Why Home Based?
Home based early childhood education provides a learning environment where a close and trusting relationship between your child and educator/Kaiako creates a secure attachment and provides a strong base for exploration, growth in confidence and development of a child’s self esteem. Time and time again research shows that group size and child to adult ratios are key factors in quality learning outcomes for children.
Benefits of Home Based Early Learning
- Your child’s individual interests and strengths can be closely followed based on small group sizes. Tailored learning experiences that are child led and play based supports brain development.
- Your child’s usual home routine can be followed, such as their sleep and meal times.
- Small group size directly contributes to fewer health risks for your child, particularly as children still have an underdeveloped immune system
- There is a greater flexibility in the hours of care to help accommodate your family needs.
- Learning is catered to your child’s needs due to the small group ratios, rather than trying to meet the needs of a large group of children.
- Your child can enjoy every day childhood experiences like going out for spontaneous walks and outings, baking, collecting the mail, hanging out washing and attending larger group experiences such as playgroups and excursions.
Wild Things is about creating stimulating and nurturing environments that lay the foundations for life long learning.
Meaningful social interactions that support their emotional, physical and cognitive development
Our years of experience have shown us that home-based early childhood education offers the greatest opportunity for children from infancy to five years of age, to engage in meaningful social interactions that support their emotional, physical and cognitive development. Research has proven that infants and young children are at their best when they have secure and loving relationships with consistent caregivers. Our home-based educators / Kaiako stimulate positive, nurturing relationships with the children they care for. They get to know the child and respond to their interests and personalities on an individual basis.
Smaller Child to Educator Ratios 4:1
Home-based early childhood education is most suitable for those families who value education and care in a home setting where the individual child’s learning needs are met within the stimulation of a small group interaction. A small group means your child gets lots of personal attention, so we keep our home-based groups to a maximum of four children per educator / Kaiako, and we carefully manage each environment and make sure it is safe, welcoming and child friendly. Educators / Kaiako also provide regular opportunities for children to be part of larger group experiences by attending Wild Things playgroups and outings in the wider community.
Children can explore and are involved in everyday activities
Wild Things home-based educators / Kaiako are motivated to involve children in everyday activities such as baking, making art and play groups. And the small adult to child ratio makes it possible for the children to participate in frequent outings - guided experiences in carefully chosen and safe environments: like visits to the library, the park, or the local fire station.
Child-led, and play-based learning
Wild Things fosters child led, and play based learning which is based on the New Zealand national early childhood curriculum, Te Whāriki. Each individual child will have their learning documented through learning stories and the web based portfolio Educa. With the Wild Things Readiness for School programme, your child’s learning is fostered and nurtured to lay the foundations for successful future learning.