WELCOME TO PAIHIA EARLY CHILDHOOD CENTRE
The Paihia Early Childhood Centre was established in 1981 to offer Bay of Islands residents high quality care and education for infants through to 5 year old children in a nurturing, extending and fun environment, We are mindful that the centre is the daytime home of many children and are focused on making it a warm and inviting place for the children.
We have a team of qualified teachers and staff- in-training who are focused on developing children’s skills, knowledge and attitudes for learning and establishing solid foundations in learning enquiry, literacy, numeracy and the arts. The centre is recommended by schools and parents for assisting their children to develop the social and learning skills so important for a successful transition to school.
The centre provides above the required child teacher ratios. The staff are the strength of the centre and we believe strongly in ongoing teacher development and training to keep staff up to date with teaching practices, reviewing and improving programmes on an ongoing basis.
Over the last year we have been working on a new centre philosophy. This has engaged all staff in defining a shared vision of the centre and what we provide to the community. At the centre of this is the staff, whanau, environment and curriculum combining to provide the best outcomes for the children. It provides clear goals, actions and outcomes in each area. We believe this philosophy provides a set of beliefs and behaviours that has empowered out team to work together to achieve the best outcome for your children. The recent ERO review describes "The resulting document, Ngā Pou o Paihia Early Childhood Centre, has established shared agreement and understanding about the direction of the centre. It provides information for staff and parents about the beliefs and values that underpin the programme, and has helped to strengthen teachers' understanding about internal evaluation".
THE VALUE OF EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
It is widely researched and acknowledged that quality early childhood education gives children a great start in life and lays the foundations for future inquiry and an appreciation for learning. We work to ensure that children moving from the centre to school possess the skills they need for learning and participating in a larger and more complex environment, thus a successful transition and learning progression in the new school. We work with the local schools and new entrant teachers to make sure we are aware of their needs and can build them into our programmes.
Being in an early childhood environment also means the children spend one to one time with qualified teachers who are skilled in educating and helping children to develop their knowledge. It is also recognised that qualified ECE teachers provide the best learning experience for children.
