Hobsonville Kindergarten

At Hobsonville Kindergarten we view all children as Tāonga (gifts).  We acknowledge and celebrate the kētē of skills, knowledge and life experiences each individual child brings with them.

We believe children are citizens of today and support them to become leaders of tomorrow.  We hold the values of respect, equity and integrity and support our children to develop these attitudes.  We advocate for children’s rights.  We support the development of children’s social competency through positive guidance strategies.

We encourage children to participate in a rich learning environment where children learn to view themselves as learners and become familiar with the process of learning.  We believe free play empowers children to take responsibility for their own learning and development, creating a passion for lifelong learning.  We encourage children to learn together, developing their independence and interdependence skills.

Whānaungātanga (respect for people, places and things), underpins our daily practice.  We acknowledge and respect Tiriti ō Waitangi and strive to provide an environment that upholds the values and beliefs of both treaty partners.  We warmly embrace the diversity of cultures within our kindergarten whānau and strive to be a part of a democratic, inclusive, safe and happy community.

We respect whānau as their child’s first teacher, holding unique knowledge of their child.  Partnerships between teachers, whānau, children and the wider community are at the heart of our teaching practice.  We welcome and empower all participants within the Kindergarten community to share their knowledge, ideas and expertise.

As part of the Auckland Kindergarten Association, we can offer a different experience to your typical daycare in Hobsonville. Kindergartens and the AKA have an established reputation as top quality centres of learning, with innovative and creative teaching. They are known to set up children well for moving on to a school environment, and often have close links with local primary schools.

We believe that the unique and community-focused environment of a kindergarten is a top Hobsonville childcare option, because we provide much more than just care – we help to form the citizens of today and leaders of tomorrow.

Our learning philosophy

For the past 110 years, the Auckland Kindergarten Association has been igniting young minds by encouraging them to explore their imaginations through play. For many of us, kindergarten was where we began our life of learning; it was where we started learning skills like sharing, tolerance, patience, respect and self-confidence.

We view children as capable, competent, life-long learners, and our philosophy encourages children to make their own learning choices, problem-solve and observe and explore at their own pace…with support from teachers, parents, wider whānau and their peers. We value the importance of child-initiated, play-based experiences. Our kindergarten teachers nurture your children’s interests and natural curiosity by working alongside them, expanding language and introducing mathematical and science concepts, as well as literacy, digital technology and sustainable practices.

Our centres have gardens and natural outdoor spaces where children can create, explore, be imaginative and expressive. There’s plenty of room to safely run about, being imaginative and physically active. In fact, the natural world is essential to free-range play. AKA encourages each kindergarten community to explore and enrich their diversity and uniqueness. Some have regular excursions into the local community; some are Enviroschool kindergartens that live and breathe sustainable practices; while others engage in long-term research on child interest-based programmes of learning.

As an organisation, we formally acknowledge the dual heritage of Aotearoa / New Zealand, and work to uphold the spirit and intent of Te Tiriti o Waitangi in each kindergarten. We are accessible, secular and welcoming to the wide diversity of tamariki and whānau who attend our centres, and value ongoing partnerships between teaching teams and leadership staff with families and whānau. We value ongoing learning for teachers, parents and whānau, and the sharing of knowledge, skills and attributes is fundamental to achieving the best learning outcomes for children. Teachers and staff can access collegial professional time to ensure that quality practice is enhanced so current theories of learning and development within New Zealand’s world-class Te Whāriki early childhood curriculum are shared and understood.

Children learn

Children in our kindergartens have the opportunity to:

• Feel confident, develop responsibility and a sense of independence
• Play meaningfully alongside other children and adults
• Develop effective communication skills
• Persevere, problem-solve and take risks
• Explore limits, boundaries, routines and conflict resolution strategies
• Practice fine motor skills such as threading, writing, cutting and grasping
• Develop gross motor play such as physical games like climbing, throwing, kicking, balancing and lifting
• Develop creative expressions through painting, music, collage, movement, dance, finger-painting, drawing, cutting, pasting and story sharing
• Develop early numeracy, literacy and science skills
• Learn techniques through trial and error
• Explore the world through experimenting, questioning and curiosity
• Develop confidence and celebrate both attempts and successes
• Develop a passion for learning and a love of life
• Have fun!

Older children will be supported in their transition to school to make this process as simple and seamless as possible. Book a visit here on Kindello today, we’d love to meet you.