Waikato Business News | January 12, 2024

12 WAIKATO BUSINESS NEWS
JANUARY 2024
Choosing the right facility for those important
pre-school years
FEATURE
The importance of the first five
years of a child’s life – and how
those years are lived – has been
the subject of in-depth research
for years.
Findings show that from birth to
age five a child’s brain develops faster
than at any other stage in life, and
while genetics play a role, it appears
that the quality of a child’s experiences
during those first five years has a
significant impact on shaping their brain
development.
Knowing that makes it especially
important for parents to ensure that
the pre-school childcare they access for
their child is the very best it can be.
According to the Ministry of
Education website, New Zealand
parents have a raft of options open
to them. There are more than 5000
childcare and pre-school facilities
around the country, falling roughly into
two main groups.
One is teacher-led services where
at least half the supervising adults
must be qualified and governmentregistered
ECE (Early Childhood
Education) teachers. Facilities falling
into this category include kindergartens,
education and care services, some
home-based services and Te Kura
(Correspondence School playgroups).
The second group is made up of
parent-led services where parents or
other caregivers educate and look after
their children. These might include
licensed playcentres or Kōhanga Reo
(centres catering for children in a Māori
cultural environment), as well as a range
of other cultural playgroups which may
or may not have to be governmentcertified.
Because both options present
different types of early learning
services, hours of operation and prices,
parents need to look closely into what
will best suit their family.
There are several important things to
tick off when doing your research. First
of all, identify your priorities as a family
– is it a teaching-centred environment
you are seeking or simply quality
daycare for your child?
Perhaps contact the Ministry of
Education for a list of suitable centres in
your area, and then visit a few that you
think might be a good fit. Ideally, talk to
other parents of youngsters attending
an early education centre to get a feel
for how satisfied they are. Once you
have seen a facility you like, check out
their adult-to-child ratio, find out about
the qualifications of their staff, look into
the hours they operate and how many
children they have.
Any good pre-school or kindergarten
will welcome your questions … far from
being intrusive, it tells them you are a
caring parent who wants only the best
for their child.
Although there are no formal tests
in New Zealand’s early childhood
education system, a good facility will
keep parents updated with the child’s
progress through a whole range of
initiatives that might include photos,
learning books, artwork and the like.
Most early learning facilities will
also run parents’ events from time to
time, working in unison with parents
to ensure each child can develop its
talents and interests in a safe and happy
environment.