Whanau events hold significant value for us here at Bream Bay Kindergarten. The opportunity to create cherished memories through shared experiences, provides a way for us to foster a sense of belonging and connectedness to each other that is just so wholesome and good. Beach Night never fails to impress!   After last years wild and windy adventure, we were pleased with this years turn out of calm and tranquil.  The weather played the game perfectly and we were able to get on with the job of making fabulous sand sculptures, eating copiou ..read more

Like the bright colours of rangoli, may this Diwali bring you fresh happiness and joy, undiscovered avenues and different perspectives..... Today our tamariki experienced the traditional hindu art form of Rangoli. The brightly coloured patterns are traditionally created during Dawali, often on the ground outside the front door. They are thought to bring good luck, peace and prosperity for the coming year. We watched some video clips of people creating a range of Rangoli patterns and we carefully observed their technique. We noticed that most of the Rangoli were symmetrical or geometric ..read more

  On a quest to further support and grow children's oral language and literacy learning we have been exploring pūrākau with the tamariki at Bream Bay Kindergarten. "Pūrākau, or storytelling, is an ancient form not just of transmitting ideas but of creating shared meaning and thus identity" (Stansfield, 2020). To help jumpstart our journey into exploring pūrākau we started with reading the beautiful pukapuka ‘In the Beginning’ by Peter Gossage. Accompanying this book the teachers made story stones of the atua featuring in the story. The tamariki absolutely loved r ..read more

  Storytelling... It takes practice. As a team, teachers have been working on strengthening oral language within our environment.  With the recent opportunity for children to hear stories from reknowned storyteller Tanya Batt they were keen to create their own stories.  As a teacher my inquiry has been focused on better understanding, responding to, and effectively supporting children’s oral language learning.  As part of this I have been offering opportunities for children to engage in storytelling.  With a basket full of props and a space dedicated to one child ..read more

The allure of a darkened space with light table, cascading fairy lights, an array of coloured objects, blocks, mannequins and torches is too much for tamariki to resist.  Let exploration begin! Awe and wonder... "I've got a rainbow on my tummy!" said Spencer. Trial and error...where is that rainbow? Found it...duplicating results! The urge to play and explore in our light and shadow space has been a delight for the senses and has become a very popular space for children to venture into.   This is a very child led space with open ended resources ..read more

Here at Bream Bay Kindergarten we love a healthy competition.  We have a focus on oral language and literacy and our recent fun has come from a phonics game we made up to explore phonics called "Big T, little t, what begins with T?"  The name of the game is to choose a letter and mimic the sound of that letter and then begin to think of things that begin with that sound. For example the letter T, we might think of someone whose name begins with the T sound, or a toy that begins with the T sound, or even something at home or on the farm. All the while sounding out the letter and ..read more

  Let the children play they said...so we did and it was fabulous! Self directed play provides opportunities for children to explore, experiment, discover and solve problems in imaginative and playful ways and is immensely powerful for learning (NZC online blog).    "Driving" was a fun game!          Every buckle ever put inside that ambulance was tried on and taken off...again, again and again!  We learnt, there are a lot of buckles in an ambulance! Inspection time...checking absolutely everything out ..read more

 Winters arrival and an abundance of lemons on the tree means...it's juicing time! Hot water, lemon, honey and a beautiful set up invites children to play.   A quick blast of vitamin C...good for what ails you!         Sticky, sour, yellow, zesty, fragrant, citrus, rind, wedges, whole, half, bitter, tangy, delicious, slushy, mushy, gooey, mouth watering, sloppy, wet, squishy, fresh, ripe, fruity, squeezable, juicy!    Sour!     Tasty.      Really sour!             ..read more

  The exact moment of understanding captured in a photograph!   Notice how the eyes sparkle with wonder and delight...it's an exhilarating moment of deep understanding, both joyous and precious.  With the minuet touching of the yellow dye to the blue dye, tamariki make the connection that blue and yellow make green!   Of course anyone could have told the children this, however this would have taken all the joy out of learning.  It's the experience that makes the difference of deeper knowledge and understanding, and this is the same for learning!&nbs ..read more

It was great to catch up with some of our tamariki and whānau on Zoom last week and hear about what everyone has been doing to keep themselves busy, as well as the highs and lows that being in lockdown presents. Some expressed enjoyment towards the challenges that have been offered. So, collaboratively another challenge was made...  'Show us in photos three things that make you feel happy.'  We know how important it is to find the little things that make us feel good and find the bright parts in our days during these times. Appreciating happy experiences is a mindfulness ..read more