1896 Cambridge Road, Cambridge
View on mapAkarangi | Quality Evaluation evaluates the extent to which this early childhood service has the learning and organisational conditions to support equitable and excellent outcomes for all learners. Te Ara Poutama Indicators of quality for early childhood education: what matters most are the basis for making judgements about the effectiveness of the service in achieving equity and excellence for all learners. Judgements are made in relation to the Outcomes Indicators, Learning and Organisational Conditions. The Evaluation Judgement Rubric derived from the indicators, is used to inform ERO’s judgements about this service’s performance in promoting equity and excellence.
ERO’s judgements for Little Thinkers Private Kindergarten are as follows:
Outcome Indicators(What the service knows about outcomes for learners) | Whakaū Embedding |
Ngā Akatoro Domains | |
Learning ConditionsOrganisational Conditions | Whakawhanake Sustaining Whakaū Embedding |
Little Thinkers Private Kindergarten is co-owned. Owners are qualified teachers who work alongside teachers to deliver the curriculum and oversee operations. The service’s philosophy values meaningful play and curiosity. Of the children enrolled a small number whakapapa as Māori, Pacific and other mixed ethnic groups. Significant progress has been made since the last ERO report.
Children engage in a highly intentional curriculum that extends their social and emotional competencies and foundational literacies. Teaching practices within the well-resourced environments promote children leading their own learning and making sense of their worlds. Opportunities for tuakana-teina (older children playing alongside younger) are extended through shared outdoor spaces. Children with additional needs are very well supported to learn inclusively alongside their peers. Infants experience respectful individualised care in an environment that enhances their development. Older children’s independence and their positive sense of self is promoted.
Children, their whānau and teachers are increasingly engaging in learning-focused partnerships. Aspirations are intentionally used to inform planning. Assessments make children’s learning over time evident. Highly relevant communication facilitates sharing of progress and input for decision making. Recently a whānau group has been established to unpack the learning outcomes and provide feedback.
The service is becoming more intentional in supporting all children’s cultures, languages, and identities. Children hear some Tongan, Hindi, Te Reo and Fijian languages. Their identities are reflected in displays, resourcing, and assessments. Aspects of te ao Māori are being integrated. New connections with mana whenua are enhancing the service’s place-based bicultural curriculum. Leaders have self-identified that this is an ongoing focus to develop further.
Leaders foster conditions that facilitate improvement. Relational trust, mentoring, professional learning and opportunities for teachers to collaborate and share new knowledge are positively supporting outcomes that benefit children. Evaluation practices are embedded, generating information about shifts in teacher practices. A next step is to strengthen the monitoring and evaluation stage to document the outcomes and impacts on individual and groups of children. Governance provides coherent organisational conditions and resourcing that underpin the service’s philosophy and strategic direction.
Little Thinkers Private Kindergarten will include the following actions in its Quality Improvement Planning:
Before the review, the staff and management of Little Thinkers Private Kindergarten completed an ERO Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:
During the review, ERO looked at the service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:
All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.
Patricia Davey
Director of Early Childhood Education (ECE)
30 August 2024
| Early Childhood Service Name | Little Thinkers Private Kindergarten |
| Profile Number | 47965 |
| Location | Cambridge |
| Service type | Education and care service |
| Number licensed for | 75 children, including up to 22 aged under 2 |
| Percentage of qualified teachers | 100% |
| Service roll | 94 |
| Review team on site | June 2024 |
| Date of this report | 30 August 2024 |
| Most recent ERO report(s) | Akanuku | Assurance Review, March 2023 |
ERO’s Akanuku | Assurance Review reports provide information about whether a service meets and maintains regulatory standards. Further information about Akanuku | Assurance Reviews is included at the end of this report.
Regulatory standards | ERO’s judgement |
| Curriculum | Meeting |
| Premises and facilities | Meeting |
| Health and safety | Meeting |
| Governance, management and administration | Meeting |
At the time of the review, ERO found the service was taking reasonable steps to meet regulatory standards.
Little Thinkers Private Kindergarten provides education and care over four aged-based rooms. Teachers and room leaders work alongside the owners to enact a play-based curriculum. A small number of children enrolled are Māori, Pacific and from other mixed ethnic groups. This is the service's first ERO report.
Teachers providing education and care engage in meaningful and positive interactions to enhance children’s learning and nurture reciprocal relationships.
The curriculum provides children with a range of experiences individually and in groups with opportunities to enhance and extend their learning development. Children’s preferences are acknowledged, they are involved in decisions about their learning experiences and social competence is supported.
Information and guidance is sought when necessary from the service to enable adults providing education and care to work effectively with children and their parents.
Next steps include:
The next ERO review is likely to be an Akarangi | Quality Evaluation.
Phil Cowie
Director Review and Improvement Services (Central)
Central Region | Te Tai Pūtahi Nui
2 March 2023
| Early Childhood Service Name | Little Thinkers Private Kindergarten |
| Profile Number | 47965 |
| Location | Cambridge |
| Service type | Education and care service |
| Number licensed for | 75 children, including up to 22 aged under 2 |
| Percentage of qualified teachers | 100% |
| Service roll | 103 |
| Review team on site | January 2023 |
| Date of this report | 2 March 2023 |
| Most recent ERO report(s) | First ERO review of the service |
All services are licensed under the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008. The legal requirements for early childhood services also include the Licensing Criteria for Education and Care Services 2008.
Services must meet the standards in the regulations and the requirements of the licensing criteria to gain and maintain a licence to operate.
All early childhood services are required to promote children’s health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements. Before the review, the staff and management of a service completed an ERO Centre Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:
As part of an Akanuku | Assurance Review ERO assesses whether the regulatory standards are being met. In particular, ERO looks at a service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:
As part of an Akanuku | Assurance Review ERO also gathers and records evidence through: