Curriculum

Young children learn as a result of their own doing–through their actions, relationships, inquiries, play and observations.They learn from their individual experiences of seeing, touching, moving and hearing called “experiential learning” which is the foundation of our curriculum. Our progamme is designed to cultivate children's interests, support their needs whilst challenging their intellect, build self esteem, social interaction and school readiness.

Children get to experiment and play with a wide range of media, materials and instruments whilst involved in art, music, dance and movement. Children enjoy having fun expressing their thinking and creativity with paint, clay, shaving foam, ribbons, singing and a variety of musical instruments to name only a few.

Children are encouraged to recognise sounds, letters and words during early literacy and language development. They learn to write their own name and acknowledge the different languages of the world taking into account English, te reo maori, pacific languages and any other language spoken by families whom may attend the centre.

Children are encouraged to gain an understanding of counting, number recognition, measurement and distance. They are inspired to experiment seeking patterns , sorting and matching as well as identifying shapes and learning the concept of space.

With the activities undertaken at the Centre based around the interests of the child this sometimes leads to an exciting adventure out of the Centre for over 3 children. A child’s interest in planets could lead to a trip to the Carter Observatory, an interest in animals could lead to a trip to the zoo, or an interest in fish to the rocky shore at Plimmerton. Under 3 children will enjoy in centre theatre groups and other visitors with fun,interesting shows.

Children love to play make believe in the family area playing house, shops or role play a variety of occupations using the dress ups along with real tea sets, pots and pans, make believe food, cash registers, play money and all sorts of other fun interesting things to spark the imagination to inspire play.

Children enjoy a variety of physical activities outdoors in the fresh air and sunshine such as climbing, running, skipping, ball skills, outdoor games and being introduced to New Zealand sports that interest the children. Reggio Bambini provides opportunities for children to have fun being active and interactive developing their coordination through participation and movement.

Children enjoy learning activities to make science fun by using magnets, discovering shadows and reflections, learning about the weather and gravity, using magnifying glasses, collecting insects and learning about life cycles. Children gain a respect for their environment and learn about recycling. Over time pets will be introduced to the Centre and children will be involved with caring for same.

Children learn to share through play and activities and are encouraged to make friends and respect others. Children are encouraged to use their manners and invite their friends and teachers to explore their language and culture if English is not their first language.