Workshop in Culverden: Growing Great Brains
Chat with your child and take time to play. It’s nothing fancy, but these are the two most important factors required for preparing an infant for the school years.
On the back of a very successful evening in Amberley last year, Dr Miriam McCaleb will be delivering her workshop ‘Growing Great Brains’ in Culverden which will be helpful for parents, carers, and anyone involved with children or young people.
Date and Time: Wednesday 13th May 2026 at 7pm.
Location: Amuri Area School (School Road, Culverden).
Cost: FREE.
“The truth of it is, when we know more about brain development in infants and young people, we learn more about how adults’ brains function as well,” said McCaleb.
Originally trained as an early childhood teacher three decades ago, McCaleb has since completed a PhD in Health Sciences, and is a public health research fellow at University of Canterbury.
She said the two most important factors, above everything are relationships and play. “It’s actually just listening, and having unplugged play. It’s giving your own heart, your mind, your face.”
Dr McCaleb acknowledges the realities facing today’s families, including time pressures, affordability challenges, and the increasing presence of digital technology. While screen‑time discussions often feel new, she says concerns about technology have existed for decades.
“Twenty years ago, the one television in the house could dominate family time,” she said. “Today the challenge is bigger, but the solution is still the same - connection and play.”
What McCaleb wants is a time machine, so when parents and caregivers talk to her about their young children starting school, she can turn back the clock and encourage more play and attention.
“It’s the invisible third space between an adult and an infant, it’s the relationship. It’s the best thing in the world.”
Her belief is that young children are the experts at celebrating simplicity, and if that celebration is matched by adults such as scrunching the autumn leaves or playing with a garden hose as water squirts out, the results are enormously significant.
“We mustn’t forget the biological reality of a baby is that their brain is growing so fast, so the experiences they have now are so important.”
Mayor Marie Black is a former healthcare worker for Hurunui Plunket for 25 years, and she is thrilled to see the event visit Culverden, led by a professional who she has known for many years.
Black described McCaleb’s support for families as genuine and caring, in helping to maximise these special relationships.
“It will be a great opportunity for parents and caregivers to feel more capable and connected with the world of parenting, which we all agree can be complex and overwhelming at times,” said Black.
The event is hosted by Together Hurunui and supported by funding from the Department of Internal Affairs’ Lotteries Grant. The workshop offers much more than information alone with giveaways, refreshments and plenty of opportunities to connect with others in the community.
Everyone is very welcome. This will be a relaxed, informative and inspiring evening.