Happy Hearts Early Learning Centre - Red Beach

What a busy sensory week we have had in Room 2! Our curious toddlers explored nature, colour, texture, and creativity through hands-on experiences filled with wonder and discovery.

The toddlers loved rolling shiny mirror balls through paint, watching the colourful tracks and patterns appear in the paint while also spotting their reflections looking back at them when they washed them in the water. There were lots of smiles, excitement, and curious observations as little hands explored cause and effect through movement and paint.

We explored many different ways to create marks, using our hands, cotton buds, and leaves collected from nature. Each child experimented in their own unique way, making swirls, dabs, prints, and patterns while building creativity, confidence, and sensory awareness.

Our exploration continued with beautiful hydrangea flowers, food colouring, and droppers. The children carefully squeezed and dripped vibrant colours onto the flowers, watching the colours spread and change before their eyes. This sparked creativity, curiosity, and conversations about colour mixing and nature’s beauty.

It has been a week full of busy hands, creative minds, sensory exploration, and joyful discovery as we connected with nature through play.

Today in Room 2 we had so much fun baking Anzac cookies together! Our busy little bakers took turns adding in the ingredients, giving everything a good mix, and watching it all come together. There were lots of helping hands and big smiles as everyone got involved.

Once our mixture was ready, the toddlers loved pressing down their very own cookies, carefully shaping them before we took them to the kitchen to bake. The excitement was building as we waited… and it was definitely worth it — they turned out so tasty!

Such a lovely way to explore, create, and share something special together 💛

What a beautiful morning for a teddy bears picnic 🐻

Our Fizzy Friday was full of magic, colour, and lots of excited squeals! The toddlers had so much fun watching the fizzy mixtures bubble and pop—fizz… sizzle… pop!

Busy hands were mixing, pouring, and exploring while creative minds wondered, “What’s happening?” and “Look, it’s a volcano!” 🌋 Little learners watched closely as the bright colours swirled and changed, bringing so much joy and excitement to the experience.

There was so much wonder as the children listened carefully to the sounds, shared their ideas, and talked about what they could see happening. It was such a playful, hands-on experience filled with curiosity, creativity, and lots of happy giggles for our tamariki ✨ come and join in on the fun here at happy hearts 😊

Tiny hands, big learning 🤍

Watching our pēpi dive into fine motor play is where the magic really happens. Little fingers grasping, squeezing, stacking and discovering the world around them. Every moment of play is building confidence, coordination, and curiosity.

Learning doesn’t sit still here… it’s playful, hands-on, and full of wonder ✨

Inspiring wonder and creativity for little hands in our nature garden 💚🧡

Celebrating Easter with our toddlers

We have been having so much Easter fun here in Room 2! 🐰🌸 The toddlers have been busy hopping, dancing, and exploring all things Easter. Our room has been filled with music and movement as we wiggled and giggled along to “Mrs Bunny” and “Hop Little Bunnies” — so many happy smiles and bouncing bodies!

The tamariki loved getting creative, making their very own Easter bunny headbands and decorating colourful Easter eggs. We saw lots of beautiful lines, dots, and patterns, and of course, a sprinkle of gold glitter to add that extra touch of sparkle and magic ✨ What an egg-cellent effort from everyone!

Storytime has been extra special too, as we went on an egg-citing adventure reading We’re Going on an Egg Hunt together.

Outside, the fun continued with our Easter chalk obstacle course! The toddlers jumped into shapes and Easter eggs, carefully balanced along the wiggly line, and made their way to the Easter bunny drawing before excitedly starting all over again. Such a wonderful way to get our bodies moving, build confidence, and have fun with friends 💛

What an egg-stra special and playful way to celebrate Easter together!

Our toddlers have been diving into a magical underwater world lately! 🌊✨ With our shimmering ocean water and colourful little boats, we’ve been watching the ripples move and swirl as we gently splash and explore together.

Curious hands have been reaching in to see what treasures are hiding beneath the surface… and oh, what we’ve discovered! 🦀⭐ From sneaky sharks and bumpy starfish to scuttling crabs and big whales splashing up and out of the water — there has been so much excitement and wonder!

There have been lots of giggles, splashes, and wide-eyed moments as tamariki explore, imagine, and create their own ocean adventures. 🐳💙 So much fun, learning, and discovery all rolled into one magical sea experience!

Our preschool have been rehearsing a special little Easter show and last week we got out in the community and performed at our local retirement village. To our great excitement the Easter Bunny happened to be hopping by, and surprised our learners with a little Easter egg 🐰