What We Do
At Matapu Preschool we believe in kind words and kind hearts, in listening, being reflective and evaluative. Teacher’s practice is underpinned and guided by Te Whariki the National Curriculum.
What does this look like in practice?
Our teaching team is supported by the committee and through budgeting to ensure that they are up to date with changes and innovations in teaching practice in New Zealand and internationally, extending their professional knowledge and practice. Our teachers are curious about children’s learning, and this leads teachers to be curious about their own learning.
Our philosophy also supports children in their curiosity and development to lead their learning through loose parts play and a child-led curriculum. Offering open-ended resources children choose to create and represent their ideas with the support of teachers. This exploration involves developing ideas about numeracy and literacy in a natural unfolding of each child’s understanding through play. This is supported by routines and rituals throughout the day offering predictability and social and emotional boundaries. We trust the curiosity and drive of our children, we support this through an environment that is homely and beautiful, well-resourced with many opportunities and time for children to explore as they play.
We believe in strong relationships and have whanau teachers to ensure families and children find their home here. We believe that through knowing our children and their families we can share their cultural, learning, and emotional needs.
We have family celebrations throughout the year to build relationships within our community along with excursions to explore and develop our ideas about the world around us. We encourage you to take an active role in your child’s learning through regular conversations with your whanau teacher, your child’s heart journal which holds termly assessments of children’s learning and photos of what play is meaningful to them and their learning. You are invited to contribute to this regularly with photos from home especially included important people, pets, and interests of your family. Children enjoy sharing these with their friends. We find our Heart Journals become lifelong treasures.