Meri Kirihimete & Happy New Year ✨
2021 has been another challenging year but with the support of our community, we’ve managed to also make it an epic one.
Our office is closed from 5pm Friday 17 December and we’re back Wednesday 5 January.
We hope you enjoy the summer, spending time with your whānau and resetting for 2022.
Noho ora mai
The team at Whiti Ora.
Embrace your inner Maui and be creative, active and innovative with the Summer Whānau Challenge!
The Summer Whānau Challenge is an initiative to give children the space, time, and freedom to play this summer.
After a challenging year, it’s vital tamariki and whānau have friendship, fun and freedom this summer. Whiti Ora and Healthy Families East Cape have collaborated with other Regional Sports Trusts around Aotearoa and come up with the Summer Whānau Challenge. It’s 30 simple play ideas for tamariki and their whānau to get outside, have fun and improve hinengaro (mental health) and tinana (physical health).
The Summer Play Challenge ideas have been collated into a scoreboard to tick off over the summer. Designed to be printed out, displayed on the fridge, or somewhere around the home and used as a reminder for whānau to go outside daily and play together.
Play allows our tamariki and rangatahi the space to practice, learn, and develop the life skills they need to be active for life including fundamental movement skills, self-directed creativity and innovation, social and emotional connections, resilience, independence, leadership and informed risk taking.
“Tamariki are experts in play and can play almost anywhere and with anything when they are given the freedom and permission to do so” said Regional Play Systems Lead Anna Tolich. “Everyone has a role in making play possible and every setting counts: the backyard, parks, beach, playgrounds, public space and more.”
So, this summer say Yes to Play and take the Summer Whānau Challenge.