It is our mission at Poppies Kindergarten to provide the highest quality care and education to inspire  young children and ignite their passion for a happy and successful life of learning. Our aim is to find your child’s unique strengths and bring out their full potential. 

The philosophy, values and beliefs at Poppies are firmly underpinned by the principles inherent in Te Whāriki (the NZ early childhood curriculum). These are:

All our experiences during the early years significantly go towards shaping and determining the ongoing development of knowledge, the acquisition of skills and particularly the forming of attitudes, dispositions, beliefs and behavioural habits.  Early childhood education begins the process of passing on the knowledge, attitudes and values of our families and society to our children. The early years is the time when a child learns and forms the basis of all they will believe and know to be true on how to function in life. It is the time when foundations are laid and children need positive calm guidance and assistance to develop healthy emotional & mental, social, intellectual, cognitive, cultural, creative and physical skills.

At Poppies, we consider our ongoing function as early childhood teachers is to maintain quality teaching practices through enthusiastic, positive and soul inspiring guidance. We aim to nurture, support, guide, encourage, and foster a child’s sense of well-being and belonging.  Develop and extend communication and inspire exploration particularly by being good role models and innovative facilitators. Our programme intends to guide, encourage and support children to lift the lid on potential. Delivery is vital. At Poppies we understand that what we tell them affects what they believe. What they believe affects who they become. We call them brave when they are scared.  We call them strong and tell them ‘they can do it’ when they have hurt themselves. We teach the children positive problem solving skills. We practice, as far a possible ‘conscious teaching’, teaching with heart and soul.

The values we teach our tamariki in their early years will be the values engrained in them for the rest of their lives.

At Poppies we aim to promote the learning and development of all children by providing a balanced program of both planned play-based learning experiences and free play. We have a strong focus on promoting the development of early literacy and numeracy skills and knowledge. A wide range of equipment and resources are provided both indoors and outdoors and programs are designed to inspire and stimulate a child’s natural thirst for learning. Children are invited to participate in experiences and to share their passions, interests and ideas with others. Our qualified and experienced teachers observe and assess children on a regular basis and this information is used to form plans for the program. Our program includes opportunities for  children to participate in individual and small group learning experiences and projects which aim to promote holistic learning and development.

We regularly plan excursions into the wider area to maintain children’s connections with their local community and areas of interest, such as visiting the local library, Retirement villages, parks & bushwalks and visits to local primary schools. Through engagement with the local environment, children can develop a sense of belonging to their local community and the wider world.

At Poppies we embrace the Māori concept of Tuakana-teina, where a more experienced child guides and offers support to their younger or less experienced peers.