Childcare options in Leeston

Active Explorers Leeston is a vibrant, family-focussed early childhood centre with an expansive playground and large, inspiring classroom spaces. Our highly qualified and experienced teaching staff love what they do and are committed to ensuring you and your child get the most out of your time with us.

The early childhood years are pivotal in instilling children with a lifelong love of learning. Help set your child up for a bright future. Visit us at Active Explorers Leeston.

Why choose us?

There are a host of reasons why so many families choose Active Explorers Leeston. Here are just a few of them:

• Expansive outdoor area
• Healthy Heart gold award
• Open door policy
• Online planning and consultation with Storypark
• Birthday chair and special celebrations that don’t include lollies or cakes
• Twice yearly whānau hui to discuss children’s learning
• Parent evenings or engagement each term
• Excellent transition to school programme
• Centre pets
• Strong community focus including links with our local retirement village

Our Rooms

Active Explorers Leeston has three separate rooms, enabling us to deliver age appropriate experiences for children at each different age and stage.

Explorers’ Room

This is our nursery – a safe, secure and nurturing space for our under two’s. Purpose built in 2017, this room features inside and outside learning spaces that are naturally inviting, encouraging curiosity, exploration and gentle, meaningful play. We have a teacher to child ratio of 1 to 4.

Discovery Room

Our 2 to 4 year olds are well catered for in our Discovery Room with an engaging daily programme and free access to both the inside and outside environments including a large, grassed area at the back of the centre. This is used for riding bikes, ball games, obstacle courses, group games and also includes our vegetable gardens, compost heaps and worm farm.

Enquiry Room

This is where our biggest Active Explorers prepare for their transition to school, with a learning programme and routine that is more structured, and helps develop the social skills, independence and resilience they will need for the next stage of their learning journey.

Leeston Playcentre is a purpose built facility, spacious and light with all the play areas always set up with lots of resources.

Furthermore we have a covered deck to run off energy even on wet and cold days.

Our big outdoor area has a permanent playground, sandpit and veggie gardens amongst garden areas with plenty of space for running and exploring.

We are in Leeston township, within walking distance from primary school and other services and facilities.

Two professional coordinators run our sessions alongside a cooperative of parents and whanau. Our coordinators are qualified and have more than 10 years experience in running sessions as coordinators as well as parents as part of Leeston Playcentre.

The donations to our Playcentre are per family no matter the number of children and sessions attending, with families with children under 2 years old are free.

Our kids and and parents love to come to play and chat at our Playcentre and make friendships with other local families and be part of our wider community.
We support all our tamariki and their families coming together with multiple cultures, different needs and commitments.

Welcome to Children First Preschool

Locally owned for local families

We are a small, privately owned child care centre licenced for 50 children in the heart of Leeston.

We have community in the heart of our centre and a dedicated team of teachers catering to your own child’s needs.

Our Philosophy

“Tell me and I forget, teach me and I remember,

Involve me and I learn” – (Benjamin Franklin)

• Children have a right to a positive childhood.
• We encourage them to be passionate about life itself, living and to enjoy learning.
• We are a safe, warm and nurturing environment where the children feel confident to express and explore their own ideas.
• We provide materials they need to discover new interests, with encouraging and supportive teachers who want them to exercise their inquisitive minds.
• Think of our preschool as a place in the world  where the children can express their own creativity, establish friendships with other children and adults; read books, count, experiment, draw and paint, build and make things, pretend, imagine, explore and have fun.
• To have a positive connection with our local community, we will provide field trips, activities to explore the outdoor environment, to strengthen our use of te reo Maori, NZSL and self-help skills so that each child becomes a competent, resilient person so that they can build strength and give back to their communities in the future.
• We especially celebrate being part of New Zealand, Leeston and the surrounding area.
• We value our diverse community and support the children of all nationalities.