundings, ensuring everyone has ample space to participate regardless of age or developmental stage. This environment fosters connections among peers, bridging gaps between current friends and those who have moved to different classrooms, regardless of age differences.

Through these interactions, children cultivate confidence and bodily control, embracing risks within a secure setting guided by caring Kaiako who are attuned to the children's abilities and limitations.

Our Tamariki thoroughly enjoy playing outdoors with chalk, enjoying the creative process of seeing what shapes emerge when the person they've traced stands up. With chalk in hand, children can truly "think outside the box," experimenting with different colors and the varying thickness of chalk sticks. As they draw, they explore texture and witness firsthand the impact chalk has on the concrete path beneath their feet.

Take a look at our young artists in action! Unlike reading or math, it activates a different part of the brain, mainly the creative side in the right hemisphere. This part is crucial for developing visual skills and understanding what we see, which is especially important during the preschool years. Encouraging creative play and painting helps boost this "right" brain, supporting overall healthy brain development.

Recently the Tamariki in the Kiwi room enjoyed getting involved in the process of baking hot cross buns with Kaiako Heidi and Kirsty. This was a hands on and fun learning experience, where the Kiwi children got to help out in carrying out the different steps involved in baking hot cross buns. From mesuring out the ingredients, to mixing up the dough, to waiting enough time to let the dough rise, then rolling out and kneading the dough and cutting the dough up into hot cross buns to bake in the oven.

Baking promotes a wealth of learning across various curriculum areas such as:
Social skills – through taking turns to carry out the different steps, supporting each other through the baking process and sharing the same working space. Mathematics – as we count aloud and measure out the ingredients. Science – as we combine different ingredients together and watch as our dough transforms into hot cross buns that we can eat.

Check out the amazing photos from when we celebrated Holi at the centre. Holi is a vibrant and joyous Hindu festival celebrated in India. We had such a wonderful time celebrating colours, love and spring.

Thank you to Baani and Rajveer's whānau for the delicious Pakora and dips and Manvir's whānau for the sweets ladoos.

We have become great recyclers in Kōtuku room as we have been saving up our food scraps and sending them to Old Mac Donnas farm, to be shared amongst her hens and Mindo the rooster. This has been working out well as the hens eat the scraps in exchange for eggs, but we have been frustrated that the hens don't eat banana skins!
We have lots of banana skins and found that there are at least two useful things that you can do with them: either chop them up and scatter them around roses in your garden to help them grow, or feed them to worms! So, we decided to create a special home for a new farming venture - we are going to grow our own worms and feed them our skins! Once we have increased our stock numbers, we will release some of the worms into our garden to help enrich the soil.

The Kiwi room Tamariki delved into the world of maintaining healthy and active bodies through an engaging yoga session led by Kaiako Mel. Using picture cards as guides, they discovered how to mimic various animals or shapes with their bodies, like cats, mountains, trees, or cows. This experience encouraged relaxation through slow, deliberate breathing. Amidst the fun, they embraced the opportunity to try something new and fostered a sense of well-being.

The Tamriki in the Kiwi room have been engaged in sensory exploration through painting. They experienced the tactile sensations of cold, wet, and slippery paint as they transferred it onto paper. Some children used painting tools like dabbers to craft shapes, while others opted for a more hands-on approach, swirling paint with their fingers or blending different colors to create a variety of patterns

To help prepare Tamariki for the move off to school, they are supported to make their own lunches one day a week where they learn about different healthy options. The children practice how to butter their own bread, test out different food combinations and explore shapes as they decide whether they want square, triangle or rectangular sandwiches. They then help to find their labelled lunchbox, reinforcing recognition of their own names.

The Kōtuku room kicked off Sea Week by welcoming our special guests for the week: a family of crabs and sea snails. We set up a habitat where they'll live for the week before returning to the beach. The Tamariki enjoyed watching the crabs as they explored around their new home.

In addition to our crab and snail friends, we explored the different types of seaweed and shells found on our local beaches, thanks to Aroha. The children commented on how the seaweed smelt like the sea, and while some were hesitant to touch it, they enjoyed observing others play with it and sharing their experiences afterward.

The Tamariki had a great time celebrating Children's Day, where they enjoyed blowing giant bubbles, playing lawn darts, and even having a tea party! It was wonderful to see all the tamariki working together and sharing in the fun.

After lunch, the Kōtuku Tamariki worked with Julia to prepare delicious fruit platters and fairy bread to share with their friends and whānau who could join us to celebrate.

The rainbow ring is a fun tool for Tamariki, helping them in following instructions, working together, and enjoying music. Whether they're shaking it fast or rocking slowly to the beat, the experience is both entertaining and enriching. Music is great for emotional, social, and creative growth. Using the ring with music helps the children listen, focus, and cooperate better. Plus, it's relaxing and fun, making learning enjoyable.

Check out our wonderful Kaiwhakahaere Matua - Centre Manager Katee talking about why Little Citizens is a fantastic early childhood centre for your tamariki!

Little Citizens PODCAST Little Citizens gives your child a head start for life! We provide high quality early childhood education for preschool children in Dunedin.If you’ve been th...

The tamariki fed Raymond her lunch today. It was very exciting seeing her watch us as we dropped in the special meat, carrots and peas. She snatched the food from the surface using her beak and munched away at it, then she swiped it as it drifted down towards the bottom. She even used her strong claws to move some of the stones out of the way to gobble it up. The tamariki love Raymond and have been such great kaitiaki of her. It’s also a great way to encourage them to eat all their veggies!

Are you organised, energetic, and knowledgeable about foods that promote good nutrition and healthy eating? Come and rule 🤩the kitchen at our Little Citizens ECE 🚶‍♀️🏃🍲🥦🍎
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Enrolment spaces are available now in our Kiwi Room. Call now to find out more! Tel: 03 466 3402😃

Hip Hip Hooray after planting some pumpkin seeds of the 22nd January they have finally broken through the soil. The tamariki have been watering the soil and waiting so patiently to see what was going to happen. We now have to continue to look after our seedlings by remembering to just look and not touch while they continue to grow big and strong.

Yay, raumati/summer is here, and in the Tui Room, we have been loving experimenting with water play during our first month back for 2024. This began with exploring quantity and measurement through transferring water with a variety of water play resources. Recently, we extended this to adding water to a big wooden lever to see what would happen. The tamariki enjoyed challenging themselves to see how high they could get the water to go by stamping on the other end of the lever. It was a popular experience as tamariki involved learned about how levers and gravity work. It was also a great way for tamariki to practice asking for and taking turns and working together to fill up the lever container with more water each time.