our philosophy
At Gladstone Park Early Childhood Centre, our purpose is to create and foster a warm and loving environment where tamariki play with freedom and authenticity, and whanau feel valued and welcomed.
Gladstone Park aligns itself with the value of manaakitanga; being a kind, caring and welcoming home away from home to learn and grow in. We strive to create a safe space where all Children and whanau feel that they belong, and to create a community where diversity is embraced. We celebrate that all children are unique and support them to feel empowered and respected in mind, body, and spirit.
We are guided by the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi in our mission to acknowledge the indigenous people of the land and represent Māori culture and values in our Centre and in our practice. We aim to do this with respect and authenticity.
Relationships between Kaiako, Tamariki and Whanau are the heart and soul of Gladstone Park and inspire the unique wairua of our Centre. We role model respect in our interactions with each other, and value communication and meaningful collaboration with our Centre community.
Children’s voices are heard and amplified within our environment. Kaiako take the time to sit with tamariki and talk, listen, and observe, getting to know their dispositions, interests and ideas. We respond with purpose and respect their choices. Learning is reciprocal; we grow together, make mistakes together and learn from each other.
Play is a Child’s work, and this is recognised and valued. This idea is underpinned by Te Whāriki, which helps us follow and extend their learning. We foster an environment of exploration, experimentation, and calculated risk, and ensure that tamariki are given time and freedom to explore and choose their own play, and to discover their own style of learning. This empowers them to investigate what is important to them and fosters a lifelong love of learning.
We value sustainability, living the value of kaitiakitanga in our care for Papatuanuku by planting, growing, and taking care of our environment. We are in a unique location and our natural surroundings not only offer opportunities to learn in nature and develop our physical health, but also to engage with our wider community. Mealtimes are rituals that we come together to experience; we eat and share healthy kai together to inspire a lifelong journey of wellness.
We feel privileged to be a part of every learning journey that comes through our door and recognise the responsibility of sending our tamariki on to future learning armed with knowledge and values that we have helped to nurture and grow. We aim to send them out into the world with a view of themselves as empowered, confident, and capable learners, with the courage to try new things and the resilience to pick themselves up when they fall.
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