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Lauren Robinson @L_Robinson96 November 12, 2025 - 2:19PM Share via Email Share on Facebook Share on Whatsapp Écoutez cet article Copied URL to clipboard Push for childcare subsidies to be expanded to include grandparents Sky News host Caleb Bond delves into the push for childcare subsidies to be expanded to include grandparents. “Why shouldn’t parents... While parents across the country look for ways to cut down their kids’ screen time, one Australian daycare is taking a different approach. Preschoolers in Sydney attending Thrive Early Learning centres are embracing technology, using it to stomp with dinosaurs and shiver with penguins, all in an excursion that requires nothing more than a little magic. Wonder World is a world-first technology operating out of the NSW-based daycare centre chain, allowing young minds to explore immersive holograms. Copied URL to clipboard kidspot.com.au Straight talking childcare critiques from a childcare expert This woman is on a mission to help... “It’s an amazing opportunity,” Head of Education and Quality, Natasha Stabler, told news.com.au. “This was a long time in the making. It’s an Australian first.” It’s for children of all ages, but best suited for those between three and five. The interactive experience sees kids enter a stationary truck fitted with screens and speakers. Once the kids put on their stereoscopic glasses, it is transformed into another world, without them ever taking a single step outside. There are five different scenarios that they can run through: Antarctica, Africa, Australia, Asia and the crowd favourite, inspired by prehistoric times. “The immersiveness is always delightful to watch children engage with. They really feel it and hear it. It’s a really immersive experience,” she said. “They can feel the stomping of rhinos walking like stampeding past them.” It’s essentially a modern-day version of Healthy Harold, but with fewer giraffe puppets and a lot more wonder. It’s not exclusive to kids enrolled in the service, with siblings able to join in the fun at pick up and drop off, while Thrive also hold open days for the public to try it out. For Penrith parent Tiffany Sloan, the Wonder World truck has been such a hit, her five kids won’t stop talking about it. “I feel like this isn’t just like your ordinary device that a child would sit on at home like this. This technology was a way for a child to learn. The kids of Sydney spending their time at daycare walking with dinosaurs. Picture: Supplied There’s also animal and ocean based experiences available too. Picture: Supplied Her children, aged from three months to eleven years, each enjoyed the experience in their own way. “She wouldn’t come out. She wanted to do every session,” Ms Sloan said about her two-year-old daughter. While her five-year-old son “loved walking with the dinosaurs and then in the next minute he was swimming with whales”. The mum says her son retained much of what he learned, continuing to ask her about pterodactyls and penguin swimming habits. “He definitely learned a lot just from the 15 minutes that he was inside the Wonder World truck,” Ms Sloan shared. “They really pop out at you on the screen as well, so it feels like you’re there.” It left her feeling optimistic about the future of early education, especially for those families who struggle to afford the cost of excursions. “I feel like it would be like a cheaper alternative for families that can’t always afford the excursion or have multiple children that would need to go …. I definitely think that this could have an impact on future learning for early education,” Ms Sloan shared. “I definitely think that this could have an impact on future learning for early education.” With more than 30 years in the education field, Ms Stabler says she’s seeing that impact too. The program has revolutionised teaching methods, giving children a dynamic, hands-on way to explore the world. The truck travels around Sydney giving kids the chance to go on excursion without leaving their centre. Picture: Supplied Educators are putting lots of time and effort into conversations before and after the experience, giving the kids the opportunity to discuss what they’ve seen and ask questions. “It is an extension of our curriculum that we do in our hands-on play-based learning within the centre,” Stabler explained. It also helps the older daycare kids prepare for the next step. “We run our school readiness program in conjunction with this,” Stabler said. “All of our children are provided an opportunity to gain access to this Wonder World immersive experience, and it is part of our school readiness program.” More Coverage ‘Pop a breast out’: Melb mums group explodes Lauren Robinson Morning ritual we all do might be gross Cassidy Pearce And to parents, it’s proof that not all screen time is created equally. “It’s completely in contrast to what people think is screen time,” Stabler insisted. “It is just an extra non-traditional way of extending children’s learning and really supporting them to be extra curious about the world around them.” Read related topics:Sydney More related stories ‘Inappropriate’: Shock at 7yo in bikini It was meant to advertise a new line of children’s shoes, but attention has been drawn towards something some say is “inappropriate”. ‘Wow factor’: Big change at Bunnings store Bunnings has unveiled a surprising pop-up at one Australian store in the spirit of Halloween, with those who dare enter in for a night of fright. Childcare fined for losing children at zoo A childcare provider has been fined after they lost two children at a zoo and left others unsupervised while teachers looked for them. Registration In The Know Quiz Newsletters Competitions Welcome to news.com.au Code of Conduct Help and Support General Feedback Advertise with us Standards of Practice Licensing & Reprints Our News Network The Daily Telegraph The Courier Mail Our Partners realestate.com.au CODE Sports A NOTE ABOUT RELEVANT ADVERTISING: We collect information about the content (including ads) you use across this site and use it to make both advertising and content more relevant to you on our network and other sites. Find out more about our policy and your choices, including how to opt-out.Sometimes our articles will try to help you find the right product at the right price. We may receive payment from third parties for publishing this content or when you make a purchase through the links on our sites. 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