Anne West Kindergarten has taught young children in Kaitaia through play for 70 years, and it serves tamariki and whānau across the wider Muriwhenua community. The kindergarten is on Pukepoto Road and is one of the Northland Kindergarten Association's centres. Learning follows Te Whāriki, so children explore, play and build relationships at their own pace. The teachers put whanaungatanga at the centre of the day, so families are made to feel they belong from the start. It is an Enviroschools kindergarten, which means children spend time outdoors with the natural world. Through hands-on activities they learn about kaitiakitanga, which is caring for the land and for the community that lives on it.
For a family in Kaitaia, the kindergarten's outdoor work is a practical part of the programme, not an extra. Children take part in the everyday care of their surroundings, and the kindergarten invites whānau to visit and become part of its community. Find it at 92 Pukepoto Road, Kaitaia.