Kiwicare Preschool "Healthy Bodies, Educated Minds" services are operated by husband and wife team Heather Anderson and Michael Clark who live locally in Ponsonby.  They are both very much involved in the daily operation of the preschool centres, including meeting with parents, supporting staff in their professional learning, and curriculum implementation.

Kiwicare holds 18 licenses providing early childhood education and care to over 800 children and out-of-school care in the Bay of Islands, Avondale, Papatoetoe and Mangere East. 

Each centre looks after 50 children from 0 – 6 years with dedicated teachers for every group of 4 under-two-year-olds or 8 preschoolers. On top of the teaching ratios Kiwicare also has extra staff on hand to help with curriculum, social competencies, special occasions, professional development and administration.

Open:  Monday to Friday 7am until 6pm. Open during the school term breaks.

Minimum and Maximum Hours of Enrolment:  The minimum hours a child may attend per week are 20 hours and the maximum is 55.

Address:  19 Kenderdine Road, Papatoetoe; 44 Wyllie Road, Papatoetoe; 2 Coronation Road, Papatoetoe; 48 Tennessee Avenue, Mangere East; 18, 20 & 25 Wolverton Street, Avondale; 40 Yorke Road, Haruru Falls Paihia.

Online:  www.kiwicarepreschool.co.nz

Children with Disabilities:   Centres are wheel chair accessible.

Children with Medical Conditions:  All permanently employed teachers hold current first aid certificates. When a child needs any prescribed medication parents are consulted regarding the dosage, time and procedure for administration. Should a child need more care and consideration for his/her health condition, teachers are able to access training and support.

Gifted and Talented Children:  Kiwicare implements the internationally renowned Magda Gerber programme. The philosophy behind this programme is about giving caring attention to each child, helping the child feel understood and capable. This enables staff, the child’s family and child to move forward together at the extension rate the individual child is capable of. Amongst the staff a great variety of skills are held, meaning that the teaching team is well placed to extend children’s different and various interests.

All children are taken on many excursions and events in the greater community as well as being taken often to the local library for extra resources and books.

The technology of the modern world is focused on as an integral part of the child’s learning. Kiwicare’s classroom technology includes smart boards for easy links for information on the children’s interests and to provide extension of children’s learning.

The toddlers’ learning is supported and extended through the implementation of Barbara Brann’s pre-literacy programme and Len Cooper’s mathematical programme.

Kiwicare also offers a class for 5 to 6 year olds where children are streamed according to their ability. Each child is professionally tested on the primary school model so that specific activities for their abilities are provided. Close liaison with local primary schools ensures a smooth transition of children in to Year 2 primary classes.

Children with Special Learning Needs:  Staff work with Special Education Services, Plunket, vision, hearing, speech, occupational and physical therapists as necessary to provide a learning and caring environment that is appropriate for every child.

Staff Gender:  Men and women are employed at the centres.

Languages Spoken by Staff Fluently:  English, Maori, Tongan, Samoan, Nuiean, Afrikaans, Mandarin, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese, Fijian, Cantonese, Hindi, Mandarin Urdu, Dutch, Marcthi, Tamil, Kankani, Filipino, Bengali and Punjabi and Malayan. 

Range of Different Qualifications held by Staff: Kiwicare’s qualified staff are selected on their strength of character, their variety of skills and their experience in childcare. Thus qualifications held amongst the staff include:

• PHD’s in Anthropology and Philosophy
• Masters in Education, Science, Commerce, English, Political Science, Social Sciences, Home    Science, Business Management and Arts
• Post graduate Diplomas in Early Childhood Management, Journalism, Secondary Education, Primary Education and Early Childhood Education
• Bachelor Degrees in Education, Arts, Commerce, Management, Physiotherapy, Physical Education, Engineering, Home Science, Information Technology, and Nursing
• Diplomas of Teaching in Early Childhood Education, Primary School Teaching and Secondary School Teaching, Computer networking, Hospitality and Tourism 
• Certificate in Special Education Services, Nanny and Childcare Service, Sports and Recreation, Food handling and nutrition, Japanese Daycare Supervision and in National Business Studies 

Parent Say:  Parents are listened to at Kiwicare as the service believes in continuous quality improvement and reflection. Kiwicare strives to offer innovative services supported by the latest research and parental aspirations.

Grouping Practices:   At each centre, choices are available as to whether a child is placed in a similar aged group of children or with a mixed aged group.

Features Kiwicare Say They Are Proud Of: 

1. Our Children

• “Children in our service are babies to 6 year olds who are content and busy, they socialise easily with each other, with their teachers and with new friends to the centre. The children are very interactive with all opportunities provided for them in the different learning areas of the room. Laughter and music with singing and dancing in groups or to an audience is a feature. The children love making amazing art pieces and sculptures on the collage table, in the multi-block marble area and with a variety of materials at carpentry table and in the sand-pit."
• “Healthy bodies, educated minds is the tag line for Kiwicare.  At Kiwicare we understand the uniqueness of each child through the philosophy of promoting the virtues of respect, kindness and inclusion."

2. The Indoor Environment

• “Our centres are purpose built and resourced with what is best for children’s development and learning in mind. This means our inside toys are sourced for their educational value, their ability to extend children’s learning yet also allow for creativity and fun. There are spaces to play in groups or to quietly read or solve a puzzle.”
• “The centres have easy indoor-outdoor flow with organised indoor spaces that are clean, spacious, warm and safe. Indoor spaces are created where children feel at home and relaxed.”
• "Our centres have their own kitchens and kitchen staff, to ensure we provide food for our children to meet the requirement standards of the Healthy Heart Award."

3.  The Outdoor Environment

• “Our outside environments are safe, multifaceted and adventurous for physical play, for easy development of social relationships and for exploration of the natural environment.”
• “We also love joining in with our local community and have vans for regular local trips to the library, parks, botanical gardens and other wider community facilities.”