25/08/2026
Exploring Mackenzie Country Through Story
Lake Tekapo Kindergarten was very lucky to welcome the author of Explore with Me Mackenzie Country, Mary Blain, as part of NZ Children’s Book Week. Mary came along to read her book to our tamariki, sharing a story that celebrates the beautiful landscape of our district.
Explore with Me Mackenzie Country is a place-based children’s book, and as Mary read, the children immediately recognised some of the places they had visited themselves. Their excitement in sharing their own experiences added another lovely layer of connection to the learning opportunity.
“My papa has done skydiving, jumping out of that helicopter.”
“That’s Tekapo hot pool!”
“Twizel! I’ve been to there.”
This was not only a wonderful moment for tamariki to enjoy literacy, but also a chance to learn about the land and the region they call home, and to celebrate where they are from.
The children’s enthusiasm was clear as one tamariki praised the book and Mary’s reading, saying, “Amazing!” while another gave a big thumbs up and said, “Ka Pai!”
Thank you, Mary, for sharing your beautiful book with us and for your generosity in gifting a copy to our kindergarten. We look forward to reading and enjoying it with our tamariki again and again.
