The tamariki were surprised with some new obstacle course equipment at kindy. Some of them were a bit hesitant at first, whilst others started climbing straight away. It was great to see them boasting with their awesome climbing and balancing skills. A few of the older children also helped the younger ones, which was wonderful to see. We are lookin...

  Today we celebrated Father's Day at the kindy. We invited all the whanau to join us for a special morning, where they started off by building their own "samburger" with their tamariki and then went outside to help plant some ferns in the garden. We had arranged some tyres in a flower shape for this project. The whanau enjoyed the morning and...

Today the girls in the Hi-5's room decided to draw some pictures for their mums. They carefully chose their colours and started drawing their masterpieces. Their fine-motor skills really impressed me and they held their pencils with such confidence. They were so proud of their pictures and happily showed them to me to take a pho...

This week at Kids Count Marne Road the teachers are talking to the tamariki about "safe-handling of pets". We have bought the most beautiful book related to pets with big, colourful pictures. The rooms took turns in showing the pictures to the children and talking about how we care for pets and having gentle hands. The tamariki enjoyed looking at t...

The kaiako and tamariki at Marne Road recently celebrated Samoan Language Week at the Centre. The children took part in Tapa art activities in FFS and learned how to write their numbers in Samoan in the Hi-5's room. Matua Viliamu came to tell some Samoan stories to the tamariki and Whaea Yashmin demonstrated to the Rising Stars how to crack op...

Today as I walked around the kindy, it was evident that the children were fully engaged and having an awesome day! Everywhere I looked I could see the teachers interacting with the tamariki and talking with them. The children were playing happily and loving all the attention, interest and praise the teachers gave them. We did indeed ...

​Today we opened up our new bike track to the tamariki! After a few weeks of waiting in anticipation, it was finally ready. The children eagerly helped to take the bikes out of the shed and immediately went to the track. Some of them initially struggled to get up the hill, but they used their problem-solving skills and pushed the bikes instead. We ...

Today the tamariki had so much fun exploring their environment! The Hi-5's enjoyed painting and fantasy play, whilst the FFS had fun playing at the pool area, as well as having their kai there. The FFJ showed off their skills at the Carpentry table and sang beautifully with Whaea Brooke at mat-time. Whaea Raewyn also did Kapa Haka do...

​During the December/January school holiday programme, the tamariki had so much fun! From painting, to sand play to water fun...every day was a new adventure. Whaea Ata also took the Hi-5 children swimming and the movie-day was a great success. Making their own lunches was great fun and the children could show off their self-help skills.Thank you t...

The new Geodesic Dome Climber has finally arrived! The tamariki eagerly awaited their turn to go and explore the new obstacle. The new bark arrived soon after and they could continue to climb and have fun. Enhancing their gross-motor skills are one of our goals at Marne Road and this new obstacle is perfect for strengthening their arm and...

This week has been a very adventurous week for the Hi-5's as we went on a few excursions. We started the week by visiting our friends at Karaka Summerset Resthome to sing a few songs. On Wednesday, as we were heading to the librar,y the Tamariki talked about watering the flowers in our butterfly garden created by our great friends at Bunnings Takan...

Here in the Future Fern Junior room our Tamariki have the opportunity to express themselves and make sense of their world through exploration and play. Our aim is to provide children with a love of learning , where children discover relationships, and communicate with and alongside their peers and teachers as they discover the world around them. Kn...

​The tamariki in our Rising Stars classroom have been having so much fun this week! Here are a few of their "Wow" moments....

The month of June saw our tamariki playing outside a lot and utilizing the beautiful sunshine while it lasted!  Our tamariki enjoyed making lots of new creations in the sandpit and building their climbing skills in the playground. Our children have been engaging with and displaying new interests includin...

Yesterday we had our first Halloween party at Kids Count Marne road and it was a huge success with many children dressing up for the occasion, and having a great time discovering and exploring at our Halloween party. Children throughout the ages have enjoyed dressing up in costumes and engaging in dramatic roleplaying. Whether your child is superma...

​The saying 'Kids make life the best kind of busy' is definitely a saying that lives deeply in our Future Fern Senior Room at KC Marne Road. Our three year old tamariki have been super busy with all types of interesting activities.  They have been working with nature and investigating all types of different bugs and creepy crawlies, some ...

Kids Count thrives on the belief that "Every child has the right to reach their full potential". Within our centre we have tamariki who have unique qualities that can be seen in their personalities, their features and abilities. One particular child is a little boy that lives life to the fullest. This little super hero named JR has Down Syndrome bu...

Our three year old tamariki from our Future Fern Senior Room at Kids Count Marne have been showing lots of interest in imaginative, building and construction play.  Some benefits to imaginative, building and construction play are: It improves fine motor manipulation and strength; It enhances spatial awareness; It encourages thinking and r...

I am excited to share an incredibly easy summer activity that packs a punch! .….Ice sensory play! I know this isn't an original idea, as many others have played with coloured ice.  However, it's always a hit with the kids in the Rising Stars room.  Kids like this for a reason, and it's always a part of our summer fun! Some benefits t...

Toilet Training Readiness Sometimes parents/whanau are unsure about when to start toilet teaching or "potty training." Not all children are ready at the same age, so it's important to watch your child for signs of readiness, such as stopping an activity for a few seconds or clutching his or her nappy. Instead of using age as a readiness indicator, ...