Busy Bees New Plymouth

Playing in the rain is a sensory experience - the feeling of rain on your skin, the sound of raindrops falling on different surfaces, the smell of fresh rain and the splishing and splashing through puddles!
The best way to learn about weather is to enjoy playing in it 🌧☔

We are so incredibly lucky here at Busy Bees New Plymouth to have some incredibly commited, dedicated, passionate and loving kaiako.

One of these superstar kaiako is our lovely infants kaiako, Shelley. Shelley has been here at Busy Bees New Plymouth for over 10 years, she has shown deep commitment and dedication to our place. Shelley is one of the most kindest, warmest and genuinely loving people you will ever meet. With strength and passion in her knowledge of curriculum, planning and learning we are so lucky and so grateful to Shelley for the incredible contribution she makes to our teaching team in the way she advocates for quality practices and the way she mentors our newly qualified kaiako and kaiako in training.

The tamaiti is at the heart of everything Shelley does and this truly shows in the beautiful relationships that Shelley forms with the tamariki around her and the whanau too!

We deeply love our Shelley and are so grateful to have her shining her light in our centre 🌟 ❤️

Manawatia a Matariki! Wishing you a very Happy Maori New Year from our kaiako, tamariki and whanau of Busy Bees.
A beautiful gathering and celebration together filled with shared stories of the past and setting new goals and aspirations for the future.

Curious Minds in Waimea! 🩵

Our Waimea tamariki have been busy exploring, discovering, and learning through play!

Over the past few weeks, our tamariki have been strengthening their fine motor skills, building concentration, developing social skills, and embracing mahi tahi (working together). Most importantly, they've been having so much fun along the way!

We love watching their confidence and curiosity grow as they learn through hands-on experiences. Take a look at some of the wonderful moments our Waimea toddler room has been enjoying over the last few weeks!⭐️

Today we shine the light on another of our amazing kaiako!!

Amber ❤️ one of our incredible infants kaiako and our committed second year teacher in training! Amber brings the fun, the silly and the laughs and spreads her joy amongst our team and our tamariki. Amber has shown such passion and commitment to our space, our team and to our profession. Amber has a big and generous heart and builds beautiful connections with those around her. We admire her strength, her can do attitude and the way she always shoots for the stars 🌟

We feel so lucky to have Amber as part of our Busy Bees New Plymouth team and we are excited to see her journey continue to unfold ❤️

At Busy Bees New Plymouth, our preschool room, Waiwhakaiho, has been immersed in learning about science and discovering the world around us. From using magnifying lenses to observe a range of creepy crawlies to getting our hand dirty learning about what seeds need to thrive, our tamariki have asked many questions to deepen their understanding.
Our tamariki have been highly engaged in these learning experiences and excited about the activities and discoveries still to come. There have been so many opportunities to Bee-curious and explore te maramatanga ki te ao - understanding the world around us!

Sensory Play!🎨
Here in our Waimea (Toddler) ruma our tamariki love sensory play!
Sensory play encourages our curiosity, creativity, and problem-solving while allowing tamariki to learn at their own pace.
We love experiencing a different range of sensory play from sand, paint, gloop, slime to many more amazing activities. Sensory play is always a highlight for our tamariki and they are always so engaged and having fun!💛

Happy Mother’s Day! 💐 💮

To all the whaea, mums, step-mums, grandmas, nanas and mother figures in our lives - today is for you!

For the early starts, the big hugs, the long nights, and the endless love in so many different forms… we see it, and we appreciate it.

Sending love and aroha to you today.
We also hold space today, for those who may be missing someone, waiting for someone, or carrying their motherhood journey quietly. 💗 💜

Here in our Waiwhakaiho Rūma, small group time is a special part of our day where we come together as a learning community. We begin by gathering on the mat and sharing a karakia, creating a calm and respectful space before moving into our group activities.

After this, our tamariki break into smaller groups to take part in teacher-led experiences that are both fun and meaningful. These activities include memory games, puzzles, construction challenges, creative projects like making cars, and active games such as rippa tag. Each experience is thoughtfully planned to reflect our tamariki’s current interests while also supporting their learning and development.

Small group time provides rich opportunities for our tamariki to build important skills. They develop their communication and language as they share ideas and work alongside others. They strengthen their problem-solving and critical thinking through hands-on challenges and grow their confidence as they try new things and step outside their comfort zones. Through mahi tahi (working together), they learn about teamwork, turn-taking, and respecting different perspectives.

This time also allows for more intentional teaching, where kaiako can support individual learning and extend thinking.

We truly value small group time in Waiwhakaiho Rūma, and our Tamariki look forward to seeing what fun activity they will be doing!