Waiouru Kindergarten

14/08/2026

Kia ora whānau,
This week, from 13–19 August, we are celebrating Filipino Language Week and the rich culture and heritage of the Filipino people.

Filipino Language Week in Aotearoa New Zealand is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the language, culture, traditions, food and stories of the Filipino community.

This morning, Kaiako Malou shared with ngā tamariki where she is from and gave us a little insight into her Filipino culture. She showed us the Philippines on the map and talked about how far away it is. She shared that travelling to the Philippines from New Zealand means taking two planes to get there.

Malou also introduced ngā tamariki to the Philippine flag and explained what the different parts represent. We learned about the sun, the colours of the flag and the three stars, which represent the three main geographical regions of the Philippines.

We also learned some words in Filipino (Tagalog):
Kumusta! – Hello!
Magandang umaga! – Good morning!
Salamat! – Thank you

Malou shared some of the delicious fruits that grow in the Philippines, including saging (banana), mangga (mango), and abokado (avocado). Ngā tamariki enjoyed learning the Filipino names for the fruits and practising how to pronounce them.

After morning tea, Malou and ngā tamariki got busy in the kitchen and made a traditional cassava cake. We grated cassava and added milk, coconut milk, brown sugar and vanilla essence. The tamariki were able to take part in the baking experience, helping to mix the ingredients and learn about a traditional Filipino food.

It was a lovely morning of language, culture, food and learning, and we would like to thank Malou for sharing her culture and knowledge with us.
Ngā mihi nui, Malou

04/08/2026

What a fun afternoon dancing and playing in the snow ❄️🌨️ ☃️

04/08/2026

Snow flurries very exciting for tamariki of Waiouru Kindergarten ❄️🌨️ ☃️⛄

28/07/2026

🏠 Spaces Available at Waiouru Kindergarten for tamariki aged 2-5!

If you’re looking for a safe, nurturing and community focused early learning environment, we’d love to welcome you and your child 🌿

What makes our kindergarten special:
✅ Open 7.45am - 4.45pm!
✅ 20 Hours FREE ECE for ALL children - including 2-year-olds.
✅ 100% qualified teachers
✅ NOW OPEN THROUGH SCHOOL HOLIDAYS

Visit us at 25 Kenningston Street, Waiouru

Call 021 511 827 or register your interest today!

Whānau Manaaki Kindergartens is a not-for-profit organisation that runs more than 100 kindergartens and several home-based early education services across the lower North Island.

23/07/2026

Kia ora whānau.
On Monday we had a wonderful surprise at kindergarten when the New Zealand Army Defence Force firefighters stopped by with their fire truck!

The children were excited to meet the firefighters, explore the fire truck up close, climb inside, and learn about some of the important equipment they use to help keep our community safe. They even got to hear the sirens!

This unexpected visit sparked lots of curiosity, conversations, and excitement as the children learned about community helpers through a real-life, hands-on experience. We are very grateful to the firefighters for taking the time to visit and create such a memorable learning opportunity for our tamariki. Hopefully we will get another visit soon 🤗 😁

09/07/2026

Kia ora whānau,

What a wonderful afternoon we shared celebrating Matariki and Puanga together at kindergarten. Over the past few weeks, our tamariki have been exploring the meaning of Matariki and Puanga through a variety of learning experiences, including arts and crafts, storytelling, waiata, and cultural activities.

Thank you to everyone who came along to celebrate the Māori New Year with us. It was so special to see our kindergarten filled with whānau, laughter, and connection.

A heartfelt thank you to our whānau for your generous kai donations—they were truly appreciated. A special thank you also to our tamariki for helping prepare the delicious kai and for confidently sharing the waiata they have been practising. We are so proud of each and every one of them.

Wishing you all a safe, relaxing, and wonderful long weekend. Ngā mihi nui.

24/06/2026

With the recent culling of trees where we would normally operate our bush kindy programme, we have now found a new location further down the greenbelt.

The new location offers more open space, trenches, a tyre swing and a very cool man made fort created by the community. Our bushies crew have given it a test run with a big thumbs up, and we are excited to continue our bush kindy programme in the second half of the year!

15/02/2026

Mōrena whānau,

Today Monday 16th of February we have received notice from our Senior teaching team that ALL KINDERGARTENS ARE CLOSED today due to the extreme weather and the fact there is a State of Emergency in place affecting teachers ability to travel to work.

Stay safe, stay warm and hopefully we’ll see you all tomorrow.

Ngā manaakitanga,
Waiouru team

13/02/2026

Kia ora e te whānau,

We would like to extend a huge and heartfelt thank you to the NZDF for all the incredible hard mahi they have done over the past week here at Waiouru Kindergarten. They have completed the works and the Kindy/Association the materials in order to upgrade the safety in our playground.

Their team has been busy removing our old sand and bark, replacing it with fresh new materials, and fixing our drainage system. This has been a big job, and we are so grateful for the time, effort, and care that has gone into making our outdoor spaces safer and better for our tamariki.

The tamariki have absolutely loved watching the whole process unfold! The trucks, diggers, and all the big vehicles brought so much excitement and wonder to our days. It has been truly entertaining and such a special real-life learning experience for them — there has been no shortage of smiles and excited conversations. The tamariki have shown manaakitanga by baking them some yummy treats for morning tea and afternoon to show their appreciation.

We feel very fortunate to have this mahi completed at our kindy. It means so much to our team and our whānau, and most importantly, it creates an even better environment for our tamariki to learn and play.

Ngā mihi nui to the NZDF team — we appreciate you all so much!

28/08/2025