Hello, Kia ora, Nǐ hǎo, Privet

Here at Silverdale Kindergarten we take pride in our Enviroschool focus/the  Maori concept- kaupapa (foundations, principles and philosophy).We are creating a healthy, peaceful, sustainable world through people teaching and learning together.

Together the children and teachers are on a journey learning the art of sustainability through growing vegetables, gardening, being plastic bag free, worm farming and composting fruit and vegetable scraps. We reduce, reuse and recycle.

Teachers have created a welcoming environment for Māori children and their whānau that strongly reflects the centre’s bicultural focus. Māori perspectives are woven through the programme and teachers naturally integrate te reo Māori through the use of short phrases, words  and waiata. We also partake in an annual  Maori kapahaka festival.

We have many cultures represented in our kindergarten. Our team works closely with our families to understand the different cultural needs of each child.  We use greetings in various  languages and have a  specific cultural area. Families are encouraged to share their culture with us through stories, songs and cultural celebrations .

Each week we take a group of children out into the environment. Often into the bush behind the school next door we go eeling, exploring and learning about our natural environment. We require parent support for these amazing adventures where curiosity and exploration are a key component.