Poppies Kindergarten

09/09/2026

Today on our out and about excursion we became little explorers as we observed and investigated the changes happening around us as spring arrives. We noticed more ants, discovered beautiful flowers beginning to bloom and were delighted to spot 2 adorable ducklings.
Our tamariki were encouraged to slow down, look closely and use their senses to explore the world around them. Through these experiences we are developing our observation skills, curiosity and understanding of the natural environment.
It was wonderful to see the children noticing the small changes in nature and making connections with the changing seasons ❤️😊❤️

08/09/2026

Ahoy, Poppies families! 🏴‍☠️

This Friday 11th September, our little adventurers are invited to join us for Talk Like a Pirate Day!

We’ll be dressing up, hunting for treasure, playing pirate games, getting creative with crafts and singing plenty of pirate songs along the way.

Pirate dress-ups are encouraged, but don’t worry if you don’t have one — Poppies has spare dress-ups available too.

We can’t wait to see our little pirates ready for a day of fun and adventure!

04/09/2026

A big thank you to all our wonderful Father’s and Grandfather’s who attended the special afternoon tea at Poppies today to celebrate Fathers Day. Always a great way to meet other Fathers and to know a little more about your child’s day at Poppies.
Enjoy your special day on Sunday - you all deserve it 😊😊

03/09/2026

This week as part of our Transition to School we enjoyed an exciting STEM week filled with hands on learning, exploration and lots of fun.
We explored measurement by working together to create houses using pebbles. We investigated predictability and varying factors through a fun game of basketball. We developed our understanding of balance and stability while building pyramids with cups and explored the effects of water and oil through an exciting science reaction.
We also had lots of fun in the kitchen making corn and cheese fritters. Firstly we talked about recipes and the benefits of cooking and preparing food. We then combined our ingredients to create our fritters. The children practised carefully flipping them over in the pan and best of all tasting them. Cooking is a wonderful way to bring maths and science to life while also developing practical skills, confidence and independence.
To extend our learning we created our own craft fritters. Through colouring, cutting and manipulating materials, we strengthened our fingers and hand muscles supporting the development of the fine motor skills needed for writing 😊❤️

02/09/2026

A little Father’s Day reminder!

Our Blokes & Blocks Afternoon Tea is happening tomorrow, Friday 4th September, from 1:30–3pm!

We’re looking forward to a lovely afternoon celebrating the wonderful dads and father figures in our Poppies community with our tamariki. ❤️

See the RSVP form in the foyer for details.

Father’s Day at Poppies – Blokes & Blocks Afternoon Tea 💙

We’re excited to celebrate the wonderful dads, grandads and father figures who are such an important part of our Poppies community!

Join us for a special Blokes & Blocks Afternoon Tea, with a relaxed afternoon of connection, treats and a little building fun with our Poppies tamariki. 🧱☕️

📅 Friday 4th September
🕜 1:30pm – 3:00pm
📍 Poppies Kindergarten

Come along, spend some special time with your little one and enjoy an afternoon celebrating the amazing dads in our community.

Please check the RSVP form in the foyer for further details and to let us know if you’ll be joining us.

We can’t wait to see you there!

29/08/2026

Father’s Day at Poppies – Blokes & Blocks Afternoon Tea 💙

We’re excited to celebrate the wonderful dads, grandads and father figures who are such an important part of our Poppies community!

Join us for a special Blokes & Blocks Afternoon Tea, with a relaxed afternoon of connection, treats and a little building fun with our Poppies tamariki. 🧱☕️

📅 Friday 4th September
🕜 1:30pm – 3:00pm
📍 Poppies Kindergarten

Come along, spend some special time with your little one and enjoy an afternoon celebrating the amazing dads in our community.

Please check the RSVP form in the foyer for further details and to let us know if you’ll be joining us.

We can’t wait to see you there!

28/08/2026

Congratulations to Zephyr for graduating from Bear Cubs 🎓🎉🤗
Welcome to Lion Cubs Zephyr. We are so excited to have you and see where your learning will take you in this next stage of your learning journey 🎓🎉🤗

26/08/2026

Today, during our Out and About excursion, we visited Ayr Street Reserve. As we explored the area the children noticed several changes happening within our community. We observed the aftermath of a car accident and also noticed water running down the road following a burst water pipe. These unexpected discoveries created opportunities for the children to talk about what they could see, ask questions and share their ideas about what may have happened.
Our current Lion cubs focus is fairy tales and trolls, so while exploring the reserve we kept our eyes open for any trolls hiding along the way. Although we didn’t spot any trolls we crossed several bridges and each time the children wondered “are there any trolls under the bridge?”
The children’s curiosity connected our real world exploration with our current learning focus. They used their imagination, asked questions and remained engaged as we searched for signs of trolls throughout our walk 👿🧌

22/08/2026

Our tamariki enjoyed one of our favourite big mat times- dressing up, singing and acting out one of our favourite songs “five little ducks” 🦆
This is a wonderful way to have fun, be creative, build confidence and develop early numeracy skills as we count the ducks together. It also encourages participation, language development, memory and turn taking 🦆❤️🦆❤️🦆❤️

19/08/2026

This week many of our older Lion Cubs had the opportunity to walk up Hapua Street as they have been very curious about the roadworks happening. These excursions provide a wonderful opportunity for them to see, hear and experience what is happening in our local community up close.
By taking these learning experiences beyond our centre, we are supporting tamariki to make connections between what they see in their everyday environment and their learning. It was lovely to see their curiosity, excitement and interest as they observed the road works taking place 😊❤️

Please note if you need any help during drop offs or pick ups while this work is being carried out please contact Rhiannon - we are always too happy to help 😊❤️