Childcare options in Tawa

BestStart Tawa South is a quality early learning childcare centre welcoming infants through to preschoolers, located on Redwood Ave, just 200m from Redwood School.

The beauty of this place lies in the cultures of our people

At BestStart Tawa South celebrating the cultural diversity of our children and teachers is important to us. It is at the heart of our vision and is something we live every day.

Introducing children to diversity at a young age helps open their mind about the world they live in. They develop an understanding and appreciation for the rich variety of experiences the world has to offer. Children develop the social skills to navigate themselves through the modern world with confidence and kindness.

At home with us - We build great relationships with our families. For us the parent is the expert and we learn from our families how best to care for each child. We spend a lot of time with whānau during the settling process, getting to know both the child and the parents. The information about each family's culture and where they come from helps us support each child and create a sense of belonging. The transition works around what the child needs and what he/she is comfortable with. Our whānau are very much a part of both the planning and the celebrating of cultures at our centre!

As a centre we enjoy supporting community groups such as Plunket and get involved in nationwide awareness days like Daffodil Day to provide our children with a sense of being part of the wider community and the important role they can play in it.

Who is BestStart?

BestStart is for families who want more from early-childhood education. Safe, nurturing and educationally focused, we’re committed to growing caring people with curious minds.

Together we teach, learn and nurture.

Our vision is to work in partnership with families, whanau and communities to enable children to achieve their learning potential.

Ko tō mātou tirohanga hei mahi ngātahi i te taha o ngā whānau me ngā hāpori, kia āwhinatia ngā tamariki, kia tū pito mata ai rāatou, hei rangatira mō āpōpō.

We are committed to being a progressive and responsive leader in early-childhood education. We do this by enhancing our services, investing in our people, developing our support structure and continuously improving the educational outcomes and experiences of our children, families and the communities we serve.

Some facts:

• We’re licensed to educate and care for 15,000 full-time children daily.
• 18,000 families use BestStart services annually.
• We have over 270 centres nationwide located from Whangarei to Invercargill.
• Each centre is managed by a Centre Manager who is supported by a local Area Manager. This gives our centre teams ongoing quality training and support.
• Te Whāriki, the world-wide acclaimed national early childhood education curriculum, is used in all centres.
• We have over 4500 permanent teachers nationally. Over 90% of our permanent teaching staff are either fully qualified with a diploma or bachelor of teaching (ECE) or higher, or are in training. These figures are very high by national standards within the ECE sector.
• We provide a two-year Advice and Guidance Programme for all recently certified teachers, providing further mentoring and training. This gives strong support for teachers from provisional registration to full teacher registration with the NZ Teachers Council.
• We regularly spend around $4 million on teacher training per annum.

We’re for children

At our heart is our commitment and passion for children. Central to this belief is our focus on the holistic development of children. We support children to explore the world around them, learning through relationships, creating a love of learning in an ever-changing world. Exploration, friendship and fun are part of the journey.

We’re for good

BestStart is a registered charity owned by the Wright Family Foundation. We support initiatives and programmes within BestStart and the wider early-childhood education sector (ECE) that support good outcomes for all children. We do this because we want to make a positive difference to the lives of all children.

Innovation leads us

At BestStart, innovation guides our thinking. We advocate positive change for learners through our research and practice. We’re proud to be thought leaders within ECE, openly challenging ourselves to think differently to provide the best for our children, families and staff.

We’re responsive

Our centres reflect their children, staff and communities. We celebrate individuality, uniqueness and diversity, encouraging a spirit of empathy, understanding and collaboration. Through our responsive relationships and our curriculum, we support learners to choose their own path.

Our people matter

At BestStart people come first. When we grow and develop our people, everyone benefits. We strive for whakamana/empowerment, nurturing a culture of excellence with engaged, talented professionals. Their commitment, skill and passion light our way.

BestStart Tawa is on Main Road, Tawa, close to the motorway and a 2-minute walk to the Redwood railway station.

Celebrating the inner masterpiece

All tamariki have an inner beauty, uniqueness, culture and identity of their own. At BestStart Tawa we are proud of our inner beauty and celebrate this.

At BestStart Tawa, we believe all children have an inner masterpiece that needs to be celebrated. Just as Paua has a unique and intricate hidden pattern in the story Tangaroa’s Gift, so too do all tamariki. This can be culture, language, skills, knowledge or just the uniqueness of each tamariki. We do this by living our PAUA Philosophy.

PAUA:

• P (Play)
• A (Attention to others)
• U (You choose your attitude)
• A (Appreciate others)

Who is BestStart?

BestStart is for families who want more from early-childhood education. Safe, nurturing and educationally focused, we’re committed to growing caring people with curious minds.

Together we teach, learn and nurture.

Our vision is to work in partnership with families, whanau and communities to enable children to achieve their learning potential.

Ko tō mātou tirohanga hei mahi ngātahi i te taha o ngā whānau me ngā hāpori, kia āwhinatia ngā tamariki, kia tū pito mata ai rāatou, hei rangatira mō āpōpō.

We are committed to being a progressive and responsive leader in early-childhood education. We do this by enhancing our services, investing in our people, developing our support structure and continuously improving the educational outcomes and experiences of our children, families and the communities we serve.

Some facts:

• We’re licensed to educate and care for 15,000 full-time children daily.
• 18,000 families use BestStart services annually.
• We have over 270 centres nationwide located from Whangarei to Invercargill.
• Each centre is managed by a Centre Manager who is supported by a local Area Manager. This gives our centre teams ongoing quality training and support.
• Te Whāriki, the world-wide acclaimed national early childhood education curriculum, is used in all centres.
• We have over 4500 permanent teachers nationally. Over 90% of our permanent teaching staff are either fully qualified with a diploma or bachelor of teaching (ECE) or higher, or are in training. These figures are very high by national standards within the ECE sector.
• We provide a two-year Advice and Guidance Programme for all recently certified teachers, providing further mentoring and training. This gives strong support for teachers from provisional registration to full teacher registration with the NZ Teachers Council.
• We regularly spend around $4 million on teacher training per annum.

We’re for children

At our heart is our commitment and passion for children. Central to this belief is our focus on the holistic development of children. We support children to explore the world around them, learning through relationships, creating a love of learning in an ever-changing world. Exploration, friendship and fun are part of the journey.

We’re for good

BestStart is a registered charity owned by the Wright Family Foundation. We support initiatives and programmes within BestStart and the wider early-childhood education sector (ECE) that support good outcomes for all children. We do this because we want to make a positive difference to the lives of all children.

Innovation leads us

At BestStart, innovation guides our thinking. We advocate positive change for learners through our research and practice. We’re proud to be thought leaders within ECE, openly challenging ourselves to think differently to provide the best for our children, families and staff.

We’re responsive

Our centres reflect their children, staff and communities. We celebrate individuality, uniqueness and diversity, encouraging a spirit of empathy, understanding and collaboration. Through our responsive relationships and our curriculum, we support learners to choose their own path.

Our people matter

At BestStart people come first. When we grow and develop our people, everyone benefits. We strive for whakamana/empowerment, nurturing a culture of excellence with engaged, talented professionals. Their commitment, skill and passion light our way.

Te Kōhanga Reo

The kōhanga reo movement is a unique initiative based on total immersion in Māori language and values with the aim of passing on Māori culture to future generations.

Kōhanga reo emphasise the revitalisation of the culture through te reo Māori and are dependent on the active participation of the whole whānau. The kaupapa of kōhanga reo aims to strengthen whānau capabilities in cultural, social, economic, spiritual and political matters. Education, health and wellbeing are inherent within all aspects of the kaupapa. The prime focus is the whānau – its collective development, growth, accountability and wellbeing set within a Māori cultural context.

Kōhanga reo do not regard tamariki in isolation, but as important members of the whānau. The kōhanga reo philosophy is that tamariki will benefit when whānau successfully operate according to the kaupapa. Tamariki are an integral part of whānau development.

The following key goals are the foundation of te kōhanga reo kaupapa established in 1982:

• total immersion in te reo Māori me ōna tikanga in daily operations
• whānau decision-making, management and responsibility
• accountability
• health and wellbeing of mokopuna and whānau.

The key goals of te kōhanga reo assure that there will be:

• security in te reo Māori
• a supportive, caring environment for mokopuna
• whānau (collective) sharing of responsibilities, knowledge and expertise
• greater respect and appreciation of each other.

At Brian Webb Kindergarten we are committed to creating an environment of respect and belonging for all families. This provides high-quality, interactive learning opportunities.   

We value the dual heritage of Aotearoa and the use of Tikanga and Te Reo Maori is an integral part of our kindergarten culture. As a community of life-long learners we encourage the on-going development of children as competent and confident with a strong sense of self-worth.   

We are an enthusiastic team, constantly keeping abreast of latest research and thinking in early childhood education. We have high expectations of ourselves as educators and have high expectations of our children and their growing independence. We work hard to form strong relationships with parents and whanau and we have a supportive committee.  

Children are free to choose activities/areas of play. Small group work and music sessions are offered. We have a large outdoor play area to challenge and extend children.  

We have a rolling morning tea. Teachers encourage and remind all children to stop for a break and sit with, or near the children. We have a short mat time at midday and have lunch together as a group.   

Following lunch, we encourage children to get involved in quiet play ie. stories and puzzles. We have mattresses and linen for children that need a rest /sleep.  At the end of the session, we have a group time at approximately 2.15pm.

Tawa Central Kindergarten was the first kindergarten built in Tawa, and has served the community for over 60 years. We have close relationships with the local primary schools, with our children feeding into 5 of these schools. We recognise the importance of providing a warm and welcoming environment, by working in partnership with both whanau and the community, as we believe this supports children to develop into competent and confident learners. Our kindergarten has a hard- working committee of parents who fundraise and contribute to community events.  

We value the dual heritage of Aotearoa and have a strong bicultural focus within our programme, with teachers leading kapa haka sessions weekly. Our large outdoor environment enables children to challenge and extend themselves physically, with quiet spaces enabling children to connect with nature and to develop knowledge and skills around sustainability.  

The kindergarten is situated in the heart of Tawa, so we are in walking distance to local sites, which we use as an extension to our programme planning. The Community Garden is next door, and we visit this regularly and have been lucky to be involved in this project from its inception.     

We advocate healthy foods with a fresh fruit rolling morning tea.  Whanau provide healthy food in their child’s packed lunch, and we offer healthy food choices in our weekly baking.   Teaching team consists of 3 full time teachers and 2 part time teachers.   

We encourage whanau involvement in our kindergarten, and invite parents to stay with their child, especially when they are settling. We celebrate cultural diversity and have a programme which is very focused on building social competence and promoting equity, inclusion, and fun.   

We nurture the mana of the child, acknowledging their individual strengths, interests, and prior knowledge that they bring to the programme.

Tawa Montessori Preschool is a preschool for children 3-6 years old, based on the guiding principles of Maria Montessori. Through creating and hand-developing our preschool and enviro-nature programme, our preschool has evolved to be unlike any other early childhood centre in Wellington. 

We are dedicated to maintaining an enviro-nature character where children experience enviro friendly actions in repurposing, reducing and reusing as well as having access to a natural environment with animals and plants to inspire their outdoor experience. 

We are a pre-school where children, staff and families feel a sense of belonging and find long lasting friendships. A community place where each member is valued as a unique individual, in a culture of respect. 

Our teachers have many roles and responsibilities. They are the knower of the child, the preparer of the environment, the presenter of the lessons, the respecter and protector of the child's learning experiences and the role model in the classroom. We are very proud of our teachers. Our teachers not only help children to become independent, to concentrate, to observe and to form good habits, they also nurture the child's inner core of love and holistic development. They truly are special.

Millie’s House Oxford Street Kindy is the kindy of choice in Tawa where children, parents, whānau and teachers build life long friendships.

Aroha - where there is love, there is learning.

This vision is at the heart of our teaching philosophy.

From the moment you walk into Millie’s House Oxford Street Kindy, you feel at home. The kaiako (teachers) and tamariki (children) are only too happy to show you around our place, with spaces for tamariki to engage in meaningful play and quiet spaces for more engaged interactions. Our teaching team support each child's interests and bring excitement, joy, laughter and fun to our world.

We get to know your child, so we are able to find out their interests and then spend time with you to develop your child’s individual learning journey. Every child’s learning journey and special moments are captured and shared with you through personal conversations and on our online learning portfolios on Storypark. Each child has their own learning journal which is recorded on Storypark and is available as a hard copy that is intended for them to revisit their learning. It is a precious record of their magical moments and learning stories that we invite you to contribute to as well.

Our unique school readiness initiative has been developed to ensure that children leave the centre as confident, capable learners and have a successful start at school. We pride ourselves in the care and love we share with the children to support them with the varied skills needed for a successful transition to school such as learning to manage their belongings, their lunchboxes and most importantly how to get along with each other with manaaki, which means to support, respect and care for others.

Our kaiako are motivated and have the experience to provide the very best learning opportunities for your child. Millie’s House Oxford Street Kindy has a strong and productive relationship with the local Primary schools, and together we work towards preparing your child for school.

We offer a range of part-time and full-day care options for children aged 2 to 5 years, and endeavour to suit the needs of our community. We're open weekdays from 8am to 5.30pm, right through the year - only closing for public holidays.

CountryLife Educare is a home away from home. We offer plenty of outside space to play, explore and interact with animals and the natural environment. 

Our mixed age learning is an integral part of CountryLife and this provides our strong sense of tuakana-teina.  

Our daily programme responds to the learning interests, strengths and capabilities of our children. We believe in providing an environment and curriculum that supports risk-taking and creativity. Our programme helps us to balance academic and social learning through child-led discovery and enquiry. We support and actively encourage independence, self-help, self-esteem and problem-solving skills.  

CountryLife Educare encourages confidence in individuals own culture and identity and develops an understanding and respect for others. Our CountryLife team values the importance of a good partnership between our centre and home. We are a passionate team who has a warm and holistic approach to empower each child with the skills they need to be confident learners. 

We respect and acknowledge the aspirations held by parents and whanau for their children. These are incorporated into our programme and individual goals.