Our Philosophy
Our Philosophy
As teachers we want to foster a nurturing environment where every child feels valued, respected and inspired to learn through exploration, creativity, and building meaningful connections. We want to provide a safe, inclusive and stimulating learning environment that promotes holistic development, foster curiosity and lays the foundation for lifelong learning. We nurture children's social and emotional competencies helping them develop self-awareness, empathy, resilience, and positive relationships with peers and adults.
We celebrate diversity and promote a culture or respect, kindness, and empathy among children, families, and teaching team. We believe play is essential for children cognitive, social, emotional, and physical development by using the environment as the third teacher where children can explore, create, and have independent discoveries. We provide rich and engaging play experiences that support learning and exploration and understand our children all have unique need, interest and developmental stages of each child, recognising them as capable and competent individuals.
The Y Ellerslie values and nurtures collaborative relationships with families, recognising them as essential partners in their child's education and development. We prioritise building trusting relationships with children and families, providing responsive and individualised care and support.
Everyone is always welcome and always will be.
Nau Mai, Haere Mai!
Whakamana: Empowerment
Our curriculum empowers the child to learn and grow through supporting them to become interactive learners and constructors of knowledge. Within the centre we believe that our children will develop independently with guidance and support from our teachers. The children will be given opportunities and empowered regularly through daily learning experiences. Staff will be aware of the development levels of the children and use this information to foster each child’s self confidence. Our staff use positive and encouraging language and wherever possible, the children are encouraged to make choices and decisions and set their own learning goals.
Kotahitanga: Holistic Development
Our curriculum reflects the holistic way that children learn and grow through acknowledging them as unique free-spirited individuals. Our teachers are proactive about introducing children to various cultures and are expected to be respectful of the beliefs of individual families. The teachers at The Y Early Learning Centre Ellerslie are constantly working to provide an environment that is interactive, age appropriate stimulating and safe.
Whánau Tangata: Family and Community
The wider world of family and community is an integral part of our curriculum and we foster active participation from all three protagonists. At The Y Early Learning Centre Ellerslie we believe that the inclusion of family and the community are an integral part of the positive development of a child. Our teachers take the children into the community where possible and are aware of the resources that are available in the community to support the centre, children and families.
Ngā Hononga: Relationships
Children learn through responsive and reciprocal relationships with people, places and things and we encourage the participation in meaningful relationships. The staff at The Y Early Learning Centre Ellerslie are committed to role modeling and supporting positive relationships. Reciprocal relationships are paramount and our programme provides opportunities for children to gain a rich understanding of their world, and to learn through trying out their ideas with adults and other children.
Te Tiriti o Waitangi: Treaty of Waitangi
The Y Early Learning Centre Ellerslie acknowledges and reflects the unique place of Maori as tangata whenua, giving children the opportunity to develop knowledge and an understanding of the cultural heritage of both parties to Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Teachers reflect this in practice by ensuring programmes include tikanga me ona Te Reo Maori (Maori custom and language).
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