Anita has been working in Early Childhood Education for over 20 years now, enjoying opportunities to grow her teaching learning philosophy. She has had experience in all aspects of ECE, working as a teacher, and in leadership and curriculum development. Anita is passionate about supporting teachers in their teaching learning journeys, strengthening their practice and inspiring them to grow as professionals.
Inquiry-based Research
Anita has had the privilege of being both a participant and a facilitator in the ELP professional learning clusters. Being a participant in the infant and toddler cluster in 2005 was a turning point for Anita, leading her on a journey to creating programmes and environments for infants and toddlers. Anita believes that as early childhood educators, we have the opportunity to be innovative thinkers and creators of new ways of supporting learning and development for children. She has facilitated cluster groups, using Inquiry-based Research as a way of strengthening teaching and learning and have enjoyed seeing the shifts in practice and the positive impact this has made on children’s learning.
Curriculum and Assessment
Anita has worked with teams on implementing Te Whāriki into daily practice and bringing it to the forefront in Learning Stories. When we think of Learning Stories as a way of assessment, we are open to seeing children’s learning in a variety of ways, not just a single story. It has been exciting to see teams gaining a understanding of Learning Stories, with a commitment to taking the learning deeper, as well as being intentional in how to further support children’s exploration and learning.
Infant and Toddler Learning and Development
Anita is very passionate about providing our youngest learners with the best start to life and learning. She has worked and led teams in developing programmes designed specifically for infants and toddlers. Anita has been inspired by the work of Magda Gerber and Dr Emmi Pikler, where Care is the Curriculum, and seeing our youngest learners as able to take the lead in their learning and loves how this weaves in beautifully with our national curriculum, Te Whāriki, in particular the principles. At the heart of both is Relationship, working in partnership with child, whānau and teachers, to support learning and development. This is built on the foundation of Respectful and Reflective Practice. Nature and sustainability is important to Anita and she works with teams to create environments and offering children experiences with this in mind.
Teacher Registration Mentoring
Anita had had the privilege of supporting a number of teachers toward full registration, providing advice and guidance. It is inspiring to see teachers grow as reflective practitioners, critical thinkers and advocates for children’s learning and development.
Governance and Management
Anita has helped to set up early childhood centres, including setting up the environment and organising policies and procedures. She has supported centres with strategic and annual planning, and philosophy development.
