Growing Wings Early Learning Centre

At Growing Wings Grey, providing real tools for our tamariki creates powerful connections to the world around us.
A simple digital camera becomes so much more in their hands — it becomes a way to explore, to notice, and to share their unique perspective of the world. Through the lens, our tamariki are transported into a bigger world, capturing moments that matter to them.
As they take photos of their environment, we begin to see the world through their eyes — what they notice, what sparks their curiosity, and what holds meaning for them. It’s a truly special way to honour their voice and their way of seeing.
Throughout this exploration, we see learning urges unfolding — particularly observation, exploration, communication, and connection. Tamariki move with intention, revisiting spaces, capturing details, and sharing their discoveries with others.
These moments are powerful, building confidence, creativity, and a deeper sense of belonging within their environment. It reminds us just how capable our tamariki are when given real tools and real opportunities.

At Growing Wings Central, our local walks have become rich opportunities for discovery, as our tamariki continue to show a deep love for collecting natural resources.
Noticing this growing interest, kaiako Tams thoughtfully gathered a range of beautiful, colourful treasures from within her community and brought them back to share with our tamariki. This sparked a wonderful exploration as tamariki began to engage their senses — noticing colours, textures, smells, and patterns within the flowers.
Through sustained play and rich oral language, tamariki spent time peeling petals on and off, examining each piece with curiosity and care. These moments supported deep engagement, conversation, and connection with the natural world.
Together, their exploration led to a beautiful creation now displayed on our window — a reflection of their shared thinking and creativity. The learning didn’t stop there, as tamariki continued to revisit and repurpose the flowers across different learning areas throughout the day.
These experiences highlight the power of following tamariki interests, while supporting their learning urges of collecting, exploring, and creating.

At Growing Wings, we treasure the moments when tamariki bring pieces of their world from home into our learning environment.
Today, a simple egg became something so much more. It wasn’t just an item to share — it carried a story. A story of getting chickens, of time spent with grandparents on the farm, and of daily rituals alongside mum and dad, collecting eggs together.
Through this, we see the depth of connection tamariki hold to their home experiences. In sharing this with her kaiako and peers, she was sharing a part of her identity, her whaanau, and her journey.
These moments create powerful links between home and centre, strengthening that sense of belonging and connection. Other tamariki are drawn in, asking questions, making connections to their own experiences, and learning from one another.
It’s in these small yet meaningful moments that we see learning come to life — grounded in relationships, identity, and the stories our tamariki carry with them.

At Growing Wings Central, our tamariki have been exploring what it means to care for peepi, engaging in meaningful experiences that reflect the everyday moments they see and share at home.
Through play, our tamariki have been nurturing, feeding, rocking, and responding to peepi with such thoughtfulness and empathy. These experiences help build strong connections between home and centre, supporting our whaanau by reflecting familiar routines and values within our learning environment.
Throughout this exploration, we noticed tamariki expressing a range of learning urges — particularly nurturing, empathy, and connection. They showed a growing understanding of caring relationships, working together to ensure peepi were safe, comforted, and included.
These moments are powerful, as they strengthen social competence, compassion, and a sense of belonging. By creating links between home and centre, we are supporting our tamariki and whaanau to feel seen, valued, and connected in their learning journey.

🌸 Pink Shirt Day at Growing Wings 🌸
Today we stand together in pink a powerful reminder that kindness, inclusion, and respect are at the heart of who we are. 💗
Pink Shirt Day is about creating a world where everyone feels safe, valued, and proud of who they are. It’s a movement that encourages us to speak up, stand together, and stop bullying by celebrating diversity and strengthening a culture of aroha.
At Growing Wings, we bring this kaupapa to life through rich, meaningful experiences with our tamariki. Through conversations, storytelling, and shared moments, our tamariki are building the language to express their feelings, use kind words, and stand alongside others with confidence.
💬 You’ll hear this in our environments as tamariki:
Share their ideas and feelings during group koorero
Learn the power of kind words and respectful communication
Work through social situations together with guidance from their kaiako
Celebrate what makes each of us unique
These oral language opportunities are crucial they empower our tamariki to understand themselves, connect with others, and develop empathy, helping to create a strong sense of belonging.
Because here at Growing Wings, every voice matters, every child is heard, and together we grow a community of kindness. 🌱

At Growing Wings, we see the magic of independent play unfolding every day within our learning environment.
Our tamariki are confidently transporting their learning into their own interests — following their ideas, exploring freely, and making meaning in ways that are unique to them. Through this, they are growing in confidence, building resilience, and feeling empowered in their own learning journey.
What we love most is how this learning naturally extends beyond the individual. It doesn’t take long before other tamariki are drawn in, seeking out new ideas and inspiration from their peers. Suddenly, one child’s world becomes shared, and others are transported into it — learning alongside, contributing, and building on each other’s thinking.
These moments are truly special to witness, as friendships are strengthened, collaboration unfolds, and a strong sense of belonging is nurtured.

At Growing Wings Central, our tamariki have been deeply engaged in exploring the urge of transporting within our learning environment.
Today, we noticed a beautiful moment of collaboration and curiosity, as tamariki gathered an assortment of resources from different learning spaces. With purpose and teamwork, they collected these treasures, placed them into a container, and spent the afternoon transporting it together across the environment.
This experience reflects more than just movement — it shows problem-solving, cooperation, and a growing understanding of how things can be moved, organised, and shared. Our tamariki are naturally drawn to this urge, and through these moments, they are strengthening their thinking, relationships, and sense of belonging.
We love seeing these meaningful explorations unfold, guided by tamariki curiosity and supported through intentional teaching.

At Growing Wings Grey, our sandpit is a treasured part of our learning environment — a space where exploration, creativity, and problem-solving come to life.
Our tamariki spend extended time here digging, building, filling, and creating, using real tools to support their thinking and inquiry. Whether they are constructing roads, shaping landscapes, or testing out their ideas, the sandpit provides endless opportunities for hands-on learning.
Throughout this play, we see many learning urges unfolding — transporting, construction, transformation, and trajectory. Tamariki move materials with purpose, experiment with how sand changes when wet or dry, and work together to bring their ideas to life.
These moments are rich with collaboration, resilience, and problem-solving, as tamariki test their theories, adapt their thinking, and build on each other’s ideas.
Our sandpit is more than just a place to play — it’s a space where curiosity is nurtured, skills are strengthened, and learning is deeply meaningful.

At Growing Wings, our tamariki learn best when their whole world comes with them.

Every day we see their curiosity shine as they bring their home life, passions, and stories into their play. Whether it’s caring for peepi dolls like they do at home, building whaanau houses from blocks, or sharing the things they love — these moments help us deepen relationships and truly understand who they are.

Through following their interests, we create spaces where tamariki feel seen, valued, and confident to explore. Their play becomes richer, their connections stronger, and their wings a little wider each day.

🧡 Here, learning grows from relationships — and relationships grow from knowing their world.
Together, we help them

At Growing Wings Central, our tamariki have been turning the treasures they find on our walks into powerful learning moments.

Using natural resources like sticks, leaves, stones, and seed pods, our learners have been exploring hands‑on play that supports creativity, problem‑solving, storytelling, and connection to the world around them. What we discover outside becomes inspiration inside — guiding new ideas, new challenges, and new ways to learn together.

Our kaiako have been weaving this into their professional growth cycles each term, setting goals that reflect the interests and strengths of our tamariki. By bringing community walks and natural resources into our weekly planning, they’ve created rich, engaging opportunities that truly meet our learners where they are.

🧡 When we follow the lead of our tamariki, learning becomes meaningful, joyful, and deeply connected to their world.