Fairy Springs Early Learning Centre

“Friendship is where belonging begins” 🫶🏼

🌿♻️ Last week, our tamariki headed out on a hikoi around our local area, rolling up their sleeves to help care for the place we call home 💚

For a limited time, we’re offering 9 hours free with any 9 hour enrolment for tamariki aged 0–2 years 🌸

A lovely little space for your pēpi and toddlers to settle, play, explore, and grow alongside caring kaiako!

Feel free to message us or come have a look around.

☎️ 07 346 0610
📧 [email protected]

Fairy Springs Early Learning Centre Fairy Springs ELC is a culturally diverse, nurturing environment where we inspire young minds, nurture hearts, and build bright futures, celebrating and embracing the rich backgrounds and identities of all children and whānau.

We currently have a few spaces available for tamariki aged 3–5 years!

With 30 hours free available for over 3s, now is a great time to come join our little centre whānau🌻

Our days are filled with play, laughter, learning, exploring, and lots of fun alongside caring kaiako and friends.

Feel free to get in touch if you’d like to know more or come have a look around ☺️

☎️ 07 346 0610
📧 [email protected]

Fairy Springs Early Learning Centre Fairy Springs ELC is a culturally diverse, nurturing environment where we inspire young minds, nurture hearts, and build bright futures, celebrating and embracing the rich backgrounds and identities of all children and whānau.

This week our kaupapa is Tangaroa as we celebrate Sea Week, with opportunities throughout the space for tamariki to explore the many treasures of the moana.

With magnifying glasses in hand, tamariki slowed down to observe and investigate sea life up close, taking time to notice the small details. They explored ika, pāpaka, starfish and other creatures of Tangaroa, sharing their thoughts, discoveries and wonderings with one another as they looked more closely.

Through curiosity, conversation and hands-on exploration, tamariki are building their knowledge of the moana and the many living things within it, while also beginning to understand the importance of caring for Tangaroa’s treasures. 🌊🐚🔍

Today we gathered together to read a pukapuka about Tangaroa, the atua of the moana. The tamariki were immediately drawn in by the stories, their eyes carefully exploring each page and every detail in the pictures.

After our group reading, it was beautiful to see the story continue in its own way. Tamariki returned to the pukapuka with their friends, sitting together and using the pictures to help retell the story in their own words. They pointed, wondered, and shared their ideas with one another, bringing the story of Tangaroa to life through their imaginations. 🌊📚

Where the tides move, Tangaroa speaks 🌊

Sea week 2026 🐟🦀🐳🐡

Textures, textures, and more textures…This experience was all about the senses. Rough and smooth. Hard and soft. Cool surfaces and grainy pieces. Tamariki used their hands to feel the differences, noticing what changed, what felt new, what felt interesting.

You could see them slowing down, running their fingers over materials, pressing, tapping, exploring without needing to rush.

The richest learning simply begins with touch 🖐️

Little hands busy with hammering, paintbrushes moving as they explored our colour of the week, focused faces and proud smiles everywhere you looked. 🙈

Did you know? 👥🌱

In our shared group moments, tamariki are learning what it means to stand strong in themselves while being part of the collective. You see it in the way they wait with respect, listen with intent, tautoko their friends, and speak when they feel ready.

These are not just activities - they are spaces where mana is nurtured, where whanaungatanga grows, and where each child begins to understand their place within the rōpū.

Through these everyday moments, a sense of belonging is strengthened, confidence is gently built, and our tamariki learn that their voice carries value within the collective!