Olive Tree Early Learning Centre – Play, Learn and Grow

A place where children aged 0 - 6 years old love to play, learn and grow.

Known for symbolising peace and friendship, an olive tree represents our approach to teaching and learning- respectful practices supported by meaningful relationships.

About us

Olive Tree Early Learning Centre is a boutique early childhood centre providing quality care and education for 35 tamariki (children) each day.

We are open from 7am – 6pm, Monday to Friday, 52 weeks of the year.

Conveniently located on 45 Cascades Road Pakuranga, we invite you to pop in anytime to see why your child should be a part of our Olive Tree whanau (family)

Philosophy

Olive Tree Early Learning Centre is a place where children love to play, learn and grow.

Known for symbolising peace and friendship, an olive tree represents our approach to teaching and learning- respectful practice supported by meaningful relationships.

Manaakitanga
Children are at the heart of it all. Love and kindness is the life force behind everything we do and we aim for each child to feel respected, valued and cared for. In our supportive and welcoming environment children and whanau feel a strong sense of belonging.

Whakamana
Each child is empowered to have a strong sense of mana which they are respected and celebrated for. Children are viewed as capable and confident learners and are supported to be the best they can be and reach their full potential.

Whanaungatanga
Teachers place emphasis on connecting meaningfully with whanau. Through warmth trust, support and kindness, teachers establish respectful and authentic relationships with whanau that hold each child’s best interests at heart.

Mana Aoturoa
Children are empowered to learn through play and meaningful engage with their environment. Children are encouraged to explore, discover, find a sense of wonder in their world, and thrive on their learning journey.

Curriculum

Te Whariki is the early childhood curriculum that guides our practice at Olive Tree.

We view curriculum as including all the experiences, activities and events that occur within our early childhood centre. We value the principles, strands, goals and learning outcomes of Te Whariki as being the oar that steers our waka (boat) to educational success, including a love for learning.

To encourage educational success our intentional teachers holistically plan, facilitate and reflect on children’s learning, sharing and celebrating success with parents and whanau. We are proud to use Storypark as a tool to share your child’s achievements with you.

Our team

We have two teams of passionate kaiako (teachers) who work closely together each day.

Our Pepi team works with our under 2 year olds, and our tamariki team works with our over 2 year olds.

Each of our kaiako believe in Olive Tree’s philosophy, values and vision, and create a nurturing and supportive home away from home for Tamariki and whanau.

Enrolment information

We encourage whanau to visit us in person prior to enrolling their child at Olive Tree.

After a tour of our early learning centre we will provide you with an enrolment pack which you will need to complete and return to secure your child’s place. We support tamariki to settle into Olive Tree as smoothly as possible.

Before your child’s first day we encourage them to have transition visits which allow our teachers to get to know your child and whanau, and allow your child and whanau to get to know their new learning environment and teachers.

Click here for our fee information

We offer 20 hours free ECE for children aged 3-5 years old

Please talk to us if you would like to know more about the WINZ childcare subsidy

Testimonials

My son started attending Olive Tree at 8 months old and I have loved watching the bond he continues to grow with his amazing teachers/kindy mums. I couldn’t recommend Olive Tree enough for creating such a nurturing environment for young tamariki.

Olive Tree has made transitioning to daycare such an easy process. Our daughter is met by a teacher for every drop-off and is excited when we arrive. All the teachers are so approachable that we often spend longer picking up our daughter, just to catch up with the teachers. We couldn't imagine sending our precious little one anywhere else.

We have loved our time with Olive Tree ELC thus far! The centre definitely gives a whānau vibe, and we feel it as we walk in at the beginning of the day to pick up at the end of the day. My little one is always well looked after and I love hearing about her day, either on pick up or via the Storypark app (the photos are always a bonus). Can't wait to watch my little one grow more under the Olive Tree.

Olive Tree is the most wonderful, nurturing environment with kind, caring, professional staff - it feels like a home away from home.

After six years with our two sons under the old centre we were extremely nervous about any changes when Carli and her team took over to create Olive Tree. I think we were probably the hardest family to convince of any change. We need not have worried. The centre has gone from great to outstanding. Carli and her team have taken over and built upon all the good that was there, creating even more in places we didn’t expect! Our son is so happy and settled, he loves his teachers and routines. He is excited to go in the mornings and has stories to tell all the way home. As a parent I have really appreciated how open Carli and her team are with communication, this means so much to us especially as our child has medical needs. Carli and her team are understanding, and happy to listen and talk through literally anything. Best of all is that I know they know my son well, they love and appreciate him and it shows. I feel like the family at Olive Tree has grown and strengthened the love we had for the past 6 years, which is not something we imagined possible. The centre is driven toward creating a warm, nurturing and open environment for the children. As a teacher myself, I love the time that is being put into creating fun activities, displays and online comms with home. I am genuinely excited to see the future growth and success of the centre under Carli and her team.

We love that Olive Tree has brought our daughters out of their shells expressing friendship for the first time with other kids and using their words more at home. Appreciative of the kindy, the friendly staff always keeping us informed of their progress and daily adventures, as well as experiencing new types of play and providing new challenges for them to test themselves. Olive Tree has an awesome and trusting team, we’re grateful for the journey our babies have ahead with them!