Little Nest Early Learning Centre is a small early learning centre on James Street in Bayview, for children from 5 months to 5 years old. The centre describes itself as a home away from home. It sets itself apart from the larger childcare centres in the Glenfield and Bayview area by keeping a smaller, close-knit group of children.
The approach is child-led and play-based. The teachers, whom the centre calls kaiako, see their role as helping children learn rather than teaching them, and they follow each child's curiosities to build learning from there. The centre is inspired by the RIE and Reggio Emilia philosophies, and it works within Te Whāriki, the New Zealand early childhood curriculum. Te reo Māori and tikanga run through the day, and the centre celebrates both its bicultural and multicultural community.
The daily programme builds social and emotional skills through play, physical development through movement and exercise, and creativity through the arts and music. The learning spaces are designed to feel calm and comfortable, and the centre sees each child as an individual with their own needs. Its teachers aim to help each child and family feel safe, loved and part of the centre.