Childcare options in Whangarei

Our boutique childcare and early learning centres offer children aged 2 to 5, a nurturing, loving environment in which they will feel confident to explore and discover.

Because we are small, our teaching professionals are able to form strong, supportive relationships with our families, giving them confidence that their little one is happy and thriving in our care.

Our mission is to give children the very best start. To help them begin the school journey as competent and confident learners, secure and healthy in mind, body and spirit.

We are proudly family owned and operated, not a faceless corporate. Our family looks forward to meeting yours.

Welcome to Parklands – a Playcentre in stunning Northland with a nature play focus and an incredible nature playground. We place a strong emphasis on meaningful interactions with nature and hope our tamariki foster a love, respect and caring for our beautiful planet and all it’s natural wonders. Our children are supported to become confident, competent self-directed learners through play, based around their interests. They gain knowledge through play, participation and positive guidance.

Children’s curiosity and creativity is nurtured through the fun range of experiences provided … no two days at Playcentre are the same.

Our children develop nurturing and social skills which have lifelong benefits. Siblings attend together, allowing older children to mentor younger children and practice empathy and caring.

We are a social Playcentre with many family events and ‘parents only’ dinners throughout the year.

As parents, we are actively involved in providing our children’s learning programmes and there is plenty of support in doing this. Our ERO report is outstanding – a 4 year review. The high adult to child ratio allows a good balance for group and individual support during each session.

There is no other organisation for early childhood education and family development quite like it in the world. Thousands of Kiwi children, and their parents too, have grown up with Playcentre … come and visit us and join in the fun.

Comrie Park Kindergarten is situated in Matarau, in a rural community just fifteen minutes from the centre of Whangarei and is surrounded by beautiful farm land and mature trees.

This Kindergarten is a place where sustainability and kindness are prioritised!

Children at Comrie Park Kindergarten have the opportunity to:

• Engage in, discover and take responsibility for the natural outdoors.
• Take responsibility for their own learning and being encouraged to think outside the square.
• Form beautiful friendships
• Gain confidence and empowerment and feel a sense of belonging within the Kindergarten and community.
• Experience our Ngāhere programme.

Comrie Park kindergarten are leaders in sustainable education in Early Childhood in Northland. As the first Green Gold Enviroschools Kindergarten north of Auckland, our commitment to working with community to create significant changes in sustainability knowledge, and therefore actions, is widely recognised. We know that lifelong learning begins in the early years; what children learn when they are young creates mind-sets and habits for a lifetime. This means that through our work with children, we are directly influencing the future of our community and our world. We believe that shared knowledge and participation builds power, so through our partnerships with the Northland Kindergarten Association (NKA),the Northland Regional Council, local marae and schools we actively facilitate opportunities for our community to be involved in our projects focussed on sustainable outcomes.

The Enviroschools kaupapa and guiding principles (empowered learners, respect for diversity of people and culture, sustainable communities, Māori perspectives and learning for sustainability) fit seamlessly beside the principles and strands of Te Whāriki, our national curriculum. Empowered learners participate in their environment through exploration and discovery. This builds children’s literacy and language repertoire, allowing them to develop strong communication alongside a confidence in contributing to the achievements of the collective. The connection with nature and the wider community ground children in their place, creating a sense of tūrangawaewae that we believe is lifelong. Through caring for, and being deeply involved in their environment and community, our tamariki are gifted the treasure of belonging, something we treasure. All of these aspects create a well-being not only of body but of wairua, enabling our children to confidently step into the next phase of their learning with pride. We believe that by upholding this kaupapa we are supporting our children to grow as “competent and confident learners and communicators, healthy in mind, body and spirit, secure in their sense of belonging and in the knowledge that they make a valued contribution to society” (Te Whāriki, 2017.)

Our outside environment is an ever evolving, living landscape filled with raw, natural materials. Intelligent materials (also known as loose parts) are sourced from families, local second-hand stores and the local refuse centre shop. We believe that by giving our children an open-ended space, filled with materials that can be used in infinite ways, we are expanding their minds, showing them how they like to learn and why. These materials often lend themselves to group design and play, allowing time for children to work within the ‘soft skills’ of learning such as collaboration, empathy, communication, and higher thinking; the skills that we believe are the most important for our children to develop.

Our inside environment is an exciting place that mingles discovery and sense of homeliness.  A rich variety of resources allows our tamariki to experiment, create, role-play, read and socialise to their hearts content.

Welcome to Manaia View Kindergarten, situated on the site of Manaia View School sharing a majestic view of Mount Manaia, here in Raumanga.

Naumai haere mai ki Manaia View Kindergarten. We are set on Manaia View school grounds, Raumanga.  Tucked around the back in our own magical space. We enjoy spending time outdoors with lots of room to run, climb, swing, dig, jump, and explore.  

We aspire to create a relaxed and home like environment, where tamariki experience…

• Warm loving and respectful relationships filled with aroha.
• Freedom and empowerment to investigate and make meaning of their worlds.
• A supportive atmosphere to express themselves.
• Social and emotional skills that develop resiliency, courage, and patience.
• A naturally intriguing environment and purposeful teaching practices.
• Connections with whenua, and whanau.
• Core health and wellbeing skills, for ourselves, each other, our place, and things.

We believe this lays the foundations for holistic development and wellbeing for our tamariki.

• With a close connection to Manaia View School, we are well placed to provide a quality transition to school program as tamariki move through their education.
• We have a community support worker who links whānau and tamariki with support networks and ensure general wellbeing.  
• We also provide speech and language support within the kindergarten (on request)with NKA’s specialists.  
• We are a Kids Can Kindergarten and are fortunate to be able to provide hot lunches and warm clothing for our tamariki.  
• Northland District Health Board sponsors our opt in daily toothbrushing program.

We are whanau focused and welcome visitors to come through meet the team and join us in play at any time.  

Your child’s first five years are an exciting and important time.

From the day they are born, to the day they start school, children grow an astonishing amount. We know that choosing the right early learning and care environment for your child is one of the biggest decisions you will make. At Impact Childcare we want to make it easy for you to leave your child in the knowledge that they will be loved, nurtured and making exciting learning discoveries.

Our Centre

Impact Childcare are dedicated to providing a safe, high quality caring and learning environment providing abundant developmental opportunities to all children aged 6 months-6 years.

At Impact Childcare all children are treated equally. We provide an innovative and inspiring approach to early childhood education which values the child as a strong, capable and rich individual with wonder and knowledge.

Meals

At our child care centre we ask that you provide a healthy lunchbox for all meals. This is to promote self-management skills in our tamariki and prepare them for the school curriculum. We provide seasonal fruit, cheese and crackers, and toast if extra morning or afternoon tea is required.

Opportunities/Experiences

Outdoor Activities: we will nurture your child’s development through play. Our centre promotes daily physical activity through outdoor play as a means of healthy living and using loose parts as a means of exploration.

Gardening: at our early learning center, we advocate caring for the environment through education of kaitiakitanga and awareness of Papatūanuku. We have a space dedicated to gardening, which allows the children to participate in the process of planting through to harvesting.

Cooking: cooking is a way to connect with the children and their home experiences, culture and tasting palettes. At our day care center, we encourage children to take part in the preparation process when it comes to morning and afternoon tea preparation.

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.