BestStart Mahora  

BestStart Mahora (formerly ABC Mahora) a small childcare centre, located near the Mahora Shopping Centre, Cornwall Park, and close to Mahora School. The Hastings City Centre is nearby, and the local industrial area on our door step.

We have a caring teaching team that brings a wide range of strengths, creating a kete of knowledge that supports children’s wellbeing and  sense of belonging.  Authentic partnerships with whanau and children allow us to grow within a supportive and caring environment where wairua is nurtured, mana is supported and mauri is identified so each child can grow and reach their own potential.

BestStart Mahora – nurturing our communities wairua, mana and mauri.  Wairua thrives and children’s mana is embraced to fully grow each child’s mauri to bring in a balance of physical, emotional, and social wellbeing. By supporting and including others into self-love habits, eating well and joining us in physical wellness, the sense of wellbeing is extended to whanau and the wider community.

Wairua - Is a child’s spirit and soul.  We want everyone to feel that this is their place, that they belong and can thrive here. This is nurtured through continuity of teachers, where authentic relationships are developed. We connect to each child by allowing them time to settle, and time to choose their teacher through listening to their inner voice (their heart). We follow children’s natural patterns and give them space to explore and find their place in their centre home. This sense of belonging supports children’s wairua and this is achieved through the care and attention they need to feel secure away from their home.

Mana - Is power and confidence. Children are part of a bigger whanau here and we become part of their extended whanau. The children are encouraged, praised and supported to grow as kind and caring individuals. This is often seen through the tuakana teina concept of learning, where the older sibling nurtures the younger children to succeed. Each child is recognised for what they bring with them, this is their whakapapa, their strengths and their interests. When this is recognised and nurtured, children are extended to the next level of learning.  Here we garden and grow our own vegetables and fruit, we learn to care for things as well as one another and are supported to take risks and for children to see themselves as achievers, embracing and growing their mana.

Mauri - Is life force. Here we nurture mauri by ensuring that the body is physically and socially well and is in a state of balance. We provide delicious home cooked meals, which have received the gold Healthy Heart Award.  We believe that a full belly makes for a content child and a delicious healthy menu supports a child’s mauri and sets them up for a day of learning.

The infant garden reflects nature and is a place where children can connect with Papatuanuku. The Young Children’s Room embraces children in life long skills that support a healthy lifestyle, which sees the children growing fruit, veges and herbs that are utilised in our meals and in process cooking. The garden is large and further supports children’s physical wellbeing, with space to run, jump, hop, skip, spin etc, all foundation skills that are needed for formal learning.

Home, centre and community - Our goal is to nurture the wellbeing of whanau and the local community.  We envision a centre vegie patch where we share our produce with our local community for use at home.  We engage in community walks and giving to great causes out there, such as  Plunket NZ, Breast Cancer Awareness and Mitre 10 Can Teen walks. Exercising together allows us to connect with one another, enhances our social well being and grows our sense of community within the centre.