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Busy Bees Waitara

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20 Hours ECE

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Storypark

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Meals provided

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Transport

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details-poi 8 Queen Street, Waitara, 4320

details-phone 06 777 1131

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details-clock 8:30am - 3:30pm Monday to Friday

Busy Bees Waitara location in maps
Poipoia te kākano kia puawai
Nurture the seed and it will blossom

- He whakatauki

Growing young minds requires special moments of wonder and awe. Busy Bees Waitara has a play-based approach to learning, allowing children time and space to independently explore and seek understanding of the world around them. As a whānau, we support your child’s journey and individual stage of development, encouraging them to reach their full potential. We look forward to supporting you and your child through this journey. Come along to see us in the centre or call any time.

Learn and Play at Busy Bees Waitara
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He Taiao – Our Environment

Busy Bees Waitara is a combined mixed age space for tamariki 2 years to school age. We believe in tuakana-teina relationships, where younger children learn from interacting with older more capable peers. The mauri (life force) of our centre supports rich language and gives children time and space to be curious, to enquire and make discoveries. Te Ao Māori me ōna tikanga is weaved throughout the teaching and with tamariki, whānau, the team and wider community. This can be visible by whanaungatanga and manaakitanga - nurturing of relationships and looking after people.

We expose children to abundant learning opportunities involving nature, literacy, numeracy, emotional development, confidence-building, social engagement and much more. Tamariki are given opportunities throughout the day to be involved in contributing to the curriculum, helping to make decisions about what is set up, and sharing their ideas. Teachers work alongside the children to set up an environment which is challenging, provides curiosity and active exploration.

We offer a variety of activities and experiences across the curriculum including water and messy play, science experimenting, art, construction, baking/cooking, bike track (with bikes to suit different ages), a huge sand pit and a variety of climbing equipment.

Nutritious Morning and Afternoon Tea

Nutritious morning tea and afternoon tea are provided daily, with menus thoughtfully crafted to support healthy development and foster good eating habits from an early age.

Tamariki bring their pouaka kai (lunch boxes) every day.

Free Transport Service

We proudly operate our own Busy Bees Waitara centre van, allowing us to help support both new and existing whānau who require assistance with transport to and from the centre, especially from rural areas. We also utilise this awesome resource for excursions out and about in our local community!

Busy Bees Waitara boy playing with seashells
Natural outdoor environment at Busy Bees Waitara
Playing on the playing at Busy Bees Waitara
Water Play at Busy Bees Waitara
Bike Track at Busy Bees Waitara
Indoor Environment at Busy Bees Waitara
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Testimonials

Our daughter loves Busy Bees! She always comes home so happy and telling us all the awesome things she does each day. The staff are all lovely, very welcoming and caring towards us and our daughter which makes us as parents happy and know our daughter is safe and in great hands.
We would definitely recommend busy bees to other families as it’s a great environment and we feel our daughter has thrived so much, her speech has rocketed, and we can have conversations with her now which is awesome!

Parent Feedback 2025

From day one everyone has been so welcoming to both my son and I. He settled in so quickly and absolutely loves going to see all his new friends and teachers.

Parent Feedback 2025

My child is really enjoying his time at Busy Bees Waitara. He gets excited to spend time with his friends and teachers and his independence is growing. The staff pay good attention to the needs of each individual child and are great at communicating with me how my son is progressing. I would recommend this centre to anyone who is looking to expand their child's social skills, learning and confidence.

Parent Feedback 2025

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