Handy websites

By using the Internet you can find out about entertainment and activities in your community. This is especially helpful for families with school-aged children who are soon to be on holiday.

Directories
www.babywebnz.org is a directory for New Zealand parents allowing them easy access to websites related to pregnancy, childbirth and parenting. To find information about entertainment on BabyWebNZ click on Baby Friendly NZ. This will give you a list of pregnancy health practices, educational and exercise classes, baby-friendly cafes, parents’ rooms, childcare and entertainment throughout New Zealand.

http://www.community.net.nz Community Net Aotearoa provides access to relevant, quality information in the community sector. Access child and youth via links and find groups such as Boys Brigade in New Zealand, Kids 4 Drama, Outward Bound etc.

http://www.nzsearch.co.nz/ NZSearch is a great directory that is designed to provide the most useful searchable directory of websites maintained by New Zealand organisations and New Zealanders.

Go into kids’ stuff and you will find links. You can also use NZSearch to go into city and regional councils, or see http://www.localcouncils.govt.nz to find out about places to visit in a region or local area. You can also use the services of visitor information centres. Local and regional councils generally run these. You can find all sorts of helpful tourist information including places to stay, camp sites, information on beaches and ski fields, entertainment and events.

http://www.familyservices.govt.nz/directory/index.jsp The National Directory lists programmes, services and resources for families available throughout New Zealand. The National Directory is a service provided by Family and Community Services, part of the Ministry of Social Development.
On the directory search, type in your location, then on service type parent/caregiver, then on keyword “children” is a good one to start a search with.

http://www.libraries.org.nz  This site will connect you to all New Zealand public libraries that have websites. Most of them have a kids’ section on what is happening for children and teens at the library.
Most libraries run a story time session where children can listen to stories, rhymes and songs. These sessions are aimed at two to four- year-olds but younger children can also attend. Ring your local library to find out more.

You may consider taking your child to swimming classes over the holidays. Check out the yellow pages for swimming classes in your area http://yellow.co.nz/browse/popular/swimming/.

www.toylibrary.co.nz  A toy library welcomes children, their families and caregivers to come and borrow well-designed toys, games, puzzles and equipment, which are made available at minimal cost.
Toy libraries operate along similar lines to public libraries. Members borrow toys for a fixed time period. Fees vary from library to library. Toy libraries cater mainly for pre-school children and generally have a limit on the number of toys that can be borrowed at each visit. Email: office@toylibrary.co.nz.

By Helen Pulford (midwife and childbirth educator) owner of:
www.babywebnz.org 
Directory for pregnancy, childbirth and parenting web sites.
www.birthresources.org 
Childbirth education resources.