Childcare options in Grey Lynn

Our philosophy

At Lollipops Grey Lynn, we value and respect each child as a unique person, a competent and capable learner who is deserving of the best possible opportunities, care and education. We respect our partners in Te Tiriti O Waitangi and the heritage of our country and its people, along with all cultures that make up our society.

Magda Gerber‘s Educaring® Approach (R.I.E - Respectful Practice ) and Reggio Emilia philosophies influence our educational programme, environments and centre culture. Children experience a nurturing, stimulating and enriching programme that fosters a sense of wonder and curiosity.

We believe that the positive relationships children experience in their day to day lives are fundamental to a holistic education. We are passionate about the role family plays in the growth and development of their children. We strongly value parents as partners and actively encourage family and extended whānau involvement inside and outside of centre life as part of our community of learners.

Lollipops Grey Lynn is a place where learning is a never ending journey – even for teachers! We see ourselves as reflective practitioners with a commitment to professional learning. By modelling this we inspire children to be independent learners and to enjoy learning and discovery as a lifelong experience.

Essentially, we strive to provide a safe and joyful place where children, families and teachers experience the connectedness of warm, caring relationships, where all parties are supported to excel in their development and have fun learning and growing together!

Our rooms

Lollipops Grey Lynn has three separate buildings which cater for each age and stage, enabling us to deliver safe, nurturing and age appropriate learning experiences for all our children.  We also have a special outside area which we call our sports field. This is where we conduct lots of our outdoor physical activities and hold special events.

Nursery

Our birth to 2 year olds enjoy all the benefits of primary caregiving in our R.I.E. inspired Nursery, which includes its own separate outdoor play space. The environment is respectful, calm and nurturing, and provides a welcoming space where children set their own pace. Teachers build long lasting reciprocal relationships with children and families, working in close partnership to ensure each child’s home routine is continued at the centre.

Cottage

Our Cottage caters for our 2 to 3 year olds and is set up just like a home away from home. Programmes are based on each individual child and are delivered at a relaxed pace that develops children’s individual strengths and nurtures their needs. 

Preschool

Set up to cater for our 3 to 5 year olds, our well-equipped Preschool includes an amazing art studio space where children immerse themselves in messy play, creative endeavours and project work. We also run an excellent transition to school programme for the older children, delivered by a qualified teacher with a primary school background. This builds the skills kids need to truly thrive at primary school.

Why choose us?

There are a host of reasons why so many families choose Lollipops Grey Lynn. Here are just a few of them:

• Onsite cook prepares three healthy meals a day
• Three separate buildings cater for each different age group
• Large outdoor play space with separate spaces for each age group, and a sports field
• Highly regarded transition to school programme
• Jitterbugs dance classes
• Playball
• Regular excursions into the community
• Celebrate special events and festivals
• Christmas concert for families
• Community involvement including fundraising for local charities
• Yoga
• Spanish classes
• Mud kitchen

Our team of dedicated teachers provide the  highest quality care and education,  delivering rich and inspiring learning experiences and environments that bring out the best in every child. Unlock your child’s unique potential.

Kia ora and welcome to Grey Lynn Kindergarten

Grey Lynn Kindergarten is based within a beautiful, heritage building that is surrounded by mature and well established gardens, simply an oasis in Central Auckland.

Grey Lynn Kindergarten, previously St James Kindergarten, was established in 1913 and is a huge part of the history of Grey Lynn and surrounding areas.

We have been part of the Enviroschools Programme since 2006. This philosophy is strongly embedded into the culture here at kindergarten. Our commitment to environmental sustainability runs through everything we do. We encourage children to develop a close connection with nature through the emphasis placed on sustaining and protecting Papatūānuku.

Our passionate and qualified teaching team are committed to deepening children’s learning through play. Children are encouraged to follow their interests, develop a sense of wonder and foster a view of themselves as learners.

Come and visit Grey Lynn Kindergarten. See this unique environment and spend some time with us. We look forward to meeting you.

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.

Opened in February 2017, The Toymaker’s Cottage in Grey Lynn is a city-fringe preschool inspired by the teachings of Maria Montessori and the Reggio Emilia approach to early education. Plus there’s some thinking that’s unique; a teaching philosophy that embraces nature, hand-made toys and storytelling. The cottage welcomes children aged 2 to 5 and has a maximum capacity of 31 children for full-day and part-day sessions.

There are three main learning and play environments at the Toymaker’s Cottage:

• Upstairs children are offered semi-structured learning experiences. They are gently taught how to pay attention, complete tasks and collaborate with each other. There is a special room for storytelling and mat-time.
• Downstairs is a less structured learning environment furnished with hand-made wooden, heirloom and nature-inspired toys. Loose-part play stimulates creativity and problem solving.
• Outside there’s a beautiful garden where children can play in the adventure playground.  Nature inspires all kinds of educational experiences here.

The Toy Maker’s Cottage is a vision brought to life by Aucklander Caron Michael, a pre-school education specialist with more than 25 years’ teaching experience.

“Our team share a belief that a beautiful and peaceful environment is crucial to successful early learning. They understand the importance of finding a balance between the freedom of self-expression and the need for structure.”

Caron Michael

Christopher Robin’s is situated in a quiet residential street in a converted bungalow with  lots of room outdoors for children to extend their gross motor skills and explore.

Children from six months to five years old can attend.

We do have areas both indoors and outdoors for under two year olds, but there are many opportunities throughout the day for both age groups to be blended. During this time we feel the younger children are able to observe and learn from their older peers, and the older children are able to have leadership opportunities.

We acknowledge the importance of partnerships with parents and caregivers, and welcome their support and feedback.    Staff are available to chat about children’s progress and development during the day.

Families are able to access twenty hour funding for three and four year old children.

Our aim is to provide and support children's learning and development through the use of the Samoan language.

Our Christian beliefs and cultural values are embedded in their learning, so they will grow to be confident and competent citizens of Aotearoa, New Zealand.