Staying active and improving social skills part of life-lessons at Otara ECE
An early learning centre in South Auckland is helping kids get off their devices with some good ‘old school’ games to stay fit and connect.
Learning is not confined to the classroom at Barnardos Ōtara early learning Centre.
Students are encouraged to stay active and have fun.
“Skipping, jumping, learning how to catch and throw the ball, they are all very important skills,” says center manager Carolaina Mua Peterson.
“It goes far beyond the physical development for a child. For instance it’s important for our children to learn how to share, be patient when they are taking turns as well as the joy of communicating and playing alongside one another,’ Mua Peterson added.
Luckily they don’t need to jump through too many hoops as Maxine Chappell of Athletics New Zealand is on hand to help foster a lifelong love of physical activity.
“We are trying to help the children aged two to five to learn basic foundational movements that are involved in the sport of athletics and really get them introduced to those movements to be able to help them with sport and life in general as they grow up,” Chappell says.
A local business funded the ‘get set go’ programme so pupils can build confidence, develop motor skills and importantly, connect.
In a world where the digital age can divide. Parent Talosaga Albert is glad the activity allows her daughter to get to know her classmates.
“I think it helps them to build up their social skills as well. Help them to kind of interact with each other so I think that’s a really good thing,” she says.
“I’m a mother of six kids so I am kind of familiar with this kind of stuff.”
Forty five youngsters are enrolled here and the majority are Pasifika who are planting the health message seed here and at home.
“The cost of living is quite expensive. What we are trying to focus on here at the centre is to be able to provide ways that we could help our families,” Mua Peterson says..
“So we currently have a community garden going on with a worm farm that our children help to maintain and when we harvest them, we put it out for our families to take back home and cut up and have a yummy kai at home with their children.”
The plan is for the teachers to continue teaching this beyond the 10 weeks so that the students will keep taking part throughout the year.
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