Childcare options in St Heliers

At Little Wonders Glendowie, we know that the first five years lay a strong foundation for learning and development - and we are here to ensure your child gets the best possible start.

Our professional, passionate teachers provide children with rich and fulfilling educational experiences that build skills and encourage a love of learning. Well-resourced and guided by a carefully considered curriculum, we provide an environment that’s inspiring, challenging and fun.

Set your little one up with the building blocks for success. 

Our philosophy

We are underpinned by both our

Brand Essence “Giving the freedom to learn”

And

Brand Character “Emulates a fresh and open mindedness to learning”

We make this unique to Little Wonders Glendowie by seeing our role as teachers as one that wears many hats. We are the listener, the supporter, the observer, the safe keeper, the facilitator, the mentor and the learner. Although we may wear different hats, they are all embedded with threads of kindness, respect, flexibility and humour. Our collection of hats is all unique and has many valuable stories to tell. As teachers we see the importance of sharing our hats and the knowledge embedded within them.

At Little Wonders Glendowie we see every child wearing a unique hat of their own. As teachers it is important that we seek to understand every thread of this hat as the thread used to create this hat has been passed through generations of culture, identity and language. We understand that family holds the most valuable information about this hat and we spend time listening to the many stories about each thread.  We also understand that some threads still need to be sown to ensure the hat has a strong underpinning for the many adventures ahead.

Once the child’s hat is strong and ready, we encourage and support the child to start gathering a variety of new hats. We give the child courage that they can choose any hat they wish even if the hat may seem a bit risky! The child may create their hat in a moment or spend time going back and forward until they achieve the most creative and splendid hat! Each hat has no time limit and we wait patiently until we can celebrate the creation of this hat not only with the child but also with their family.

At Little Wonders Glendowie we also understand that a hat cannot be created without the essential elements needed therefore our environment is carefully organised with a variety of threads and materials.  Thought is taken into the colours that interest each child and the materials are handpicked to ensure that texture and length gives the child the opportunity to create any hat they wish.  We have areas for literacy, so children can freely express their ideas and research any hat of interest, numeracy for understanding measurements and size and of course plenty of obstacle courses for the child to put each hat to the test!  We also understand that some hats may not go to plan and we are waiting and ready with our own knowledge of hat making to pick those pieces up and encourage the child to start again.

Our Rooms

Little Wonders Glendowie has two separate rooms, enabling us to deliver safe, nurturing and age appropriate learning experiences for all our children.  

Tui Room

The Tui room caters for children from 3 months to 2.5 years of age and is staffed by a team of approachable and caring teachers. Inside we have a family corner, nature corner, block corner, book corner and a babies’ area for the younger ones. Our outdoor area is fully covered by turf and includes two sandpits.  We have a large covered space that enables children to get outside even when it is raining. Tui Room children enjoy a variety of messy play, which encourages their sensory development.

Kiwi Room

Designed for our 2 to 6 year olds, the Kiwi Room features a large family corner, book corner, nature corner, a manipulative play area, and a huge atelier area where children get creative and messy. We also have a covered deck where children build with bigger construction blocks and resources. A spacious and inspiring outdoor area includes swings, climbing ladders, ropes and climbing frames to help children develop confidence and gross motor skills. Kiwi Room children are enthusiastic participants in the care of our vegetable garden, involving themselves in the planting, watering, and harvesting process. A large covered sandpit area is a haven for messy play and experiments,  while during summertime we make the most of our slip and slide, sprinklers and troughs for water play.

The curriculum in the Kiwi Room is shaped by children’s current interests, and teachers work hard to tap into these interests to extend learning. Our transition to school programme sees our 4 year olds spend an hour every morning developing skills that will set them up for success at primary. 

Why choose us?

There are a host of reasons why families choose Little Wonders Glendowie. Here are just a few of them:

• Ideally located to feed into six local primary schools
• Flexible timetables to cater for families and their needs
• Delicious and healthy cooked meals provided including morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea and late snack
• Spacious outdoor areas including sheltered outdoor areas for rainy days.
• Outdoor areas include a wide range of play equipment that support children to build a range of motor skills.
• Our Preschool outdoor area includes the children’s very own vegetable garden
• Enthusiastic and caring staff
• Excellent transition to school programme
• Two separate classrooms including a separate under 2 area
• Culturally Inclusive environments
• Strong community focus
• Regular centre events with our children and families
• Centre excursions
• Online portfolio system allowing parents and extended family to access and contribute to learning and assessment practices

Our Approach to Quality

Why choose us:

At Little School we believe in empowering children to explore their curiosities and innate abilities, in a nurturing educational environment, that fosters independence, creativity and critical thinking.

Our approach to quality at Little School is anchored in our commitment to excellence, integrating evidence-based practices with innovative teaching methodologies, to provide an enriching, holistic educational experience that meets the diverse needs of every child.

Little School was founded by Maria Johnson in 2002. Maria is a trained Early Childhood and Primary School Teacher. As a teacher she has a passion for an educational focus within children’s first six years of life, leading for many years with a structured, fun and educational learning programme.

Little School involves parents, family/whānau, teachers/kaiako and our extended community in our conversations and decisions to continue our journey together.

Our philosophy

We are passionate about laying foundations for life – to develop a love of learning in each child. Our philosophy is founded on nurturing well-rounded, compassionate, and intellectually creative and curious individuals.

We seek to support families in fostering the following core values that will empower our children to develop:

• A love/aroha of learning
• A love/aroha for the world around us
• A love/aroha for ourselves
• A love/aroha for each other

We are committed to providing a fun learning experience for children through:

• Nurturing loving, reciprocal relationships
• Co-constructing a learning environment that fosters wonder and engagement
• Encouraging curiosity and creative learning
• Empowers children to drive their own learning
• Following children’s interests and strengths
• Supporting children’s cultural and learner identity

Our goal is to nurture each child’s potential, helping them to grow into confident, caring and curious members of the global community.

We believe that our approach to education will empower children not only to excel in their personal and academic lives, but also to contribute positively to the world around them.

Thinking about Home Based childcare with Home Grown Kids?

All of our Educators are carefully selected and screened including Police Vetting, identity checks, an interview that assess their attitudes and values toward children and an overall assessment of risk.

Enquire today and we’ll be in touch with you soon to provide the perfect option for your family.

Choosing the Best Educator for Your Child

We stand strong alongside our Educators. We care about them and we’re committed to the work they do, supporting and communicating with them every step of the way. We understand that engaged, fulfilled Educators make for happy families and even happier tamariki who thrive in these small group settings.

Small Group Setting

Our Home Based childcare groups are capped at a maximum of four children under the age of six, including Educators’ own children. This means we can offer each child the individual attention they need to flourish.

The best fit for your whānau values

Our Educators offer a range of different programmes based around their beliefs, values, culture, background and philosophies. Over 90% of our Educators hold a recognised ECE qualification. Some of our Educators are mothers and grandmothers with fantastic life skills, experience and knowledge. We’ll listen to your needs and then offer, where possible, a range of Educators. You will get to choose an Educator that you and your whānau connect with and trust.

Exceeding educational standards

An education programme that reflects New Zealand ECE curriculum - Te Whāriki. We are a Ministry of Education approved and licensed Early Childhood Education provider. Regularly reviewed by the

Education Review Office to ensure all our Home Based environments not only meet, but exceed the Ministry of Education’s Licensing Criteria for Home-based Services (2008).

Subsidies available

We’re an approved Work and Income provider and can support you to access a childcare subsidy if you are eligible.

20 hours ECE scheme

The Government subsidises all children aged 3-5 years (or 6 if not enrolled in school) who attend an ECE facility, making access more affordable for all.

Leaders in development practices for each child

All our Educators are supported and guided by our Visiting Teachers who are Qualified certificated ECE teachers with many years’ experience and expertise in early childhood education. Our Visiting Teachers regularly attend professional development to keep up-to-date with current research and theory for best practice for Education and care for under fives.

Our philosophy, vision and mission

• Our Vision– The why – The reason we exist:

To provide a family friendly wrap around support service that enables all tamariki/whanau to learn, grow and thrive in a home-based setting. Investing in cultivating kindness, strong and professional relationships, in all our people to continue growing as lifelong learners

• Mission Statement – The How -How are we going to achieve the Vision?

We will achieve our Vision through ensuring that every team member is emotionally invested in the well-being of our people including tamariki, whanau, Educators, communities and our Edubase family. We value successes and that these are not ours alone, the greatest success comes from the strengths of many. Our passion, knowledge and commitment will be the catalyst that enables everyone to learn, thrive and achieve.

• Philosophy Statement

Edubase is a Home Based Early Childhood Education service that is committed to providing nurturing learning environments where tamariki thrive as individuals through an authentic play-based, natural learning education and care programme, in a home setting.

To enrich the learning of each tamariki we form strong community connections, developing links within the home and the learning environments of our Kaiako. Tamariki learn respect for people, places and things, shaping Aotearoa and developing an appreciation of New Zealand’s dual heritage. We continually strive to develop knowledge and an understanding of the cultural heritages of both partners to Te Tiriti o Waitangi – supporting a holistic approach to learning which is guided by our NZ Early Childhood Curriculum, Te Whāriki.

Educators and Nannies offer comfortable, small group sizes, fostering respectful and reciprocal relationships, promoting tikanga Māori within their practice.

As an Organisation, we pride ourselves on cultivating strong, professional relationships, strengthening capability in all our people to continue growing as lifelong learners.

Edubase celebrates the diversity and uniqueness of each tamaiti, whanau and Kaiako and the gifts they bring. They are taonga, a treasure or gift. All things cultural are affirmed and celebrated, aiming to support children in gaining a positive awareness of their own and other cultures.

Tiaki nga tamariki – take care of the children