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Museum of New Zealand

Te Papa Tongarewa

Growing up – toys, treasures, and TV

What do children care about? What do they play with? How do they learn? How can museums represent the experiences of young people?

Included here are stories exploring what it is like to grow up in Aotearoa New Zealand, and objects showing how childhoods have changed.

From Play School to Plunket, critters to kites, the taonga in our collections provide glimpses into the lives and perspectives of tamariki and young people, but also show how adults have taught, entertained, dressed, photographed and cared for the children in their lives.

Buzzy Bee

The Buzzy Bee has become a classic toy that many children in Aotearoa New Zealand had as a baby. It is considered to be an icon of kiwi identity and is often sent overseas to new babies (or their parents) as a reminder of home. It has been featured in museums, on postage stamps, in books, paintings, posters, songs and in a television show.

Burton Theatre of Puppets

The Burton Theatre of Puppets was established by Edna and Jim Burton in Scotland in 1950. The pair made their own puppets, wrote their own scripts, and did all the performances. They came to New Zealand in 1955 and are widely regarded as legendary pioneers of puppetry here

Watch: Play School, Tales from Te Papa

Humpty, Jemima, Manu, and Big Ted were main characters in the children's television programme ‘Play School’. But has anyone seen Little Ted?

Storybook characters from 'The Nickle Nackle Tree' by Lynley Dodd

Lynley Dodd's 'The Nickle Nackle Tree' was brought to life when the story was made into a sell-out musical production in 1996. We acquired the puppets and costumes from the production in 2012. Not only a historically significant story by an iconic New Zealand author, it showcased New Zealand costume design, choreography, music, dance and puppetry.

Watch: Punch & Judy Kiwi Style, Tales from Te Papa

The traditional characters of Punch and Judy have entertained children around the world throughout the centuries. Lynette Townsend shows us some Kiwi versions of these much-loved puppets.

Television programs

Television has played a large role in children's lives since arriving in Aotearoa New Zealand. We have some of our favourite programs represented in our collection.

Health Camps and Stamps

New Zealand's first health camps were set up by Elizabeth Gunn in 1919 to help children who were malnourished of suffering tuberculosis. At these temporary camps, children could expect lots of sun, rest, fresh air, exercise, and nutritious meals.

Dental health educational displays

The free School Dental Service was a government initiative and trainee dental nurses received art lessons as the production of posters and teaching aids by dental nurses was an important component of their work. This group of hand painted images tell the story of 'The Three Little Pigs', with a dental health twist.

Peg dolls: home-made dolls

We acquired a selection of peg dolls made for a competition organised by Small Acorns, a home-ware design store in Wellington. The dolls reflect a general resurgence in the popularity of homemade toys and crafts in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Manu tukutuku: Māori kites

Have you ever flown a kite? Kites have been flown for centuries in cultures all around the world. Early Māori made kites for several purposes, including sending messages, ceremonies, and for tamariki (children) to play with.

Nana’s Toys

As a child, Joan Smart adored dolls. The loss of a favourite doll had a lasting effect on Joan – when she became an adult, she kept everything. One of the rooms in her house became a dedicated children’s toy room and became representative of the types of toys available in Aotearoa New Zealand from 1940 through to the 2000s.

Golliwogs . . . and changing times

Many New Zealanders remember playing with golliwogs as children and some people still defend their right to make and sell them. However, while they were once considered acceptable many people now regard golliwogs as offensive because they perpetuate the sorts of stereotypes that underpin racism.

Tuhinga: Collecting kids’ stuff: in search of the history of childhood in New Zealand museums

This Tuhinga paper questions the extent to which museum collections capture the history of childhood. It advances the premise that collections are shaped by the historical context within which they were created, whether at the level of social discourse or the activities of individual people.

Posing and props: Children in studio photography

We have a large collection of studio portrait photography, including many photographs of children, some being propped up by unseen mothers, some playing with toys, and some being entertained by the photographer. Maybe you recognise someone in these images, possibly even yourself!

Our books for children

Books for inspiring wonder and curiosity in our tamariki (children).

Free downloadable activity books

Our activity books are designed for use at home or in the classroom. We’d love to hear your feedback or ideas for other subjects.

Board games for inside days

Chess, the Conservation Game, Ludo, Snakes and Ladders, and Tiddley Winks are just some of the board games keeping kids busy when it's raining during the school holidays, or you are all at a family gathering, or just playing after school.

Military influences on children's fashion

Military uniforms influence children’s fashion much more than many people realise. Some features have become so commonplace that we have forgotten their military origins.

Dresses from Grandma O’Hara

In 2011, Te Papa was gifted a wonderful range of children’s dresses and homemade dress-ups from the 1950s and 60s. Many of the garments were made by Grandma (Winnie) O’Hara, a wonderful home-sewer who was the family matriarch.

School uniforms: A ‘civilising mission’

Uniforms first entered New Zealand schools in the 1800s, when the country was a British colony. They were influenced by British military dress, elements of which are still visible today in features like tailored jackets, lapels, neckties, metal buttons, and badges.

Collecting Childhood

From 2012 to 2015, Te Papa worked with seven New Zealand children and their families to build a collection of objects that represent the lives and experiences of children aged from 3 to 7 years old.

Revisiting the Tongan co-collecting stories of Project 83: Small Things Matter

We revisit the stories of the ‘youth agents’ of Project 83: Small Things Matter. This co-collecting project was developed by the Year 13 Tongan language class of Sir Edmund Hillary Collegiate in 2017.

The Boy and the Bee

Read about Tora, a little boy with a big love for insects. Tora is determined to learn everything about his beloved bugs and also to help them. One group of his favourite insects are bees, not the ones that produce native honey, but native bees that are crucial for New Zealand’s ecosystem.

Student movements: School Strike 4 Climate

On Friday 15 March 2019, tens of thousands of young students marched in towns and cities throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. United by their concern for the future of the planet, they joined a global campaign known as School Strike 4 Climate Action.

Tuhinga: The Mixing Room project at Te Papa

Stephanie Gibson and Sara Kindon discuss The Mixing Room: Stories from young refugees in New Zealand – an exhibition that focuses on young people from refugee backgrounds and their stories of resettlement. The exhibition tested traditional ideas of community and was one of our earliest community exhibitions, embracing contemporary museological practice.